Kaelen’s fingers tightened around Selene’s wrist.

She turned sharply to face him, her breath shallow, her heart thundering against her chest. The silence between them stretched painfully, broken only by the sound of their uneven breaths.

“Ithink I love you,” he spoke, finally breaking the silence, his voice rough and low, as if the words were burning in his throat.

Selene froze. For a moment, everything around her seemed to fade, the flickering candles, the cold air, even the ache in ...