I blinked a few times, shaking off the lingering haze clouding my thoughts. My vision cleared, and I found Hadrian’s face devoid of expression, though the inner circle of his gray pupils pulsed with flickers of crimson.

Is he angry with me? I wondered, attempting to decipher his impassive demeanor.

My gaze wandered, landing on a book lying open on the nightstand beside the bed—definitely not mine. It had to be Hadrian’s.

Was he reading it here? Questions swirled in my still-waking ...