The silence of the room was heavy, broken only by the soft rhythm of her breathing. She lay there, completely unaware of his presence.

As Hunter stood by the edge, looking down at her sleeping form, a rush of emotions poured through him. He knew, without any doubt, in that very instant, that she was his everything. His home. His beginning and end. His torment and his salvation.

He had always known it. Somewhere deep down, he had always known it—that she wasn’t just some fleeting desire or ...