The silence was suffocating.Justina froze, her body tangled in the sheets, her mind screaming at the absurdity of the moment. Only minutes ago, she had been pinned beneath Carson, lost in the heat of a storm she swore she’d never surrender to. Now, a child stood in the doorway, his gray eyes wide, clutching a stuffed bear like a shield.

Carson moved first. His hand tightened briefly on hers as an unspoken warning to stay silent before he rose from the bed, pulling his discarded shirt over his ...