Jake’s POV

She’s close enough now that I can feel the heat coming off her skin, and I still haven’t touched her.

Every instinct I have is screaming at me to close the distance. To pull her in. To make sure she’s real and solid and not just something my bond-starved mind conjured up to survive the last eight months. But she’s standing right there, close enough to touch, and she stayed. That matters.

My hands are shaking, so I shove them into the pockets of my jeans before she can see. ...