Beneath his wrath

the night woul

ed he would

e trained to look elegant even when she felt like bolting. Her dress, a deep sapphire column of satin, clung to her body like liquid regret. She had

they stepped in earlier. "You're still a Vance. N

med, had a cruel

the moment West

suit sculpted to his frame with the precision of sin. His dark hair was slicked back from a chiseled face that had aged into something sharper, colder, yet devastating

't seen

ld have walk

egs would

e memories she'd spent five years burying under duty and desperati

eyes

lance. It was

of crystal dulled. Even the music stalled at least to her ears. All she could h

hing passed through his expression, a muscle tightening at the

rted w

Her pulse throbbed in her throat. She counted her steps toward the back of the ballroom,

hear his steps, but she felt

ng alr

biting cut through he

stop

meet his, a cool veneer settling acro

e said, her voice crisp, steady, a mira

into a smile, not quite.

Standing there in that dress,

, ignoring the heat that flared

iefly, before meeting he

e, but sharp enough. Her lips parted with

Don't turn this into

ere. I'm here. And I'd say the ten

ght and hollow. "You've al

replied. "Tell me, how long did you plan to sta

e between them, lowering her voice. "I came

w lifting. "You didn't

d. That stung s

said slowly,

ly. A flicker. Something unspoken pass

uietly. "You walked

The pain. The accusations. The night she'd left

gers curled i

he asked, softer thi

e said without blinking. "Because

esty wa

g have y

pped knowing

Cryptic. Full of meaning

ind them, laughing

reath catching. "Then I ma

is voice brushing her ear li

nk I s

t wasn't a command. It wasn't even

eyes dark, her composur

" she

dn't

hair from her shoulder. The contact was barely there

ice velvet over glass, "we

his eyes... they still burned like they once had. She hated

ller than intended. "Y

eal one. Dangerous.

" he said, "I

at, the room was

the ballroom. Golden sconces lit the space in low, romantic hues, casting long shadows across Georgia'

ok back. She

d sure, like a predator who alre

y estate where moonlight was allowed to rule the room. Georgia's hand hover

d wrought iron, its domed ceiling glittering with stars and the reflection of a city that never forgave. Potted palms arched t

eels soft against the mosaic tiles,

d the door with a soft click

atic exits," Weston said, voic

And you always loved cha

dn't

n anything, ma

regrets and brutal realities of scraping together dignity

folding across her chest, the silk of

said. "You've always been pred

you've always been cru

orgia." His voice dr