Chapter 56: Shadows and Secrets

Shadows and Secrets

The warmth of Alexander's breath ghosted over Aria's lips, his golden eyes locked onto hers. The world around them had faded—the looming war, the whispers in the dark, the eerie laughter that still lingered in the back of her mind.

All that remained was this moment.

Her pulse pounded, her breath hitching as his fingers lightly brushed against her arm. His touch was barely there, but it sent a rush of heat through her veins.

Aria wasn't sure what this was between them, what it would become. The bond between them burned like a live wire, untamed, unrelenting. But it wasn't just the pull of fate that made her heart race—it was him. The way he looked at her, as if she was both his salvation and his undoing.

Alexander's hand slid to the side of her face, his touch gentle despite the storm raging behind his golden gaze.

"You're shaking," he murmured.

She hadn't even noticed.

She swallowed hard. "It's… a lot."