Stop loving him

Chapter 63: Stop Loving Him

He took a slow step toward her, eyes narrowing slightly, his voice edged with something brittle.

"Is it him? Is it King Darius?"

Odi's breath caught. Her gaze drifted to the trees, the sky, the soil—anywhere but his eyes.

She didn't answer.

That silence was louder than any yes could have been.

Ben's jaw tightened. His shoulders rose instinctively, like a man bracing for a blow he'd seen coming but still hoped to dodge.

"After everything he's done?" he asked, not with anger, but with hurt laced so deep it cracked at the edges.

Odi didn't look back.

The forest stood still again, windless and watching.

Not the kind of quiet that brought peace—but the kind that arrived after something sacred was broken.

Ben took a breath. He knew it wasn't his place to demand her heart—but it still stung to see it willingly laid at the feet of the man who had treated it so carelessly.