The days blurred together after that meeting. Work, sleep, repeat. I buried myself in deadlines and responsibilities, chasing exhaustion like it could numb the part of me that kept replaying his voice.
And for a while, it worked. Almost.
But then Elijah had to go and ruin it.
"Family dinner," he'd announced earlier in the week, tone cheerful and final. "You, me, Kairo. Just the three of us. It's been too long since we've had a night without contracts between us."
I'd tried to argue, to point out how busy the office was, how late I'd be working, how unnecessary it was. Elijah had just smirked. "You can't run from your brother, Lyra."
If only he knew who I was really running from.
Now I stood in front of the mirror in my room, smoothing down the simple black dress I'd pulled from the back of my closet. Elegant but not flashy. Safe. Neutral. My hair was pinned in place, my makeup light. I told myself I was dressed for dinner, not for him.
Still, as I slipped into my heels and grabbed my purse, I couldn't ignore the nervous flutter low in my stomach.
The restaurant Elijah had chosen was warm and intimate, all soft lighting and low voices. When I walked in, I spotted him immediately—already waving me over from the corner table. And sitting across from him, of course, was Kairo.
He looked like he belonged there, as though the dim light had been designed to cut along the sharp planes of his face, to make him appear both untouchable and far too tempting.
His gaze flicked up as I approached. For a heartbeat, neither of us spoke.
"Finally," Elijah grinned, standing to pull me into a hug. "I was starting to think you'd ditch us."
I forced a smile, sliding into the chair beside him. My brother's warmth filled the space, his easy chatter wrapping around the table like it always did. But across from me, silent and watchful, Kairo was the storm Elijah never noticed.
I tried to keep my eyes on the menu, to listen to Elijah's stories about work, to nod and laugh at the right places. But every time I glanced up—every single time—I found Kairo already looking at me.
Not smiling. Not speaking. Just watching.
And with every passing second, the room seemed smaller.