Chapter Fourteen – The Heart's Betrayal
The weeks with William were soft and golden, filled with small kindnesses and words that should have kept her steady. But all it took was one look from Stephen to shake her entire foundation.
It happened in the library on a Tuesday afternoon. Eliana was buried in notes, a pencil tucked behind her ear, when she felt eyes on her. She glanced up—and there he was. Stephen.
He leaned against the shelf, casual, but his smile was sharper than any blade.
"Hardworking as always," he teased, his voice low enough that it curled around her like smoke.
Eliana blinked, startled. "I—uh, yes. Exams are coming up."
He stepped closer, plucking the pencil from her ear and twirling it between his fingers. "You're always so serious. Don't you ever get tired of being perfect?"
Her pulse jumped. "I'm not perfect."
"Exactly," he said, his eyes glinting. "That's why I notice you. You're real, Eliana."
She swallowed hard. Her heart betrayed her, leaping toward him, while her mind screamed William.
---
Stephen didn't stop there.
The next day, she found a note slipped into her textbook: Meet me after class. Rooftop.
She shouldn't have gone. Every bone in her body knew it. But when the lecture ended, her feet carried her up the stairs anyway.
Stephen was waiting, leaning against the ledge as the wind ruffled his hair. The city stretched behind him, vast and alive.
When she approached, he smiled like he'd been expecting her all along. "I knew you'd come."
Eliana crossed her arms, trying to steady herself. "You shouldn't be doing this. I'm with William."
He moved closer, the distance shrinking until she could feel the heat of him. "William's safe. Steady. Predictable. But tell me, Ellie…" His voice dropped, dark and intoxicating. "…does he make your heart race the way I do?"
Her breath caught.
Stephen's fingers brushed against hers, feather-light, but the spark that leapt through her veins was undeniable.
"Say the word," he whispered, "and I'll stop. But I see it in your eyes—you feel this too."
Eliana's chest tightened. She wanted to deny it, to push him away. But her silence gave her away.
---
Days turned into a dangerous rhythm. William still showered her with love, his devotion steady and unwavering. But Stephen appeared in the in-between moments—walking her to class, sending her cryptic texts late at night, making her laugh when she least expected it.
It was like living two lives.
One was warm and safe, built of promises and gentle words.
The other was fire and chaos, thrilling and impossible to control.
And Eliana was caught in the middle, torn apart by desire and guilt.
---
One evening, it all came to a head. She was leaving the art studio, the smell of paint clinging to her clothes, when she found Stephen waiting outside.
"You shouldn't be here," she whispered, glancing around nervously.
He ignored her words, stepping close enough that her back pressed against the wall. His gaze burned into hers, raw and unguarded.
"I can't stop thinking about you," he confessed, voice low and rough. "Every time I see you with him, it feels like I'm losing something I never even had."
Her chest heaved. "Stephen…"
"I know you're his," he said, his hand brushing against her cheek. "But tell me I can't kiss you. Tell me to walk away, and I will."
Eliana's breath hitched. Her mind screamed No. Her lips whispered silence.
Stephen leaned in, his forehead resting against hers. "I would burn down the world for one chance with you."
Her heart shattered under the weight of it. And before she could think, before she could stop herself, she closed the distance.
His kiss was everything William's wasn't—wild, consuming, dangerous. And in that moment, she knew she had crossed a line she could never erase.
---
When she stumbled back to her dorm later, lips swollen, heart racing, guilt consumed her. William's texts lit up her phone: Goodnight, my love. Sweet dreams.
Her hands trembled as she read the words.
Because her sweet dreams were no longer William's.
They belonged to Stephen.