-Kyle Vale:
The words he had just said were still hanging in the air between us.
Heavy.
Unavoidable.
My face was still burning, but now it wasn't just embarrassment anymore. It was something sharper underneath it—something that had been sitting in my chest for so long it almost felt unreal to finally let it out.
This was it.
There wasn't going to be a better moment.
Not with him this close.
Not after everything that just happened.
Not after a whole year of swallowing it down every time I looked at him and told myself to stay quiet, to stay normal, to not ruin whatever fragile balance existed between us.
Caspian was still holding my arms.
Not tightly now.
But firmly enough that I couldn't just walk away even if I wanted to.
His eyes were still on me, waiting. Expecting an answer. Still sharp, still searching, still trying to understand something I don't think he was prepared to hear.
And for once—
I didn't back down.
