The green diamond on Celestine's finger flared the instant I flipped the switch, a single spark of cold fire in the light.
My couch. My apartment. The door I'd left locked.
She sat like the room belonged to her—brown hair swept back tight, head tilted just enough to bare the long line of her throat. Eyes closed. Not sleeping. Waiting. The black dress clung to every curve, one leg crossed over the other, perfectly motionless in the shadows she'd been breathing since she'd slipped inside.
I froze in the doorway, muscles locked tight, heart hammering once against my ribs before I forced it down.
She'd picked the lock. Or walked through the wall. Either way, she'd been sitting here in the dark, waiting for me.
"So you stayed another night," I said, voice low.
Her eyes opened slowly, heavy-lidded. She uncrossed her legs with deliberate, liquid grace and rose. "Yeah."
"Didn't expect that." I crossed the room, boots nearly silent on the floor, stopping just short of arm's reach.
