For a long moment, neither of them moved. The storm outside cracked softly, flashes of white light slipping through the lattice screens, painting their faces in fleeting silver.
Yueshuang lay still, listening to the rhythm of his breathing, steady, but weighted with the exhaustion of restraint. His arm remained around her, protective, possessive, and achingly familiar. Yet beneath that warmth, she felt the sharp, inescapable truth, this bond was both her sanctuary and her cage.
Her eyes lifted, tracing the faint glow of lamplight across his jaw, the steady rise and fall of his chest. Why does my heart ache like this? she thought bitterly. He isn't mine… and yet I am bound to him deeper than vows or blood.
