Night fell like a secret over the mansion.
Elara couldn't sleep.
Not after Celeste.
Not after the cold warning in her voice.
She sat by the window, knees pulled to her chest, staring at the garden lights flickering below like distant stars.
A soft knock pulled her out of her thoughts.
"Come in," she whispered.
The door opened.
Dominic.
He didn't wear a suit this time.
Just a dark shirt, sleeves rolled up, hair slightly loosened — like the night had stripped away some of his armor.
"You should be sleeping," he said.
"So should you," she replied.
A faint, unreadable curve touched his lips.
He walked closer, stopping a respectful distance away.
"You're afraid," he said.
"A little."
Silence sat between them.
Then she asked, "Why does your sister hate you?"
His hands clenched slightly at his sides.
"She doesn't hate me," he said.
"She hates that I survived."
That stopped her heart for a second.
"You survived what?"
His eyes turned dark.
"Her."
A storm lived there.
He leaned back against the wall, staring not at her — but through time.
"Celeste burned this family from the inside years ago," he said quietly. "She lied. Manipulated. Destroyed everything that tried to be soft."
He closed his eyes briefly.
"I learned to be worse than her."
Elara stood slowly and walked closer.
She paused — giving him the chance to stop her.
He didn't.
"You're not worse," she said gently.
He looked at her.
"You don't know what I'm capable of."
She lifted her hand slowly, hesitated… and then placed it over his clenched fist.
It wasn't bold.
It wasn't reckless.
It was soft.
A question.
He didn't pull away.
His breath changed.
Not hunger.
Not danger.
Emotion.
"You think I'm a good man?" he asked.
She looked into his eyes.
"I think you're a hurt one."
Silence.
Her hand lingered for a heartbeat too long.
Then she pulled back.
He straightened.
"Sleep," he said rougher than before.
She nodded.
Before he left, he paused at the door.
"If she comes near you again…"
His voice dropped.
"…tell me. Immediately."
The door closed.
Elara pressed her fingers against her lips.
Her heart felt loud.
What terrified her most wasn't Celeste…
It was how safe she felt with the man everyone else feared.