Page 128 of Before Dawn

He sighed, leaning in. His voice was quiet, but it hit deep. “I hate that he made you think that’s all you deserve.” His fingers brushed mine, deliberate. “But I’ll always chase you like I never had you, because that’s the love you deserve. One that never gets complacent. One that’s always reaching, always wanting more.”

I swallowed. “Chase me?”

His lips curved slightly as he lifted my hand, pressing a slow kiss to my knuckles. “I’ll never stop trying to win your heart, baby. I’ll alwayswant to impress you, make you smile, surprise you. You deserve more than something easy or expected.” His thumb traced slow circles on my wrist. “You’re worth the effort. You’re worth the chase.”

My heart wasn’t just fluttering. It was in freefall.

“You make me speechless, Mikkel,” I whispered.

And for the first time, I thought… Maybe I wanted to be chased.

Then I blinked, remembering. “What was it you said we’d look at later?”

“Right.” He reached for the bag beside him, unzipping it with a smooth flick. My breath caught as he pulled out the gold necklace I’d admired last night, the diamonds catching the light. Then came the matching bracelets, each one glimmering like scattered stars.

“M-Mikkel,” I stammered, jaw slack.“You got me this?”

“You mentioned it last night,” he said simply. “So I got it this morning.”

My mind reeled. I barely even remember mentioning it.

“You just… went and got it?” My voice was barely above a whisper.

“Yeah,” he said, watching me closely. “I thought it’d make you happy.”

Emotion swelled in my chest, so fast,so intense, that I launched myself into his lap, arms winding around his neck.

“This is… Mikkel, what? This was expensive. The tag said thirty thousand dollars.”

“Sixty-five,” he corrected with a shrug, hand resting on my thigh.

I jerked back, stunned. “Sixty-five thousand dollars?”

His gaze held steady. “It’s not expensive.”

Not expensive.

Was he just casually dropping nearly a hundred grand on jewelry?

I blinked at him, my thoughts a tangled mess—until his hand covered mine, grounding me instantly.

I rolled my eyes, nudging his shoulder. “That’s not the point, Mr. Suarez.”

He laughed, rich and effortless, clearly mirroring his bank account. “The point is, you saw it, you liked it… so now it’s yours.”

I had expensive things, sure. But nothing from someone I was with.

My parents? Of course.

My sister? Definitely.

A man? Never.

“Mikkel, you didn’t have to do this.”

“I wanted to,” he murmured, his eyes glinting with quiet determination. “And I’m not going to apologize for spoiling you.”

Emotion swelled in my chest. Thank you didn’t feel like enough, so instead, I leaned in and kissed him.

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