Page 50 of Bitten, Marked, Obsessed

“And he ran.”

I nod slowly, jaw tight. “I’m sorry.”

She shrugs, but it’s not casual. It’s the kind of shrug that holds everything she can’t say.

“I thought maybe it’d feel worse,” she admits. “Losing him. But it just feels… quiet. Like the part of me that was holding on to that world finally let go.”

I watch her, the slope of her jaw, the soft tremble of her hands, the shadows under her eyes.

“I don’t want you to regret last night,” I say, voice low. “But I’ll understand if you do.”

She finally looks at me. Her eyes are glassy but hard. “I don’t know what to regret. I don’t even know what last nightwas.”

“I do,” I say. “But that doesn’t mean you have to feel the same.”

Her breath catches.

“I want to hate you for it,” she whispers. “For making it harder. For getting under my skin when I’m already barely holding on.”

I nod. “Go ahead. Hate me.”

“I can’t.”

We sit in silence again. The river speaks for both of us, rushing and relentless.

“You’re not the reason he left,” she says after a beat. “But you’re the reason I didn’t fall apart after he did.”

That? That wrecks me a little.

“I feel like I’m two people,” she says. “One who wants to run from this. From you. And one who wants to crawl into your chest and stay there until the world burns.”

My voice is rough when I speak. “Welcome to being fated.”

She doesn't ask what I mean, just leans into me. Not all the way. Just enough that her shoulder brushes mine. And it feels likehome.

“I’m not ready,” she says.

“I know.”

“But I don’t want to lose this either.”

“You won’t.”

She pulls her knees tighter to her chest. “So what now?”

I stare across the river, the mist curling low over the water like it’s hiding something we’re not ready to face.

“Now,” I say, “I find your father. See if it’s safe. If he’s cleared the trail.”

Her head snaps up. “You’re leaving?”

“Not for long.”

She looks away, jaw clenched. “You shouldn’t go alone.”

“I have to. If they flagged you, they’ll be watching for two. I move better solo.”

“You think they’re still after me?”

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