Page 259 of Bound By Crimson
“Lyric?”
A whisper.
A real voice.
Grayson.
She pressed her forehead against the cold stone.
“Yeah… I’m here.”
There was a pause.
Then he asked, “Are you ready? Do you still want this? I didn’t hear from you yesterday. I was getting worried.”
“Yeah. I still want this… more than ever.”
The top of a ladder appeared over the edge of the wall.
She heard it scrape against the stone as he adjusted it, then the sounds of climbing.
Then—she saw him.
Her breath caught.
Grayson.
Tall, broad-shouldered. Dark-blond hair tousled from the wind. A slight stubble along his jaw.
His eyes were blue and searching—gentle, but alert.
He looked like someone who could either catch her or carry her.
He’s real.
He looked down at her and his face shifted—just slightly.
A softness. A breath.
Like he’d just exhaled after holding it too long.
“You’re… you’re even more beautiful than I imagined.”
She swallowed.
Don’t cry.
“Stand back a bit,” he said. “I’m going to lower the second ladder.”
She stepped away, holding Noah tighter.
Her hair was tangled. Her clothes were smudged. She felt like a fugitive clawing her way to freedom.
But she didn’t care.
Not now.
Grayson dropped the second ladder gently on her side of the wall. It hit the ground with a soft thunk.
