Page 37 of Bound By Crimson
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As they turned toward the shop, Thomas must have sent Kai a message immediately.
Her phone buzzed.
Kai:
Thomas told me what happened. I’m flying home. I already warned him to stay away from you. No one takes what’s mine.
And Lyric—the moment we locked eyes; it was already decided. You are mine.
Her breath caught with a flicker of panic.
She typed quickly:No, please don’t. It’s handled. You have nothing to worry about. I’m not interested in Eric. It’s over.
The screen remained silent.
No reply.
For the first time, the silence didn’t scare her. Her stomach fluttered with a thrill she couldn’t deny—but under it, a faint ripple of fear. He would always protect her. But what if his protectiveness had no limits? And what if she was already in too deep to pull back?
Chapter Eleven
The Girl in the Mirror
Two days.
That’s how long it had been since Lyric last heard from Kai.
She told herself not to panic. Not to spiral. But the silence was eating at her.
She’d sent two texts. Short. Careful.
Thinking of you.
Everything’s fine here.
No reply.
Thomas still arrived each morning, waiting at the curb with the quiet efficiency she’d come to expect. He took her to work. Picked her up after the shop closed. Dropped her at the cemetery when requested. But even Thomas had grown more reserved. Polite. Professional.
Like he knew something she didn’t.
Her phone never left her side. Each time it buzzed, her heart leapt—only to sink deeper with every message that wasn’t from Kai.
The distance felt different now. Heavier.
It wasn’t just the ache of missing him.
It was fear.
Had she pushed too hard? Had telling him not to come back angered him?
Or worse… had she disappointed him?
By the second night, sleep became impossible. She sat at the kitchen table long after midnight, fingers tracing the rim of a cold mug, heart straining toward a man who felt impossibly far away.
She lit a single candle on the kitchen counter—a scent like vanilla and amber—and let the smoke curl through the room.
