Page 165 of Sage Haven
It made me want to write my own and become something more.
More than I had ever been in Sanele.
More than I allowed myself to be in Providence.
I was still sitting there when the door creaked open.
I turned, heart skipping, and there he was.
Reich leaned lazily against the bookcase, arms folded across his chest. His expression unreadable, but his eyes—God, his eyes—burned with something that made my pulse trip over itself.
Effortless. Perfect. Dangerous.
“Having fun?” His voice was low, that smirk of his slicing right through my defenses.
I blinked, caught between embarrassment and something warmer.
I glanced at the mess I had made—books scattered like fallen leaves surrounding me like a tornado. Heat crept up my neck.
“Sorry,” I said quickly, fumbling for the closest book. “I didn’t realize how late it had gotten. I just… I got caught up.”
Caught up in the stories.
Caught up in him.
His gaze sharpened. “Sage,” he said slowly, his voice like dark silk. “You don’t have to apologize for that.”
I hesitated.
But he liked order.
I could feel it in the way he carried himself, in every inch of this meticulously crafted space.
I was disrupting it.
Intruding.
“I’m sorry,” I said again, this time softer. “I’ll clean it up.”
I reached for the books again, but before I could move, he was there.
Sudden. Controlled. I barely registered the space between us closing until his hands closed over mine.
Warm. Firm.
Stopping me.
“If you apologize one more time,” his voice was low, rougher now, “we’re going to have a problem.”
His breath ghosted against my ear, sending a shiver straight through me.
And then he pulled me closer.
I inhaled sharply as his hands slid up to cradle my face.
“You’re so beautiful,” he murmured. His voice was a rasp. A confession.
Not playful.
