Elias Jung entered the apartment slowly, his hand lingering on the doorknob longer than it should have. He had spent half the night outside, walking aimlessly, replaying every word Melanie had said to him and measuring it against the years he had already lived. At first, he had resisted the thought, denying it, but the more he turned it over in his mind, the clearer it became.
He came to a shocking realization about himself-that he was willing to take this risk. That he wanted Cadence to look at him not only with trust or dependence but with desire. That he wanted to be seen as more than a doctor and caretaker, more than the shadow that followed him through every violent storm.
