Aria followed Caspian into the safehouse, her footsteps echoing softly against polished concrete floors. The space was modern, dimly lit, and far too quiet like a place where secrets lived in the walls.
Geoffrey locked the door behind them, his expression unreadable.
"Perimeter secured."
"Good," Caspian said, his voice low. "Give us a minute."
Geoffrey nodded once and disappeared into the hallway.
Now it was just the two of them.
Aria stepped farther inside, adrenaline still swimming in her veins. "I don't need a babysitter," she muttered, looking anywhere but at him.
Caspian removed his jacket, tossing it onto the back of a chair. The fabric landed with the sharp, expensive sound of power.
He took a slow step toward her.
"That's not what this is," he said softly.
"Then what is it?" she whispered.
He stopped just close enough that she had to tilt her chin up to hold his gaze.
Close enough that she felt the heat of his body, the quiet force of him.
For a moment, he said nothing.
Just studied her like she was a puzzle he couldn't decide whether to solve or protect.
"You almost died tonight," he said.
"So did you," she shot back.
"That doesn't matter."
"It does to me."
Silence thickened between them.
Aria's mouth went dry.
She hadn't meant to say that. She hadn't meant any of this — the fear, the longing, the way her body reacted around him like it recognized him before her mind could catch up.
His eyes softened just for a heartbeat. Like her words hit a part of him he tried to keep locked away.
"Aria," he said quietly, "you don't get it. People like me… we don't get saved. We don't get protected. We don't matter."
She stepped toward him before she even thought about it, her voice trembling.
"You matter to someone."
A faint, broken sound left his throat — half scoff, half disbelief.
"To who?"
Aria swallowed. Hard.
She didn't say it aloud, but the truth flashed between them anyway.
To me.
Caspian's breath hitched.
He reached up like he was going to touch her face—then stopped just short.
Fingers hovering near her cheekbone, trembling with restraint.
"This is a bad idea," he said.
"Then stop," she whispered.
He didn't move.
She didn't either.
The air crackled.
Her pulse thundered.
His eyes burned into hers like he was already losing a battle he'd fought for years.
Then—
BEEP-BEEP-BEEP.
A loud alarm blared through the safehouse.
Caspian's hand dropped instantly. His entire body changed from vulnerable man to lethal protector in a single heartbeat.
Geoffrey's voice boomed down the hallway.
"Cas! We've got movement outside!"
Aria stiffened. "Oh my God"
Caspian grabbed her arm, anchoring her. "Stay behind me. No matter what."
His voice was steel again.
Cold. Deadly. Commanding.
And yet… the way he positioned himself between her and the danger told her everything she needed to know:
He'd bleed before he let anyone touch her.
Even if he'd never admit why.