The world narrowed to the small, charged space between them. Elias's gaze, usually focused on global domination, was locked entirely on her, stripped of artifice and ambition. The man who had walked away was gone; in his place was the desperate father and the remorseful lover.
He had sacrificed everything. The throne, the legacy, the future he was groomed for—all burned for a chance at redemption. He had done the impossible: he had proven he valued them over the Thorne name.
Kaelen felt a devastating tremor of recognition. This was the man she had loved. The one who had always promised her the world, but until now, had never been willing to pay the price.
"You gave it up," Kaelen whispered, the realization stealing her breath. "The Thorne Global chairmanship. You let go of the only thing your father ever valued."
"I let go of the only thing that kept me from you," Elias corrected, his voice a low, gravelly confession. "I spent five years building walls around my empire. You spent five years building walls around your heart. We both failed. Now look at me, Kaelen. I'm empty-handed. I have nothing left to give you but the truth and the promise that I will never leave again."
He moved his hand from her jaw, slowly tracing the line of her cheekbone with his thumb, a feather-light touch that scorched her skin. His scent—musk and expensive cologne, mixed with the faint, comforting scent of the disinfectant from the boys' room—was utterly intoxicating.
"You don't just deserve the truth, Elias," Kaelen said, her voice shaking with the effort of holding back years of bottled-up emotion. "You deserve the pain you caused. You deserve to see what you missed. But the boys don't. And they need their father."
She was conceding the parental battle. She was admitting his worth.
"And what about you?" Elias pressed, his eyes dark, relentless. "What do you need, Kaelen? Because I need you. I need the woman who fought me, who ran from me, who named my sons after her love and her hate. I need the woman who knows me better than I know myself."
He leaned closer, the proximity shattering the professional distance. Kaelen could feel the heat radiating from his body, the tension vibrating between them—a silent, physical argument demanding to be settled.
"I need you to stop making me look at the ghost of what we were," she pleaded, her eyes shining with unshed tears.
"Then look at me now," Elias commanded, his voice dropping to a near-silent plea. "Look at the man who is here, who is choosing you. Tear down the last wall, Kaelen. Please."
His face was inches from hers. The air left Kaelen's lungs in a silent whoosh. Five years of resentment, five years of longing, five years of anger, and five years of burying the deepest love she had ever known, all crashed into this single, potent moment. The dam finally broke.
She reached up, her hand closing around the lapel of his expensive jacket, and pulled him the final inch.
Their kiss was not gentle. It was a collision of desperate need and long-suppressed passion. It was raw, demanding, and overwhelming. The bitter taste of five years of separation mingled with the familiar, intoxicating flavor of him. Elias's control snapped, his arms wrapping around her waist, pulling her flush against his body with a groan that seemed to come from his soul.
Kaelen responded with equal fervor, her hands burying themselves in his thick, dark hair. This wasn't about the children; this was about the inescapable, agonizing bond between them. She was kissing the man who had destroyed her, and simultaneously, the man who had saved her.
They broke apart moments later, both breathing hard, both trembling. The silence that followed was filled only by the ragged sound of their breaths.
Elias rested his forehead against hers, his voice thick with emotion. "You're still mine, Kaelen. After all this time. You're still mine."
"We're co-parents, Elias," she whispered, clinging to the last shred of rational defense, even as her heart hammered against her ribs. "We are only co-parents."
"We are unfinished," Elias corrected, drawing back just enough to look at her, his lips still slightly swollen from the kiss. "And now that I have burned everything down, we are starting over."
He took her hand, his thumb tracing the soft skin of her palm. "I'm going to find us a neutral home. One that belongs to neither Rhys nor the Thorne legacy. We need to tell Silas and Seth the truth. Together. But first, there is one last piece of the past I need to handle."
He looked at her, his gaze possessive and determined. "I need to talk to Rhys. The arrangement with you is over. I need to handle the fallout of my choice."