The air felt… wrong.
Heavy.
Like the room had shrunk around them.
Sophia didn't move. Couldn't.
Luca stood near the door, unmoving, his presence filling every corner of the space as if he owned even the air she breathed. His gaze was fixed on her—steady, unapologetic, and far too intense.
It made her skin prickle.
"You shouldn't be here," she said softly, her voice betraying just a hint of unease.
Silence.
Then—
"I could say the same," Luca replied.
His voice was low. Controlled.
Too controlled.
Sophia swallowed, her fingers instinctively gripping the fabric of her dress. "This is my room."
A pause.
Then he took a step forward.
Slow. Measured.
Dangerous.
"I know," he said.
Her breath caught.
The distance between them shortened—not enough to touch, but enough that she could feel him. His presence. His heat. His attention.
It was suffocating.
"I didn't realize I needed permission to exist in this house," she said, trying to steady her voice, trying to reclaim something—anything—of herself.
Something flickered in his eyes.
Not anger.
Something sharper.
"You don't," he said. "But you should know where you stand."
The words landed heavier than they should have.
Sophia lifted her chin slightly. "And where exactly is that?"
Another step.
Now he was close enough that she had to tilt her head back to meet his gaze.
"You're asking questions you don't want answers to."
Her pulse quickened.
"No," she said quietly. "I'm asking because I deserve to know."
That did something.
Something subtle—but real.
Luca's jaw tightened almost imperceptibly. His gaze dropped for a fraction of a second—then returned to her face, darker this time.
"You've changed," he said.
It wasn't a compliment.
It wasn't criticism either.
It was… an observation.
Sophia frowned slightly. Change is a constant. Besides, it's been years"
"I see."
His voice dropped lower.
Her breath hitched.
There was something in the way he said it—something that made heat creep up her neck, something that made her suddenly aware of everything: the closeness, the silence, the way his eyes weren't leaving her.
It wasn't how he used to look at her.
Before… he barely looked at her at all.
Now?
It felt like he saw too much.
"You haven't changed," she said quickly, trying to push the tension away. "You're still…"
She hesitated.
His brow lifted slightly. "Still what?"
Her lips parted before she could stop herself.
"Cold."
Silence.
A dangerous kind of silence.
Then—
A faint exhale left him. Not quite a laugh. Not quite irritation.
"Is that what you think?"
"It's what I remember."
Another step.
Now there was nowhere for her to go. The edge of the bed pressed lightly behind her legs.
"You remember very little," Luca said quietly.
Her heart was racing now. Loud. Unsteady.
"Then remind me," she shot back, surprising even herself.
That did it.
Something shifted in his expression—subtle, but unmistakable.
Interest.
Real, dangerous interest.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then Luca leaned in—just enough to blur the line between space and proximity. Not touching. .
But close enough that she felt it.
"Be careful what you ask for, Sophia. Or would you want me to remind you what happens to bad girls?"
Her name rolled off his tongue slowly, deliberately—like he was testing it.
Or claiming it.
Her breath caught.
"That was a mistake and you know it, you're my brother and I'm your little sister " she whispered reminding him.
His eyes darkened.
"Really now."
Two words.
But they carried weight.
Too much weight.
Sophia stepped back instinctively, breaking the tension just enough to breathe again.
"You should go," she said, softer this time—not defensive, not sharp. Just… overwhelmed.
Luca didn't move immediately.
He studied her for a long second, his gaze lingering in a way that made her chest tighten all over again.
Like he was memorizing her.
Or deciding something.
Then, finally, he straightened.
The distance returned.
The air shifted back.
But not completely.
"Lock your door," he said calmly.
Her brows furrowed slightly. "Why?"
A pause.
Then—
"Because not everything in this house is as safe as you think."
And with that, he turned and walked out.
Leaving behind silence.
And a storm she didn't understand.