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Horace stepped into the room just after Elizabeth left, his body slick with sweat, his skin gleaming like molten gold.
Ariel forgot how to speak.
For a moment, she could only stare—as if something divine had walked in wearing his face.
A slow smirk tugged at Horace's lips when he caught her gaze.
"Too obsessed with my body, my love?"
Ariel tilted her head slightly, her lips curling.
"Obsessed?" she echoed softly. "That would be an understatement."
His brow lifted, amused.
She stepped closer, her fingers grazing his torso—slow and deliberate.
"Can I tell you something?"
His expression softened instantly.
"Anything, my love."
"I want Knox to stay with us."
"Knox? You don't want him to leave again? Why?"
Ariel inhaled slowly, steadying herself.
"When my mother died… she didn't leave a body." Her voice dropped. "She vanished. Like smoke."
Silence stretched between them.
