Chapter 118
The silence didn't hold for long, but Ariana didn't pull her hand away even when everything in her body told her to. Her fingers stayed locked around Kael's, tight enough to feel the tension running through him, like something inside him was shifting in ways she couldn't see but couldn't ignore. "Kael," she said again, quieter this time, forcing her voice to stay steady even as her chest tightened. "Look at me."
He was already looking at her, and that was what made it worse. There was no delay, no adjustment, no flicker of recognition settling into place. His gaze stayed fixed on hers, steady in a way that felt wrong, like he hadn't just come back, like he hadn't been gone at all. Ariana held his eyes anyway, refusing to look away even as something in her instincts pushed at her to step back.
"Say my name," she said.
His fingers tightened slightly around hers before he answered, the movement controlled but just a fraction too precise. "Ariana."
