Yvette’s POV
The next morning...
I woke up to silence. Not the peaceful kind, but the heavy kind that sat on your chest.
The kind that made you feel like sothing was watching you.
My head throbbed fiercely as my lashes fluttered open slowly, and the first thing I saw was the strange ceiling.
Oh God, not again.
My breath caught, just as the mories rushed back in fragnts.
The club.
The drink.
Ryan.
Cassian—
My body tensed, and I pushed myself up slightly, only for my head to spin. I instinctively reached for sothing.
"Careful."
That voice.
Low and controlled... Too close.
I froze, then slowly turned my head.
Cassian was sitting beside the bed. He was watching , his intense gaze dissecting as if he could see right through .
He didn’t speak; he just kept watching, making squirm.
Sothing told he had been here for a while.
"How long have you been there?" I asked, my voice rough.
"Long enough."
My fingers tightened slightly against the sheets.
Sothing wasn’t right.
Why was he looking at like that? Did sothing happen between us? Did I say sothing?
The look in his eyes wasn’t soft... it burned, not with desire, but with sothing else.
It moved slowly on my face, pausing at my lips. Like he was replaying sothing...
"Who is Nathan?"
My heart stopped. For a second, I forgot how to breathe.
How did Cassian find out about Nathan?
"I... don’t know what you’re talking about," I said, acting dumb.
His eyes darkened.
"Think carefully before you lie to ."
My throat tightened.
Damn it. Did I talk about Nathan when I was out of it?
"I didn’t—"
"You did."
He leaned forward slightly, resting his forearms on his knees, his presence pressing into without even touching .
"You called his na," he continued, his voice quieter now. "You held onto like I was him."
My chest felt tight.
Shit.
I forced a small frown. "You’re imagining things."
That was my first mistake—a very big one.
"I don’t know any Nathan."
That was the second mistake, because the next second—Cassian moved.
His movent was fast.
One hand wrapped around my ankle, dragging down the bed slightly until I was closer to him.
A soft gasp escaped .
He placed his hands beside my head, his large body hovering above mine.
"Do I look like I imagine things?" he asked, his breath against my lips, taking my hands and pinning them above my head.
My pulse spiked.
His grip wasn’t painful, but it wasn’t gentle either. It was controlled and deliberate.
"But I don’t know any Nathan," I said, trying to keep my voice steady.
Silence.
His one hand ca to the side of my face, his thumb brushing lightly against my cheek.
His movents were slow...as if he were absent-minded. But no less dangerous.
"Interesting," he murmured.
My breath hitched. He didn’t sound angry, but it felt worse.
"You don’t know him..." he repeated softly. "But you begged him not to leave you."
My chest tightened painfully, and I looked away.
That was all the confirmation he needed. His grip tightened slightly.
"Look at ."
I didn’t... I couldn’t...
If I tell him, everything collapses.
But he was Cassian, a man used to control because in the next second, his hand moved and grabbed my chin, his hold firm and unyielding.
He turned my face back toward him.
Our eyes locked.
"You don’t get to shut out." He said it in the sa controlled voice, no shouting, no anger, but that was what scared even more.
There was sothing dark beneath all that restraint.
"Was he your lover?" he asked.
My brows furrowed.
What?
"No!" I answered, my voice too fast, too sharp.
His eyes narrowed.
"Then what is he?" he pressed.
I swallowed.
Silence stretched between us.
Silence so thick that I could feel it slipping... The control... The lies... My past.
"I said I don’t know him," I repeated.
His jaw tightened.
For a mont, I thought he’d push further... that he’d finally snap and show his rage.
Maybe then, I could use that as an outlet to vent and then change the subject.
But then, he let go.
He stood up, creating distance between us. Too much distance.
And sohow... That felt worse.
"Fine," he said, his tone cold and final.
"I’ll find out myself."
My heart dropped.
No... That was worse... Much worse.
"Cassian..."
He stopped at the door, but he didn’t turn.
"If I find out you’re lying to ..." he said quietly, "you won’t like what happens next."
The door opened and then closed.
And just like that—
The room felt colder.
~~~♧♧♧~~~
I didn’t know how long I stayed in the room after Cassian left. But I must be coming down with sothing because I felt sick.
None of my ideas seed to be the right solution to Cassian knowing about Nathan.
After denying it so vehently, what excuse could I possibly give?
But I couldn’t keep myself locked up all day in this room. I needed to return to the Quinn estate.
Estelle must be worried sick.
I slowly got out of bed and made my way into the en-suite bathroom.
I slowly shed the silk pyjamas off my skin.
Co to think of it, did Cassian help change out of my clothes?
The thought of Cassian changing my clothes should have had blushing and mortified by now, but I couldn’t help the ache that settled after.
The thought that all the progress I had made with Cassian would reset to square one felt uncomfortable.
I let the hot water fall on my skin, welcoming the burn, and let myself believe nothing was broken.
I let myself believe that sothing real could blossom between Cassian and .
Maybe if I was the real Isabelle.
If I was the girl who grew up in the Quinn estate.
If I didn’t have to lie...
If I didn’t have to wear a mask, maybe... Just maybe.
He could be mine.
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