It wasn't romantic, not exactly—but it was intimate in a way that transcended simple physical attraction. It was connection, recognition, two people who'd chosen to stand together against impossible odds.
"I'm scared," she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Not of dying—I made peace with that possibility when I ran from El'ran. But of failing. Of my choice destroying you, my father, my entire clan."
"Then I won't fail," Jorghan said, squeezing her hand.
She laughed, the sound slightly shaky. "You make it sound so simple."
"The plan is simple. Execution is the hard part." He turned to look at her properly, this woman who'd upended her entire life and bound it to his with a lie that might save them or doom them both.
"But I've survived impossible situations before. I'll survive this one too."
"We'll survive it," she corrected.
"Together."
They sat in silence after that, hands still clasped, watching the stars wheel overhead.
