Burn Before You Break
The cold marble beneath Kaia's bare feet did little to soothe the storm raging in her chest.
She hadn't meant to stay.
She hadn't meant to let him kiss her.
And she sure as hell hadn't meant to lose control.
But control had shattered the moment Damon pressed her against that wall like she belonged to him. Every word she'd prepared, every reason to stay away, dissolved under the weight of his hands and the heat of his mouth. Now she stood in the quiet of the Valen estate, his scent clinging to her skin—dangerous and familiar.
She closed her eyes, trying to ground herself.
But the past wouldn't stay buried.
---
Three years ago.
Kaia stood at the edge of the Valen gardens, dressed in white. Her heart pounded as Damon brushed his thumb along her jaw.
"You're mine, Seraphine," he'd whispered against her lips, breath hot and heavy. "Say it."
"I'm yours," she'd whispered back, meaning every word.
Until the explosions.
Until the screams.
Until the bullet meant for Damon clipped her instead, and everything went dark.
---
She blinked, breath ragged.
He let her bleed that night.
And now, he had the audacity to touch her like he still had a right.
Footsteps behind her.
She turned, every instinct razor-sharp, but it was only Dorian, Damon's younger half-brother.
"Trouble sleeping, Seraphine?" he asked, voice smooth, cocky.
"I don't sleep in cages," she replied coolly.
Dorian's grin spread like wildfire. "Ah, so you're still fire and teeth. I was beginning to think Damon had tamed you."
She offered a sweet smile, all venom beneath. "Taming me has always been a fatal mistake."
Dorian's eyes narrowed. "You're up to something."
"You should worry less about what I'm up to, and more about who you'll become when Damon falls."
His smirk faltered. Just enough.
---
Later that night.
Kaia found her way into Damon's study—dark wood, leather, and secrets. She scanned the shelves, not for books, but for leverage.
She found it tucked in the back of a drawer—a silver USB drive. Unmarked. Hidden too carefully to be innocent.
Just as she reached for it—
"What are you doing?"
His voice. Dark silk.
She froze, then straightened, hand still poised over the drawer. "Looking for answers."
Damon stepped into the room, shirt undone at the collar, shadows under his eyes. "And if you find them, Kaia… will you finally stop running from me?"
"I don't run," she said, voice brittle.
"No," he agreed. "You disappear. And it hurts more."
The silence between them cracked.
Kaia walked toward him, slowly, her pulse betraying her calm exterior.
"You let me bleed out, Damon. That night—I was on the ground, screaming your name."
His jaw clenched. "I came back for you. They told me you were dead."
"You believed them too easily."
"I buried you," he snapped, voice hoarse. "Your blood was on my hands—don't pretend it didn't destroy me."
Tears stung her eyes. She blinked them away. "You think grief erases betrayal?"
He grabbed her arm—not roughly, but like a man drowning. "I never stopped looking for you."
Kaia yanked away. "Then stop touching me like you have a right."
He stared at her, breathing hard. "I don't. But I still want to."
His lips crashed onto hers—fire and fury and need. She responded before she could stop herself, body arching into him as if memory could undo what vengeance demanded. His hands gripped her hips, her back hit the bookshelf.
They kissed like enemies at war, like former lovers who remembered every scar. Until she pushed him back, breathless, trembling.
"Don't mistake lust for forgiveness," she whispered.
He didn't move. "Don't mistake pain for purpose."
Kaia stepped away, fixing her shirt. Her eyes glittered. "You buried me once, Damon. Try again—and I'll rise sharper."
She turned and walked away, USB in hand, pulse like thunder.
---
Elsewhere, in the Valen compound.
An encrypted phone lit up in Dorian's hand.
📩 *She took the bait. She has the drive.*
Dorian's grin was all teeth.
"Checkmate, Seraphine."
---