The silence that followed her last words was thick enough to taste.
Ava stood exactly where she was, her fingers curled loosely at her sides, her pulse roaring in her ears. Damian hadn't moved away. If anything, he seemed closer now, close enough that she could feel the warmth of him, close enough that the space between them felt charged and alive.
He was looking at her differently.
Not with the composed detachment she had grown used to. Not with the carefully measured restraint that defined him in every room he entered.
This was something else.
His gaze lingered, dropping briefly to her mouth before lifting again to her eyes. The movement was subtle, almost imperceptible, but Ava caught it and her breath caught with it.
Damian noticed. He always noticed. He noticed every little thing.. .
Something shifted in his expression then. His jaw tightened, not with irritation, but with restraint. Like a man holding himself still by force of will alone.
