The widow next door

yn Blackwood's house felt smaller somehow, the walls pressing in with the weight of anticipation. She had spent nights watching,

and conditioning screamed at her to stay hidden, to preserve distance. But some

waiting like a passive observer, but present in a way that made the air between them crackle. He leaned against the d

asured, almost casual. And yet, the weigh

ead, the slight curve of his lips, the deliberate ease of his stance. He wasn't threatening-not in the o

e steady, though her pulse b

ving her with the same intensity she had felt for ni

lculated, yet now that she stood in front of him, she felt exposed,

le, dangerous, acknowle

ted carefully. "The way you

creature. "Do I?" His tone suggested amusement and curiosity, testing her

magnetic pull she had felt for weeks. But she couldn't. Every in

hispered, just eno

e thrill of control-crossed his features. "Good," h

control, masking instinct, and yet here was a man who dissected her wi

ng him now, pushing back, letting h

d with something sharper. "So are you," h

deliberate, charged, as if the world had contracted to just the two of them. Evelyn realized that this was

sist the question that had haunte

," he said. "Because you notice. Because you anticipate. Because... you are

accurate it was intimate, invasive, and thrilling. And

stand firm in the face of danger, and yet the thrill of proximity was undeniable. Every inch of space between th

to control... to survive... to manipulate. And yet..." He let the wor

d. "I notice you.

. She had revealed more than she intended-but Julian mere

said softly. "Not like others do.

Evelyn echoed,

. You are cautious. You are... perceptive. And yet,

, dangerous and intoxicating. Evelyn could feel her pulse, could feel the heat in her chest, could feel the sharp edge of des

could see the faint curve of his lips, the intensity

trembling slightly despite her co

ination in her, as if he understood exactly the storm he

rs, seemed to fade. It was just the two of them, predator and predator, circling, testing, knowi

started, and that she was already caught in it. Not trapped, not powerless-but fully engaged,

e a statement. Then, finally, he stepped back, retreating slightly into the shadows, leaving her sta

r from over. The

them would ev