Damien’s POV
The guilt was a living thing inside me now, gnawing at my ribs with every breath. Elena lay curled against my side, her breathing deep and even in the early morning light filtering through the heavy curtains. Her skin was still flushed from the way I’d f****d her again.
For a few precious minutes, she’d been mine completely, no suspicion, no walls. Just heat and surrender.
But the moment she fell back asleep, the poison returned.
I slipped out of bed carefully, pulling on a pair of sweatpants. My study door was still ajar from earlier. That single sheet of paper on Lila’s file had nearly shattered everything. I’d lied again and she’d let me pull her back into my arms. But her body had been stiff. The trust was fraying.
I couldn’t let it break.
My gaze fell on the locked
