"No, no, no."
Cassie refused instantly, the words spilling out in a rush, sharp and instinctive, like her body had decided before her mind could catch up.
She shook her head, stepping back half a pace as if Franklin's suggestion had physically crossed a line she wasn't ready to touch.
"I can't," she said again, more firmly this time. "I really can't. I have things to do. Private things. I mean… my own life."
The idea of moving in, of sharing space, routines, mornings and nights, made her chest feel tight. Too close. Too intimate. Too easy to blur lines she'd spent years learning how to redraw after they'd been shattered.
Tristan's expression changed immediately. The excitement drained from his face, replaced by quiet worry. He reached for Cassie's sleeve, holding it lightl
