Hailey's pov
The knock came again—harder this time, impatient, like whoever was on the other side knew exactly where they stood in Violet’s life.
Violet groaned. “I swear, if that’s Luca—”
The door swung open before she could finish the sentence.
“Wow,” a male voice said lazily. “You lock your door now? That’s new.”
“Luca!” Violet snapped, scrambling to her feet. “What is wrong with you? Knock like a normal human being.”
He stepped inside anyway, shutting the door behind him with his heel like it was second nature. “I did knock. You just took too long.”
Then his eyes shifted.
And landed on me.
I felt the change instantly—not in the room, but in him.
He stopped walking.
Just for a second.
His jaw tightened, his throat bobbing as he swallowed hard, eyes flicking over my face, my
