Jaxen POV
Her words hung in the air, and my gaze dragged from her cheek down to that tiny waist I could wrap my hands around. Couldn’t remember the last time I’d grabbed her from behind like this. Most of our hugs had been her running into my arms; I’d catch her every time, even when it didn’t feel like she really meant it. If I stayed quiet too long, she’d test me with that move, like pressing on an old bruise to see if it still hurt.
But right now? That wasn’t on my mind. My heart was still dangling somewhere in my throat, yanked tight by an invisible wire. I couldn’t even name the fear—maybe just the sight of someone treating their own life like it was disposable. Fall, shatter, throw it away. My thoughts were a knotted mess. I needed to unravel one thread so the damn thing would sett
