(Aurora's POV)
I lay flat on my back and stared at the ceiling.
The rose petals were still scattered across the ivory silk duvet. The fireplace had burned down to a low, steady glow. Everything in the room was warm and soft and completely at odds with the rigid way I was holding my body - arms at my sides, hands clenched around the edge of the sheet, not moving.
The shower was still running.
I needed an excuse. A good one. Something reasonable and adult that would explain why this was too sudden, why I wasn't ready, why tonight of all nights was simply not-
The water stopped.
A moment later, the bathroom door opened. Steam drifted out ahead of him. The scent followed - something clean and sharp underneath, and then something else, darker, warmer. Sandalwood and amber. It reached me b
