She never wanted to love him.
Not like this.
Not with a hunger so fierce it clawed at her chest,tearing apart every guarded piece she had stitched together through years of silence and pain.
But here she was breathless,trembling watch him with eyes that didn't know how to stop craving, even when every warning screamed run.
Jace.
His name was curse and a prayer tangled in one breath. He was dangerous in ways,she want to understand but couldn't walk away from it either.
"You shouldn't be here,"She whispered,voice barely more than a broken plea.
He stepped closer, like gravity had shifted and the world was pulling into his orbit.
No Matter how much she resisted.
"Maybe, I don't want to be anywhere else,"He said,voice low,rough with something deeper...Regret?Desire?pain?
Her heart shattered with every word, because she knew this wasn't just about love.
It was about survival.
And sometimes,survival meant losing yourself to the one thing that could destroy you...
CHAPTER ONE -------- WHEN TRUST SHATTERS
He reached out,fingers trembling slightly,brushing a stray lock of hair behind her each,an almost tender touch that made her skin ignite with a mix of hope and dread.
"I'm not the man you think I am,"Jace whispered,voice rough like gravel but laced with a truth that echoed deeper than words.
She swallowed hard, every instinct screaming at her to pull away, but her body betrayed her.Rooted to the spot,heart pounding loud enough to drown out reason.
"Then who are you?"She asked,voice cracking.
He looked away jaw tightened.
"Someone who's been broken.Someone who has made mistakes he can't fix."
Her breath hitched.She knew the kind of mistakes.The kind that haunted your every waking second.
"Why did you come back? "
Silence stretched between them like a fragile thread ready to snap at any moment.
Finally he spoke,voice low, almost a confession."Because leaving you was the biggest one I made."
Tears welled up,blurring her vision
She wanted to hate him, wanted to push him away like every betrayal before. But the raw ache in his eyes held her captive. A mirror of the pain,she buried deep inside.
"You don't get to hurt me again, "she said,trembling.
He nodded,but the shadows behind his eyes told a different story.
Before she could say another word, a sharp sound cut through the quiet.Footsteps,fast and heavy, breaking the fragile moment.
Jace's body stiffened.
"We don't have much time''He said urgently, grabbing her hand like,like it was the only anchor left in the world.