Roman immediately turned to look at her, and her eyes remained closed, her breathing slow and even. She might have been talking in her sleep. The thought made something warm flicker in his chest.

He couldn't help the soft, helpless chuckle that escaped him. “You’re really asking that now?” he murmured, amused.

His mood lifted slightly despite the exhaustion and weight in his chest. “You held onto that question even through all this?”

He found it cute.

He brushed his thumb gently over her knuckles. “Has it been bothering you that much?”

No answer. He studied her face, thinking she had finally drifted off and exhaled quietly. But then her...