~ELENA~

I open my eyes, and the world seems to stop breathing.

Moonlight slants through the half-drawn curtains, silvering the air, and there he is.

Riccardo.

I gasp out softly.

He’s sitting beside me on the bed, breathing hard, shadows cutting across his face. His eyes catch the light……dark, restless, unguarded.

For a heartbeat, neither of us speaks. The silence feels alive, thrumming with the sound of the rain against the windows and the wild rhythm of my pulse.

“Riccardo…” My voice trembles in part disbelief, part relief, part something I can’t name. “What are you doing here?”

He hesitates, jaw tightening as though he’s fighting a battle only he...