Belle's POV

The balcony suddenly felt too hot and too small with Zane standing there. It wasn’t the balcony itself, but the air between us—heavy, charged, suffocating. My chest tightened as I tried to blink back the tears that wouldn’t stop. I didn’t want to cry, not now, not in front of him, but it was like a dam had broken inside me, and I had no control anymore.

Zane watched me, his dark eyes full of concern, and I hated how much I wanted him to fix everything, even though I knew he couldn’t. This wasn’t something anyone could fix. I felt raw, exposed in a way I hadn’t...