The forest pressed in around us, dense and suffocating, every shadow a potential threat. Fog clung to the branches, twisting around us like ghostly fingers, hiding the path ahead. My body was tense, coiled like a spring, and every nerve screamed that we weren’t safe—not yet.

Dante moved ahead, silent and lethal, every step precise, his senses sharp enough to cut through the mist. I stayed close, hand in his, letting him guide me. The heat of his body pressed against mine, a tether to reality in the chaos. My pulse pounded not just with fear but with the intoxicating, dangerous pull I felt every time he brushed against me....