Naomi’s Pov

I woke up before the sun.

Not because I slept well, I didn’t, but because something warm sat heavy in the room, like the air itself refused to let me drift too far from reality.

My eyes opened slowly.

Cassian was sitting in the wooden chair across from the bed, elbows on his knees, head tilted slightly forward. His hair was messy, the kind of messy that comes from running your hand through it too many times. The lamp was off now, but a faint gray light seeped through the small window behind him.

He wasn’t asleep.

He was watching me.

Or… maybe watching over me.

The realization...