"I love you."
The words hang in the air between us, raw and honest and terrifying. I've never said them before, never even let myself think them, but sitting here in this cabin with rain pounding on the roof and Sofia's eyes wide with shock, I know they're true.
"I love you," I repeat, my voice stronger now. "I love your stubbornness and your intelligence and the way you refuse toback down even when you're terrified. I love that you chose to save me instead of saving yourself. I love that you make me want to be better than I am."
"You can't." Her voice is barely a whisper.
"I can't what? Love you? Too late for that, princess."
"You can't throw away your whole life for me."
"What life?" I reach for her hand, and she doesn't pull away. "Following orders? Being a good soldier? Watching the woman I love get handed over to our enemies because it's convenient?"
"But if we run?—"
"If we run, we run together. We figure it out together. We build something new together."
Sofia stares at me for a long moment, and I can see the war playing out in her eyes. Hope fighting with disbelief, love fighting with fear.
"They'll never stop looking for us."
"Then we'll stay ahead of them."
"They'll kill us if they catch us."
"Then we don't get caught."
"Dante, you don't understand what you're saying. If you do this, if you choose me over them, there's no going back. Ever."
I lean forward, close enough that I can see the flecks of gold in her green eyes, close enough that I can feel her breath on my skin.
"I chose you the moment you asked me not to take you back. Hell, I probably chose you weeks ago and was just too stubborn to admit it."
"You're hurt. You're not thinking clearly."
"I'm thinking more clearly than I have in years." I cup her face in my hands, my thumbs brushing away the tears on her cheeks. "Sofia, I would rather spend one day free with you than a lifetime following orders that go against everything I believe in."
"You mean that?"
"I've never meant anything more in my life."
For a moment, we just stare at each other. The storm outside, the danger we're in, the impossible choice we're facing—all of it fades away until there's nothing but this moment, this connection, this choice between duty and love.
And then I close the distance between us.
CHAPTER 25
Sofia
When Dante kisses me,it’s not sweet. It’s savage.
There’s a tremor in the air the moment our lips meet, like the universe itself is bracing for what’s about to happen. His mouth is all heat and hunger, devouring mine with the kind of intensity that makes my knees weaken and my pulse roar in my ears. His control slips with every breath I give him, every inch I surrender. And I do—I give it willingly.
The second I kiss him back, he snaps.
His hands come to my face like he’s starved for touch, his thumbs rough as they sweep along my cheekbones, anchoring me. His kiss deepens—no longer hesitant, no longer polite. It’s possessive. Dominant. A storm that’s been building for weeks and finally breaks.
“Sofia,” he rasps against my lips, voice wrecked. “I need you to be sure. Because I won’t stop once I start.”
