Chapter 86

Jaxon POV

The light through my window looked gentler than usual. As if the world had decided to lower its voice, knowing I hadn’t slept much. Not from work, not even from stress. Not even from Elvira.

What the hell kind of bond hurt the person it was meant to protect?

I closed the drawer that held the velvet box I’d been hiding for three weeks, the enrollment token. It was time, no more waiting. Maybe this surprise could cheer her up, help us both pretend, even if just for a while, that the world wasn’t spinning off its axis.

The makeup training, hell, it wasn’t just about cheering her up anymore. It was about reminding her that she’s still Elvira. The girl who loved color palettes and lip liners and laughed when blush was the wrong shade. The girl I fell in love with, am still falling for, over and over, even