Chapter 68

Warning: Abuse, please proceed with caution.

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EMILIA

The hardest part of falling in love—truly falling—is the moment you realize what love isn’t.

It’s the moment you understand that love shouldn’t ache just to feel real. That the tight pull in your stomach isn’t butterflies—it’s fear. That the alarm bells ringing in your mind aren’t oxytocin—they’re warnings.

Real love doesn’t confine you.

It doesn’t demand control.

It doesn’t shame you for falling short of its expectations.

It doesn’t dismiss your voice or steal your choices.

It doesn’t mask manipulation as care, or dominance as passion.

Love isn’t supposed to strip you bare until there’s nothing left to give.

Liam’s hands move gently into my hair, unraveling the little braid I did this morning. A tear escapes before I can stop it.

And when I open my eyes—

It’s not Liam I see.

It’s Zane.

The memory returns so vividly, I almost double