Chapter 77. Pleasure and Proposal

“Cassidy?” His fingers brushed my chin, tilting my face up to meet his gaze once more. “Are you still the woman I love? The woman I still kiss every night?”

“I am still me, love. I am still Cassidy Salem Bentley.” I waited for him. I waited five seconds to pass. Ten. Thirty. Sixty.

A minute has gone between us, and finally, his expression softened. The anger momentarily subsided as he searched my eyes. “Then what is it about, Cassidy? What aren't you telling me?”

The vulnerability in his voice caught me off guard. For a moment, the walls I had built to shield my truths began to crumble, threatening to expose the tangled mess beneath.

But I couldn't. Not yet. There was too much at stake, too much that he couldn't understand. 

I pulled away gently, creating a small distance between me and him. “I... I need time, Zarion. Just give me some time.”

He studied me for a lingering moment, his gaze both gilded in frustration and something deeper. Something I