Chapter 175

#42

​Fuck. Did she really just say she loves me?

​The words ring through Elias’s head as he closes the door of Lucia’s bedroom behind him.

He stands there for a moment with his hand still resting on the polished handle, listening to the absolute silence on the other side of the wood. He knows he should probably go back inside, that he should explain himself better, but the raw look of betrayal in her pretty blue eyes right before he left is enough to keep his shoes frozen to the floor.

​He doesn’t head down the corridor toward his assigned room in the main house. Instead, he turns on his heel and makes his way down the service stairs, exiting through the side doors into the cool, damp night air. He crosses the manicured lawn toward the detached security complex near the outer gates, checking into the smaller guard rooms instead. Th