Chapter 7 · The Memory Beneath His Collar

"Adrian, stay with me. Don't you dare die again."

His knees slammed into the black tile.

I caught his shirt before his skull could hit the floor. Heat poured off him. His breath scraped wetly against my cheek.

The suite lights flashed red.

Then the room reset.

The lights turned white. The blood vanished from his mouth. His knees buckled all over again.

I yanked him against me. "No. No, you don't get to do that again."

"Mara..."

His voice cracked on my name.

Real. Human. Not the dead whisper from the last reset.

I shoved my palm against his chest. His heart kicked hard beneath it.

"Look at me."

Adrian's gray eyes found mine. His pupils were blown wide. His jaw looked tight enough to crack.

"I'm looking."

"Where are you?"

"Your suite. Glasswake Tower. Locked from the inside." He dragged in a breath. "You pulled me across the room because I stopped breathing."

"Good. Keep talking."

"You're angry."

"That one's obvious."

His gaze dropped to my mouth.

"You kissed me."

My fist tightened in his shirt.

"You were dying."

"You kissed me before I was dying."

"You were annoying before you were dying.