CHAPTER 17

I sat up in bed, my heart still racing from the vivid dream, the remnants of it clinging to me like a second skin.

Every nerve in my body was on high alert, as if I could still feel Thiago’s touch, his breath on my neck, the heat of his body pressed against mine.

I needed to clear my head, to shake off the fog of desire that threatened to cloud my judgment. But the more I tried to push it away, the more it lingered, a tantalizing reminder of the dangerous game we were playing.

I swung my legs over the side of the bed and stood, my knees weak as I walked toward the bathroom. I needed to ground myself, to wash away the lingering traces of the dream before they consumed me entirely.

As I reached the sink, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror, my cheeks flushed, my lips slightly swollen from where Thiago had kissed me. The reflection staring back at me was someone I barely recognized—a woman caught between fear and desire, teetering on the edge of surrender.

The cold water splash