That melted her, sending a rush of butterflies through her chest, not the reckless kind she had once mistaken for love, but something steadier, warmer, rooted. She felt it travel upward, settling behind her ribs like a quiet promise.
She blushed and turned slightly away from him, not because she was unsure, but because she wanted a second to hold his words alone. To keep them. To let them sink somewhere permanent.
She slipped into the room with a small smile playing on her lips, the door closing softly behind her, while Cassian remained outside, voice low, composed, already discussing final confirmations, timings, transportation, contingencies. Even through the walls she could sense him, focused, deliberate, dependable.
Sitting at the edge of the bed, she let out a slow breath she had not realized she had been holding.
