The memory didn't arrive gently.
It dragged her under.
Y/N stood barefoot on cold tile, wearing one of Rowan's shirts—too big, sliding off one shoulder. The past smelled like rain and stolen hours. Like something she was never meant to keep.
Rowan stood in front of her, younger and reckless, eyes bright with a hunger he never tried to hide.
"You know," he said lazily, stepping closer, "you ruin people."
She raised a brow. "I do?"
"Yeah." His fingers caught the hem of the shirt, stopping her from backing away. "You make them forget who they were before you."
Her breath hitched. "That sounds like your problem."
He smiled—slow, lethal.
"Oh, it is."
His hand slid up her thigh, unhurried, possessive without apology. Not touching where she wanted—yet.
He liked control even then.
"You're thinking too loud," he murmured.
She swallowed. "You don't know what I'm thinking."
"I do." He leaned in, lips brushing her ear, not kissing—hovering. "You're wondering how someone like me could want someone like you this badly."
Her knees felt weak. "And?"
"And I'm wondering," he whispered, "how long before you realize I'd ruin myself for you."
She turned to face him, chest rising fast. "You shouldn't say things like that."
"Why?" His thumb pressed just below her ribs, feeling her heartbeat.
"Afraid you'll believe me?"
Their mouths crashed together—rougher than before. His kiss wasn't gentle now. It was claiming. Teeth. Heat. A warning disguised as affection.
She broke away, breathless.
"Rowan…"
"Yes," he said again. Always yes. Always ready to fall.
"You look at me like you're already losing something."
His smile faltered—for half a second.
"Maybe I am."
He backed her against the wall, forearm braced beside her head. Not trapping her. Letting her feel how easily he could.
"Listen to me," he said quietly. "One day, people will try to tell you who I am."
Her voice shook. "What do you mean?"
"They'll lie." His eyes darkened.
"They'll say I'm dangerous. Broken. Not someone to love."
She reached up, cupping his jaw. "I don't care."
He closed his eyes at her touch. Just briefly.
"That," he whispered, "is exactly why this will destroy us."
He kissed her again—slower now, deeper, like he was memorizing her for a future where he wouldn't be allowed to have her. His hands held her like a promise he had no intention of keeping safely.
When he finally pulled away, his forehead rested against hers.
"If I ever become someone you don't recognize," he murmured, "promise me you'll still look at me like this."
She didn't hesitate. "I will."
The lie settled between them—soft, beautiful, fatal.
Y/N woke gasping.
Her body remembered before her mind could catch up.
Beside her, in the present, Rowan watched her in the dark—eyes unreadable, lips curved in a smile that didn't quite reach his gaze.
"You said my name," he said softly.
Her throat went dry. "I… did?"
"Like it hurt," he added, brushing his thumb across her lower lip. "Like you missed me."
Her chest ached with something unnamed.
Rowan leaned close, his voice barely a breath.
"Whatever they took from you," he whispered, "I was the first thing they had to erase."
Downstairs, Gabriel pressed his palm to his chest, shaking.
Because love was never the weakness.
Memory was.!
And Rowan Cade had always been
the most dangerous memory of all....