The moment Daniel stepped back into his car, the world felt strangely quieter — as if the city itself understood the gravity of what had just happened between him and Marian. The hum of traffic, the distant honking, even the chatter of pedestrians passing by the hotel doors faded into a soft blur.
He sat there for a minute, hands gripping the steering wheel, forehead resting against the leather. His heart was beating too fast. Too loud. Like it was trying to climb its way out of his chest.
He had told her he loved her.
Not in a moment of passion, not in desperation, not from guilt — but from raw, undeniable truth. A truth that had never stopped living in him, no matter how many years had passed, no matter how many mistakes he had made.
He pressed his eyes shut.
God, he hoped he hadn’t
