Elle’s POV
I stayed there on the cold, hard stone floor, not even noticing how much time had passed. My legs had gone numb, my back ached, and my hands were freezing where they rested on my knees, but I didn’t care. I was too focused on him—on the glowing red eyes staring back at me from behind those thick iron bars.
He was a beast. Wild. Dangerous. Everyone had said it. Ethan himself had told me to stay away. He’d begged me not to come down here tonight.
But even now, even with his claws digging into the floor and his shoulders rising and falling with each rough breath, I didn’t feel scared. Not really. My heart was beating fast, but not from fear. It was something else. A strange mix of worry and warmth. Of aching for him and wanting to reach out.
Those eyes weren’t just a beast’s ey
