The next morning was chilly and soggy with leftover rain that had fallen the night before. I was in bed, arms encircling Caspian's warmth, and listening to the gentle patter of dripping water above. I'd never been more at peace in months—a close-to-surreal sense of serenity that seemed to whisper we'd finally set the worst of it behind us and it felt really good, like we were on top of be work.
And then there was the knock.
One, measured rap—so deliberate it could have been stopped on a metronome. My heart was basically seized as fear descended on my body. Caspian too was tensed, his tense arm wrapping around my waist. We had agreed: no surprises. No surprise visitors. The villa doors slammed shut, the alarm system fully alert. We were safe here.
"Stay," he whispered softly.
I swallowed hard , in agreement, and saw him leave the bed and walk to the window. He leaned against the frosted glass, each muscle in his tall frame strung as a drawn bow. I couldn’t see who it was , but I knew at once: Nathaniel Carter.
I jumped out of bed and tumbled over my robe as I dashed after him down the corridor. Each step burdened by fear. The knock again—three firm thumps that ran down the hall like shots.
Caspian cracked the door to peer out, his eyes narrowing. I stood beside him, shoulder to shoulder, and caught a glimpse of Nathaniel. He stood in the pale morning light, water-spiked hair plastered to his forehead, in a button-down shirt and pressed pants that cried money and privilege. His smile—a slow, practiced curl of the lips—had once drawn me in with its easy charm.
"Good morning, Caspian," Nathaniel said, his voice so honey-smooth. "I don't want to intrude and I hope you don’t mind"
Caspian's face hardened. He stepped back, silently inviting Nathaniel in with little to no disturbance. My stomach twisted as Nathaniel's eyes met mine—those pale blue eyes that had been warm before now flashed with something colder and darker.
Nathaniel hurled his coat around the back of the coat rack and straddled it carefully . He stared at me through that very introspective smile. "Lily." It was light but with a punch, like touching sandpaper against stone.
"Nathaniel," I said sternly, as best I could anyway, trying not to acknowledge my pounding heartbeat inside my own head.
"What are you doing here, what do you want from me?"
He raised a hand, as if placating a child. "I came for closure," he said to me. "I know it's taken a while, but I think we owe ourselves that much.” “Don’t you think?”.
Caspian slid his hands around my waist to draw me back. He stood in front of in a guided protective stance.
"Closure?" he repeated, his voice low and menacing. "Front what?"
Nathaniel's smile faltered quickly. He was looking at me, as if he was trying to determine how to react to the sudden outburst. "From us," he said at last. "From what we once were."
I could feel my cheeks flush and rise up in anger. "We were nothing," I told him, although I could see myself trembling. "It was a long time ago."
He was crossing over, taking the space between us. "From ending because I let it end," he said. "But I never stopped loving you."
Caspian's expression grew dark. "This isn't about caring, Nathaniel." His voice was smooth, but I sensed the steel beneath. "This is all about boundaries."
Nathaniel turned to observe him, his own smile expanding by just so to display the extremely glossy assurance that existed beneath. "I know what you are, Caspian Grey—the man who stole Lily from me. The man who thinks he can hold her as a captive in this huge mansion.".
Caspian's eyes flicked back to me, asking for reassurance. I nodded at him discreetly, indicating I was fine. And then I squared my shoulders, unyielding. "She is not a prisoner, nor yours to claim whenever you feel like ," I said to him, keeping step with Caspian. "She's here because she wants to be. Not because you think you still have some claim on her."
Nathaniel's gaze darted between the two of us, his expression blank for a moment. And then he sneered. "You two make a good couple," he said to us. "Lily and I, however. we were something. Something that you can't replicate, something really special and out of this world."
Caspian's gaze snapped. "You were a page in her book a chapter in her past, Nathaniel. She wrote on that chapter, closed the book, and moved on."
Nathaniel's lips curled back to a famished smile. "Did she?" he whispered, moving closer to her. "Because I have defended her—beyond the both of us." He lowered his voice to on the cusp of whisper. "I know the manner in which that she ponders me in particular moments within her own fantasies.".
A wave of horror hung above me. Never once did I betray my nightmares—to others—and to that one moment when Nathaniel's voice echoed in my head, his face looming over mine. Caspian's muscles locked up, arms encircling me.
"Stop," I gasped, shaking but firm. "You are not welcome here.".
Nathaniel's gaze turned to Caspian, and for an instant I believed he'd lost. But he shrugged. "Sorry to interrupt," he said, moving back from the door. "But I wanted you two to see that I'm still around."
He opened the door and walked out into morning light. Caspian trailed behind him, closing it quietly. We were left in the new, ringing silence, our hearts racing.
Caspian pressed me against the door, his frightened eyes sweeping over mine and observing me critically. "Are you alright?" he demanded, his voice shaking with tension.
I nodded, tears perched precariously close to being lost. "He… he scared me."
Caspian's hand slipped round my face, his thumb smoothing away a solitary tear that trickled from my cheek. "I'm sorry," he murmured. "He didn't have the right to turn up here."
I leaned back into his caress, borrowing from his heat. "I know you will keep me safe," I breathed. "I know you won't allow him to try to hurt me."
He kissed me on the forehead, a rotten, possessive kiss. "Never," he vowed.