Chapter 12 Like We Were Strangers Again

• The subway rumbled beneath the city, a tired pulse echoing in its underbelly. Elena stood among the crowd, one hand curled protectively around her belly. It wasn’t obvious unless you looked closely the gentle rise of her abdomen, the way she shifted her weight ever so slightly to avoid the pressure of standing too long.
• Her other hand gripped the pole, knuckles white. She hadn’t ridden the train in weeks, not since her world had been turned upside down and Damian had swept her into his high-rise mansion like a secret he didn’t know what to do with.
• But today, she needed normal. She needed the rush of footsteps on pavement, the scent of burnt coffee from the corner cart, the mindless rhythm of email pings and ringing phones.