Chapter 172

• Rose’s POV
• The moment his lips met mine, the world narrowed to the heat between us. Everything else blurred—sound, space, time—until there was only the press of his mouth and the sharp pull low in my stomach. There was nothing gentle about it—no hesitation, no careful testing. His hands came to my waist with urgency, fingers digging in as if he was afraid I might vanish if he let go. I welcomed the roughness, leaned into it, let it anchor me there with him.
• I tasted desperation in the kiss. Fear. Need. All the things he hadn’t said bled into the way his mouth claimed mine, into the hitch of his breath when I answered just as fiercely. I curled my fingers into his shirt, bunching the fabric in my fists, dragging him closer, refusing the distance he kept trying—and failing—to hold.