56. Shadowed Truths

CHAPTER 56

Shadowed Truths

WREN

She hasn’t moved since I lay down beside her. Her breathing is shallow, her fingers twisted in the blanket like it’s the only thing keeping her from unraveling completely.

I wait, watching her. The tension in her frame, the faint tremor in her hands—she’s still caught in the aftermath of everything we’ve done. Still trying to piece herself back together while the weight of my truths presses down on her.

Her lips part slightly, and her shaky exhale is the opening I’ve been waiting for.

“You’re too quiet.”

Her gaze stays locked on the ceiling. The blanket creases tighter in her grip. “I don’t know what to say.”

The bed shifts as I lean closer, brushing her hair back from her face. She doesn’t flinch, but the way her lashes lower tells me she’s retreating. She’s pulling back into herself, searching for the walls I tore down hours ago.

“You could start with the truth.”

Her throat works, but her voice comes soft and uneven. “I feel like I’m losing myself.”

I trace the curve of her jaw. “You haven’t lost anything. You’ve just stopped hiding. There’s a difference.”

Her head turns, eyes searching out mine. They’re wide, full of confusion. “What does this mean?”

“This?”

“What we just did … what you made me do …” Her words falter, but her gaze holds.

Brave little Ballerina.

“I didn’t make you do anything. You gave yourself to me.” I’m not going to let her retreat, or deny that she was a willing participant in what happened tonight. “Completely.”

Her cheeks flush, and she turns her head. Like that’s going to save her from me. I catch her chin and guide her back to face me, my thumb brushing over her bottom lip.

“Don’t look away now.”

Her lips press together, but she doesn’t pull away.

“I don’t know what I’m supposed to do now.” Her voice breaks, soft but trembling. The cracks in her armor widen, letting me in.

“You don’t have to do anything. Just accept it.” My hand stays on her jaw, my grip firm but steady, grounding her in a way I know she’s not ready to admit. “What we are. What you’ve always wanted.”

“What if I can’t?”

That pulls a smile from me. “But you can. You already have.”

Her breathing slows, her chest rising and falling in a deep sigh. She’s letting go. I could almost call it surrender, but my mafia princess will never give in without a fight.

The quiet stretches between us. I don’t fill it. I let her sit with the silence, and wait while she works out what she wants to ask me in her head.

When her voice finally comes, it’s quieter than before. “What you told me … about my father, about my life … it doesn’t feel real.”

I reach out and curl my fingers around her wrist, feeling the faint pulse beneath her skin.

“Because the lie was your reality for so long. It’s going to take some time for the truth to feel real.”

Her brows draw together, and she stares at the blanket bunched in her hands. “Why would they do that to me? Why would they hide everything?”

“To keep you safe. But in protecting you, they stole everything else.”

She pulls her wrist free, only to find my hand and hold onto it. “ What do you mean?”

I raise up on one elbow and look down at her. “Ileana, you don’t exist.” The words are blunt. There’s no other way to break through the wall of denial she’s building. “Not in any way that matters. You don’t have a social security number. No passport. No bank account. Nothing that ties you to this world.”

Her breath catches, and her eyes snap to mine, wide with the shock I’ve been waiting for.

“If you wanted to leave tomorrow, you couldn’t. If you wanted to start a life elsewhere, get a job, travel, get married. None of it would be possible. Fuck, you can’t even go to fucking college out of state. Your father didn’t just lie to you. He erased you.”

She doesn’t respond, but her lip trembles as the truth settles into her, the cracks in her foundation widening with every breath.

“I didn’t ask for this.”

“I know.” I squeeze her fingers, grounding her again. “But it doesn’t change the fact that it’s your reality. And unless you face it, unless you confront them, you’ll always be trapped in the cage they built for you.”

“Why do you care so much? Why are you doing this?”

I lean closer, my lips seeking out the pulse at the base of her throat. “Because you’re mine. You’ve been mine since the moment I saw you. And I don’t let go of what’s mine.”

I kiss my way along her jaw, to her lips.

“Stop pretending you don’t feel it.” My hand trails up her arm, the warmth of her skin seeping into mine. “The pull between us. The way you need me, even if you don’t want to admit it.”

Her lips part, but the words don’t come.

“You came to me tonight, Ileana. Remember that. You chose this.”

Her breathing is shallow, her body still trembling, but the fire in her eyes is dimming. She’s moving closer to the edge of sleep, her mind too tired to fight me anymore.

I link my fingers with hers, my thumb stroking over the pulse in her wrist. “You don’t have to do anything right now. Just rest. We’ll figure the rest out later.”

Her eyes flutter closed, and for a moment, I think she’s already drifted off. But then, so quietly I almost miss it, her voice rises again.

“I don’t know how to be anyone else.”

My lips press against her temple. “You don’t have to. I’ll show you who you really are.”

The room falls silent again, her breathing slowing, her body finally relaxing against the bed.

I stay beside her, my hand never leaving hers. She doesn’t realize it yet, but she’s already mine.

And I’ll make sure she never forgets it.