I want someone who looks at me like I’m the only oxygen in the room.

Like Riven used to.

Just as I think his name I get chills all over my body as if he’s in the room with me.

The bell above the front door doesn’t ring. There’s no announcement that anyone has entered the building.

Just a shift in the air. That feeling you get right before lightning strikes.

And then he’s there.

Riven Kozlov is looking at me like I’m the only woman he’s ever laid eyes on.

He doesn’t speak. He doesn’t have to. His reflection appears behind mine in the mirror and my breath catches in my throat.

He’s bigger. Broader. His hair is longer now, curling a little at the edges under his black baseball cap. There’s stubble along his jaw and wildness in his gray eyes that wasn’t there before. Maybe it always was, and I just refused to see it.

He’s beautiful. Still the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.

And he’s staring at me like he sees the ghost I’ve become.

His jaw tics. His fists clench at his sides.

His eyes drop to the dress I’m wearing. I’m not stupid, he knows this isn’t my choice. Riven has had eyes, specifically his bestie Caiden Grey’s eyes, on me this whole time. He knows what our father is trying to do, yet he looks like he’s been kicked in the gut.

Something flickers across his face. Rage, then betrayal. “Take it off,” he growls.

The words don’t land like a request. They land like a warning. The message is clear. If I don’t, he will.

My body stiffens. “You left me here with them and that’s all you have to say to me?”

He takes a step forward, voice low when he enunciates, “Take. It. Off.”

I blink, heart pounding. “No.”

“Lakynn, I’m not in control right now.” His nostrils flare. “Take that fucking thing off or I’ll take it off for you.” To anyone else, his voice would sound calm. Too calm. The kind of calm that comes before a hurricane. To me though? He’s in a full on crashout.

“Riven—”

He’s already moving, stalking across the boutique like he owns it. Like nothing and no one could stop him if they tried.

His gaze is locked on the dress, the ring on my finger. He hasn’t noticed the bruises. When he does? I don’t think I want to be here for the fallout.

He stops in front of me, and the heat rolls off him in waves. His breath is shallow. His big hands twitch like he’s holding himself back.