My jaw clenched tight as I muttered, "Let's hear it." My eyes met hers with a challenge, icy and unwavering. After all this time, after everything, it was finally happening—the confrontation I'd been dreading, the one I couldn't avoid forever.
But instead of matching my stare, Scarlet's gaze flickered nervously around the dark alley, her earlier outstretched hand now hovering at her side, her knuckles white with suppressed tension. When she finally forced her eyes back to mine, the weight of her hesitation was unmistakable.
"This isn't safe," she blurted out, her voice higher than usual, cracking on the last word. "We need to find somewhere… discreet."
A slow smirk tugged at my lips. Discreet? That was rich. This whole situation felt like a trap, carefully crafted, with me as the unsuspecting prey. "You're right," I allowed, sarcasm dripping from my words. Each syllable hung thick in the air, stinging.
