Esme's eyes darted to Donovan's dark blindfold, and her face blanched upon realizing this wasn't her hallucination.
She instantly recoiled from him, her eyes staring wide-eyed at his unmistakable presence, and she quickly retreated.
He sensed her fears, her disbelief, her anger, and it cloaked around him in a way he didn't find appealing. Before she had the chance to let out the scream that had been building in her throat, Donovan closed the distance between them, covering her mouth with his palm, and his other finger rose to his lips in a silencing gesture.
"I think it's better if you don't," he said, his head tilted slightly as he felt her tremble, and the silence was commanding. "It isn't healthy to harbor that amount of fear, so swallow your screams." He withdrew his hand afterwards, the softness of her lips still lingering in his palm, and he closed his hand in a gesture of restraint.
