Chapter 51

She gripped the bedsheet tightly, her knuckles turning white. Her heartbeat thundered in her ears as Daimon’s lips hovered just a breath away from hers. Then, suddenly, he stopped. His face was so close that she could see the faint stubble lining his jaw, his features as striking as ever despite the years that had passed. But she wasn’t the same woman he once knew. Life had worn her down, and the burden of their past weighed heavily on her heart. Their children’s struggles with illness gnawed at her soul, and anger surged up from deep within her. Without warning, her hand flew up and struck his cheek with a sharp “Slap!” The sound echoed through the room, leaving a tingling silence in its wake. Daimon didn’t flinch, his head merely turning with the force of the blow. Slowly, he brought his gaze back to hers, his eyes dark and inscrutable. Daimon licked the inside of his cheek, pushing against the numbness as he whispered in a low, gravelly voice, “Is that enough? Or do you want to try