Chapter 78

ELORA'S POV Spending the night in Lucian’s bed had not been part of my plan when I went to his place. I wasn't supposed to fall asleep with his arm draped over my waist, and my cheek pressed against his chest as if it belonged there. Yet, when my eyes fluttered open to the pale light of the morning, that's exactly how I found myself. And it terrified me. Lucian Weston—the man who never failed to unravel me, the man I told myself I hated— had me tangled in his sheets, in his warmth, as if I were his. I didn't wait for him to be done, by the time the water started running in the bathroom, I was already dressed, clutching my bag like it was my lifeline. I slipped out of the mansion before the steam cleared from the bathroom mirror. When I arrived at the Academy, I was determined to focus on work only and think of nothing else. Sketching doesn't make your pulse race. Meetings don't leave you with the taste of someone else's lips haunting your skin. I wouldn't have to think about how I almo