Chapter 45

OLIVIA’S POV The moment the lights went out, the grandeur of the ballroom vanished in an instant. One second, there was the dazzling shimmer of chandeliers, music, and laughter… and the next—darkness. A void so complete it stole the breath from my lungs. Gasps erupted across the room, followed by shrill cries and the sound of chairs scraping against the marble floor. Fear crackled through the air like a live wire, infectious and wild. The once elegant event had been reduced to chaos within seconds. My heart pounded violently in my chest, instinctively bracing for what I couldn’t see. And then—I felt them. Strong arms wrapped around me from behind, firm and grounding. Dominic. “I’m here. Don’t be scared,” he murmured, his voice low and steady against the shell of my ear. His familiar scent—earthy pine and something darker, uniquely his—washed over me, soothing my trembling body before I could even understand why. The way he held me, like I was the most fragile thing in the world… it sen