-Ryland Grayson:
I hated myself the second I realized how far I had let it go.
The realization hit hard and all at once, cutting straight through the instinct and adrenaline that had clouded everything seconds earlier. My breathing was still uneven, my pulse still too fast, but now there was something heavier sitting underneath it.
Guilt.
Sharp enough to make my stomach twist.
Blackmore was still above me, close enough that I could feel the heat radiating off him, and for one terrible second, all I could think about was the fact that I almost let myself forget what state he was in.
What state we were both in.
My hands tightened slightly around his wrists before I forced myself to loosen my grip again.
"No," I said again, quieter this time but firmer somehow. "We can't do this right now."
Blackmore stared at me through half-lidded eyes, his breathing uneven, his face flushed from heat and confusion and something else that made my chest tighten painfully.
He looked lost.
