Chapter 55

Avery

I woke to pale dawn light filtering through the curtains, my body sore, yet somehow I felt more whole than I ever had. The ache between my thighs was a reminder of yesterday—of Ryker's careful hands, his reverent whispers, the way he'd made me feel precious and chosen and utterly safe even as he claimed me completely.

But beneath the soreness, something else had shifted. The hollow exhaustio