Determined to Stay

"I won't leave you again," Tessa blurted out, her voice urgent.

But Vance just gazed at her, his eyes dark and intense. "Sure, maybe you'd never walk away from me on your own. But what if you're forced to? What if something happens and you have no other choice but to abandon me?"

Tessa froze, her breath catching in her throat.

Vance reached out, feeling along the wall until his fingers found the l