Page 215 of Terms of Exposure
"The proud older brother look." I poked his arm. "Like you wanted to ruffle his hair and tell him he did good."
"I have never ruffled anyone's hair in my life."
"You ruffle mine."
"That's different."
"How?"
He glanced at me, the corners of his eyes crinkling. "You're you."
I bit back a smile.
"He really likes her. Sebastian, I mean. The way he looked at her…"
"Like she hung the moon?"
"Like sheisthe moon." I smiled. "It's disgusting."
"Nauseating," Damien agreed.
"Pathetic."
"Absolutely pathetic."
We held the bit for exactly three seconds before I burst out laughing, but he stayed quiet.
Something was off.
It had been all night.
"Hey." I rested my hand on his thigh. "You okay?"
His fingers flexed on the wheel.
"Damien."
"I'm fine."
"Damien—" My tone turned into a warning.
Outside, the fields rolled past in darkness, the headlights carving a narrow tunnel through it.
"I lied to you," he said at last.
My stomach dropped. "What?"
"The other night. When Nathan cornered me after the board meeting." He stared straight ahead. "You texted asking how bad it was. And I said it wasn't."
"It was bad," Damien continued. "He knows about us. About the audit. He threatened to destroy us both." A muscle jumped in his cheek. "And I typed a lie because I didn't want you to worry."
The words hung between us, dense and unmoving.
"It's been eating me alive, Emma." His voice cracked. "Every time you smile at me, every time you tell me you love me, I think about that text." He shook his head. "Dr. Raines has been in my head for days.No more lies. That was our rule."
"You know what she said," I snapped. "About the difference between protecting and hiding."
"A Dominant who hides isn't sparing their partner discomfort. They're removing their partner's ability to consent to shared reality." His jaw turned to granite beneath his short scruff. "I'm sorry."
