Page 78 of Celestial Combat

“You’ll be okay from here?” Zane’s voice was rough than usual.

I hesitated.

Then I nodded. “Yeah, I’ll be fine.”

Zane gave a single, curt nod.

Then, without another word, he walked to the door, each step measured and deliberate. He didn’t look at me as his hand gripped the handle and pulled it open.

But…

He hesitated.

It was barely a second. A flicker of restraint. A sharp inhale, his shoulders rising with it.

But I noticed.

And that hesitation sent another thrill through me, a shiver curling down my spine, tightening low in my stomach.

I wondered what he was thinking. If he wanted to turn back. If he was feeling this pull, this heat, just as much as I was.

But then, just as quickly as it came, he exhaled, squared his shoulders, and pulled the door open.

Without another word, he stepped through, disappearing into the loft.

The door clicked shut.

And I was alone.

The bathroom door clicked shut behind me, but I didn’t move. Not right away. My hands curled into fists at my sides, and I forced myself to exhale, slow and controlled, like I wasn’t coming apart at the seams.

Walking out of that room had taken everything in me. Every ounce of restraint, every piece of discipline I hadforged over the years, had been tested in that moment. And I barely passed.

Kali.

God.

I closed my eyes for a second, my head tilting back against the bathroom door. The image of her was burned into me – her standing there, bloodstained and half-undressed, her dark skin glowing under the warm light, her breath shallow. The way she had watched me, waiting. Not afraid, not hesitant.Trusted me.

She didn’t realize what she did to me.

I could still feel the warmth of her skin under my hands, the press of her palms on my shoulders as I pulled those ruined leggings from her hips. The way her breath hitched, just a fraction, when my knuckles brushed against her thigh. She had let me touch her –trusted meto touch her.

That trust was something I had no right to.

I pushed off and started moving, needing the distraction, the distance. My steps were soundless against the hardwood as I crossed onto the balcony, pulling out a cigarette with more force than necessary. I lighted it, then inhaled a deep breath without hesitation before exhaling the smoke into the night. The burn barely registered.

I should have stayed with Trevor.

I should have been the one to pull the trigger, to take Tao’s life with my own hands. That was supposed to be my role.

But I didn’t. Because when it came down to it – when it came to her – I didn’t think. I just moved.

My priority hadn’t been revenge. It had been Kali.

I let the thought settle, resting my hands against the railing, staring at the reflection of the city lights bouncing off the neighboring buildings.

She was strong. I had known that since the moment I first saw her fight. But tonight, she had been something else entirely. She had been relentless. Unyielding. Death had knocked on her door, and she had answered it with a blade in her hand. And yet, she wasn’t just that sharp edge. There was something else beneath it, something vulnerable she tried to keep hidden.