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Slowly. Intentionally.

He takes my hands in his—gloved, warm, steady—and lifts them gently, placing them at the edges of his mask. His voice is a low, steady rumble, more vulnerable than I’ve ever heard it.

“You do,” he says. “Because youdoknow me.”

I freeze, hands hovering just beneath his jaw. And it’s insane—because only a few days ago, I was clawing at this very mask, trying to rip it off in a blind fury. Now he’s letting me. Voluntarily. Like this moment—this offering—is sacred.

I stare up at him, breath caught in my throat.

My fingers curl slightly around the edge of the material, but I don’t pull. Not yet.

I don’t know if it’s mercy or fear or something else entirely, but I hold still. Because this? This isn’t about control anymore.

This is trust.

And that terrifies me more than any cartel heir ever could.

And he notices.

Of course he fucking does.

He tilts his head, voice dark with soft amusement. “What’s wrong, princess?” he murmurs, that familiar rasp rolling over me like velvet and barbed wire. “Scared of what you’ll find?”

My breath hitches.

Not at the words.

At thenickname.

Princess.

Only one person ever called me that like it meant something both teasing and reverent. Only one man made it sound like both a dare and a promise every time it left his mouth.

No. Fucking. Way.

Without thinking, I move.

I slide the glasses from his face first. Beneath them, his eyes are already watching me—sharp, calculating, heartbreakingly familiar.

Then I reach up and pull the mask off, slow and deliberate. My fingers tremble, just slightly.

And there he is.

Bodhi.

The smug, too-charming organization operative I’ve been sparring with foryears. The same Bodhi I pinned to the mats only a week ago—pinned, like I’d actually overpowered him.

Bull. Shit.

I step back, reeling, heart pounding in my chest like it’s trying to claw its way out.

“You—” I choke out, eyes narrowing to slits. “You absolute bastard. Ipinnedyou. Youletme win.”

He shrugs, totally unbothered, like I didn’t just uncover a goddamn bombshell. “You needed the ego boost.”

“I should shoot you,” I mutter, fury and confusion tangling in my throat. “I should’veknown. You were always there, always watching, and Istilldidn’t fucking see you.”

His lips twitch like he’s fighting a smirk. “That’s kind of the point, Seanna.”