Finnian stumbled through a long, rambling explanation. Realizing Amara was upset and not wanting her to resent him, he frantically tried to clarify himself.

But even as his mouth went dry, Amara kept her lips pressed tightly together, clearly unwilling to engage. Finnian finally caught on that she was tired of his nonsense, so he stopped explaining and shifted gears.

“Amara, I went to see Liliana this afternoon,” he said. “I made everything crystal clear. I told her I would never see her again.”

At the mention of Liliana’s name, Amara frowned but stayed quiet.

Oblivious to her shift in mood, Finnian pressed on. “It’s true she saved my life once, but I’ve more than repaid that debt. So, I won’t be seeing her anymore.”

“But after I told her, she completely lost her mind. She wasn’t acting like herself at all. She even bared her scar and demanded to know why I was throwing away my gratitude. But I didn’t let her manipulate me. I settled that debt a long time ago.”

“Besides, she stole your credit and faked a pregnancy…”

“She ruined my chance to be with you. She did so many terrible things, and I haven’t even settled those scores with her yet. What right does she have to try and control me?”

Finnian was deeply intoxicated, his words disjointed and stumbling, but Amara understood exactly what he meant. She turned her head slightly, refusing to look at him, a sour ache blooming in her chest.

He claimed he had cleared the air with Liliana and severed ties. Was it true, or just empty talk?

Amara figured that if he was bringing it up, he had likely actually done it. Yet, she found it hard to believe he could truly cut Liliana out of his life so cleanly.

It was a life-saving debt, after all. Someone had literally saved his life.

Moreover, given how well Finnian

had treated Liliana over the years, their lives had to be deeply intertwined: A web that tangled couldn’t be unraveled overnight. So, no, Amara didn’t believe they were truly done.

Keeping her expression stoic, she said, “Mr. Everly, you’re drunk and not thinking straight. Let me take you home.”

Finnian might have retained a shred of coherence, but he was clearly hammered, looking as though he might face-plant onto the pavement at any second.

Amara obviously couldn’t let him sleep in her courtyard, and she certainly wasn’t going to let him stumble his way back to his place alone. Driving him home was her only option.

She waited for his response, but Finnian just stared down at her blankly. It was impossible to tell if he disagreed or if he was simply too wasted to comprehend the question.

Sighing, Amara decided not to argue with a drunk man and just took action.

She grabbed his arm, manhandled him into the passenger seat, buckled his seatbelt, and slammed the door. Then, she slid into the driver’s seat and headed straight for his apartment.

Throughout the drive, Finnian didn’t put up a fight. He simply kept his head turned, watching her with an incredibly docile expression.

Amara couldn’t help but think it would be nice if he were always this obedient, though she knew that was impossible.

Resigned, she pulled up to his

building. After a moment’s

hesitation, she got out, opened the passenger door, and helped him out, personally supporting his weight as they rode the elevator up.

Finnian’s door used a fingerprint lock. When they reached it, Amara grabbed his hand to press it against

the scanner. Finnian, however, mistook the gesture for a

Handshake. He grasped her hand

firmly, lifted it, and pressed a soft kiss against her knuckles?

II

The soft touch of his lips on her skin sent a sudden, electric jolt up her arm. The

unexpected intimacy made Amara’s face burn violently red.