Chapter 362
Chapter 362:
His cheekbones were sharp blades under his skin. Dark bruises of exhaustion shadowed his eyes. He looked thinner than he had just days ago in the garden.
“Weston,” he rasped, not opening his eyes. “I said get out. I don’t need the lecture p>
Eliza closed the door softly. The click was loud in the silence.
She walked over to him and picked up a plastic cup of water from his tray.
“It’s not Weston,” she said.
Dallas froze. His eyes snapped open.
They were glassy, unfocused. Dilated pupils struggled to find her in the dim light.
“Eliza?” he whispered. It was a sound of pure longing, stripped of all defenses.
𝖣𝘰𝘸ո𝗹𝗈𝘢𝗱 P𝗗𝖥𝘴 𝘧𝗿e𝘦 on
He blinked and shook his head slightly. “No. Not again. It’s the meds p>
He reached out, his hand trembling. His fingers brushed her cheek. His skin was ice cold.
“You look so real this time,” he murmured. “Usually you’re crying. Or screaming p>
Eliza leaned into his touch. “I am real, Dallas. I’m here p>
“You can’t be,” he said, a sad smile twisting his lips. “I sent you away. I made you hate me. You’re gone p>
“I came back,” Eliza said. She grabbed his hand and pressed it against her chest so he could feel her heart beating. “Feel that? That’s real p>
Dallas’s eyes widened. The fog of drugs seemed to clear for a moment, replaced by shock.
“Eliza,” he breathed.
And then he pulled her.
It was a sudden, desperate movement. Eliza lost her balance and fell against him.
He groaned — a sharp sound of pain — as her weight hit his chest, but his arms locked around her instantly. It was like being caught in a steel trap.
“You’re here,” he buried his face in her neck, inhaling deeply. “God, you smell like rain. Like home p>
“Dallas, you’re hurting,” Eliza whispered, though she didn’t pull away. She could feel a feverish heat radiating off him. He was burning up.
“Good,” he muttered against her skin. “Pain means I’m not dead yet p>
He lifted his head. His eyes were dark and ferocious.
He kissed her.
It wasn’t gentle. It was a collision — tasting of antiseptic and despair. He kissed her like a man starving, like he wanted to consume her to fill the hollow space inside him.
Eliza melted. All her anger, all her pride, evaporated. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back with everything she had. For a moment, there was no sickness, no lies, no divorce. Just them.
Dallas’s hand moved down her back, gripping her waist. His other hand tangled in her hair. He tried to shift, to pull her closer.
He hissed in pain, his body going rigid. The heart monitor beside the bed began to beep erratically.
Eliza pulled back slightly, breathless. “Dallas? What is it p>
Her hand moved to his chest, resting on his shirt. Beneath the silk, the hard plastic housing of a machine hummed against her palm — a mechanical, unnatural vibration where a heartbeat should be.