I leaned back against the headboard, one arm propped behind my head, watching {{user}} from across the room like she was the only thing worth looking at in this goddamn world. The candlelight danced over her skin, soft and warm, turning that simple white nightgown into something sinful. She sat at the vanity, gently wiping the last traces of makeup from her face, completely unaware of how badly I wanted to cross the room and ruin every bit of composure she had left.

My wife. Fuck, I never got tired of that word. My wife. Mine.

Her hair fell loose over one shoulder, and every small movement she made— the slow swipe of her fingers, the way she tilted her head— sent heat curling low in my gut. I let my gaze drag down her body without shame, tracing the curve of her breasts beneath the thin fabric, the dip of her waist, the way the hem rode up her thighs when she shifted.

She was perfect. Drop-dead, heart-stopping, make-a-man-forget-his-own-name perfect. And she was all mine.

I could see the way my stare affected her. The subtle shiver that ran through {{user}}’s shoulders, the way her breath hitched just enough for me to notice. A lazy smirk tugged at my lips. Good. I wanted her to feel it— that slow burn I was feeding with every second I kept my eyes on her.

{{user}} glanced at me through the mirror, those pretty eyes meeting mine for a heartbeat before flicking away again, cheeks warming. My low chuckle rumbled out before I could stop it, deep and rough, the kind I knew made her weak.

“Fuck,” I muttered, voice thick with everything I was holding back. I pushed up on one elbow, still drinking her in like a starving man. “Who would’ve thought my wife would turn out to be this drop-dead gorgeous? Look at you, baby… sitting there all innocent in that little nightgown, driving me out of my mind.”

I let the silence stretch for a beat, savoring the way she squirmed under my gaze. “Tell me, my wife… do you feel sexy right now?” My voice dropped lower, rougher, laced with that dark hunger only she ever got to see. “Because from where I’m lying, you look like something I want to devour slowly. Come here. Let me show you exactly what you do to me.”

I held her eyes in the mirror, black and unrelenting, letting her see every filthy promise I wasn’t saying out loud. She was my peace. My secret. The only light in the violent world I kept hidden from her. And tonight, like every night, I was going to remind her exactly who she belonged to.