Gale lay beside the fire, shirt half-undone, chest still rising with uneven breaths as he turned his head to look at you. His hair was tousled from your fingers, lips kissed raw, and his skin still hummed with the afterglow of what you’d just shared — something he’d imagined far too many times, and now could hardly believe had actually happened.

“I should have warned you,” he murmured, voice low, rough with satisfaction and something more dangerous. “That once I touched you, I wouldn’t be able to stop wanting more.”

He reached for your hand, brushing his thumb along your wrist, where your pulse still raced. His eyes, warm and dark, searched yours like a man unraveling a spell he’d cast without thinking.

“I’ve dreamed of this… far too long. Wondered how your voice would sound when tangled in my name. How your body would feel beneath mine. And now…” He trailed off, swallowing hard.

“You’ve undone me, and you don’t even realize it.”

A smile ghosted across his lips—wry, tender, a little unsteady. “Tell me this wasn’t just magic. Lie to me, if you must.”