August woke before the sun rose.

He lay there for a while in silence, staring at the dark ceiling, listening to Eloise's steady breathing beside him. Her scent still lingered in the sheets, wrapped around him like a memory that refused to fade.

It should have been just another night.

But it wasn't.

His skin still burned with the memory of her. Her touch. Her eyes. The way her body had fit perfectly against his. It all stayed with him, etched into his mind like an invisible tattoo.

But