The change from the soft glow of the restaurant to the blaring sirens was brutal.

One heartbeat earlier I was bathed in soft yellow light, Vincent's warm hand against mine. The next, we were plunged into a blinding, clinical white, the metallic bite of blood and wet asphalt choking the air.

Vincent transformed the instant his feet touched the pavement. Sleeves rolled up, jaw clenched—he was no longer the man who had laughed with kebabs. He was the relentless force of emergency services.

—Juliet