"Stay close, Rosie," he murmured, voice low. "I mean it."
Then I caught it. The faint trace of her scent beneath the damp air. Sterile and sharp, like alcohol wipes and latex gloves. Ink. Coffee. A scent I knew too well.
Before Ravić could stop me, I stepped around him, ignoring the low growl that rumbled in his chest. My heart stuttered, torn between relief and disbelief. I thought...
"Rosie?"
The voice came from the shadows ahead, soft and familiar, but trembling.
"Nina?" I breathed.
She stepped into the light spilling from a cracked streetlamp, clutching her tote bag to her chest like it was a shield. The bottom of her lab coat was smudged with dirt, the hem frayed, but her dark hair pulled into a ponytail, her natural sun-kissed tan and those dark brown eyes. Wide and glassy with dark circles under her eyes, were unmistakable.
She reminded me of the exhaustion I felt, weighing on my head and my shoulders, before Ravić stole me away.
