"They cannot hurt me," Elara said softly, her fingers slowly, hesitantly curling into the fabric of his coat. "I am highly optimized."
Julian let out another soft laugh, pulling back just enough to look at her face. His hands moved up to cup her cheeks, his thumbs gently brushing over her cheekbones.
"You are highly optimized," Julian agreed, his ice-blue eyes shining with absolute adoration. "You are terrifying. And you are the most beautiful thing I have ever seen in my life."
Elara's breath caught. The thermal anomaly in her chest flared so brightly it felt like a miniature sun igniting behind her sternum.
He leaned down.
When Julian's lips met hers, it was entirely different from the desperate, predatory submission she had experienced with Mahir. This was slow. It was reverent. It was a gentle, consuming warmth that bypassed every firewall, every logic gate, and every administrative protocol she possessed.
