Chapter 25

• Chapter 25: Avoiding Her III
• A few minutes later, Luca sets the coffee maker down on the table like it's the only thing that matters in his meticulously controlled universe. His movements are deliberate, almost ceremonial—placing it precisely in the center, adjusting the position by millimeters until it sits just so. The ritual of it gives him something to focus on besides the growing tension electrifying the air around him.
• The machine hums softly as it begins to brew, a gentle mechanical purr that fills the silence between heartbeats. He stares at it with unwarranted intensity, as if this mundane appliance holds profound secrets, as if willing it to distract him from the mounting pressure building in his chest. But he can feel her behind him, her presence unmistakable—a gravitational pull he's desperately fighting. He doesn't need to turn around to know she's there. Standing in the doorway, her silhouette casting a faint shadow across the hardwood floor. She returned.