Kaitlin

On the surface, my life is a flawless performance.

I stay home, keep the house spotless, and play the role of the devoted wife. It doesn't matter that behind the curtains, the truth is darker than anyone could imagine. I've mastered the art of concealing the bruises, spinning lies to explain the tears, and burying the horrors of what happened behind closed doors.

Until her.

Nora doesn't just see through my carefully crafted illusion-she shatters it. She awakens something buried deep inside me, something raw, desperate, and hungry for escape.

Being with her is wrong. The feelings she stirs in me are worse. But how can I turn away from the only thing that makes me feel alive?

Nora

The suburbs are supposed to be my quiet refuge, the fresh start I need after the military.

Work at my brother's tattoo shop. Keep my head down. Follow my therapist's advice to "reconnect with normalcy."

It was going perfectly-until Kaitlin knocked on my door.

Her smile is polite, her demeanor warm, but there's a shadow behind her eyes that pulls me in. I should know better. I should keep my distance. But the more I learn, the more I see the darkness she lives with-the kind of darkness that feels eerily familiar.

I keep telling myself I'm not here to save anyone from monsters anymore. I'm not here to destroy lives. But now that I've seen her truth, walking away feels impossible.