The Knife She Craves

Queen Violet Grey wakes up blind, bound, and betrayed.

The last thing she remembers is trust. The first thing she feels is a hand around her throat.

Her attacker? Captain Adam Wilkins. The man sworn to die for her. The man who'd rather die than hurt her.

Someone got to him first.

Now they're trapped in a cell that stinks of blood and secrets, with her bruises blooming and his guilt choking him. He's a weapon someone else fired. She's the queen who refuses to run.

He thinks he's a monster.
She thinks he's hers.

There's no space between them. Not when her knees brush his. Not when her breath ghosts his lips. Not when his thumb traces her knuckles like he's not sure he's allowed to touch her.

He's fighting not to want her.
She's daring him to try.

"Choose me. Or choose the guilt. But you don't get both."

Side by side or six feet under. No more walls. No more self-sacrificing bullshit. Just two people pressed together in the dark, figuring out who turned her guard dog against her - before the leash tightens again.

*Tropes:*
- Betrayal x Forced Proximity
- Touch Her And Die x He Already Did
- "I hate that you're here" / "I'd be worse if you weren't"
- Guilt-ridden Bodyguard x Queen Who Won't Leave
- Charged Air, Withheld Touch, Bad Decisions

*Warnings:* Captivity, violence, trauma, sexual tension so thick you could cut it with a knife. , the yearning _will_ ruin you.