Page 107 of Reckless Royalty

“Breathe with me,” he says, his accent softer now, grounding.

“In—” He inhales deeply, his chest rising as he holds the breath. “And out.” He exhales, long and steady.

I try to follow, but it’s shaky, uneven. “I—can’t,” I manage to gasp.

“You can,iubita mea,” he insists, his forehead resting against mine. “You’re safe. You’re with me. Just breathe.”

His voice wraps around me, steady and commanding, and I force myself to focus on him. On his scent. On the way his hands feel warm and strong against my face.

“In,” he repeats, his tone firm but soothing. He takes another exaggerated breath, and I mimic him, pulling in air slowly. “Good. Now out.”

I let it go, my chest still tight but not as crushing. He nods, a small smile tugging at his lips as he continues. “Again. In... and out.”

We repeat the process until my breaths start to match his, the vise on my chest loosening bit by bit. My trembling slows, my vision clears, and the panic fades to a dull throb in the back of my mind.

“That’s it,” he murmurs, brushing his thumb along my cheek again. “There’s my girl.”

“I—” My voice cracks, barely audible. “I couldn’t breathe.”

“You’re okay now,” he assures me, his voice low and steady. “I’ve got you.”

I blink up at him, his face coming into sharper focus. There’s a rawness in his expression I don’t think I’ve ever seen before. “How… how did you know?”

He swallows; his Adam’s apple bobbing. “I was coming to check on you,” he admits. “I didn’t like the idea of you being alone after everything. I heard you, Maddy. Heard you crying.”

Another wave of emotion hits me, but this time it’s not panic. It’s something warmer, something that makes my chest ache in a different way.

“Thank you,” I whisper.

He brushes a tear from my cheek, his thumb lingering there. “You don’t have to thank me. I’ll always come for you.”

He pulls me into his arms without hesitation, holding me tightly against his chest. His warmth seeps into me, chasing away the lingering chill of fear. I bury my face in his shirt, inhaling the familiar scent of him—of safety.

We sit like that for a while, neither of us speaking. His hand rubs soothing circles on my back, and my breathing finally evens out.

“I’m sorry,” I say, guilt threading through my words.

“Don’t,” he interrupts, his tone firm. “Don’t apologize for this. You’ve been through hell, Maddy. It’s normal to feel this way.”

I nod, even though his words only ease a fraction of the weight pressing down on me. “It’s just… everything. It’s too much. My mum, Isla, the shootouts, Sofia, Nikolai… all of it. It’s like I can’t escape it.”

His jaw tightens, his hand flexing against my shoulder. “You’re not supposed to carry all that on your own, Maddy. That’s why I’m here. That’s why we’re all here.”

I look up at him, his dark eyes searching mine, and for a moment, I wonder how I ended up with someone like Mihai in my corner. He’s so strong, so steady, even when everything around him is chaos. And yet here he is, holding me together when I can’t do it myself.

“You make it sound so easy,” I whisper.

“It’s not,” he admits, his voice softening. “But nothing worth fighting for ever is.”

His words settle deep in my chest, calming the storm inside me. I let out a shaky breath, leaning into him again. His arms tighten around me, and for the first time in what feels like forever, I feel like I’m not completely falling apart.

“Do me a favor, baby,” he asks and I nod. “Stop scaring the shit out of me like this.”

A small laugh escapes me, and he pulls back just enough to cup my face, his thumbs wiping away the tears on my cheeks.

“There’s my girl,” he murmurs, a faint smile tugging at his lips. “That’s better.”

I blush at his words, but I can’t bring myself to pull away from him. He studies me for a moment, his gaze softening.

---