Page 182 of Irreversible

A body jostles me in the crush of people, and I jump, barely suppressing a gasp.

“Sorry,” the man mutters, vanishing.

My heart pounds, adrenaline surging as I clutch my purse, hating how jumpy I’ve become. Faces flash past—The Timekeeper, Roger, the sinister nurse, a doctor with a sharp, rat-like smile.

Isaac.

Ghosts from my past curl around me, choking me, dragging me back to a captivity I thought I’d escaped. I wanted Isaac to return, to be the unsung hero who could piece me back together, but instead, he’s fractured me further. Last night’s misstep throbs in my chest, shame and longing bleeding together, the heat of humiliation warming my cheeks.

I swipe at my damp hairline, scanning the room as strobe lights fracture across my periphery. Colors swirl, bass thumps, and every note sounds likethat song. My pulse quickens—a whisper in my ear, a hand grazing my hip, a chill winding down my spine.

“See you soon.”

The noise blurs, voices muddle.

Then my vision clears.

Dancers and patrons fly around me as the crowd parts, and in that split-second, under the wash of flickering floodlights, I see him.

He sits perched at the bar, watching me with those hazelnut eyes, his expression locked down, unreadable. But something stirs in my chest—a tangle of anger, desire, shame, and…relief.

Memories of last night unfurl, raw and vivid. The silk of his hair between my fingers, the hardness of his muscles, the heat of his body pressed against mine. Just touching him felt like striking a match to paper; a moment of fragile flame, already ashes but burned into memory.

It was hard enough shutting out the sound of his voice.

Now I’ve seen his face, and I don’t know if I can turn away. I’ve felt his hands all over me. I know the way he feels inside me, know the sounds he makes when he?—

Stop it, Everly. He’s not the man you thought he was.

Isaac slowly stands from the stool.

I’m paralyzed, rooted in place as my heart teeters in two directions. Part of me wants to run to him, to fold myself into the warmth of his arms, while another part wants to hide, to vanish from his orbit. My emotions sway like a seesaw, pulling me to him, pushing me away, unable to settle.

I swallow.

I want to tell him to leave, to beg him to stay, but the words dissolve on my tongue when I hear my name echo through the crowd.

“Everly.”

I snap back, the trance broken. The voice registers, but it’s not his. It’s familiar and disorienting, tugging me out of one daze and into another.

I twist toward the other side of the bar, blinking, as if my brain’s struggling to process what I’m seeing. A man leansagainst the counter—black hair, sun-bronzed skin, a navy quarter-zip, and loafers I could pick out of a lineup.

The man I once trusted with my whole heart.

“Jasper?” His name falls out in a jagged whisper as my two worlds collide.

He straightens and steps toward me, his smile shrinking as he brushes a hand through his hair, taking in the club around him with a hint of distaste. “Are you all right?”

“I…” My gaze ricochets around the room, finding Isaac stalled a few feet away, his eyes drilling into Jasper with a look that could blister. I stifle a wheeze. My ex-husband is here, in San Francisco, standing in a strip club. And Isaac is watching. “What…what are you doing here?”

Jasper’s lips tug into another tentative smile. “I texted you.”

I nod, fumbling for a response. “I know.”

“You never replied. I’m in town for a few days, and we need to talk.” His eyes search mine, worry climbing as he takes in my wide-eyed stare, the way I’m clutching my purse as if it might keep me from toppling sideways. “Are you sure you’re all right? You look…” He lifts a hand, gesturing to my trembling limbs. “Shaken.”

“I’m fine. I-I wasn’t expecting to see you.” I force the words, darting a glance at Isaac. His eyes are on Jasper now, a storm brewing just beneath the surface, lethal and precise. The malice there makes my pulse hitch. “I was just…heading out.”

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