?Chapter 895:


    After giving her a moment, Wesley rolled his hips forward again, this time slow and teasing.


    Elena cracked one eye open, her gaze hazy, too drained to move, too far gone to care.


    “Elena,” Wesley murmured against her ear. “You know the rules—what’s fair is fair. Especially in bed.”


    Without waiting for a reply, he pulled her close again, guiding her through another round, shifting angles and rhythms as the hours quietly passed. Beyond the window, the wind stirred the trees, and the moon slipped behind a thick curtain of clouds. The night stretched wide, dark, and endless.


    Only when the breeze faded and silence crept back into the room did Wesley finally ease out of her, his skin slick with sweat. He took care of the condom and tossed it into the trash without a word.


    Tonight was different—he’dsted longer than usual. Maybe because she hadn’t held back. Her openness had pushed him, kept him on edge in the best way.


    Still as stone, Elena didn’t stir. Her eyes stayed shut, too drained to lift a finger. With steady hands, Wesley scooped her up and carried her into the bathroom. He cleaned her off with gentle care and then wrapped her snugly in a towel beforeying her down in the guest room.


    His own bed was a lost cause, soaked straight through and beyond saving. Sometime before the sun had a chance to rise, Wesley found himself curled around her, eyes shut, resting in the silence.


    Even after the water had rinsed her clean, the scent of her lingered faintly—as if it came from somewhere deep inside her, not just her skin.


    That familiar trace filled his lungs, and without meaning to, he slipped into sleep.


    His arms settled around her like instinct. Elena shifted a little, uneasy at first, but then went still. A few half-hearted attempts to wriggle free led nowhere, so she simply let him stay.


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    It wasn’t exactly the mostfortable arrangement, but somehow, sleep took them both anyway.


    The ops team hadpleted their return to the. Without stopping for a break, Lydia made her way to the National Security Bureau.


    Inside the director’s office, Lydia said with a tight jaw and steady eyes, “Mr. Morrison, I take full responsibility. One of the captives died because of my mistake. I’m willing to face whatever consequences await me.” Until now, Lydia had never failed during an assignment.


    Ethan Morrison, the man seated across from her, wasn’t just the director—he was also her immediate superior. He’d been the one who saw her potential and promoted her when others doubted herpetence.


    d in a fitted ck shirt, Ethan carried himself with the quiet confidence of someone used tomand. He was the youngest person ever appointed as the director of the National Security Bureau. Setting the report aside, he looked straight at Lydia. “I went over the report. What happened wasn’t on you. Earle is a globally wanted criminal. Saving the rest of the captives under that kind of pressure is no small feat. I’ll be the one to inform the higher-ups about the loss.”


    Lydia was taken aback. Was he really stepping up to shoulder the me in her ce? Honestly, at first, she hadn’t known what to make of him since he kept people at arm’s length, his face rarely giving anything away. She had even suspected he was singling her out since each mission he assigned felt more dangerous than thest. It almost seemed like he was trying to get her off the team.


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