A Caged Songbird's Escape: Into the Arms of a Predator novel Chapter 471

"Where are you running off to? Don't you want a hug?" the man asked, his voice laced with a teasing lilt.

"Who wants your hug?" Elissa Drummond's pride made her instinctively deny it.

However, in the next second, Rowan Murphy stood up. Using the gentle tug on her pinky finger, he effortlessly pulled her into his arms, wrapping her in a firm and steady embrace.

He held her tightly against his chest, a soft chuckle vibrating in his throat. "Fine, then I want you to hug me. How about that?"

"Aren't you going to hold me tight?"

The man's chest was warm and broad, the steady thud of his heartbeat drumming against her eardrums. With every breath, she inhaled his familiar, woodsy scent.

This unexpected embrace made her restless heart, which had felt untethered for days, finally begin to settle.

Hearing his words, Elissa's ears burned even hotter. Gathering her courage, she lifted her arms from her sides, ready to wrap them around his waist.

Ding-dong.

The sudden ring of the doorbell made her jump.

Rowan glanced down and scoffed playfully. "Why so tense? It's not like we're having an illicit affair."

"..."

A faint sound of the lock turning followed.

Tanya Foster must be back early!

Elissa hurriedly pushed him away, shooting him a glare before sprinting to the door. "Coming!"

"I'm just saying," Rex Wilkinson's voice squeezed through the crack as the door opened, "they finally get a chance to live together, and you just have to crash the party."

Tanya fired back without missing a beat. "Who knows if it's consensual cohabitation or if your buddy is just being a creep? I had to come back and check."

The moment the door swung wide, six eyes met.

Elissa heard them, and they knew Elissa heard them.

Tanya immediately spotted Elissa's bright red ears. She cleared her throat and asked in a low, cautious voice, "Should I... not have come back?"

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