Bound By Vows, Sealed In Love

Heat clung to every surface in the room, turning the air thick and stifling.

Caiden Wells' body heat kept burning against Iris Wells' skin.

"Is it that comfortable? Your voice is so alluring." He chuckled lazily into her ear, his voice rasping and languid. "Then... how about this?"

A startled gasp left her lips.

Iris snapped awake, her heart plummeting before it leaped up and hammered in her chest.

For a moment, confusion fogged her senses, until she realized the truth. None of it was real.

She'd been lost in a dream—a vivid one. Caiden's touch had felt so real, the memory of his closeness still burning across her skin as she blinked at the ceiling, breath ragged.

Several moments passed before she could pull herself together. Her hand reached for the space beside her. Only cold sheets met her touch.

Caiden, her husband, hadn't come home.

Sighing, Iris pushed hair from her eyes and slid out of bed to pour herself a glass of water.

Some uncomfortable sensation clung to her crotch. Annoyed, she rummaged for her underwear and a nightgown, and headed to the bathroom, needing to wash away the sticky feeling of longing.

Desire for sex didn't care about gender; Iris knew that as well as any man. She had grown used to regular intimacy ever since her wedding.

Back then, their nights stretched on until dawn, neither of them calling it quits until the early hours. That rhythm had ended abruptly after an incident, and Caiden had taken an assignment overseas, vanishing for nearly a year.

No wonder those memories had spilled into her dreams.

After changing into fresh clothes, Iris was about to hand wash her underwear, but the shrill ring of her phone shattered the quiet.

Late-night calls weren't unusual for a surgeon like her. However, when she answered, the voice that greeted her was unfamiliar—a man, calm but urgent.

"Is this Iris Wells?"

"Yes. Who is this?"

"Good evening, Mrs. Wells. This is Officer Grant from the Horizon Avenue precinct. Is Caiden Wells your husband? He was picked up at a bar tonight—drunk and tangled up in a fight. We'd appreciate it if you could come down to help sort things out."

The words left Iris speechless for a moment. Caiden was back? And already making trouble, enough to land himself in police custody.

Iris hesitated before answering, "Alright. I'll be there as soon as I can."

She wasted no time slipping into something presentable, grabbed her keys, and left the house behind.

The Horizon Avenue stretched through the heart of Slidrora's nightlife. Neon signs pulsed above packed sidewalks, music drifting through the sticky air. The drive from her quiet villa to the city's party strip felt endless. By the time Iris reached her destination, the clock was creeping toward four in the morning.

Everywhere she looked, bars jostled for space, the streets alive with late-night drama. Even this late, the police station thrummed with restless energy.

As soon as Iris pushed through