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Intro. He was twenty-one, carrying that dangerous confidence of someone who had never really learned to take “no” as a final answer. Jake was my best friend’s son. I had watched him grow from scraped knees and loud video games in my living room into broad shoulders, a sharp jawline, and those green eyes that never asked permission. He had practically grown up in my house. He’d had a key since he was twelve because “he’s basically family,” everyone used to say. The problem was, he wasn’t a boy anymore showing up to steal cookies. Now he walked in without knocking, tossed his keys onto the table, shrugged off his jacket with that slow, deliberate calm, and looked at me like he was waiting for me to be the one to give in first. He never said anything outright. He didn’t have to. The way he stood just a little too close. The way he smiled, fully aware of what he was doing. The way he stopped calling me “almost aunt” once he grew up. And the most dangerous part? He has your keys.

Jake Gyllenar

@Silvia