Chapter 42 Nikolai
The sun is only hours from creeping over the horizon by the time I get back to the apartment. I close the door softly and toe off my shoes, trying to be quiet enough not to wake Ani. Slipping down the hallway, I pause at our bedroom doorway to find her sleeping as expected.
As much as I want to wake her, I need a shower to wash off the remnants of the night. My hands and clothes are stained red from the trail of bodies we left across Brighton Beach.
In the guest bedroom ensuite, I strip off my clothes, the fabric sticky against my flesh, and step into the shower.
The water is hot, scalding at first. I let it pound against me, as I try to scrub clean the satisfaction and rage that coats me like a second skin.
The water runs red as it swirls down the drain, and I wash the evidence away.
I close my eyes, feeling the tension slowly bleed from my muscles as the steam curls around me.
After stepping out of the shower, I dry quickly and wrap the towel around my waist. I walk to our bedroom and am surprised to find our bed now empty.
Barefoot, I pad through the apartment and I find Ani in her robe sitting at the kitchen island.
Her hands are wrapped around a mug that is too big for her little hands, and her shoulders are hunched slightly.
“Sorry, little pet. I didn’t mean to wake you.” Entirely lost in her own little world, she doesn’t stir as I approach. Something is wrong. My Ani would give me shit for being the reason she was out of bed before sunrise.
I lean against the counter beside her, careful not to startle her. Tracing a finger lightly along the edge of her mug, I wrap my hand over hers. Her eyes rise to meet mine, and there’s a vulnerability I don’t see often hiding behind her soft, slightly bloodshot, hazel eyes.
Running my fingers along her jaw, I ask, “What’s wrong, my little pet?
” She swallows hard, her throat bobbing as her gaze falls into her coffee before timidly making its way back up to mine.
Even if I weren’t watching her hands trembling slightly around the cup, I could feel the tension radiating off her. “Talk to me, Ani.”
“I… I’m pregnant,” she whispers, barely audible, like she’s afraid it might actually make it true if she says it any louder.
For a moment, the unexpected news causes me to freeze. My mind races faster than I can process, the word pinging like a ricocheting bullet inside my skull. Pregnant. Pregnant? Ani. My little pet is carrying my blood. My baby. Something irrevocably ours.
Her wide eyes search mine, pleading for me to say something. Her lower lip quivers, and her voice follows suit. “Are you… mad?” The thought of me being angry—or worse—has her shrinking, and I need to crush that fear.
“Mad? Why would I be mad, little pet?” I ask, softening my voice as I reach out, letting my fingers trace lightly along her jaw, down her neck, and over her shoulder.
She shivers, and the tension in her body starts to wane slightly under my touch.
“Why would I ever be mad that you’re carrying our baby? ”
I shift closer, sitting beside her. My hand hovers, then rests tentatively on her belly, rubbing gently in slow, circular motions. Her breath catches at the contact, and she tenses slightly. Tenderness isn’t something I show often, but right now… it’s all I want to give.
“I kind of like the idea of you carrying my litter,” I tease sincerely as a small gaff erupts from me.
My fingers move delicately, almost reverently, over her still-flat stomach.
The thought of our blood—our bond—growing inside her hits me harder than I expected.
Desire and protectiveness knotting together inside me. Arching a brow, I ask, “You’re… sure?”
“Yes,” she whispers, nodding against me as she rests her head upon my shoulder. Her voice is barely audible, but it carries certainty. “I… I took a test. Actually… four of them. All of them say the same thing.”
I couldn’t stop the smile spreading across my face if I tried—I probably look fucking maniacal—over something I didn’t even know I wanted.
Just like my wife. She is no longer just bound to me on paper; this binds her to me forever.
“Good,” I proclaim, my hand rubbing over her belly, imagining the life growing in there.
“I like knowing that you’re mine. Tethered to me always. ”
Ani’s hand rises to cover mine, lacing our fingers together. “Nik…” she exhales, nervously. Her eyes meet mine, and they are filled with fear and the need for reassurance.
Slipping my fingers under her chin, I tip her face up toward mine and gently brush my thumb along her jaw. “I love you, Ani.”
Tears well in her eyes, and she slowly shakes her head. “Don’t…”
“Look at me.” When she doesn’t follow my instruction, I cup her chin more firmly to demand her attention. “Ani, look at me.”
Ani’s eyes peek up at me through her tear-dampened lashes, and a rogue one trickles down her cheek. Her lips part, but the only sound that comes from between them is a tiny, cracked sob.
“I love you, little pet,” I whisper my confession again with my forehead pressed to hers, damp lashes fluttering against my cheeks as her tears fall over them. “I loved you this morning. I loved you last week. Fuck, I think I fell for you the minute you slapped me across the face.”
A tiny laugh rattles from her between sobs. “I… I’m scared…”
“You don’t have to be.” I wipe the tears trickling down her cheeks. “I love you… our baby… You have me, little pet. All of me. Always.”
Ani’s lips part, and she leans into mine. Her kiss is soft and tentative at first, slowly becoming more insistent. The tenderness doesn’t deter my rapidly growing hunger. I cup her face in my palms, sliding my thumbs over her damp cheeks and tilting her face toward mine.
I slip my tongue between her soft, warm lips, deepening our kiss. Massaging her tongue with mine, I coax a moan from her that vibrates against my chest. She melts into me, her hands sliding up my neck and tangling in my hair.
When I pull away from her lips, I pepper a trail of soft kisses along her jaw before sinking my teeth into her throat just hard enough to elicit a gasp.
My lips, tongue, and teeth travel along every inch of her neck and shoulders, leaving behind a few more temporary marks.
She shudders under my touch, her soft curves pressing against my hard ones, silently inviting me to take more.
It’s an invitation I readily accept. Sliding my hands down her body, I cup her ass and lift her from the barstool. Her arms tighten around my neck as her legs wrap around my waist, and I can feel the heat pooling from her center. It radiates against my pants, causing my cock to grow even harder.
Squeezing her ass more firmly, I pull her flush to me and slide her along the hardened length bulging against my towel. “Do you feel what you do to me?” Her legs pull me closer, seeking more friction when I reduce the pressure. “Do you want me, little pet?”
“Yes,” she breathes, and my cock twitches at the urgency.
After kissing up her neck, I lick along the shell of her ear before pressing my lips to it.
“Just because you’re carrying my child, doesn’t mean I plan to be gentle,” I gravelly whisper before firmly dropping her onto the counter.
Reaching between us, I undo the sash of her robe.
The silk slips off her left shoulder, exposing her pert tit.
I dip my head and suck the already tight nipple into my mouth.
Teasing it with my tongue and teeth, I gather the silk belt from around her waist. As I suck hard and drag my teeth along the tight pink flesh, she whimpers in both pleasure and pain—a tiny moan blowing over her lips when I finally release it.
Standing, I loop the belt around the back of my neck, letting the free ends dangle along my bare chest as I slip the robe off her other shoulder. It flutters down her arms and pools at her thighs and the counter around her.
I push the silk from her lap and part her thighs.
“Look how wet you are for me,” I purr, when I reveal her bare, glistening pussy.
After slowly inching the sash from around my neck, I slip it around hers and affix a knot—creating a makeshift collar and leash.
“This sweet pussy is always so fucking ready for my cock, isn’t it? ”
“Yes, Daddy,” she breathlessly responds, her body already wound tight.
Wrapping my arms around her waist, I quickly lift her from the counter, her dainty toes pointing downward as I lower her to the floor.
“Is this little throat of yours as eager?” I wrap the sash around my hand and tug it, urging Ani to drop to her knees before me, which she does so eagerly.
I stare down at her, and the sight of her bound and ready to service me causes my cock to twitch against the towel.
I pull the tucked end of the terry cloth, and it flutters to the floor at my feet as Ani wraps her lips around the tip of my shaft.
She leisurely bobs her head, playfully suckling on the first couple of inches as she fists the rest of me.
“I love that wicked little tongue of yours, but I said your throat, little pet.” I pull on the leash, forcing her to take more of me when I thrust my hips.
Using the leash, I drag her over my length until her lips kiss the skin surrounding the base of my shaft.
Vigorously, I pump my hips and repeatedly drive deep into her throat, relishing in the way she squeezes around me when she gags.
I pull back, and spittle dribbles down her chin as she gasps violently for air. Tightening my hold of her hair, I tip her face up. “Do I need to fuck your throat again? Or are you going to be a good little pet and swallow my cock?”