Epilogue Kai #2
Nazar pauses, pulls back just enough to look at him. There’s something considering in his expression. Then his mouth curves into that rare smile.
“Shut up,” he says gently. Almost fondly.
Before Kai can respond, Nazar pushes him onto the bed. The mattress dips under his weight, and then Nazar is over him, his mouth finding that spot on Kai’s neck.
“Wait—” Kai’s voice comes out weak, already wrecking. “I wasn’t joking. I’m really ready to feed you properly. I have—there’s food in the fridge. Real food. Not just—”
Nazar stops. Lifts his head. Looks at Kai with an expression so serious it’s almost intimidating.
“I think,” he says, his voice dropping to that low, rough register that makes Kai’s toes curl, “you’re going to feed me the right way now.”
Kai curses inwardly as a moan escapes him.
Because of course. Of course the one time Nazar decides to be articulate, it’s about sex. The man can barely string three words together about emotions or logistics or literally anything practical, but when it comes to this—
Kai’s thoughts dissolve as Nazar’s mouth returns to his neck, sucking hard enough to leave a mark, his hands already working Kai’s jeans open.
Afterward, they lie tangled in sheets.
Kai’s body feels pleasantly heavy, wrung out in the best way. Nazar is sprawled beside him, one arm thrown over Kai’s waist, his breathing evening out into something close to sleep.
“I’m getting food,” Kai announces to the ceiling. “Real food. You’re going to eat actual calories.”
“Mm.” Nazar’s arm tightens around him. “Later.”
“Now. You chartered a jet, which means you probably skipped lunch. And knowing you, you probably also skipped breakfast because—”
“Kai.”
“—you thought you could just exist on willpower and spite until you got here, but that’s not—”
Nazar rolls on top of him, effectively pinning him to the mattress. His dark eyes are amused. “You talk too much.”
“Someone has to. You certainly don’t.”
“I talk.”
“You grunt. There’s a difference.”
Nazar’s mouth twitches. Then he leans down and kisses Kai and completely derailing Kai’s train of thought.
When he pulls back, Kai has to physically shake his head to clear it.
“Food,” he says again, but with significantly less conviction. “You need food.”
“Fine.” Nazar rolls off him with visible reluctance. “But I’m eating in bed.”
“You’re—what? No. Absolutely not. We have a perfectly good kitchen with a—”
“Bed.”
“Rykov—”
“Let just eat here for once.” Nazar’s expression is stubborn in that way Kai has learned means arguing is futile.
“Fine,” Kai sighs.
Kai drags himself out of bed, pulls on sweatpants and a t-shirt, and pads to the kitchen. He returns fifteen minutes later with two burritos and finds Nazar propped against the headboard, looking absurdly comfortable in Kai’s bed.
The sight does something complicated to Kai’s chest.
They eat in companionable silence for a few minutes. Bonifazio appears from wherever he’d been hiding—probably judging them from the cat tree—and hops onto the bed, settling near Kai’s feet with a disgruntled meow.
“I missed you,” Kai says quietly. He’s not looking at Nazar. Just staring at his burrito like it might have answers. “These two months have been… insane.”
“Yeah.”
“Very articulate, Rykov.”
“I’m eating.”
Kai sets his burrito down on the nightstand. His heart is suddenly hammering again, but for different reasons now.
“Can I ask you something?”
Nazar stops mid-bite. Turns his head. “You can ask me anything you want.” His voice is firm. Certain. “You know that.”
“Do you have anything to do with what happened to my father?”
Nazar sets his burrito down carefully. Wipes his mouth with a napkin—a surprisingly fastidious gesture that would be endearing under any other circumstances.
He’s quiet for a long moment. Too long. Kai’s chest tightens.
“I’m not sure you want to know the truth,” Nazar says finally. “But no. I have no direct connection to the criminal case. No direct connection to his arrest.”
“But indirectly?”
“Indirectly…” Nazar meets his eyes. “Many people were involved. Journalists. Investigators. People your father hurt over the years. I didn’t need to do much. He crossed too many people, Kai. All I did was… help connect some dots. Make sure the right information reached the right ears.”
Kai’s throat is tight. His hands are shaking slightly, and he presses them flat against the mattress to hide it.
“Rykov…” His voice comes out strangled. “My father will do everything he can to avoid staying in prison. He has influential friends. He knows which strings to pull.” He swallows hard.
“Listen to me. Don’t stick your neck out under any circumstances.
I’m not joking. I don’t often ask you for anything. Right?”
“You don’t ask me for enough,” Nazar interrupts. His expression is serious now, all traces of earlier amusement gone.
“I’m scared, Nazar.” The admission costs him something. “I’m scared of what he’ll do. What he’s capable of. If he finds out you had any part in this—”
Nazar moves suddenly, closing the distance between them. His hands frame Kai’s face, forcing Kai to look at him.
“Why didn’t he pull those strings to avoid prison in the first place? If he’s so powerful, why is he sitting in a cell right now?”
“Because—”
“The evidence was overwhelming. Because too many people came forward. The case was airtight before charges were even filed.” Nazar’s thumbs stroke Kai’s cheekbones.
“I will never let him touch you. Period. It won’t happen.
And the fact that you rarely ask me for anything is bad. Ask me whenever you want.”
Kai feels his heart beating too fast. The tone Nazar is using—that fierce, protective certainty—sends shivers down his spine.
The thought that Nazar would do something like this for him. Risk his career, his reputation, everything, just to keep Kai safe from his own father—
He can’t process it. Can’t wrap his mind around it.
“Nazar—”
“Shh.” Nazar’s expression suddenly shifts, a smile breaking across his face. “Don’t worry. I rarely take risks. I’ve only done it once in my life. With you, Kai.”
“I’m not worried about myself!” Kai’s voice rises, frustration bleeding through. “I’m worried about you, you idiot!”
Nazar laughs—a low, hoarse sound that makes Kai even angrier.
“What are you laughing at, you blockhead?!”
“You.” Nazar is still smiling, his eyes warm. “You look very cute when you get really angry. You know, when you’re genuinely angry.”
Kai feels heat flood his face. “I’ll show you cute right now.”
He climbs on top of Nazar, straddling his hips, his hands braced on Nazar’s chest. He’s aiming for threatening. Probably failing spectacularly based on the way Nazar’s smile widens.
“Threatening me, Callahan?” Nazar’s hand comes up to his mouth—a strangely sensual gesture, like he’s collecting saliva on his fingertips. His eyes never leave Kai’s face. “Well, go ahead. I’m kind of looking forward to it.”
The challenge in his voice makes something hot and reckless surge through Kai.
“You’re insufferable.”
“Yeah,” Nazar agrees easily. “And you love it.”
Kai does. He absolutely does, which is possibly the most annoying thing about this entire situation.
So he leans down and kisses him instead—hard and demanding and full of all the things he can’t figure out how to say.