Chapter 21 Changing the Rules
Changing the Rules
I wake cold and disoriented. I’m not wearing a shirt, and there’s no blanket.
I scan my surroundings, recognizing Nico’s room in the Panah City house.
By the slant of the sun through the balcony doors, it’s early morning.
Shifting to get a better view of the room, I wince as pain shoots through my side.
“Fucking hells.” I forgot about the knife wounds.
Carefully, I push myself into a sitting position and glance at my torso.
There aren’t any gashes. Not even a scar remains.
The healers certainly did their job. But my muscles still need time to heal completely, and they’re currently protesting.
Loudly. Soft snuffles draw my attention.
Nico’s lower half is in a chair that’s been pulled close to the bed, while his upper half sprawls across the mattress.
I tenderly brush the dark curls from his face. “Nico.”
The snuffling stops, and he stirs, then pushes himself up, blinking sleepily. When he sees me, he smiles brighter than the sun. Lunging for my hand, he presses soft kisses into my palm. “Bello, you have no idea how good it is to see your beautiful eyes.”
I squeeze his hand tightly. “And you. You have no idea—” I can’t finish the sentence around the unfamiliar lump in my throat and the emotions squeezing the air from my chest. “If you had been killed—”
Nico carefully crawls into bed and pulls me against his side. “Shhhhh. We are both fine.” He kisses my temple and rests his cheek against my hair. “I knew you would come for me.”
I take a few deep breaths and lean into him, allowing myself a small show of vulnerability just this once.
“I’ll always come for you. No matter what the circumstances.
I won’t lose you.” We hold each other, and eventually I gain control of myself.
“How long have I been unconscious?” With Demon Thorn, the side effects could be anywhere from a day to never waking.
I assume with my tolerance to poisons, that it hasn’t been too long.
Nico brushes his fingertips along my arm. “A little more than a day. Thankfully, you are brilliant and knew what the toxin was. The healers created the antidote and administered it within minutes of our return.”
I shrug. “It’s a gift.” I say it jokingly, but an aptitude for poisons is actually one of my talents. Or, more accurately, a magical skill. They’re also a passion of mine. He chuckles and squeezes me gently. Sighing, I relax into the embrace and press a kiss against his neck. “Elanil?”
“She’s fine. But I think she is feeling badly about being knocked out. She and a few of the other Protectors from House Durov are keeping an eye on your targets. And in case you were not sure, both of the Protectors who attacked me are dead.”
Pride swells in my chest. “You were magnificent. And you took both down.”
“No. I killed the second one. Simon? But only wounded the other. He would have eventually died, but Elanil finished him off when she woke.”
So, that’s another two from my list. I’d have liked to kill them myself, but ultimately it’s their deaths that matter. “How did they capture you?”
“A meeting ran late, and I was on my way home.” I tense again, but before I can scold him, Nico continues. “I was being careful. And I knew as soon as they started following me. There were two of them though, and I tried to fight them off, but they eventually overpowered me.”
I’d feared that was the case. We haven’t been training to fight more than one opponent at a time.
That will change immediately, now that the power and influence of Nikita Durov is at my disposal.
There will be more than enough Protectors to help train Nico.
I won’t allow him to be caught unprepared again.
I tighten my grip on his hand. “When I saw your earring, I was so afraid I was going to lose you too.” I try to examine his ear, but the twisting hurts. “How is your wound?”
He turns his head, tucking his hair behind his left ear so I can see the lack of damage. “It is fine.” I raise an eyebrow, but he insists. “You can see for yourself. I am fully healed. My lobe will need to be re-pierced, but that is all.”
I pat my pants pockets, checking that the bundle is still there, then pull out the silk handkerchief. “Your mother’s earring. I know how much it means to you.” I hold the cloth out to him. “I’m sorry you had to learn about the true cause of her death like that.”
Nico takes the bundle, shaking his head. “You have been fixated on it almost from the beginning, and that was enough for me to know I was not told the truth.” He opens the cloth and stares at the ruby stud, then picks it up and holds it out to me. “I want you to have it.”
Shocked, I shake my head. “No. It was your mother’s.”
Nico cups my face in his hands. “Yes, this is one of the few things I have from her. And it is precious to me. But so are you. Which is why I want you to have it.”
I stare at him, shaking my head again. Why would he give me something so dear? “I don’t understand.”
He kisses me tenderly before pressing his forehead to mine. “You are the most precious person in my life. And I want you to know that, without doubt. If you accept this, you will have something of me, and I will have you, so—” He tilts my face up to meet his gaze.
I’m at a rare loss for words. My heart races, and I stare at the earring and then at Nico. “Are you asking me to marry you?”
Nico’s smile is soft, almost shy, which is out of character for him. “Yes. I suppose so. I do not want to pressure you. But nothing would make me happier than spending the rest of my life with you, as your husband.” He grins self-consciously. “So yes, I am asking. Zayd, will you marry me?”
My mind is awhirl. Shades shouldn’t fall in love.
They certainly don’t get married. It’s against everything I’ve ever been taught.
But maybe I don’t care. Maybe I don’t want to be Shabah anymore.
No, that’s not true. I still want that. But maybe I want a different set of rules.
Maybe I’ll change the rules. That sits right in my gut.
“Love.” My heart skips a few beats as I say the word.
“Everything I’ve ever been taught tells me that what I feel for you is wrong.
That what we feel for each other is dangerous.
” But only Nico has ever given me the safety to be myself, to be vulnerable.
“Much to my own shock, I find myself deeply in love with you anyway.” He makes me want to be a better person.
He expects more from me, so I expect more from myself now.
I press my hand to his cheek. “I don’t regret it.
And I wouldn’t change it, either. I’m yours. So, yes, I’ll marry you.”
Nico places the ruby stud in my palm, and this time I close my fist around it. Then, without overthinking it, I exchange it with one of my onyx studs that I’ve worn since my induction into the Onyx Guild. Tentatively, I hold it out to Nico. “Will you take this as a symbol of my commitment to you?”
“Yes. But we need to keep it safe until I can wear it properly.” He flicks his earlobe, grinning, and then wraps the earring in the cloth and shoves it in his pocket, kissing me softly. I sigh into it and try to move closer, wincing as my muscles protest. “Fucking hells.”
Nico immediately pulls back. “We need to be careful. You are injured.”
I catch my breath, chuckling. “Yes, but I’m okay.” Wrapping my arms around his neck, I let my weight pull us down onto the bed. “So be careful and go slowly.” I brush my lips against his. “But don’t stop.”
His fingertips brush along my side. “I can do that.” Excitement thrums through me as he kisses my palm, then the tip of my thumb, before languidly sliding it between his lips, sucking gently.
I’ve done this to others many times, but never been on the receiving end. Now I very much appreciate why it’s effective as a seduction technique. It’s so simple, yet so erotic. It’s a kind of promise of things to come, yet slightly torturous at the same time. And it’s making me very hard.
Nico gently sucks on each of my fingers, taking his time, enjoying it as much as I am.
He trails his lips along the edge of my wrist, tongue darting out to taste the pulse point before gently pressing an open-mouthed kiss to the spot.
I stare as he works a kind of sexual magic on me.
Mesmerized by the quiet passion in his kisses, I can’t move. Not that I want to.
His parted lips travel lightly along my inner arm, coming to rest at the bend of my elbow.
I quietly whimper as he gently sucks and nips at the delicate skin, flicking out his tongue to soothe the spot.
“Your pulse is hammering, Bello. Do you like this?” His breath ghosts across the dampness his tongue left behind.
“Yes.” It’s barely a whisper, but it’s all I can manage. I’m floating in unfamiliar sensations, my body alight with need and passion. “I love it.” Nico continues his exploration, kissing his way to my shoulder and along my neck. I groan as he sucks gently.
“Bello, you taste good.” His lips ghost across my skin, settling at the base of my neck, teeth gently worrying the spot. I pant and lean into him. Fuck, this is impossibly perfect. And overwhelming.
I weave my fingers into his dark curls, moaning as his tongue teases behind my ear. I’m desperate to rut against him, but he has me pinned in place with nothing but his wicked mouth. “Please. I want you inside me.”
Nico whispers along my jaw. “Soon, Bello. We will get there. I promise. Be patient.” My patience is in short supply.
His fingers trace a line across my collarbone and down my torso, his lips following close behind.
I want to grab him and make him go faster, but he has me dizzy and desperate for more.
I strain upward, all physical discomfort lost to the pleasure as the tips of his fingers brush small circles along the hollow between my hip and cock. “Nico. Please. Touch me.”
“I love you, Zayd. I will take care of you, and I promise I will let you come—soon.” His mouth burns a hot trail of kisses along my inner thigh, moving lower at a torturously slow pace. I sob in frustration as his mouth drifts past where I desperately need it to be. I’m losing my mind.
With each featherlight kiss and gentle caress, he’s undoing me, tearing down any remaining walls. And I let him. “Love, I can’t take anymore. I need your mouth. I need your body. Please—”
Nico, the ass, chuckles softly. “Oh, my beautiful man. Fine. I will be merciful.” He crawls up my body, brushing his cock against mine, making me whimper before finally giving me some relief.
When he grinds down against me, I gasp and grab his hips, thrusting up, rutting fast, and holding him tightly.
I’ve never wanted someone so much. I’ve never wanted to come so badly. “I love you.” My body coils in on itself as my muscles tense with the building pressure. My vision blurs as I grind mindlessly against Nico until the pleasure becomes too much and my orgasm slams through me.
Nico’s hips slow, coasting me through gentle aftershocks.
I’m utterly boneless, more relaxed than I’ve ever been in my life.
“You know, I should be angry with you, or embarrassed that you made me come in my pants like a damned kid. But I feel too good right now to ruin it with negativity.” His laughter warms my heart.
I was so worried I’d never hear it again.
He kisses my temple, and his hard cock presses against my thigh.
I manage to wrap my legs around his waist, tilting my hips up. “I want you.”
In a matter of seconds he removes our clothes, then retrieves the oil from the bedside table.
I take it from him, pour a generous amount into my palm before gripping his cock, liberally coating him with firm strokes before pushing him onto his back and straddling his hips.
Without hesitation, I lower myself onto him, my body relaxed and ready after such a spectacular orgasm.
I begin a slow, deliberate roll of my hips.
Groaning, he grabs me, carefully avoiding my sides, and presses his fingers into the muscles of my ass. “Bello.”
“Come for me, love. I know you’re close.” I lean down to claim his lips, kissing him thoroughly, our tongues gliding together in a sensual caress. He thrusts into me, picking up speed with each snap of his hips.
“Zayd.” He tenses, his eyes closing as his body shudders and his grip tightens on my hips.
His groan of pure, debauched satisfaction is music to my ears.
When he finally stops shaking and his muscles relax, his arms drop to his sides.
I ease myself up, letting his beautiful cock slip from my body as I collapse onto the mattress beside him.
He throws an arm and a leg over me, hauling me closer.
My fingers ghost across the dark hair on his arm. “I love you.”
He squeezes me, kissing my temple. “I love you too. Thank you for saying yes.”
It takes me a moment to remember what I agreed to, but then I smile and squeeze him back. “You’re welcome.”
Laughing, he pinches my arm but squeezes me tighter.
A life together will be dangerous, but we already know that.
We’ll have to deal with the Shabah eventually.
And there’s still the matter of my revenge.
Four targets left. More than I’d like, but not insurmountable.
Still, more people are aware that I’m alive and back, which increases all the risks. That can’t be helped.
I close my eyes and doze in Nico’s arms while my mind considers all my options, and a short while later, I have the very beginnings of a plan. Then someone knocks on the bedroom door.