Chapter 38
VIVIAN
The scar running across my torso was the only physical reminder left of what Lord Thorne had done to me.
I traced it absently through the soft fabric of another one of Raffaele’s sweatshirts, my thoughts spiraling in and out of the memories I was trying so hard to suppress.
It had been three days since we arrived at the cabin.
Three days of quiet meals, and Raffaele’s unabashed care.
Physically, I was almost whole again. The magical salve he applied every night before bed worked wonders, reducing the once-raw X across my torso to a faint line that he assured me would fade over time. But my mind… Well, that was another story.
Raffaele had been relentless in his care. He cooked every meal, ensured I rested, and rarely left my side. His constant attention was overwhelming in the best way, leaving me feeling both cared for and unsteady. I wasn’t used to this—any of this.
We sat at the kitchen island, the remains of roasted vegetables and a perfectly cooked chicken spread between us. I set my fork down and looked at him, watching as he wiped his hands with a cloth napkin.
“Where is all this food coming from?” I asked.
He leaned back in his chair, his eyes gleaming with amusement. “Magic.”
I rolled my eyes. “Obviously. But how? You’ve been cooking non-stop, and you haven’t left the cabin once. Are you summoning food out of thin air?”
He chuckled, the warm sound sending tingles through me. “Not quite. The cabin’s magic is tied to me. It responds to my presence and pulls resources from my territory—markets, stores, wherever it’s needed.”
“Wait, so you’re telling me there’s some poor bastard staring at his food cart right now, wondering why his produce keeps disappearing?”
That earned me a full laugh, one that crinkled the corners of his eyes and softened his sharp features. “It’s possible. I like to think the cabin has better taste than to take from someone who needs it.”
I laughed, the sound bubbling up unexpectedly. It felt foreign, but good, like I’d found a part of myself I was sure I’d lost.
Raffaele smiled as he watched me. He stood and carried our plates to the kitchen before heading to the living room.
“Come on,” he called over his shoulder.
I followed him, drawn by the unusual ease in his demeanor. He settled on the rug in front of the fire and patted the spot beside him. “Sit with me.”
I lowered myself onto the plush rug, the warmth of the fire soothing against the chill in the air. Raffaele leaned forward, opening a cabinet built into the side of the fireplace, and pulled out a wooden box.
I raised an eyebrow. “A board game? I didn’t think magical beings in The Below even knew what those were.”
He smirked, setting the box down and flipping it open.
Inside was a board painted with intricate designs and small wooden peg people in different colors.
“When you’ve been alive as long as I have, you find ways to kill time.
I scoured The Below and even sent my men into the human world to find things like this.
If I ever had to use the safehouse, I knew I might be here a while. ”
I couldn’t help but smile as he set up the game. His hands, capable of wielding shadows with lethal precision, now moved delicately as he arranged the tiny pieces on the board.
As he was placing the last peg, his eyes lit up. “Oh, I almost forgot…”
He stood and disappeared into the kitchen, returning moments later with two glasses of white wine. He handed me one, the soft smile on his lips making my heart somersault.
“Thought it might make the game more interesting,” he said casually, sitting back down and raising his glass.
I took the glass, staring at him over the rim as I took a sip.
The crisp, cold wine was perfect, and I couldn’t help but marvel at the man sitting across from me.
This was Raffaele Gallanti, the Shadow, one of the most feared beings in The Below—and he was sitting on a rug in front of a fire, sharing wine and a board game with me.
Something had shifted between us. I couldn’t pinpoint when or how, but I felt it in the way he looked at me, in every caring gesture.
I wasn’t used to this. I wasn’t used to anyone caring for me like this. But as I sat there, sipping wine and watching him explain the rules of the game with an almost boyish enthusiasm, I had a startling realization.
I could get used to this.
I wanted to.
The small wooden pegs clattered against the board as Raffaele made his final move. “And that, my dear, is what we call a flawless victory.”
I rolled my eyes, leaning back against the couch with a dramatic groan. “Flawless? Please. You cheated.”
He raised an eyebrow, his golden eyes gleaming with amusement. “How exactly did I cheat, darling? Enlighten me.”
“You distracted me with the wine, and with the hair and the body…”
A low chuckle rumbled in his chest. “If you’re so easily distracted, that’s hardly my fault.”
I huffed and crossed my arms, but a smile tugged at my lips. Being here with him, especially when he was so playful and at ease, made it feel like the cabin was in an entirely different world. One where danger couldn’t reach us.
“We’ll play another round,” he said, leaning forward to reset the board.
“Another chance to crush my spirit? No thanks.”
He looked up, staring intently into my eyes. “Crushing your spirit is the last thing I’d ever want to do.”
The sincerity in his voice left me momentarily speechless.
I barely noticed when he reached for me until I was in his lap.
He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close.
I rested my head against his chest, listening to the soothing rhythm of his heartbeat as I stared at the crackling flames in the fireplace.
“When do you think it’ll be safe to go back?” I asked.
He stroked my back absently. The bond betrayed his emotions—calm on the surface but with an undercurrent of worry he couldn’t entirely hide.
“I’m not sure. I’m working on a plan, but it’s nothing for you to worry about.”
I tilted my head up to look at him, but his gaze was fixed on the fire, his expression distant.
“Raffaele,” I said softly, placing my hand on his chest. His eyes flicked down to meet mine, and it felt like the rest of the world fell away.
He lifted my chin gently so I couldn’t look anywhere but at him. His dark eyes burned with intensity, and the bond thrummed with a promise I could feel as much as hear.
“I will keep you safe,” he said. “No matter what happens next, I’ll do everything within my power to keep you safe.”
There were no words for what I felt in that moment—for the man holding me, for the emotions coursing through us both. He was mine, as much as I was his.
I replayed his words in my head. Within his power.
My actions had affected his ability to keep me safe.
The guilt washed over me as I remembered the siren’s kiss.
I’d been so caught up in my own head after everything happened with Lord Thorne that I hadn’t given a second thought to Raffaele’s deteriorating magic. And it was all my fault.
I didn’t want to think about what I’d done, about what the siren’s kiss meant for Raffaele. I couldn’t.
I leaned forward and kissed him tentatively. His lips were warm, and for a moment, he didn’t move, as if surprised. Then he responded, sliding his hand up my back until his fingers tangled in my hair.
The kiss deepened, growing desperate, and the bond ignited like wildfire, our emotions entwining completely.
I was insatiable… desperate for more of him, as if he were the air I’d been starving for. His need was as intense as mine, a shared hunger that made my heart stutter. I dug my nails into his back as he stood, lifting me like I weighed nothing.
He carried me to the couch, his shadows flickering around us like a protective barrier, and gently laid me down, his lips never leaving mine.
I didn’t think about what had happened, about what might come next.
In that moment, there was only him.
The couch pressed against my back as Raffaele laid me down, his body hovering over mine with an intensity that made my breath catch.
There was no hesitation in his movements, no tentative testing of boundaries.
His hands were already at the hem of my sweatshirt, pulling it over my head in one smooth motion, leaving me in nothing but shorts and the thin lace bra the cabin had provided for me.
“You have no idea what you do to me,” he murmured, his voice low and rough as his hands slid over my body as if he was memorizing every curve of my body.
The fire in his eyes made my heart race, and I couldn’t stop the shiver that coursed through me as he hooked his fingers into the waistband of my shorts, tugging them down my legs.
“Raffaele,” I breathed. “You’re—”
“Not wasting any time,” he finished, his lips quirking into a smirk as he tossed my shorts aside. “Because I can’t.”
He crashed his lips against mine, his tongue sweeping into my mouth as his hands roamed over my body. I arched into him, my fingers tangling in his hair as I kissed him back just as desperately, my skin burning wherever he touched me.
He palmed my breast through the lace before slipping his fingers beneath it. I gasped against his mouth, my body arching into his touch as his thumb grazed my nipple, sending a jolt of pleasure straight to my core.
“You’re perfect,” he murmured, his lips trailing down my neck. His breath was hot against my skin, each kiss and nip leaving a trail of fire in its wake. “Absolutely perfect.”
I shivered as his lips moved lower, teasing the curve of my breast before his tongue flicked over my nipple.
A moan spilled from my mouth, and I clung to him as he alternated between soft, teasing licks and firm, deliberate suction.
My body was a live wire, every nerve-ending alive and begging for more.