26. Kira
KIRA
My body was tight with exhaustion and stress and I had been in bed for hours, waiting for Nikolai and the men to return. But sleep refused to come.
I tossed and turned, hugging his pillow, then pushing it away when I'd think about how he might kill my father. Then tears would come and I'd hug it again because right now, he was the only thing anchoring me in place.
Finally, around three in the morning, the front door opened and closed, and I heard him stalking up the narrow hallway to our room.
I sat up in bed, flicking the light on before he opened the door, and he looked surprised to see me awake.
"I thought you'd be sleeping," he said softly. His eyes were heavy, and his hair was mussed from running his hand through it so much.
He dragged his armor belt up over his head and dropped it in the chair by the door, wincing as he lifted his shoulder too high.
And I could tell he was trying to shield me from it, but I could see blood all over his hands and spattered on his shirt.
I rose up, crawling across the bed toward where he stood undressing, and took his hand, looking at the blood on it. It was dried, but it was fresh, and it wasn't his. My heart stuttered, dread swarming me like a pack of angry bees.
"Niko," I said, pulling his hand until he turned to look at me. He'd made me a promise, but with the shit he'd put me through, I wasn't sure what to believe. This was the man who had catfished me from the beginning. I had little reason to trust him. But here I was hoping he'd put my mind at ease.
"He's alive, Kira…" Niko pulled his hand from mine and continued unbuttoning his shirt, and I sat back on my heels and watched him.
Nothing about him made sense, from the way he'd stolen me off the street to how he had such passionate, crazy sex with me. And now this. His worst enemy had tried to kill him multiple times, but he'd given mercy instead of taking revenge.
"Why did you do that?" I asked, feeling slightly emotional. I didn’t think I was going to cry but the way things had been lately, I couldn't rule it out entirely.
"I keep my promises, Kira."
I got quiet, not sure what to say to him as his shirt slid from his shoulders revealing the corded muscles on his back.
It felt like I'd known him a hundred years now, though it had only been a few months.
But I'd gotten comfortable with him in a way I never had felt with my family. Still, this silence was awkward enough, even Nikolai noticed.
He turned, narrowing his eyes at me. "I held back because I told you I'd spare him." His shoulders were tight as he explained. "I wanted to kill him so bad…" He shook his head as he undid his belt and shoved his pants down. There was no doubt in my mind that he was telling me the truth.
"I don't understand… Why?" I relaxed more, shifting so my legs stretched out, hanging over the side of the bed. Niko leaned down, placing a kiss on my forehead. He stank like sweat and smoke still, and I held my breath so I didn't get sick to my stomach. It had to have been a rough night for him.
"I gave you my word… But the idea of you looking at me like a killer—" Another kiss on my forehead before he straightened. "I don't want our child thinking I would hurt my wife like that… And I want you to be my wife for a very, very long time."
His words made my heart swell and I slid off the bed, not caring how sweaty he was, and wrapped my arms around his torso, laying my head on his chest.
He stopped for a moment, as if wondering how to react to my affection, then his arms folded around me.
"I'd like that," I whispered, not sure if he heard me. When he rested his chin on top of my head, I sighed and turned up to look at him. "But I'd like a real wedding, not that fake thing you called a wedding."
Nikolai chuckled and pushed me back, holding me by the shoulders.
"We can do anything you want, right after I have a good night's sleep.
" I didn't respond to that, but I smiled and pressed my face against his sweaty chest again. The sound of his continued chuckling rumbled through his chest under my cheek. “A real wedding, huh? Demanding little thing tonight, aren’t you?” His thumbs brushed over my shoulders.
I tilted my head back up, trying to look stern even as my lips twitched. “Yeah, and the least you can do is let me pick the flowers this time.”
He grinned, that crooked, dangerous smile that made my stomach flip. “Flowers? Baby, I’ll give you whatever you want. But right now…” His hands slid down my arms, fingers wrapping gently around my wrists. “I need a shower, and you’re coming with me.”
I laughed, trying to pull back even though I didn’t really mind going with him. “Niko, you smell like a war zone. I’m not getting in there with you like that.”
“Exactly why you should come in,” he said, tugging me closer until my pelvis bumped his. “You can help me wash all this off. Consider it practice for that real wedding night you’re already planning in your head.”
My face heated. “I am not—”
“You are.” He leaned down, brushing his nose along my jaw, voice dropping a rough, teasing tone that undid me. “I'm picturing you in a white dress I’m definitely going to ruin. Me trying to behave in front of guests while all I want is to drag you into the nearest closet.”
I swatted his chest, but my hand lingered on the hard muscle there. “You’re impossible.”
“And you love it.” He caught my hand and brought it to his lips, kissing my knuckles even though his own were still stained. “Come on, Kira. I’m exhausted, I’m filthy, and I want my wife under the hot water with me. I’ll even let you boss me around—tell me where to scrub.”
I bit my lip, fighting a smile. “You taking orders? That’ll be the day.”
His eyes sparkled with mischief as he walked backward toward the bathroom, pulling me with him. “For you I might. Especially if you promise to wash my back… and maybe a few other places that need extra attention.”
“Nikolai!” I snickered pretending to be half-scandalized, but my feet were willingly following him.
He stopped in the doorway, hands settling on my waist, thumbs slipping just under the hem of my shirt. “Say yes, Malyshka. Your body would make me feel incredible tonight."
I peered up at his tired eyes and messy hair and felt my resistance melt.
“Fine,” I whispered, reaching up to trace his jaw. “But only because you kept your promise tonight.”
His grin turned wicked. “That’s my girl.”
He kicked the bathroom door shut behind us, already peeling my shirt up with playful, impatient hands. I lifted my arms, laughing as the fabric caught on my chin for a second before he tossed it aside.
Steam started filling the room the moment he turned the shower on, but it wasn't as steamy as the chemistry between us.
“You’re ridiculous,” I said, shaking my head as he grinned down at me like he’d won some prize. “I was trying to be mad at you five minutes ago.”
“Five minutes ago you were hugging me and I stink,” he shot back, hooking his fingers into the waistband of my sleep shorts and dragging them down my legs. “Now look at you—voluntarily naked with a dangerous man."
I stepped out of the shorts and swatted his chest again, but what I really wanted was for his hands to be on me. “Dangerous? You just promised me a real wedding. You’re practically domesticated now.”
Nikolai barked a laugh and pulled me into the shower with him.
The hot spray hit my back first, making me sigh in relief.
He groaned as the water sluiced over his shoulders, washing away streaks of dried blood in rusty rivulets down his chest. I watched it disappear as my fingers automatically rose to help wipe it away like the bad memory it was.
“Domesticated,” he repeated, sounding amused as he reached for the soap.
“Careful, Princess. I still remember how to bite.” He lathered his hands and slid them over my shoulders, hands pressing gently into the tight muscles there.
The touch worked out the knots that had kept me tense and bound up for hours now.
It felt incredible, and I tilted my head back under the spray, eyes half-closed.
“Mmm. God, that feels so good," I purred, leaning into him.
His hands paused, then continued their slow glide down my arms. “I could think of things that feel better."
I opened my eyes and poked him in the ribs. “What about my needing to rest? Huh? Still want me to follow Dr. Keller's orders?"
He chuckled and leaned down, pressing a soft, lingering kiss to my forehead, then my temple, then the corner of my mouth.
“But relaxation is a good thing, right?” His soapy hands moved to my waist, stroking up and down my sides in long, lazy passes that made my skin tingle. “But you like washing me, admit it.”
I took the soap from him and worked up a lather, then pressed my palms to his chest, spreading the suds over the hard planes of muscle.
“Maybe. You’re very… washable.” My fingers traced the ridges of his abs, slow and teasing, enjoying the way his breath hitched just a little.
“And you make these cute little sounds when I hit the right spots.”
Nikolai’s eyes darkened, but he kept his grin.
“Cute? I’ll show you cute.” He turned me gently so my back was to his front, then soaped his hands again and ran them down my spine, thumbs pressing along either side.
When he reached the small of my back he pulled me flush against him, his mouth brushing the shell of my ear.
“Keep touching me like that and this shower’s going to need a lot more cold water. ”
I laughed softly, leaning back into his chest as his arms circled my waist. “Behave. You promised me sleep after this.”
“I promised a shower first,” he murmured, kissing the wet skin of my shoulder. “And I always keep my promises, remember?”
His hands stayed respectful but affectionate—stroking my hips, my stomach, occasionally brushing the undersides of my breasts in light, teasing passes that made my pulse jump. I returned the favor, washing his back, his arms, letting my fingertips linger on every scar I found.