94 | Mine
The guest room is quiet, shadows pooling in the corners.
Aurelia lies beside me, her body curled under the sheets, her breathing soft. A fucking miracle after I fucked her all night, claiming her, losing myself in her, erasing the stain of this goddamn night.
Her skin is flushed, her lips parted, and I'm watching her sleep, my heart a twisted knot of love so dark it could kill me.
We're not in our bedroom. Ciara's blood, her ghost, tainted it, so I called a crew at dawn, ordered them to rip out the balcony, the floor, the railing, every fucking thing she touched, her blood soaked into. I want nothing of her. Nothing but Aurelia.
She's all I see, all I feel, her warmth seeping into me, grounding me.
I'd die for her. Kill for her. Fuck, I did, and I'd do it again, a thousand times, to keep her safe, to keep her mine.
Ciara's dead, her body a problem Nico's handling. And my mother ended the ball, letting the guests believe we were just lost in each other, not in blood.
I trace Aurelia's cheek with my eyes, not touching, not waking her, because she's perfect like this. Soft. Vulnerable. Mine.
A knock at the door snaps me out of it.
I tense, my hand instinctively reaching for the gun on the nightstand, but I know it's not a threat. Instead I pull the sheets higher, covering Aurelia to her chin, shielding her from the world, from anyone who isn't me.
"Come in," I say, my eyes never leaving her face.
The door creaks open, and Nico steps in, his face grim but loyal, the only man I trust with this shit.
He lingers by the door, refusing to step any closer, like he knows one wrong glance at my wife could be the last mistake he ever makes.
"We've got Ciara's body in cold storage," he says, straight to it. "Somewhere safe. Untraceable. And her dad, we kidnapped him. He's locked down."
"Good work," I say, my voice cold. "Make him suffer, Nico. Play with him a little. Let him feel what it's like to lose everything."
Nico's lips curve, a wicked grin that mirrors the darkness in me.
"You got it, boss," he says, his eyes glinting with that same ruthless loyalty. He turns, slipping out, the door clicking shut, and I'm alone again with Aurelia.
I shift, lying back, my arm sliding around her, careful not to wake her, my chest aching with a love so deep it's a wound.
"I love you, principessa," I murmur, so soft it's just for me.