CHAPTER 19
NERO ZANTHOS
“What place is this?” Nina asks as I bring the sailboat alongside the pier of the small island. Her tan is noticeably deeper after nearly two full days of sun and saltwater.
“Our last stop.”
“That’s not a very enlightening answer.”
“Patience is a virtue, Nina Marchesi.”
“One I don’t have.”
“Then let’s keep you busy. How about learning how to dock a sailboat?”
“I think that’s a terrible way to distract me.”
Those words bring a mischievous smile to my lips.
“Help me tie the boat, and I promise I’ll distract you the right way.”
She blushes at that and rolls her eyes.
“What do I do?” she gives in despite the color warming her cheeks, and I don’t stop myself from stepping close enough to steal a kiss.
The amount of exposed skin, thanks to the lack of clothing on her body, is pure temptation. Nina is wearing nothing but a bikini and short denim shorts. She’s barefoot, her hair lifted by the late-afternoon breeze.
Any idea I might’ve had about how beautiful Nina looks in the morning was utterly humiliated by the real sight of the woman asleep in my arms when I woke up. Her serene face was resting against my chest, one arm wrapped around my waist, one leg hooked between mine.
I spent several minutes just watching her. I even tried breathing slowly, afraid that any sudden movement might wake her before I’d had my fill of the strange, unfamiliar calm in my chest. It was an uncharted peace—a certainty that there was nowhere else in the world I should be at that moment.
Hours later, that feeling hasn’t gone anywhere, even though we’re no longer tangled up in bed.
I guide her through what to do, and Nina double-checks everything before nodding her confirmation.
I help her off the boat when we’re done, and we cross the wooden path until our feet sink into the sand of the islet.
We walk hand in hand for several meters, unhurried, simply enjoying each other’s company. The sun is beginning to set, showing off amid the explosion of colors typical of this hour. I sit down on the sand and leave my arm extended. Nina accepts it and sits between my legs.
The silence that settles between us is comfortable. The breeze turns her scent into the only thing I can breathe.
“This place is incredible… To think that just yesterday I was sure the sunset in open water was the most beautiful thing there was.”
I smile, burying my face in her hair.
“That is a beautiful sunset, but this island has something magical.”
“What’s this place called?”
“Téssera.”
“How have I never heard of it?”
“We’re pretty far from the coast. Téssera is part of a micro-archipelago—one of the central islands. Almost no one has discovered this place.”
“But you did.”
“Actually, Apollo did.”
“Remind me to thank him.”
“For what?” I ask, a little affronted.
“For discovering Téssera, obviously.”
“I’ll accept the thanks on his behalf. Kisses are welcome,” I declare.
Nina laughs, pressing her head against my shoulder.
We stay on the beach—talking, kissing, touching, and admiring the view—until the sky turns deep blue.
“Are you hungry?”
“A little.”
“Then let’s have dinner.”
“Where?” She looks around as if searching for a restaurant, even though with the moon as our only light source, she wouldn’t find one even if it existed. “Are we going back to the boat?”
I just smile and stand.
I help Nina up and lace our fingers together, guiding her along a path I know by heart. She lets herself be led, but when I steer us toward the island’s vegetation, she stops, suspicious.
“Why are we about to head into the bushes? I know you promised to distract me, but I’ll take the sailboat deck—or the bed—over sand and shrubs any day of the week,” she warns, and I burst out laughing.
“Noted, Little Fae. Shall we?”
“You still haven’t answered my question. Why are we going into the bushes?”
“Do you trust me?”
“That’s definitely too early a question like that,” she says honestly, and I laugh.
“Can you please trust me on this?” I rephrase.
Nina purses her lips, moving them side to side.
“I guarantee there’s no trail longer than thirty minutes involved.”
“Is there a trail of any kind?” she whines.
I shake my head.
“All right?”
“Yes—but please don’t kill me and dump my body here,” she asks, and I laugh again. I don’t think anyone has ever pulled this many laughs and smiles out of me.
I lead us along the edge of the vegetation until it opens into a sandy path shaded by trees, leading to the center of the island where lights glow. We pass beneath an arch wrapped in vines, and Nina keeps turning her head from side to side, attentive to every little detail around us.
Two minutes later, we pass through another arch—and behind it, we find the cabin.
Nina stops walking, gasps, and opens her mouth, completely taken by surprise by the wood-and-glass structure nestled in the island’s greenery.
I look at her with a satisfied smile and breathe in the scent of food coming from the house. I’d asked for our dinner to be sent here.
I squeeze her hand lightly before moving forward again. My brows knit when I realize all the cabin lights are on.
That isn’t even the most worrying part.
The voices growing louder with every step we take toward the entrance make me close my eyes and exhale deeply. Distracted by the novelty around her, Nina doesn’t notice my reaction.
I shake my head, wanting to believe I’m wrong. What I think is happening can’t possibly be happening.
But when I place my finger on the fingerprint reader and step inside right after Nina, I find Drako, Apollo, and Atlas sitting on the living room couch.
What was it I said about Atlas being the only one of my friends with any common sense?
I was wrong. Completely wrong.
Drako, who had his back to the door, turns around with a huge grin.
“Finally!” he says to Nina and me, extending his open hand toward Apollo. Atlas’s twin grimaces before pulling a few bills from his pocket and placing them in Drako’s palm.
Oh, great. A bet. They made a fucking bet.
“How can you go on a date and not invite us?” he complains.
Nina looks between them and me, lips parted in surprise—but it lasts only seconds. She breaks into a wide smile and walks into the room, approaching the three of them.
“That probably would’ve defeated the whole purpose,” she replies, glancing over her shoulder at me just long enough to give me a wink. “Hi, guys.”
I stay frozen by the door, watching as she greets each of my idiot friends with a kiss and a hug, then drops onto the couch beside Apollo, tucking her legs under herself.
“What are you doing here?” I finally unfreeze and move farther into the rustic-furnished room.
Apollo stretches an arm along the back of the couch, reaching toward Nina before answering.
“What do you mean what are we doing here? We came to have a bonfire. We brought food, marshmallows—everything a bonfire needs. We were just waiting for you.”
“And who said we want to take part in your bonfire?”
“Nina does, right?” Drako asks her directly, and I turn my gaze to her too.
“We can leave right now if you want,” I offer.
She considers it for exactly two seconds.
“It’s fine. We can stay.”
“Are you sure?”
“Don’t be grumpy, Nero. We gave you time to apologize, but you can’t monopolize our old friend,” Apollo says.
“He’s very selfish,” Drako explains to Nina, covering his mouth with one hand as if whispering—despite his voice being loud enough to be heard all over Khione.
Nina laughs at everything and everyone.
“I’m hungry. Can we eat first?”
“Of course! But we should really leave before the tide comes in and the house gets submerged,” Drako warns, as if it were true.
Nina’s eyes widen.
“What?” she asks, alarmed, turning immediately toward me.
“Shut up, Drako!” I snap, finally losing my patience.