“That’s a very small list!”
“Exactly!” She giggled and winked before closing the door behind her.
Oddly out of sorts, I gestured for the oversized king to come inside. “Well, you’re already here, so I guess I can humor you for a bit.” He followed me into the living room, and I pointed to the couch. “Sit.”
I nearly snickered at how quickly he followed my orders. You’d never know which one of us was the reigning royalty from the way he eagerly did as I said. The giant sat on my tiny sofa and peered around in overt curiosity.
It was oddly human to be hosting a god in my new home, and I didn’t exactly hate it. It was the first time I’d breathed since Kate was kidnapped. If I were completely honest, the first time since Nigel was killed.
“Uh, tea or coffee?”
I sensed his amusement, but he answered me anyway, “Tea, if you would. It’s a lovely home.”
This was so damn awkward.
“Yeah, thanks. I just live here,” I replied in mocking.
I searched the cabinets for a kettle and breathed a thankful sigh when I found one. The pantry was fully stocked with everything I could possibly want. Thank god for Grams. She’d thought of everything. After getting both of our cups ready, I walked over with the two in hand. I didn’t often drink tea, but tonight felt like a night I should.
Channel my chill or whatever.
I checked my phone and found another horde of messages, this time from Cash and Phillip. Both weren’t the least bit happy Aram had snuck off to find me, but they’d apparently been banned from coming if they hadn’t stormed through my house by now. Grams must’ve leveled some serious threats against them to get the two overprotective menaces to stay put.
Aram peered down at my phone, then hid a sneaky grin behind a sip of his tea. “I take it they aren’t happy I’ve come to see you.” His thoughts gave him away. The dude was absolutely tickled over how much he’d pissed them off.
I sighed and cocked an eyebrow at him. “Which we both know was entirely your aim.”
“Not entirely, no, but a nice bonus, I suppose.” His joy made it tough to be mad at him. “We haven’t had much time together, you and I,” Aram started and leaned back, the muscles in his chest tautening. “I mean to correct that. And I only asked for one night. They’ll live.”
Says the guy who unraveled after only a few hours…
“What will one night change?” I asked, taking a sip of my own cup.
His pretty red eyes glittered. “Everything,Nioche.”
My pulse came to life, but I hid it by humming and shrugging. “If you say so.” I set my cup down. “What does that mean, anyway?” His eyebrow went up, and I explained further. Forgot the dude couldn’t read my thoughts. “Nioche. You keep calling me that.”
Smug, he put his cup aside. “It doesn’t exactly translate to your language, but it’s a significant term to our kind.”
That’d explain the strong reaction it got from his brother.
“Significant?”
He shifted and held my stare. “We only use it once.”
“I don’t follow.”
Aram’s fangs caught the light. “It’s a claim, little mate, and something we only use with the person who we live for.” His eyes moved beyond me. “And the one we die for.”
The flash of his mothers on the ground cemented how he meant it, and I suddenly didn’t have anything snarky to say.
I scrambled to reclaim my tea and took a sip of it. “Oh, cool.”
Yeah, V. That’s exactly the thing someone wants to hear after they’ve proclaimed their undying love.
I might believe that these bonds were significant, but love was a stretch. I’d just met the dude. Sure, he’d done everything he could to save me, to integrate into my life, but I wasn’t even sure if I liked him. The connection made it uncomfortably clear how real it was to him, so I didn’t have any choice but to play the fool.
I eyed my phone, but he snatched it off the coffee table and turned it off. “Hey—”
