Page 72 of Runaway Queen

“It’s a title. A mark of respect in certain circles. It’ll help keep you safe.”

“You didn’t answer the question.”

He smirked at me, pulling a black T-shirt over his head. “It means the executioner.”

I stared at him for a moment, unsure how exactly to respond to that terrifying truth.

“Come on, let’s go. The hospital’s waiting.”

* * *

I was walkinginto the hospital with Nikolai Chernov at my side. It felt totally unreal.

“What is it?” He shot me a faint smirk. “Not that I don’t like your eyes on me, but you have an expression on your face like you’ve seen the Devil himself.”

Seeing Nikolai in the warm, bright sunlight of Hade Harbor was odd.

“Sorry, it just looks wrong seeing you here like this. It’s too normal.”

“Well, contrary to popular opinion, I’m not actually a demon in disguise.” He laced his fingers through mine.

“Right, like a demon would ever choose you for a disguise. It would be a terrible one. A real demon would choose some small, scrawny guy who fainted at the sight of blood. If they wanted to hide, that is.”

He let out a bark of laughter. “Fuck, I missed you, prom queen.” He pressed a kiss to the back of my hand.

We went up in the elevator.

His grinning eyes met mine in the mirror inside the doors. “You’re nervous.”

“No, I’m not. How do you know that?

“You ramble when you’re nervous.”

“And you make jokes,” I pointed out.

He chuckled and pressed a kiss to our joined hands. “We make a good pair. Before we go to the ward, let’s go and see your Dr. Evans, alright?”

I raised an eyebrow at him.

“I do my homework.”

“We don’t need to see her. I’m just taking him home today. It’s not going to happen right now.”

“We’ll see. Let’s go and see the doctor and find out about those tests.”

I pulled him to a stop in the hallway. “You mean you’re going to get tested?”

“The best candidates for donation are blood relatives. Adult males in the family. I know you know that, so the real question is… why aren’t you asking me to get tested?”

“I-I don’t know. I guess it still doesn’t feel like you’re real. You’d really give Leo your kidney? You haven’t even met him yet.”

“He’s my son. He’s our son.” He stopped closer to me and ran a finger down my cheek. “I’ll do whatever I have to, to get our son what he needs. You should have already asked me, but that’s a topic for another day. I’ll make sure Leo gets what he needs, even if I have to kill and cut out a hundred potential matches myself. Now, hurry up, the good doctor’s waiting.”

25

NIKOLAI

Dr. Evans was a calm, capable-looking woman. Whatever she might have thought about having a six-foot-three man covered in tattoos enter her office and demand to be tested for kidney donation, she kept to herself. Of course, the fact that Sofia had told everyone she was a widow didn’t help the matter. The doctor rolled with it like a pro and went through the details with me. I was going to stay and be tested as soon as possible, since Leo was all good to go.

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