Page 72 of Nikolai (Kansas City Reapers)

“Maryville. How did you know?” I asked, genuinely surprised that he’d even heard of it. It wasn’t that it wasn’t a well-known college town. It was more that here in the city, people didn’t really pay attention to the smaller surrounding towns. Plus, Maryville was a good two hours from where we were now.

“Jax knows everything,” Sully chuckled.

Niko suddenly piped up out of nowhere. “Well, I think we’re going to call it. We’ll see you in the morning?” He pulled me from my seat as the guys all waved us goodnight.

“We can stay down here and chat, Niko. It’s barely nine o’clock at night,” I whispered as he pulled me from the room towards the stairs.

“Not on your life. I have other plans for you.”

And for once, I didn’t brat. Not one bit.

Until we got to the bedroom, at least.

Chapter 18

Maddy

I had walkedaround the house three full times, trying to find something to pass the time. I was bored out of my mind more and more these days.

The nights were easy, as Niko kept me deliciously busy, and the early mornings were spent sleeping in, most days.

But today, Niko was holed up in his office, having told me that he had to finish the ledgers before he could do anything else. Maybe Jax was free. I made my way down the long hall towards his office-slash-tech cave room, knocking on the door loudly.

“Come in!” His voice hollered from deep within the room.

“Hey, Jax. You busy?” I asked after opening the door, leaning against the door frame.

“Kind of. But if you need something, I can try to help.” His eyes never lifted from his screen, and I knew my efforts were wasted here.

“Nevermind. It’s no big deal,” I shrugged, closing the door once more and wondering what to do with myself. Sully and Deacon were working in the garage, elbow-deep in their latest project. That car part had finally come in, and apparently, it was crunch time for all four of them, leaving me to my own devices — and utter boredom.

Feeling completely deflated, I walked back towards Niko’s office, knocking on the door softly.

“Come in,” he called out. I opened the door and walked in. “Hey, Maddy. Everything okay?” He clicked his mouse a few times before looking up, but when his eyes met mine, there was nothing but a smile on his face.

“Not really,” I sighed heavily, walking across the room and flopping into the chair opposite of him with a thud and a heavy sigh.

“What’s wrong?” His brow furrowed as he spoke, concern etched on his face.

“I’m bored. There is nothing to do around here, and I can’t keep doing this,” I griped. I knew I was pouting, but I didn’t care.

“I’m pretty sure I keep you fairly entertained.” He wagged his eyebrows suggestively, and I rolled my eyes.

“That’snotwhat I’m talking about, Niko. During the day, you all have your work. But I have nothing. Nothing to work on, or keep myself entertained. It has to stop. I’m going to go crazy sitting around all day.”

“You could read a book,” he suggested, but that only made me more frustrated.

“Niko, I’ve read multiple books since I got here. I need to do something else. Hell, I even went for a run this morning! But I need to busy myself withsomething. I needa computer or a phone. I won’t talk to anyone, or even log into my accounts. I just need something to entertain me,” I pouted, pulling my feet up into the chair and wrapping my arms around my knees.

“Are you having trouble without your precious Facebook?”

“Ew, Facebook is so 2001. What are you even talking about? My God, you really are old, aren’t you?”

“I’m not that much older than you, you know.”

“I highly doubt that. Get with the times, buddy. But seriously, I just need something to do. Something to fill my time. YouTube, or Netflix, or something. Hell, even Instagram would work at this point. So, unless you can find a solution, I don’t really want to hear a word out of you.”

“Honestly, I think I can do you one better,” he said after a moment. God, that smile did things to me.

---