Page 124 of Shadows in Bloom

“Of course.”

“For…For how long?”

Ledger paused, and in the minute it took him to answer, Nikita held his breath. “Let’s just see where this goes, okay?”

He deflated, a lone tear slipping past his defenses.

“Hey.” Ledger clutched him closer as if sensing the change in his demeanor even though there was no way he was able to see Nikita’s face in the dark and from behind. “Don’t fret. No matter what happens with us, I promise you’ll never have to go back there again. Oran can’t touch you, Niki.”

“But—”

“I promise,” he repeated. “And I never break my promises. I like you. I plan on keeping you for as long as that holds true, but even if that changes one day, I’d never send you back there. Ever.”

There were a million and one reasons not to believe him, and yet…

“All right.” Nikita settled more comfortably in Ledger’s arms. “I don’t really understand why you’re doing this but…thank you.”

No matter what tomorrow brought with it, at least there would always be this moment for him to look back on. A time in his life where Oran wasn’t the main lead and Nikita actually felt like he mattered to someone. Even if it ended up being a smokescreen. Even if that made him all sorts of pathetic. He’d cherish this feeling forever.

“Sleep,” Ledger said. “Tomorrow, I’ll take you to Vail to enroll.”

“What?!” He tried to turn but the Devil held him firm.

“I won’t if you get excited and stress yourself out,” Ledger stated. “Your body needs rest.”

“And whose fault is that?” Nikita mumbled, inhaling sharply the second he had spoken out loud.

“Wow, getting fresh already?” Ledger nipped at his earlobe with a laugh. “It’s cute. You also aren’t wrong, but if you don’t want me throwing the doctor’s orders to the wind and fucking you right here and now you’ll?—”

Nikita shushed him dramatically. “I’m trying to sleep.”

Ledger laughed, the sound filling the room. “Whatever this is, Tiger, at least we know it’s not boring. Breaking into Friction was the best thing you’ve ever done.”

“Yeah,” Nikita had to agree.

Because it’d brought him to Ledger.

And for now, that was enough.

ABOUT CHANI LYNN FEENER

Chani Lynn Feener has wanted to be a writer since the age of ten during fifth grade story time. She majored in Creative Writing at Johnson State College in Vermont. To pay her bills, she has worked many odd jobs, including, but not limited to, telemarketing, order picking in a warehouse, and filling ink cartridges. When she isn’t writing, she’s binging TV shows, drawing, or frequenting zoos/aquariums. Chani is also the author of teen paranormal series,The Underworld Saga, originally written under the penname Tempest C. Avery. She currently resides in Connecticut, but lives on Goodreads.com.

Chani Lynn Feener can be found on Goodreads.com, as well as on Twitter and Instagram @TempestChani.

For more information on upcoming and past works, please visit her website:

HOME | ChaniLynnFeener (wixsite.com).

ALSO BY CHANI LYNN FEENER

ALSO BY CHANI LYNN FEENER

*For a list of YA books by this author, please check her website. All of the books listed below are Adult.

Bad Things Play Here

Gods of Mist and Mayhem

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