Page 80 of Where the Wicked Reign

“It wasn’t just fucking. You gave yourself to me last night.”

“You’re right. I did.”

That darkness in Nico’s eyes retreated, replaced by a whole lot of surprise and confusion. He’d definitely been geared up for a fight. And it had appeared to be heading that way too on her end. Her defiance had seemed forthcoming.

“What?” he questioned, at a loss. “What does that mean?”

She smiled. “It means we take it one step at a time. Like starting with having breakfast with you and your brotherhood. And telling you that I wouldn’t mind if you texted me once in a while, and that maybe thatdateyou suggested wouldn’t be completely abhorrent to me after all and that we should sort it out after our mission in a couple of days.” She pressed her hands to his chest. “ButI won’t be controlled. Not even with the necklace issue. So watch yourself.”

“Okay.”

“Yes?” she asked skeptically.

“I’ll work on it.”

“Good. And just so you know, that necklace was given to me when I was going through a difficult time, when I’d split from the Family and all of that awfulness. Levi gifted it to me because it’s a symbol of protectionandpeace, to reassure me, to help me and to try to make me feel better.”

He stared at her for several moments, obviously surprised that she was letting him in and opening up, showing a human and more feeling part of herself.

This was what he’d asked her to do when I’d listened in on their conversation earlier. To open up, to stop running and shutting down.

And she was.

Now he could pull her closer.

Goddammit.

He slid his hand into her hair. “Thank you. Once the necklace is fixed, I’ll… be fine with you wearing it.”

“You will?”

“Now I know it means so much to you.”

“And that it’s not rooted in any feelings for Knight,” Julian spoke.

Nico smiled. “That too.”

Caterina shook her head, but there was amusement dancing in her eyes. “Like I said earlier, you really can be impossible.”

Nico laughed, then grasped her hand and led her into the kitchen. “Let’s get you fed and properly hydrated. Last night was a lot.” He leaned in and whispered, but his voice carried so I heard it as he told her, “And you handled it incredibly. Like my filthy little princess.”

She slapped his chest, and he moved out of her space, albeit still holding her hand, smiling from ear-to-ear.

My gut twisted, guilt slashing through me.

I’d never seen anything like this from him before. Sure, I’d seen him satisfied and appearing at peace when he’d brokered a lucrative deal for the family, or achieved something of note for them, but this was different. Deeper and more intense. And it wasn’t about earning and performing for the family like it had been all his life.

It was about him, just for him.

“Wow,” Caterina breathed as she took in the kitchen.

The cabinets were painted in a high-gloss cobalt blue.

The waterfall-edge countertops had under-cabinet lighting that created a floating effect. There were two glass-front refrigerators and a high-end espresso station.

The kitchen table and kitchen island were a sleek white with blue veining and gold specks.

“A fan of blue, are you?” she asked Julian.

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