Page 57 of Tarnished Queen

I lie in bed and stare at the ceiling for what feels like hours, although it might be just minutes. Time doesn’t seem to mean anything as the night stretches on, my brain whirring and buzzing and frothing with the events of the day and the past and the fears of what the future might hold.

When I can’t take the silence anymore, I slip across the hall and peek into Elise’s room. I’m not sure why because I hope she’s asleep. The truth about her dad has been knocking around in my head for hours with nowhere to go, and at some point, it’ll have to come out. But the middle of the night probably isn’t the best time to unhash a lifetime of parental trauma.

Inside, the light is off and Elise is asleep. I wait there for a few minutes, listening to the soft, reassuring sound of her breathing. When we shared a room as kids, I would count Elise’s breaths in and out until I fell asleep myself. I’m tempted to crawl into bed next to her and let the rhythm of it lull me to sleep. But I don’t want to wake her up or worry her.

I close her door and wander down the hallway.

I’m not consciously aware of where I’m headed until I stop outside Nikolai’s office. Light spills out of the crack beneath the door, like I knew it would. I knock softly.

“You should be sleeping,” Nikolai says by way of a greeting.

I push the door open a crack. “How did you know it was me?”

“The same way you knew I’d be in my office this late.”

He closes the sleek laptop in front of him and leans back in his chair. He’s wearing a dark blue fitted t-shirt and gray athletic sweatpants. When he crosses his arms over his chest, his biceps bulge.

“Were you at the gym?” He doesn’t look sweaty, but it would be so like Nikolai to be the kind of demigod capable of working out without breaking a sweat.

“I was about to be.”

I glance at the clock on the wall and gasp. “Holy shit. It’s two AM.”

“Which is why I said you should be in bed.”

“What about you? You’re leaving to go to the gym at this hour? Do you even sleep?” I fire back. “Wait, no. Don’t tell me. You probably plug into a charging port somewhere, don’t you?”

Nikolai actually chuckles at that. His mouth looks best when it’s pulled back in a smile. Especially when I’m the cause of said smile. “I meant to get down there a couple hours ago, but I got caught up with…” He waves his hand towards his computer. “Things.”

“You haven’t been into the office much since I’ve been here.”

He nods and drags a hand through his thick hair. “Yeah, well, I’ve been busy. That doesn’t stop the emails from coming in, though. Bridget is handling as much of it as she can, but I’m putting too much on her.”

He sounds oddly sympathetic. I feel the green envy monster inside of me stir to life. “It’s her job to handle it. She’s a big girl.”

Nikolai arches a dark brow. “Maybe you should join me in the gym. Sounds like you have some jealousy to burn off.”

I hate that he has this infuriating way of seeing straight to the heart of me. I hate even more that it’s one-way glass. I’m an open book when he’s the one looking, but when I look back at him, all I see is stone.

“I’m not jealous. I’m just saying, I’m sure Bridget is there for more than just ornamentation. Right?”

Nikolai just smirks.

I roll my eyes. “You know what? Forget it. Surround yourself with tall, thin, gorgeous women who are allergic to the top buttons of their shirts. See if I care.”

“Belle.” He says my name so softly that I can’t help but look at him. “I haven’t been at the office much recently, have I?”

“No.”

“Do people usually put their ornaments where they can’t see them?”

I frown. “I guess not.”

“So if anyone is an ornament, it’s you.”

I blush and frown at the same time. “Gee, thanks.”

He shrugs. “Take your pick. Either you’re my eye candy or Bridget is.”

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