1 frowned, the memory of touching that spot carlier shing through my mind.

b“/bNikib?/bb” /bI called out.

He didn’t banswer /bat bfirst/b. bHe /bjust stood bthere/bb, /bstill.

“Hm?b” /bhe finally responded, almost like he’d forgotten where he bwas/bb. /b

“bAre /b

you… okayb?/b” I asked, stepping toward him, my concern rising.

He turned to bface /bmeb, /b

slowly, and something flickered in his beyes/bb–/bguilt? Regret? Whatever it bwas/bb, /bbit /bvanished quickly. He crossed the room in two quick strides and pulled me int

a hug bso /bsudden, so tight, I barely had time to breact/b.

My heart jumped in my chest.

What the hellb? /b

“What are you doingb?!/bb” /bbI /beximed, hands awkwardly stuck between us.

It felt… intimateb. /bStrangely more intimate than bsex/b. Because thisb? /bThis bwas /bbraw /bemotion.

“I’m sorryb, /bMalishka, he whispered.

I froze. I hated how that word

made me

feel.

“For what?” bI /basked quietly. He hadn’t done anything but help me.

He pulled back slightly, enough to look me in the beyes/bb. /b

“For everything that happened. For my family. For Dmitri. You didn’t bdeserve /bthat.”

It bwas /bgenuine. So painfully sincere bI /bcould barely hold his bgaze/b.

I huffed, trying to mask how overwhelmed I felt. b“/bbIt’s /bokay. It wasn’t your fault. Honestly, bI /bshould be the one apologizing. That must suckb./bb” /b

bHe /bughed bat /bthatb–/bba /bbreal /boneb. /bAnd I found myself smiling too.

He bturned /baround, bgrabbing /bthe phone on the wall.

“bHungry/bb?/bb” /b

I nodded immediately.

b“/bbChinese/bb?/bb” /b

b“/bbYes/bb, /bbplease/bb./bb” /b

You’ve got ba /bshitty family.

Niki ordered quickly, then joined bme /bon the bcouch /bbfacing /bthe btelevision/b. His room was bmassive/b, but his bTV /bbfaced /bthe couch binstead /bof the bed. bWhich /bbI /bfound slightly weird.

When the food barrived/bb, /bbwe /bbspread /bit bout /bbover /bthe coffee btable/b. We spent the bnext /btwo hours bbinge/bb–/bwatching The 100 bon /bNetflixb. /bI had no idea he liked survival scib–/bbfi /btoo. Every now and thenb, /bbwe’d /bbicker bover /bwhich bcharacters /bbwe /bbliked/bb, /bbargue /babout bwho /bbwas /bhotter bBemy /bobviously won. I bhadn’t /bughed like bthat /bin ba /blong btime/b.

By the time the clock struck b2 /ba.m., I could bbarely /bkeep bmy /bbeyes /bopen and bI /bbonce /bbagain /bdrifted off to bsleep/b.

The next morning, bI /bwoke bto /bthe scent of bwarm /bbvani/bb. /b

I rolled out of bed, still wearing one of Niki’s oversized ck shirts, band /bpadded bdown /bthe stairs, yawning. The kitchen came into bview /band I stopped, blinking in disbelief.

bThere /bhe was.

Wearing nothing but an bapron /bover his bare chestb, /bbflipping /bwaffles onto ba /bbte/bb. /b

He turned and smiled bwhen /bhe saw me.

“Good morning, Malishka. bSyrup /bbor /bice cream with your bwaffles/bb?/bb” /b

I blinked.

b2/3 /b

b8:41 /bPM

+28

“Are you real?”

He chuckled, setting a te down for me. I bsat/bb, /bstill groggy, and took the first bite. Heaven.

Then I finally remembered my phone, I went back up to look for it–but couldn’t find it anywhere. Confused, I came back downstairs.

It was sitting on the kitchen counter. “How did that get thereb?/b” I mumbled.

As I reached for it, Niki nced over. “Oh, it kept ringing and it bwasn’t /byour mother so I brought it down with me, so that you could sleep longer. Before you open that… I would suggest you brace yourself.”

My brows furrowed. I unlocked

screen.

Notifications flooded in. Texts. Missed calls. Mentions. Tags. My heart dropped.

Dozens of pictures. Me. In his arms. In a bridal

carry. Outside the lobby.

Oh. My. God.

b3/3 /b

”