I squinted my eyes open as soft sunlight beamed in through the blinds, I shifted, stretching my body when suddenly my arm touched something. Something warm and hard. I pulled my arm back immediately and glanced to my side.

A smile crept over my face when I saw Nikolai sleeping beside me in my bed. I had no idea when he got home last night or when he crawled under the sheets with me but I liked it. I liked having him in my bed.

Was he trying to show me that he does sleep because yesterday I told him that I never saw him sleeping?

God, this man...

I turned on my side, facing him. He was shirtless, laying on his stomach while the sheets covered the lower half of his body, his strong arms held the pillow. He was in deep sleep and looked so damn peaceful. For a second, he looked so boyish, so young, not like the cold man I'd grown used to.

His thick dark locks were roughly tousled and I had a sudden urge to run my fingers through them. I raised my hands and softly ran my fingers through his thick locks, combing them.

His eyes snapped open, he didn't blink, he didn't squint. He just opened his eyes and stared directly at me.

"Good morning..." I whispered, smiling at him, slowly massaging his scalp with the tips of my fingers.

A hint of a smile appeared on his face. "Morning..."

"Uh... I wasn't expecting this... when did you come home last night and when did you get into my bed?"

"Late..." was all he said.

I combed his hair back with my fingers, getting them off his forehead. "Nikolai..."

"Yes, baby girl?"

His morning voice was like an orgasm for my ears, rough, husky, deep, and ever-so-slightly supercilious. I could get used to waking up like this every single day for the rest of my life.

"How old are you?" I asked as I realized that I never asked him his age.

Again a half-smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "Twenty-seven."

I never would have guessed his age because sometimes he looked like he was thirty or something and sometimes he looked so boyish like he is in his early twenties but twenty-seven makes sense.

"How old were you when you became the head of your family?"

"Twenty-three"

I placed my palm under my head and propped up on my elbow, my other hand still in his hair. "So, it's been four years?"

"Yeah."

My hand trailed down his muscled, toned back as I traced his tattoos. The tattoos on his body seemed more like mementos. Each one was so detailed and distinguished. I stopped as I saw the tattoo of a grim reaper.

"What does this one means?"

"It means death..."

"I know but what does this tattoo mean to you?"

"Mortality, it's to remind me of my mortality."

I traced another one, it was kind of different. I didn't understand it. "What about this one?"

"It's when I had my first kill."

My eyes widened now that I noticed it, It kinda looked like a bloodied knife.

"When was this?"

"When I was seven years old."

My voice suddenly got so high-pitched that it turned shrill to my own ears. "You killed someone when you were seven?"

"Yes, I plunged a kitchen knife into his neck."

He looked so smug talking about it like he was proud of himself for killing someone. I couldn't imagine a seven-year-old little Nikolai killing someone.

"Why?"

"Pops wasn't home, a man attacked my mother, I did what I had to do to save her," he talked about it so robotically that it made me shiver.

I breathed out an uncertain laugh. "I can't believe I'm saying this but that's actually sweet, Nikolai."

He laughed, in that sexy, deep morning voice. "Shut up!"

"I want to get a tattoo too..."

He nodded slightly, his face still pressed against the pillow. "I'll call my tattoo artist. What do you want to get?"

I shook my head. "I don't know, I'll think about it."

He made a hmm sound deep from his chest, looking at me with those dark questioning eyes. "Do you always talk this much in the morning because I need to know what I am getting myself into..."

My eyebrows pinched together. "What's that supposed to mean?"

He shifted and turned on his back, he ran a hand down his face, and heaved a deep sigh. "I don't like to talk in the morning not until I have had my coffee, baby girl."

"Well, get used to it now," ignoring what he said, I continued talking. "We're going to Grace's bachelorette party tonight."

He grabbed my arm and pulled my body closer to him. "Ditch that, we can stay home and fuck..."

I gasped, I wasn't expecting such a candid and risqué response. "Nikolai!"

"That reminds me, I brought something for you," he said and picked up his cell phone from the nightstand.

I placed my head on his chest. "What?"

He sent a text and roughly threw his cell phone back. His arm went around my waist, where he pulled my shirt up and gently stroked my bare skin.

A few moments passed by and he didn't say anything, my bedroom door opened and Lorenzo—the one who works in those tunnels—walked in with a small white box in his hands.

Alarmed by the sudden intrusion, I tried to pull away from Nikolai but he held me firmly against him. I wasn't sure if it was a good idea to lie in bed with him while he was still publicly engaged to Grace.

Lorenzo didn't even look at me, the scar on his face seemed so notable in the daylight. He handed the box to Nikolai and then went out of the room.

"What if he says something to someone? What if he tells Grace about this? Nikolai, are you crazy?" I asked, as soon as Lorenzo was out of the room.

"My men are only loyal to me, Angel, no one else, not even my father and let them tell Grace, I don't fucking care. What do you think she does when she goes to the spa every single day?" he offered me the little rectangular box.

"What?"

He gave me a look that told me he didn't want to talk about it. I had no idea that Nikolai knew about Grace's infidelity.

Sitting up, I took it from him and frowned. "What is it and why is it so cold?"

He sat up as well, leaning against the headboard. "Just open it."

I opened the box and shrieked as I threw it away, it landed somewhere on my bed. I got to my feet and jumped up and down to get it off me. I stepped back until I was away from Nikolai and the bed, my back pressed into the wall.

"WHAT THE HELL, NIKOLAI?!"

He got off the bed and looked for it. "Calm down, it's just a finger. I put it in the freezer so, it won't rot."

"Why? Why would you give me a finger?"

"Because it's Sergio's finger, Angel. I wanted you to have it..."

I stilled. "Sergio's?"

"I told you I will make his torture a hundred times worse, didn't I? I told you that I will burn his hands off," he finally found the amputated finger and put it back into the box. "Do you want to burn it?"

My eyebrows pinched together, I wanted to burn it but also I didn't want to do it. It was disgusting and it belong to a man I have dreamt about killing. It looked so gross and weird, I didn't want to touch it.

"I'll think about it but right now please take it away from me."

He shook his head before closing the box and walking to the bedroom door. I followed him with shaking legs, it was the first time in my life that I have seen an amputated body part. I have no idea what I felt about the man I love gifting me my torturer's body part but it does have a romantic hint to it as he did it for me.

He opened the bedroom door and as he stepped out of the way, I saw Grace standing right outside the door. My lips parted in surprise, I glanced at Nikolai who was the least bit bothered, and then back at Grace who looked like she was about to explode.

"What is going on here?" Grace asked, squinting her eyes at me and then at Nikolai.

"I can—"

Nikolai cut me off. "Grace, did nobody tell you that Scott and I share..." his eyes trailed to me. "everything..."

"Seriously?" she looked shocked, furious, and even a little hurt. "Do you expect me to sleep with Scott as well?"

It was clear that she was trying to get a reaction out of Nikolai, to see if he'll get jealous or something.

"You can if you want to. Evangeline won't mind, right baby girl?" he looked at me with smugness exuding from him.

Here I was on a verge of a panic attack and Nikolai was amused, he was clearly enjoying this whole situation.

"Of course not," I smiled at Grace who in return gave me a bitter look.

"Does Scott know about this?!" she asked, her glare settled on me.

Nikolai grabbed Grace's face and turned her so that she was looking at him. "Good little mafia wives, do not ask stupid questions," saying that, he roughly let her go shoving her back into the wall behind her.

She looked down and shifted her weight from one foot to another. "Yes, Niko..."

Nikolai left after that. I felt so bad for her and I wish whatever Nikolai had planned would be over soon because all this is getting out of control. It was an awkward and mentally exhausting situation for all of us involved.

Grace glared at the ground before she looked back at me, what do I tell her? What do I say? Should I apologize?

She sniffled and then put on a bright smile. "So, you're still coming to my bachelorette party, right?"

I inhaled sharply, my hands shook. "Do you still want me there?"

She laughed, shaking her head. "Of course, I do, this is my life now, faithfulness and the King of the Cosa Nostra don't go hand in hand, better get used to it..."

My heart drowned listening to her words, I shook my head. "Grace..."

"It's okay, Evangeline, I understand, I can handle it. It's not like he is the only man for me either. So, you're still coming?" she asked, smiling.

"Of course..." I breathed out knowing very well that I might regret it.

"Great! I'll see you there!" she turned on her heels and stalked off as if nothing happened.

I simply turned and slammed my bedroom door shut, leaning against it. I squeezed my eyes shut.

This man is going to kill me one day and he won't even know it...

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