CHAPTER 56: – ONE OF THOSE HUMANS –

Nikolas slipped off his shoes and walked into the bedroom. Viviana was curled under the duvet, fast asleep. Instead of getting in beside her, he pulled an ottoman over and sat next to the bed.

He watched her, his eyelids falling low.

’That was very ungentlemanly of me.’ Though to be fair, she had been wiggling on top of him. That aside, her smile was like something he’d never seen before.

And Viviana...

She was everything he liked. Everything about her.

The way she smiled, sometimes small, sometimes big.

The beauty of her hazel eyes, large and bright. Nothing short of the color of the sunset.

Her hair... long and deeply dark, so much his hair could even be considered brown next to hers.

His fingers drifted into her silky strands, curling and brushing through.

He even liked her coldness. Most times, she was as cold as ice, and if he was honest, which of course wasn’t bragging, he seemed to be the only one she warmed up to. Well, besides her mother.

Everyone else only saw her stoic side. But he didn’t hate it. If anything, he liked it. That he was the only man she could be this warm to.

’I sound crazy...’

He thought to himself, frowning.

’This obsession. This idea to keep her all to myself. Have I truly lost my mind? Could she even be mine?’

He blinked slowly.

’But she’s mine.’ He rolled a strand of her hair between his fingers, his eyes dimming. ’You belong to me, Viviana. And I won’t let you go. Ever. Even if you want it. I sadly can’t do that. But I’ll be human for you if I have to. I’ll give you anything you desire, even if it’s my life, if it means you’ll stay mine. Really, I’ll do anything.’

Nikolas lowered himself flat to lay his head on top of her body. His palm rested above her forehead, caressing gently.

’I’d never hurt you. Not in any way at all.’

....

Viviana’s lashes fluttered open.

The chirping of birds filled the morning air through the open window.

"I slept well..." she murmured with a satisfied expression. "When did he come back, though?"

She shifted, feeling the weight of his arm draped over her, holding her close as if she might disappear.

He’d been doing that recently. And as much as she didn’t want to read too much into it, she’d noticed he’d been different since the night he came home drunk. She didn’t know where he’d gone or why he’d drunk that much, but she felt it had something to do with her.

Propping herself up on one elbow, she rested her cheeks in her palm and stared at him.

How could someone be so... painfully beautiful? Nikolas Bastiani was beautiful even though he was a man.

Viviana stared harder at him. The thoughts in her head went blank, her mind an empty static.

"I want to..."

Her words were barely audible.

"...Kiss him."

Pupils dilating, she panicked.

’Kiss him?’

’Me?’ Was she really just thinking that?

Was she really the one having this desire? To kiss him? Nikolas? Then again... It wasn’t like she’d forgotten how good it felt to be kissed by him. She could admit he was an incredible kisser. Which made her wonder how many women he’d kissed.

There had to be a lot of them. After all, even if he wasn’t rich, he had the looks.

Not a very flattering imagination.

Her jaw ticked. ’I wonder... will he wake up if I kiss him?’

Her fingers brushed along his chin. Slowly, she leaned in, stopping just an inch away. It’d be better if he didn’t wake up, because if he did—

Nikolas blinked his eyes open.

They froze, staring at each other in utter quietness.

A beat of silence passed.

"You... You’re—"

Viviana quickly shot back and scrambled away from him, her face pale as if she’d seen a ghost.

"Sorry! I wasn’t trying to do anything! I–I was just checking if you were awake. Nothing more!"

She found herself off the bed and backed up. Before he could even say a word, she left into the bathroom, slamming the door shut.

Nikolas blinked.

He sat up, ran his fingers through his messy hair, and tilted his head slightly. A small smile curved his lips.

He stood, buttoned his shirt he’d slept in, and walked out toward the living room. Just as he was about to sit down, the doorbell rang. He glanced at the clock. Nine a.m., almost ten.

’We slept that long, huh...’

He walked to the door, unlocked it, and lowered his gaze to the delivery man.

The much older man had his neck craned to meet his gaze, clearly taken aback by the height of him. ’These young men of these days. We didn’t have such tall men back in our time. What a shame. Such a shame.’

"Delivery for Lady Viviana Di-grassi," the man stammered.

"Hm," Nikolas hummed, voice low. "You’re at the right place."

The older man rushed back to his van and returned with a large bouquet of roses and a box. He handed them over and turned to leave, but Nikolas asked, "No signature?"

"O-oh, no need!" the middle-aged man said quickly.

Nikolas tilted his head, a faint grin tugging at his lips. A few strands of his hair fell forward. "Are you scared of me?"

"Huh?" The man was taken aback. He asked with a bit of a trembling voice. "W-what do you mean?"

Nikolas smirked. "I can see your fear. It’s all over you. You know what I am, don’t you?"

The man’s throat bobbed. He felt bullied, glancing from his left to his right for anyone who could help him. Who did he offend? He did not know whether to cry or laugh. "Sir, I–"

"You’re one of those humans who know," Nikolas said evenly, eyes dropping into a slitted hard stare. "Lucian picked you, didn’t he? I’m guessing he trusts you. Is that the case? Or...?"