“Nina does, right?” Drako asks her directly, and I turn my gaze to her too.
“We can leave right now if you want,” I offer.
She considers it for exactly two seconds.
“It’s fine. We can stay.”
“Are you sure?”
“Don’t be grumpy, Nero. We gave you time to apologize, but you can’t monopolize our old friend,” Apollo says.
“He’s very selfish,” Drako explains to Nina, covering his mouth with one hand as if whispering—despite his voice being loud enough to be heard all over Khione.
Nina laughs at everything and everyone.
“I’m hungry. Can we eat first?”
“Of course! But we should really leave before the tide comes in and the house gets submerged,” Drako warns, as if it were true.
Nina’s eyes widen.
“What?” she asks, alarmed, turning immediately toward me.
“Shut up, Drako!” I snap, finally losing my patience.
CHAPTER 20
NINA MARCHESI
If the first night with Nero was perfect from a romantic standpoint, the second was just as perfect in terms of fun. Spending hours in the company of the four friends is like going to a stand-up comedy show.
I didn’t stop laughing for a single minute, and last night, when we said goodbye to the guys to head back to the boat—where Nero and I slept while the Fantastic Trio spent the night at the cabin—my cheeks were sore. Even Atlas, in his own way, is funny.
“You have to admit it, Nina. Your date got much better with all of us there,” Drako says as he helps me off the boat at Khione’s marina.
Even though we slept in separate places, we all came back to the island together aboardThe Four Musketeers.
“You’ll never know—at least not from me,” I reply, winking at Nero when he shoots me an outraged look for not immediately rejecting his friend’s suggestion.
“You can go now,” Nero tells the guys when we reach his car in the marina parking lot, but none of them pays much attention. One by one, they kiss my cheek and hug me, taking their time saying goodbye before heading to their own vehicle—a tall, dark jeep.
I get into Nero’s convertible, and he raises the top as soon as we settle in. I smile, because I love the feeling of the wind on my face as we drive through Khione’s streets. The wink he gives me tells me he’s already figured that out about me.
I don’t ask permission to turn on the radio. I just reach out and do it, switching stations until an upbeat pop song carries our short drive home.
I dance in my seat, rolling my shoulders, and Nero laughs at me. It’s a moment as natural as any other we lived this weekend—even the unexpected run-in with his friends.
When the car pulls up to my curb, I feel silly for already missing a moment that hasn’t even ended yet. Flashes of us, consumed on the sailboat deck under the starry night, shimmer behind my eyes, and I suddenly feel warm.
“I had an amazing weekend. Thank you so much for that,” I say, unbuckling my seatbelt.
Nero releases his own belt and cups my cheek with his palm, stroking it softly. I can’t stop the sigh that slips out.
“So my plan worked? I’ve been forgiven?” he asks, and I trap my chin between my thumb and index finger, pretending to think.
“It worked. You have,” I declare. “And you should thank the guys. Their presence definitely helped seal the deal.
Nero clears his throat before leaning in and stealing my mouth with a hunger that feels unreasonable after we’ve spent the last two full days together—but I understand it, because it’s exactly what I feel.
