The problem is that the path I’ve taken over the last few weeks isn’t as simple to leave behind as I thought it would be.
The enthusiastic look on my mother’s face tells me that, whatever the cost, it will still be a small price to pay.
I want this.
It’s my plan.
Everything else is temporary.
CHAPTER 26
NERO ZANTHOS
“Why are we in an empty apartment?” Nina asks, scanning the space around her. “Is this Drako’s place, and are you getting rid of all the furniture that isn’t suitable for touching?” I throw my head back and laugh before answering.
“No—but I’ll save that idea for later.”
“So what are we doing here?” Nina doesn’t look at me when she speaks. She’s actually walking away from me, heading down the corridor at the far end of the massive living room.
I follow her without getting too close, letting her curiosity explore the rooms however she likes, amused by how eager she is to snoop around a place she has no idea about.
“We’re exploring,” I answer after a while, though I don’t think she’s particularly interested in my reply. She’s climbing the stairs to the second floor of the penthouse now.
She opens the first door—the master bedroom, as empty as the rest of the apartment—and after spinning once on the spot, she goes to the door on her left and opens it.
The empty walk-in closet isn’t enough to hold her attention. When she opens the door on the right, however, and finds the master bathroom, a sigh of admiration slips from her lips, erasing any doubt I had. That was the entire reason I brought her here, in fact.
“I would very much like to explore that jacuzzi,” she says, laughing, and I finally close the distance between us. I wrap my arms around her waist. Standing behind her, I rest my chin on her shoulder.
“We can do that right now.”
She lets out a light laugh, then suddenly falls silent, slipping out of my hold and turning to face me.
“Is this place yours?” she asks, alarmed.
“That depends—did you like it?”
“What?”
“Did you like it here?”
“Why does that matter?”
“It matters. Did you like it or not?” Nina studies me for a few seconds, weighing it.
“Well, it’s empty, so it’s a bit hard to give a concrete opinion—but it’s huge and I loved the flooring. Oh, and I could live in that jacuzzi.” She gestures at the tub behind her with her thumb.
“Then now this place is mine.”
She laughs again.
“You bought it in the last ten seconds?” I narrow my eyes at her and pull my phone from my pocket. I unlock the screen, open my messages, select the right contact, and send a single word.
“I did.”
Blue eyes blink several times before her heart-shaped mouth opens and closes without sound.
“You can’t be serious,” she finally says.
