The door burst open, and Dan’s face appeared around the door frame, followed by Liana and Vesper. Dan rushed across the room to Nova, skidding to a halt at the edge of the bed. “Sorry, Supernova. I was gonna hug you, but I knowyou’re injured.” He glanced at me. “I see my bro Banks has it covered, anyway. Nice impression of an octopus.”
I gave him the finger, and he grinned as he leaned in to carefully kiss Nova’s cheek.
“Aww, you actually have a sweet side,” Liana said, pushing at his shoulder to get him to move out of the way. He let himself be moved and then swooped down to place a loud, smacking kiss on the side of her head.
“Sweet is my middle name, baby.”
“Do me a favour. Gag yourself before I gag you,” Liana said, and he gasped.
“Is this gonna be how you punish Kane during your tutoring sessions?” He made finger quotes when he said “punish.”
“What tutoring sessions?” Nova asked.
“It’s not important.” Liana lowered herself to the edge of the bed, and Vesper joined her. “We heard what happened. How are you feeling? Priya said it was mostly bruising, but honestly…” She trailed off. “I hope whoever was responsible pays for it.”
“In blood,” Vesper added, and Nova smiled at her friends.
“They’ve been taken care of. It’s good that you’re here. I was just about to tell Jay and Ryker what happened to me, and this way, I only have to talk about it once. I don’t…I don’t want to talk about it more than once.”
“Yeah, I get it.” Dan climbed onto the bed next to us. Ignoring my warning look, he made himself comfortable by using my shoulder as a pillow, throwing his arm across my chest so he could squeeze Nova’s hand. I let him, because I knew he’d been just as worried about Nova as the rest of us, and being physically close to her was reassuring for him.
As Nova recounted what had happened to her, a deathlysilence fell over the room. Fuck. What she’d endured…and she had the presence of mind to fight back even after everything, defiant to the very end.
“…And I woke up, and Ry and Jay brought me up to date with everything else.” She glanced around the room. “Thank you all for being here. Really. It means a lot.”
“We wouldn’t be anywhere else,” Liana assured her.
Ryker’s phone lit up, and he huffed out a frustrated breath. “They couldn’t even wait an hour?” He turned to Nova. “Our parents have requested a meeting with you.”
“Of course they have.” She rolled her eyes, which made me grin. “Okay. I’m going to shower and get dressed in something more suitable for my mother’s taste.”
“We’ll wait for you. Priya said you have to rest, so we brought supplies. Girls’ night in,” Liana said, and leaned forwards to clamp her hand over Dan’s mouth. “No, you’re not allowed to join.”
He lifted her hand away, pulling a sad face. “So cruel. You realise you’re condemning me to a night with these assholes?”
“And the heads of the local crime syndicates. It’s more important than ever that we show a united front,” Ryker reminded him.
Nova turned to me, lowering her voice. “Are you staying the night? Come and find me later?”
I brushed a kiss over her hair. “I am, and I will,” I promised.
46
NOVA
Showered and dressed in a soft, oversized cream knitted jumper and a pair of comfortable loose fitting black trousers I’d dug out from the depths of my dressing room, I descended the sweeping staircase. A figure came into view, standing at the bottom of the stairs waiting for me. Immaculately dressed in a tailored navy suit, with his dark blond hair swept to the side and the usual impassive expression on his face, he lifted his gaze, and his icy eyes met mine.
My heart jolted in my chest, my thumb rubbing over my bare ring finger. I was so unprepared for a showdown with my fiancé. I didn’t even know where to begin.
“Nova.” He stepped forwards when I reached him, inclining his head in greeting. He made no move to kiss me, which I was beyond grateful for.
Someone coughed discreetly, and we both turned to see Ryker and Jay standing there.
“Alright, Volksy.” My brother pasted on a fake smile. This was so awkward. His gaze flicked to me, then back to Anton. “Uh…I think this is yours.”
He handed my engagement ring to Anton, and I bit down on my lip, feeling my face heat.
Anton said nothing, but I could feel his eyes boring into the side of my head. My brother mouthedSorryto me and then stepped back. “They’re waiting for you both in the blue room,” he said.
