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I whirl toward the door as the lighter hits the floor, and the soaked carpet ignites. I blink and the entire room is engulfed in flames. The fire licks up the polyester curtains, climbing up the walls and devouring everything in its path. The entire damned room must be drenched in gasoline. My chest constricts, my ribs suddenly too tight to restrain my rioting heart.
Darkness seeps into the corners of my vision, and I freeze. I’m twelve years old again with a raging inferno surrounding me. The pungent smoke burns my throat, and each inhale is pure torture. The flames morph into horrific creatures, clawed fingers reaching for me, threatening to drag me down into the depths of hell, where I belong.
I attempt to draw in a breath, but the thickening smoke clogs my airway. The blossoming heat scorches my face, singeing the overgrown stubble on my cheek. The sudden sharp crack of wood sends my gaze up to a splintering rafter.
“Hey, boss! Nico, are you in here?” Max barrels into the room a moment later where I still stand, completely immobile.
A wooden beam crashes down, but somehow Max gets a hold of my arm and jerks me out of the way at the last second. Heat licks up my spine, then my neck, and the scent of burned hair reaches my sensitive nostrils as he drags me out into the hallway.
“Oh, shit!” Max’s eyes widen as he peels off his jacket and tosses it over my head. “I got you, boss.”
Fuck, my hair. I’ve been meaning to get it cut. The errant thought bounces across my mind in some crazed delirium.
Max hauls me up and practically carries me down the steps.
By the time I reach the bottom floor, my senses start to return, and embarrassment floods my being. I just stood there like a complete idiot. I’d nearly let the entire apartment come down on top of me.
“Thanks,” I mumble at Max.
“No problem, boss.” He tugs me toward the BMW and shoves me into the backseat. “Let’s get out of here before the fire department arrives.”
I nod numbly as he slams the door behind me.
Quiet sobs echo through my subconscious and my lids flutter open, waking me from a fitful sleep. I roll over to find Maisy curled in a ball at the edge of the mattress.
“Little fox?” I murmur as I pull her into my arms. “Are you okay?”
“No, I’m not,” she cries. Her eyes are bloodshot and swollen as she peers up at me. “God, Nico I was so scared… I don’t think I’ll ever get the image of Max carrying you into the penthouse out of my mind.”
“I’m fine.” I caress her cheek, reveling in her soft skin. “He was being overly dramatic.”
“You could have been killed!”
“Unfortunately, it’s part of the life I’ve chosen, baby.”
“I don’t like it. I hate it actually.” Her lips twist into a pout, and I can’t help myself from capturing them.
She only fights me for a second before giving into the kiss. I was so out of it when I returned earlier I barely remember crawling into bed with her. Now I’m fully awake, my cock straining against my boxers.
Rolling on top of my little fox, I fit my hips between her inner thighs. My erection brushes across her center over her panties, earning me a faint gasp.
“Nico, you can’t sex your way out of this.”
“Why not?” A wicked grin crosses my face as I shamelessly rub my cock against her. “I think I deserve some sort of reward after what I’ve been through today.”
She shakes her head, but a faint smile erases the fear etched into her expression. “I love you, dang it, Nico, and you scared the bejesus out of me. I never want to feel that way again. It was all my fault you were out there searching for Jasper. I don’t care about you finding him; I want you to forget that stupid promise you made me.”
Hovering over her, I press a kiss to her forehead, then move down her jaw and settle on her lips once more. “It wasn’t your fault at all. It’s never your fault. And I will never not do my utmost to keep a promise to you. I wish I could say once this is over, I won’t be in danger again, little fox,” I whisper against her mouth, “but I refuse to lie to you. Getting involved with someone like me comes with inherent risks. If it wasn’t Jasper, it would’ve been someone else.”
“But I thought that now with this feud ending with the Kings you’d be safe…”
“I’ll be safer that’s for sure. And that’s all because of you.” I press another kiss to her pouty lips.
“You have to try to be more careful, Nico, please. I—I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you.” Her fingers tangle through the burned tips of my hair. Another sob builds in her throat, and I’m so overcome with emotion, hot tears sting my eyes.
I never cry. I can’t remember the last time I shed a single tear.
“Of course I’ll try, Maisy. I just found you. Do you think I’m going to let something like death tear me away from you?”
