ARAWN
Nerthus flinches as she turns around and gets up immediately as she sees me. “Oh my God.”
“You can call me all you want, woman. I’m still going to be pissed.” I growl as I slam the door close behind me.
Her eyes widen as she steps towards me. “Arawn, you have to believe me that I didn’t take anything! I’m so sorry. I was being stupid.”
“Shut up!” I say, and she pulls back her hands that were about to grab for me.
She holds her hands to her chest as she speaks again. “I know that it isn’t an excuse, but I was tipsy, and she always gets the worst out of me.”
“I told you to shut the fuck up!” I bark, making her wince.
As she goes silent, I can finally force my brain to function normally again, even if her big eyes are still horribly distracting.
“Want to tell me what happened?” I ask.
She avoids my gaze, tugging a strand of her hair behind her ear as she nods. “We were dancing, and everything was fine. But then a guy hit on her, and she told me that she knew him because he was a dealer. Apparently, he had great stuff. So, she dragged me with her to party with him.”
“What do you mean by ‘to party with him’?” I breathe out slowly, trying to keep my calm.
Shaking her head, she looks back up at me with a saddened expression. “Not what you think. First, we went to the bar, and he offered us a few drinks. I swear that they were flirting with each other, and I was just playing third wheel. It felt uncomfortable, but you know how it is in such situations…”
“Not really, no.” I laugh coldly as she tilts her head at me.
“Okay. Fair enough. But I swear that I was just there with them. I didn’t do anything.” She repeats herself, making me exhale annoyed.
“What happened then?” I push further, and she bites the inner of her cheek.
That’s a bad sign.
Leaning onto the backrest of a chair, I sigh deeply. “Fuck, Nerthus. What did you do?”
“Nothing,” she says in a high-pitched voice, signaling me that she is lying. “Okay. Bridget wanted something for her. Just for her! And I couldn’t leave her alone. And suddenly, we were in the catacombs surrounded by dealers and addicts making out and all those drugs.”
I glare at her as she tries hard to explain herself, getting more panicky by the second. “I swear that I wanted to leave, but Bridget pulled me with her telling me I should stop acting like a pussy just because I’m something better now.”
I close my eyes as I continue to listen to her.
“She told me how she would distract him, and that I should take one of the little packages lying on the table. Nobody would have caught us, they never did. But your fucking dealers aren’t wasted!”
“Are you blaming it on my soldiers now?”
She sighs, letting her arms slump. “No, of course not. I’m the idiot. I know. But I’m so sorry!”
“Do you even realize what you have done?” I ask her, and she nods, lowering her head.
“I’m so sorry!” She says feebly, as she hugs herself. “You can test my blood and my hair. I didn’t take anything.”
“You wouldn’t have had the time to because you got busted!” I tilt my head, wanting to get in her line of sight.
She shakes her head as her nails sink into her arms, and I’m worried that she will draw blood.
Taking a deep breath, I check her shaking appearance and figure that she must be cold. I slip out of my jacket to throw it over her shoulders. “What were you doing here?”
“We were partying,” she answers, wrapping herself in my jacket.
“I can see that,” I growl, clicking my tongue.
I clench my teeth while she keeps silent.
“Why better?”
She seems to take a bit of time to understand my question before she snorts.
“Because I’m now in that elite company, and without a pimp. And forgot about the streets. But that’s not true!” She hugs my jacket closer as she turns around as if someone in the room could help her out.
Her lips shake in a way I hate to see on her, and I have to fight the urge to take her into my arms. “You are better than her. But not because you forgot where you came from. And you still have the streets in you. I don’t think I could stand you if you were some stuck-up bitch from the city.”
“You don’t have to say nice things to me. You hate me,” she says with a frown, keeping herself from smiling.
“Yeah, but I knew you were trouble from the beginning. Also, why didn’t you tell her that you aren’t working for that company anymore?” I ask her, making her look at me confused.
“I can’t possibly go around to tell anyone about us, can I?” She retorts, and I shrug, causing her eyes to widen.
“You are mine. Everybody should know.” I lean in, feeling her breathing hitch as I whisper. “Don’t have me mark you.”
Lifting a finger, I trace the pulse along her throat, seeing goosebumps rise on her skin.
“What if there wasn’t Bernie to recognize you?” I take a step back, loving how her breathing is uneven.
“What?” She seems taken aback as she moves her head slightly backwards.
“What if he didn’t burst in to tell the dealer who you were?” I ask again through clenched teeth.
Looking between my eyes, I can sense the gears turning in her head. “Why? What am I?”
“Still alive. Thanks to Bernie.” I answer, my chest squeezing.
Reaching out for her, I grab her elbows. Finally, she loosens her grip around herself to hold me, and our breathing evens naturally at our touch. “I didn’t think. She made me act on instinct, and I suddenly was 19 again.”
She gulps, her eyes locked with mine as she squeezes my forearms. “I swear that I won’t go out with her ever again. I promise that I will go no contact! I got the favor she owed me, and she got me sucked in, but it won’t happen again.”
“Okay. It’s alright, Nerthus. Calm down.” I say as I feel her hyperventilating.
I push her back to sit into the chair, and she pushes down everything that was about to resurface. I clench my teeth as it bothers me that she feels like she can’t let it go for me to catch her.
“Just don’t drop me again, Arawn. Please.” She whispers as she finally sits down and looks up at me with puppy dog eyes.
I laugh, making her scrunch up her nose as I free myself from her grip. “Oh, you are so drunk, Nerthus.”
“I’m not.” She stomps her foot cutely, proceeding to noodge about how I’m being unfair.
Grabbing her chin, my heart stops as she reciprocates my look with a gasp. “I’m not going to drop you. I promised, right?”
She nods as much as my grip allows her to before I pull her in for a kiss.
“But I’m still deciding on your punishment.”