19: Ada’s POV

*”Who are you and why the fuck are you in my room?”*

My question echoed throughout my chambers, unanswered save for a small chuckle as the arms released me. I spun around and came face to face with Nik. He held up his hands in surrender, “I thought you heard me calling after you. You seemed upset.”

“I—“ I cut myself off and shook my head, “I’m sorry I didn’t hear you.”

There was shocking tenderness in his dark eyes. It was something I’d never felt coming from him in the few times we’d met. The closest I could recall to him seeming kind was when he was on his veranda reading, and even then he just seemed to be at peace. He reached forward and gripped my biceps gently.

His eyes locked with mine, eyebrows furrowed, “What is wrong, Ada?”

My knees nearly collapsed as tears freely burst forth. Nik caught me, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me into a tight hug. I shoved down the continued feelings of surprise at this show of affection and wrapped my arms around his neck. He carried me over to the couch, sitting down and placing me in his lap.

Nik’s arms stayed around me tightly, “Please, Ada. Tell me what’s wrong.”

I rested my head on his shoulder, smelling the scent of rosemary and leather that seemed to seep off of him. My words were watery, thick with tears, “Lady Elizabeth Jane sent me an invite to a dinner party tonight. I didn’t realize it was from her,” I sniffled, burying my face in his chest, “When I showed up, no one but her was there and—“ I whimpered.

“And what, dove?” His hand caressed the back of my neck and scalp.

“She told me the awful things that Darius is saying about me,” I gripped onto Nik’s t-shirt tightly, “I know I shouldn’t let it bother me but I just thought last night was so perfect and—“

“Well, Darius said that same thing to Phoenix and I this morning,” Nik cut me off, running his hand down the velvet backing of my dress, “Anything else she may have told you is simply out of jealousy.”

I pulled back from him, “Jealousy?”

Nik nodded, giving me a small smile, “You get to have all three of us, and you got to have Darius before she did,” he brushed his fingertips against my right cheek, “Lady Elizabeth is nothing more than a jealous she wolf trying to stake a claim to something she cannot have.”

“She implied they are to be married,” I countered flatly.

He froze, averting his gaze for just a few seconds. He quickly recovered, but I could tell that a portion of the warmth that had been there moments before was gone. His voice was more cool, “It is not her duty to imply anything to you,” Nik sighed, placing a gentle kiss on my forehead, “But, as of right now, her implication is true.”

I froze, “There were rumors. I just assumed that’s all they were.”

“We don’t agree with the decision,” he stated simply then shook his head, “I’m sorry, we really shouldn’t be having this conversation.”

He continued trailing his fingers over the velvet of my dress, eventually simply linking his fingers with mine and sighing. I relaxed my hand into his, resting my head on his shoulder once more. We sat like this— me in his lap, him embracing me— for quite some time in comfortable silence.

While we sat, I thought about Darius and Nik and how different yet similar they were. I had no idea this side to Nik existed. Cold and calculating were the two words I would have used to describe the Midnight Prince before this interaction. There was such depth to this Prince I was sitting on. I couldn’t fight the shock I was in at finding this out. I mean, Darius was rather surface level. Kind and gentle from the beginning. I was sure he also had two sides, but a good man having a darker side wasn’t as abnormal as a seemingly dark man having a tender one. And I’d known many dark men with one side than any other type.

As darkness swept through the castle, servants entered the room and lit candles and a fire to keep the room lit. When I went to move, Nik lightly applied more pressure to keep me in place. His free hand was trailing up and down my back, tracing different patterns at different speeds.

Just as it was lulling me to sleep, he released the hand he was holding and touched my shoulder gingerly. I sat up, looking at him. As our eyes locked, I found myself holding my breath. He reached up and ran his thumb along my jawline. The firelight flickered in his gaze, a light breeze rolling through the room and wafting his scent everywhere.

His eyes flicked to my lips before returning to mine. My lips parted slightly as a flush crept up my cheeks. My heart pounded so loudly I was afraid it would be all he heard. I started to lean into Nik, suddenly craving his lips as badly as I used to crave food after weeks without eating. It was as if they were the only thing that could allow me to live.

Somehow, his hand had wandered to my waist and was holding it tightly. As my lips neared his, he rested his forehead against mine and closed his eyes— preventing me from closing the distance. My disappointment was palpable but I was immediately distracted by his roaming hand. It skidded down my leg, lifting my dress at the ankle. He touched the bare skin on my ankle, pulling back to watch my face as he trailed his hand up my inner leg. His fingers dipped between my legs and I tossed my head back and gasped.

He slid his finger effortlessly through my wet folds, dipping right into the core of my pussy. Nik moved his finger in and out, occasionally rubbing them against my clit. His eyes remained locked on my face, watching as he please rolled through my body in waves.

I gripped onto his suit jacket, biting back a cry of pleasure. Mere moments away from climax, Nik removed his fingers and pulled his hand from under y dress. He brought his fingers to his mouth, tasting me on him. I clenched in response, longing for the full feeling of them in me again. As I shifted atop him, I could feel the hard length of him beneath me and could tell he rivaled his brother in size.

His eyes darkened, “You taste delicious, dove.”

I released the fabric of his suit jacket, blinking, “Nik—“

He held his finger up to his lips, smirking, “Ada,” his hand squeezed my ass through my dress, “I must go. I’ve already spent too much time here.”

Just like that, I was slid from his lap and onto the couch. He was exiting my chambers at a rapid, not bothering to glance behind him. I fought the urge to follow after him, feeling some sort of deep longing to be near to him. As I sat for a moment, I contemplated the newfound excitement I had for our future union. Nik seemed to be so much more than anyone gave him credit for.