Captive Mate BL-Chapter 484: + - +

Angelo got comfortable on a couch in Nikolai’s office, the carpet had been changed, twice over. He was right about to tell Nikolai to just leave it till the day was over because even if the carpets were changed, it was only a matter of time before someone else bled out on them.

He didn’t have much to do, not with the row of emotionless killers that hung around Nikolai. For today, Angelo didn’t mind it.

It was mid-afternoon and he was already drowsy. He really should have spent the day recuperating, instead he ran around doing shopping and then came right to Nikolai’s casino.

The smell of blood and gunpowder didn’t bother him, it was business as usual for Angelo.

Nikolai was constantly watching Angelo, so he immediately noticed when the assassin’s eyes got heavy. Angelo drew his knees in and rested his head against them, fighting a losing battle to keep his eyes open.

His phone rang next to him but he ignored it, pocketing it and rising to his feet. Angelo straightened up when he did, looking at him curiously.

"We’re leaving early," Nikolai let him know.

Angelo was quick to hop to his feet, although he knew that when they got back to the mansion, he wouldn’t be able to fall asleep as easily as he had been about to do in Nikolai’s office.

It reminded him of the brief naps he took in Silvia’s office while he worked for her. Being able to fall asleep in Nikolai’s office as well really shouldn’t have come as a surprise.

However, he didn’t want to sleep on his first day on the job, he had a reputation to keep. Although, other than stabbing the spy from the High Council, he hadn’t done much else but watch Nikolai ruthlessly cut down anyone who went against him.

It should probably upset Angelo but the Mafia King had every reason and all the means to kill him and he hadn’t so he was indifferent to the danger Nikolai clearly was.

He walked behind Nikolai, extra susceptible to the looks from the armed men because of how lethal they were. The casino was bustling, flashy and glamorous, separate from the death and gore that happened on the top floor.

Angelo got into the car and curled up, it was something he did subconsciously when he felt comfortable and safe. As soon as he placed his shoes on the car’s seat, he froze and straightened up, not wanting to get it dirty.

He glanced to the side and saw that Nikolai was busy scrolling through a laptop on his legs to notice what he was doing, he took off his shoes and curled up again.

Angelo tucked his hair behind his ears, he couldn’t remember when Nikolai had put his hair down again, but he had forgotten to put it back up. He wrapped his arms around his legs and looked out through the window on his side.

It was tinted black, and thick enough to stop a bullet but he wasn’t interested in sight-seeing. Angelo closed his eyes, his hair thrown over a shoulder.

He noted that he hadn’t seen Nikolai smoke a single cigar since he arrived. He had smelled the now familiar scent of rich smoke on the Mafia King when he first arrived, but after he showed up, he hadn’t seen him take out any more.

It had been hours since then and considering that Nikolai always had a cigar between his fingers, it caught Angelo’s attention. It meant that in the enclosed space of the car, Nikolai’s cool scent filled the space, the smell of cigar smoke faint.

Angelo didn’t plan to fall asleep, he did feel drowsy but he didn’t think he would be able to actually fall asleep. The constant motion of the car and Nikolai’s scent didn’t help much with how tired he still felt.

By the time the car rolled into the parking lot, Angelo was fast asleep. Nikolai didn’t notice, used to the assassin sitting perfectly still for extended periods of time.

It wasn’t until he was already out of the car and Angelo still made no move to step out that he noticed something was off. He walked around to the other side of the car and opened the door, Angelo’s peacefully sleeping face appearing before him.

The ice in Nikolai’s dark blue eyes seemed to thaw a bit, Angelo was deeply asleep, even picking the assassin up wasn’t enough to rouse him. He could easily wake Angelo up and send him through the elevator so he could resume sleeping in the penthouse but that thought didn’t even cross his mind.

Nikolai carried Angelo with ease, stepping into the lobby of the apartment complex. The men stationed inside the lobby stared on in horror as their boss headed for the elevator.

Nikolai’s aversion to elevators was well known, it was a strange quirk but he was powerful enough for no one to dare mention it to his face.

Although, Nikolai didn’t interact with the people who lived in the apartment complex, when he stepped into the elevator, they all ducked out. There were two elevators side by side at each end of the lobby so it was hardly an inconvenience.

Nikolai didn’t mind this, he had a feeling that if Angelo woke up to find himself being carried around like this, knives would get thrown. He would prefer if innocent civilians didn’t get caught up in the middle of that.

Nikolai didn’t look up as the elevator doors slowly closed, feeling like all of the oxygen was being sucked out. He focused on Angelo’s sleeping face, his delicate features and those round lips that tormented him.

Taking Angelo up the stairs would have been uncomfortable for the assassin and it would have taken too much time. It still felt like the walls were closing in on him and his breathing was stifled in his chest but the assassin in his arms made it bearable.

And in no time, the doors were opening to reveal the hallway of the top floor. He stepped out with a grim expression, his face pale.

Angelo had told him about the new room he had chosen, it was easy to find. He dropped off the assassin on the bed in his new room and perched on the edge. Nikolai needed several minutes to put himself together, he loathed himself for this display of weakness but it was a fear he had never been able to get over.

He glanced over at Angelo who was still peacefully asleep, fully dressed. He got to his feet to make the assassin more comfortable.

He started with Angelo’s shoes, his dark blue eyes widening a fraction when a knife fell out. He then busied himself with disarming the assassin, building a pile of weapons on the side of the bed.

Angelo didn’t roll around while he slept but he wasn’t about to let him sleep with a knife strapped to his body. With all the weapons taken away, Nikolai looked him over, his gaze settling on the tempting zipper running down the center of the skin-tight shirt Angelo wore.

It was with great effort that he kept his hands to himself, moving the variety of knives to the bed-side table. Nikolai wandered outside briefly and then returned with a bottle of liquor, his overcoat gone.

He had bitten through his cigars enough times because of Angelo to avoid the fat nicotine sticks whenever the assassin was close by.

Just like the night before, he sat and watched Angelo sleep, making himself scarce when the assassin started to rouse. He had gotten a call from Silvia earlier, but he had just ignored her until he was ready.

Nikolai grabbed his overcoat and slipped out of the apartment, lighting up a cigar as he started down the stairs. Silvia had said she wanted to see him for something important, he had a feeling he wasn’t going to like what she had to say.

-+-

Lake happily drove them down to the village, his excitement contagious.

"We shouldn’t leave the gift buying for last minute," He was saying as he pulled into the cozy parking lot of the restaurant.

Davian was having a difficult time mustering up enthusiasm, Lake wasn’t talking about buying gifts for him.

"Let’s eat dinner first," He diverted the conversation.

Lake didn’t mind, just happy to be outside where they could see other people. "It’s a seafood restaurant, we could try something else if you don’t want seafood tonight." He suggested lightly, noticing Davian’s reticent mood. "Although, I was hoping you would learn another recipe, your seafood platter is perfect."

Even though Lake was the one who drove them there, Davian hurried over to open the door for his pregnant mate and help him out. The Alpha’s black eyes sparkled at his mate’s words, life coming back into them.

"Let’s eat at the seafood restaurant," He said decisively, leading the way to the restaurant, determination written over his darkly handsome features.

Lake hid his smile behind a hand, his ring catching the fluorescent lights, his mate really was the best!