Chapter One Hundred & Thirty

Chapter One Hundred & Thirty
Nora's P.O.V

“This is… a lot.”

“Yes.”

I let out a quiet laugh, dropping back into the chair.

“Understatement of the century.”

For a second, neither of us spoke.

Then I looked back up at him.

“So what—” I started, then stopped, recalibrating. “What does this mean going forward?”

His answer came steady.

“It means I am yours to command,” he said. “To guide you here. To protect you. To stand beside you in this world.”

“And outside of that?” I asked.

His gaze held mine.

“That depends on you.”

Of course it did.

I leaned back slightly, exhaling through my nose.

“Yeah,” I muttered. “No pressure or anything.”

But even as I said it—

Something had shifted.

Because this wasn’t just about power anymore.

It was about him.

“Leo and Killian are not going to like this,” I muttered, more to myself than anything, staring down at the table like it might somehow make sense of it all. “But it’s my choice. In the end… who I’m with. What I do.”

Rael’s voice came steady, grounding.

“Nora, I’m not asking for anything from you.”

I let out a breath, shaking my head.

“You expect me to just accept that I’m the reason you never get to feel love? Or have anything real?” I looked at him, frustration and something heavier sitting right under it. “No. I’m going to stop you right there. I can’t.”

The words hit harder than I meant them to.

“I feel terrible,” I admitted, dragging my hands over my face. “You’ve never lived, Rael. Not really. Not like that.”

I covered my face completely now, the weight of it pressing in.

“I can’t do that to you.”

There was a shift—quiet movement.

Then he was there.

Dropping down beside my chair, not towering over me, not commanding—just there.

His hands closed gently around my wrists, pulling them away from my face.

“Nora,” he said softly. “I didn’t tell you this to burden you.”

I looked at him.

“I answered your questions truthfully,” he continued. “That’s all.”

His gaze didn’t waver.

“I am grateful to be your guardian,” he added. “I don’t expect anything more.”

That made it worse.

My hand lifted without thinking, finding his cheek, warm under my palm. Real. Not just some distant, untouchable presence.

“Rael…” I whispered, my voice softer now. “I can’t just not care.”

His eyes closed at the contact.

A small shift—barely there, but I felt it.

“I have too big a heart for that,” I said quietly.

Silence settled between us.

Heavy.

Honest.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured.

And something about that—about him apologizing for something that wasn’t his fault—

Twisted in my chest.

Because this—

None of it was simple.

And for the first time since I got here—

It wasn’t the power that felt overwhelming.

It was him.

“Look at me,” I whispered.

His eyes opened slowly, meeting mine—and for the first time, I really saw them. Not just blue. There were green flecks threaded through them, subtle but unmistakable, catching the light in a way that felt almost… familiar.

Beautiful.

“Rael,” I said softly, my hand still resting against his cheek, grounding both of us. “This is my decision.”

He didn’t interrupt.

“My men know that,” I continued, a faint smile pulling at my lips. “How do you think I’m with both of them? A vampire and a mafia king?”

A quiet laugh slipped out of me, the tension easing just a fraction.

“Why not add a guardian to the list?”

That finally pulled a real laugh from him again.

And I felt it—noticed it.

I liked that sound.

More than I should have.

“We can go slow,” I said, my voice steady again, but softer now. “Learn each other. There’s no rush.”

I smirked slightly.

“Right?”

His gaze didn’t leave mine.

“And if you find you can’t stand me,” I added, lighter now, teasing just enough to break the weight of it, “then so be it.”

He shook his head immediately.

“That could never happen, Nora.”

That earned a real laugh out of me—full, unfiltered.

“Okay, but what if I snore?” I shot back, leaning into it now.

“You don’t,” he said without hesitation.

I froze.

My smile faltered just slightly as I stared at him.

“…You’ve watched me sleep?”

A beat.

His expression didn’t shift much—but there was something there now.

Something he hadn’t meant to say out loud.

The courtyard suddenly felt a lot quieter.

“Explain, Rael.”

My voice wasn’t loud.

Didn’t need to be.

It cut straight through the moment anyway.

He didn’t look away this time.

Didn’t dodge it.

But I saw it—that small shift in him, like he was choosing his words carefully now instead of letting them come naturally.

“I don’t watch you the way you’re thinking,” he said.

I raised a brow immediately. “That’s not comforting.”

A faint exhale left him—almost a sigh.

“The bond doesn’t only work one way,” he continued. “I feel you. Your state. Your presence… even across realms.”

I crossed my arms slightly, still waiting.

“When you sleep,” he added, “you’re… quieter. More open. It’s easier to sense you.”

That didn’t answer it.

“You said I don’t snore,” I pointed out.

His jaw tightened just slightly.

“Because I’ve been aware of you,” he said.

“That’s still not better,” I shot back.

A pause.

Then—

“I’ve checked on you,” he admitted.

There it was.

Honest.

“I didn’t stay,” he added quickly. “I didn’t linger or… observe you like that.”

My expression didn’t soften.

“Rael—”

“I made sure you were safe,” he said, cutting in just enough to hold the line. “That was all.”

Silence stretched.

I studied him.

Really studied him this time.

“You were protecting me before I even knew you existed,” I said.

“Yes.”

No hesitation.

Of course.

I let out a slow breath, dragging a hand through my hair again.

“That’s… still a lot.”

“I know.”

Another beat passed.

Then I dropped my hand, looking back at him, the edge in me not gone—but not as sharp anymore.

“You can’t just casually drop things like that,” I said. “You realize how that sounds, right?”

“Yes."

“And you’re just… okay saying it like it’s normal?”

“It is normal for me,” he replied.

I huffed a quiet laugh under my breath, shaking my head.

“Yeah, well—it’s not normal for me.”

His gaze softened—just slightly.

“I’ll adjust,” he said.

That made me pause.

“You’ll adjust,” I repeated.

“Yes.”

I held his gaze for a second longer, then let out a quiet breath.

“…Good.”

Because if this—

Whatever this was—

Was going to work…

We were both going to have to.

We finished eating, the last of the tension settling into something quieter—still there, just not as sharp.

Rael stood first, smooth and composed like always.

“Come,” he said, nodding toward the archway. “I’ll show you to your room so you can get settled.”

My room.

That still sounded unreal.

I pushed my chair back and stood, grabbing my bag as I followed him out of the courtyard and back into the castle. The halls felt different now—less overwhelming, more… familiar. Or maybe I was just adjusting.