Chapter 75 It's Time
Lila POV
I felt him smile against my neck. “Feel better?”
My heart was still racing, a wild, erratic rhythm that refused to slow. My breathing came shallow, each inhale catching somewhere between relief and need. “Much better,” I whispered, my voice betraying the way my body still trembled beneath his touch.
“Good.” He stepped back, and the sudden loss of his warmth made my knees weaken. His hand hovered near my waist for a split second, as if he knew I might fall, as if he enjoyed knowing it. “But that wasn’t what you needed.”
“It wasn’t?” I glanced over my shoulder, my pulse hammering in my ears, my legs still unsteady as if he’d drained something vital from me and left me craving more.
“That should get you through the day,” he said calmly, his voice deceptively composed, “but tonight, once the lights go out, I’ll give you what you really need.”
The sordid promise in his dark eyes made my breath hitch. It wasn’t just desire that lived there, it was possession, certainty, a confidence that told me he already knew how I’d feel beneath his hands, how my body would respond to him in the dark. He straightened his jacket as if he hadn’t just unraveled me with a few murmured words. “Now, get dressed. We have a lot to do today.”
“We?”
He smiled then slow, wicked, knowing. The kind of smile that made it clear he was ten steps ahead of me. “Yes. We, now go get dressed.”
I glanced down at the dress clutched in my hand, then back at him his gaze never wavered. It felt heavy, penetrating, as if he could see straight through my skin, straight through every doubt and secret I carried. When I finally turned toward the bathroom, I could feel his eyes following every step I took. His attention burned, searing my skin, wrapping around me like invisible hands. Even with my back to him, even from halfway across the room, he had the power to control my body.
I didn’t close the door, I liked knowing he was watching me. It made me want to linger, to stretch every second of nakedness, to give him something to look at. Usually, when it came to men, I hid the scars that marked my body. I treated them like shameful secrets flaws that made me weak, broken, wrong. But with Nico, it was different. He didn’t look away. He didn’t pretend they weren’t there. He was drawn to them, drawn to my unexplainable need to feel pain, to the parts of me everyone else avoided. With him, my scars weren’t madness they were uniqueness and power.
As I prepared myself in the bathroom, smoothing fabric over skin, fixing loose strands of hair, trying to make myself look perfect, my nerves coiled tighter with every passing minute. Something was shifting inside me, something dangerous and irreversible.
Ever since Nico had promised to fight this war with Damon by my side, I hadn’t truly thought about what that meant. I hadn’t questioned what would change, or what it would cost me. From the moment I woke up in that tiny room and stared into the eyes of a scarred man who mirrored my past in ways I couldn’t explain, I’d never really been given a choice. And last night, I’d been brave or foolish enough to throw that choice back at him, to force him to decide where I belonged in his life.
Now he had decided and in doing so, he’d taken my choice away completely. Was he right? Was this my place?
Am I strong enough?
Do I have what it takes to stand beside him to become his queen?
I pulled my hair up, twisting it into a neat, sophisticated bun at the nape of my neck. It had been weeks since I’d done something like this. Weeks since I’d worn makeup, since I’d tried to look composed controlled presentable. As I stared at my reflection, I barely recognized the woman looking back at me but I caught a glimpse of who I used to be. The version of myself that still believed she could belong somewhere.
All my life, I’d been misunderstood. At home, with friends, everywhere I was always slightly out of place, always too much or not enough. No matter how hard I tried to fit, I never quite did. The urge to run had followed me for as long as I could remember, whispering in my ear whenever I was surrounded by people who claimed they loved me. I was an outsider. Pretty or not, polished or not, that truth never changed. “I must say,” Nico voice cut through my thoughts, low and amused, “I picked the perfect dress for you.”
I met his reflection in the mirror. He stood behind me now, leaning casually against the doorframe, his gaze slow and deliberate as it traveled over my body, lingering in places that made my stomach tighten. “Do you think I’d be able to choose my own dress next time?” I asked, even though I already knew the answer.
His eyes locked onto mine in the mirror. “Not a chance. I choose what you wear.”
“Why?”
“Because I’ll be the one undressing you later,” he said smoothly. “So my choice will always depend on whether I want to take my time getting you out of your clothes or if I prefer quick, easy access to what’s hidden between those legs of yours.”
Heat flooded my cheeks, and my pulse jumped. I turned to face him just as he closed the distance between us. His stare was relentless, filled with dark, explicit intent that made my thighs clench. I gripped the edge of the sink behind me, grounding myself as my body reacted before my mind could catch up.
He stopped inches away, his breath brushing my lips. “There’s just one thing.”
“What thing?” My voice came out soft, breathless, like I was already surrendering.
Slowly, deliberately, he lifted his hand and reached behind me, never breaking eye contact. In those seconds, I lost myself entirely in his eyes, in the tension that hummed between us, in the pull that felt stronger than logic or fear. His fingers closed around my hair, gripping the bun firmly. I sucked in a sharp breath as he loosened it, gently pulling until the pins fell away and my hair cascaded down around my shoulders, soft and untamed.
He licked his lips. “Rule number four,” he murmured. “Always wear your hair down.”
He leaned in, his nose brushing mine, and for one fleeting moment I was sure he would kiss me. My body was already braced for it, aching, ready. Instead, he took my hand and stepped back, tugging me toward him.
“It’s time for you to step into my world, little pet.”
And in that moment, with his fingers wrapped around mine and his gaze filled with dark promise, I knew without a shred of doubt that my life was about to change forever.