Page 20 of Kneel for Me

I had no idea how long we lay like that for, but eventually, my crying slowed until my tears finally stopped. Sniffling, I tilted my head back to look up at Ivan. He was already watching me, his brows furrowed with concern. My eyelids fluttered closed when he tenderly cupped my cheek and brushed some tears off my red face.

“Sub low?” he asked softly. When I nodded, he tipped my chin up and softly kissed me. It was oddly tender, something I didn’t expect from a man like him, who didn’t seem to be capable of empathizing with anyone. Yet he’d done a damn good job of taking care of me when I’d begun falling apart.

“I’m sorry,” I croaked, my throat raw.

He shook his head. “Nothing to be sorry for,kotik. You’ve never fallen into subspace before, and that was pretty intense for both of us. I should have expected it and taken your first time bottoming for me a little easier. Not made it so intense.”

“I think it would’ve happened either way,” I confessed, closing my eyes and resting my head on his arm. Fuck, I was so drained. I just wanted to sleep. “You make my head quiet.” He stroked his nails along my scalp at that, and it almost felt like a reward of sorts for admitting that to him. I snuggled a little closer, not ready for this moment with him to end. “My head hasn’t been quiet in a really long fucking time, Ivan.”

He pressed a kiss to my forehead. “It can always be like this,” he said softly. “Just trust me andbe.” He ran his hand down my spine. “Get some rest,kotik. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow, and I need you well rested.”

“Are you staying?” I asked quietly, hating how vulnerable the question made me feel.

He snorted. “After I’ve had you naked and crying for me? Fuck yes, I’m staying. You’ll be goddamn lucky if you ever get a moment alone again.”

Honestly… that didn’t seem like such a bad idea anymore.

17

Adrian

Igroaned at the sound of my phone ringing and slapped my hand around the nightstand until it landed on the offending device. Ivan grunted and tightened his arm around me, pressing his face between my shoulder blades.

“Shut it off,” he mumbled.

Ignoring him, I squinted at the screen, immediately coming awake at the sign of Emmaline’s name. She’d had my number foryears, but she’dneverused it.

Something was fuckingwrong. I could feel it in my gut. A sense of foreboding slid through my veins as I quickly sat up, displacing Ivan. He huffed in annoyance and squinted at me as I swiped my thumb up my screen to answer her call and raised my phone to my ear.

“Emmaline?” I asked. I scrubbed at my eyes, trying to rub away the grittiness. My eyeballs felt swollen from crying so much. “What happened?”

Her breath hitched, and she sobbed. Propping my elbow on my raised knee, I dropped my forehead to rest on my forearm, trying to brace myself for the news she was about to break to me.

“James was shot,” she croaked.Fuck. “He—” She choked on her next breath. My chest tightened, and I sucked in a shuddering breath. “He’s in surgery, but they don’t—” Her next sob broke my already fracturing heart. “They don’t know if he’s going to make it, Adrian.”

“Fuck,” I snarled, flinging the blankets back. I hurried to the dresser, snatching out a pair of jeans. “I’m coming home, okay? Is Darren with you?”

“The whole family is here,” she said, her voice cracking. “I thought—” She had to pause to breathe. I had no idea how she was capable of it when my lungs didn’t feel like they were working properly. Mybrother, the one man who’d always had my back, was lying on his fucking death bed. “I thought I should be the one to call you as his w-wife.”

I pressed my phone between my ear and shoulder as I tugged my jeans up my legs with shaking hands. “He’s not dying, Emmaline, you hear me? That man willnotfucking die if for no other reason that he’s too damn stubborn to leave you, okay? Be strong for him, and be strong for Carter,” I ordered, mentioning her son. “I’ll be home soon.”

“Okay,” she whispered.

I ended the call, then set my phone down long enough to snatch a t-shirt out of the drawer. I had just tugged it over my head when Ivan spun me around to face him. I stumbled, but his hands latched onto my upper arms, steadying me. He’d tugged on his slacks, but they were undone. In any other situation, I might have been tempted, but all I could focus on was getting home to protect my family.

“I need you to tell me what the fuck is going on,kotik,” he calmly ordered, his green eyes running over my face.

“I need?—”

He yanked open my top dresser drawer and pulled out a pair of socks, handing them to me. “Tell me while you finish getting dressed,” he commanded.

I took a seat on the end of the bed and began tugging on my socks. He crossed his arms over his broad chest, arching a brow at me, waiting for me to begin. My chest was so fucking tight when I opened my mouth to speak that for a moment, I forgot how to breathe. Closing my eyes, I curled my hands into fists.

“James was shot,” I rasped, slowly opening my eyes again. His laser-sharp focus on me kept me grounded. “He’s in surgery. The doctors told Emmaline they don’t know if he’s going to make it.”

Ivan clenched his jaw, then pulled his phone from his pocket. “Meet me downstairs,” he ordered before he left my room, shutting the door behind him with a quietshnickall while he lifted his phone to his ear. I focused on getting dressed, trusting Ivan to help me take care of this. And if he tried keeping me here while my family needed me…

I would do whatever the fuck it took to get home to them. He wouldnothold me here while my family suffered. I was the second-in-command. I was James’s fucking consigliere. I was supposed to take over the reins if something happened to him.

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