Love & Loss

Chapter 17

Khloe's POV:

The halls were strangely empty as I made my way back to Nico's room.

Usually Id see a couple of slaves whenever I walked to a different part of the castle, but lately, its been oddly empty.

Maybe something was going on with the slaves?

I'll have to ask Marcus the next time I see him.

I hugged my new book closer to my body as I approached Nico's door.

I figured that it would be better if I kept it in our room while I read and marked it.

After all, Yesterday Nico did clear out a portion of his massive bookshelf for books that I wanted.

He did that right after he moved in the entire art set up he had ordered to cover up the entire right wall.

He ordered enough things to last me a lifetime and then some.

A small smile rose on my face as I recalled the smile on his face when I reacted to all of it.

The smile quickly fell, though, when I stopped in front of his door, remembering that he was most likely still on his date.

That thought still hurt. Whether he was enjoying it or not, I didn't like the fact that it was happening.

I glanced at the floor.

Maybe I was just being selfish...

Trust him... I have to trust him.

Relationships are built on trust right?

Yeah... Yeah, I trust him.

I exhaled softly as I placed my thumb on the little black box and opened the door.

I guess I was just jealous is all, but he hasn't given me a reason not to trust him.

The door shut behind me and I rose my head, nearly dropping my book at what I saw.

Nico stood right outside his closet, his the look on his face and in his eyes being enough evidence that he wasn't expecting me to be here.

The faint scent of his shampoo in the air and the wetness of his hair told me that he had just showered.

I wasn't expecting him to be here either, but that fact didn't concern me at the moment more than his eyes did.

His deep red eyes.

My heart dropped.

He had fed from something alive. Very recently.

Of course, my mind automatically went to the worst case scenario.

"Oh... hey," He gave me an obviously nervous smile as he took a single step towards me," Um, You're back earlier than I thought."

He wouldn't meet my gaze and instead looked to the floor, seeming guilty of his actions.

My grip on my book tightened as thoughts flew through my head. The only explanation for what he fed from was...

"I guess your date went well then?" I asked, my voice squeaking towards the end.

It took everything I had in me not to just break down right there and then.

He refused multiple times to drink from me, but jumped at the first opportunity to drink from another girl?

His head immediately shot up, worry covering his face.

"No no no oh God no," He spoke quickly, taking a couple more steps forward, "I didn't feed from her. The cravings were getting unbearable so I left early and headed into the forest."