Moving Objects

Chapter 26

I dressed for bed in a rush to get under the warm covers. As our evening was drawing to a close the power went out because of the incoming snowstorm. Therefore, my apartment was freezing! Dimitri was already in bed after getting a few other blankets out and putting them on the bed. He was reading his book when I climbed over him, settling into the blankets. He chuckled and wrapped his arm around me, pull me close so he could kiss my head.

I snuggle closer to him to absorb his body heat and stuck my socked toes against his leg. I hated socks with a passion but that's just how cold it was. Being curled up like this while he read was like seeing a glimpse of how things were before he was turned, and I sighed happily.

I looked up at him as I thought over what Tasha said, and I contemplated voicing my thoughts to him.

"Dimitri?"

He hummed quietly as he turned the page of his book, still reading but prompting me to continue.

"What happened after I left the other night?"

His eyes stopped scanning the pages and he looked down at me, running the tip of his tongue over his bottom lip. He marked the spot he was reading and put the book down on the table, giving me his attention.

"Adrian came by almost immediately after you left," he said, confirming my suspicion. I nodded and waited for him to continue. Dimitri took a calming breath and kissed my forehead before speaking again.

"I was angry that night. Angry at the council, angry at the situation I was in, but wasn't angry at you. I need you to know that. Unfortunately, you were just on the receiving end when I finally snapped. Adrian and I fought for a bit after he told me I needed to smarten up because he had run into you on your way out. I told him that it wasn't any of his business," Dimitri explain. "He had the balls to punch me in the mouth, you know. Just came up and suck punched me. I didn't even see it coming."

"He then went on and told me how you were keeping everything that was happening bottled up and that you had a really rough time while I was...away. He said that the only time you seemed to be yourself was when you were on your way out to try and find me or when you were doing the research with Lissa and your dad," Dimitri added on after I stifled my laughter at the idea of Adrian punching Dimitri.

Dimitri rolled his eyes at my failed cover for my mirth before becoming serious again. "I waited up for you after he left, I figured you'd only be gone for an hour or two at the most. But when four hours went by, I started to worry that you weren't going to come back. That I had pushed you too far from my reach."

I sat up and wrapped my arms around him and tucked my face into his neck, melting against him as he pulled me into his lap and hugged me just as tight.

"I was starting to feel like me being around was making everything worse. I was starting to feel like I was suffocating you," I admitted but I could feel him shaking his head.

"No, Roza. You didn't make it worse. If anything, I needed you even if it didn't appear that way. Even when I didn't know I needed you."

I nodded against his skin and sighed, relieved to have one of my fears resolved. But some of the words that he said still lingered in the back of my mind. I sat up and placed my hands on his chest, running my fingertips over the soft cotton.

"Do you really feel like my promise was empty?"

Regret flashed clearly across his face and he sat up, cupping my cheeks as he shook his head. "No, you promised that you would free me. And you did better than that. I said a lot of hurtful things that I didn't mean, and I won't able to apologize enough for that," he pledged kissing the tip of my nose. I nodded and gave him a small smile so he'd know that I accepted his apology. He laid down and pulled me down on top of him, his hand winding into my hair.