Predator | 43

April savored the taste of Nikolaj's lips against hers. It was a feeling she had missed, even though it only had been a few days they had been apart. Admittedly, to her those two days felt more like two weeks than just two days.

Even though she kept herself busy and even called Lorena over to spend some time together, those two days didn't seem to want to pass. She had missed him so badly.

She always found herself thinking about him and wondered if he was also thinking about her and if he was still mad at her. Having Lorena over distracted her for a while, but threw her back to the thoughts of him the moment they started to speak about him.

And no matter what she did to busy herself, it wasn't enough to entirely scratch him out of her mind. She had never felt this way for someone before.

Nik's soft lips were moving slowly against hers, leaving her breathless in seconds. His strong hands ran down her body length and gripped her waist, pushing her further into his strong and defined chest. His fingertips slowly dipped underneath her shirt and brushed against her skin. April shivered in delight.

Nikolaj very slowly pulled away from her mouth. She hated that he was pulling away from her. She liked having him close to her- the closer the better. It always felt good. It felt right.

The kiss left her breathless and panting. There was no doubt her cheeks were tinted in a deep shade of red. Nikolaj was making up to the two days they had been apart. The kiss was slow and gentle, but yet intense and breathtaking at the same time.

He opened his eyes, green orbs stared down at her as he caressed her chin in soft strokes. April placed her hands against his chest, feeling the soft rising and falling of his chest with every breath he was taking.

He had missed her. Nikolaj didn't have to say that out loud. His actions spoke louder than words ever could. He was a man of few words, someone who rather enjoyed the silence than commotion. She realized this by the way he touched her so gently and looked at her with affectionate eyes.

She was glad everything was fine between them again. The last few days left her in an awful mood, knowing that Nik was mad at her because of a simple but stupid misunderstanding.

But she wasn't the only one who felt that way. Nikolaj made it clear enough that he also was feeling bad for what happened and for the harsh words he had spit at her. He even seemed to feel worse than her.

At the same time she felt anger towards Charles. She was sure that he accused Nik of the crimes because Charles was feeling bitter not having a single clue. He saw a potential suspect and immediately accused him without having proof or without taking his time to overthink his words for a few seconds.

Charles did touch a sore spot when he accused Nikolaj of the crimes. It was understandable that he was angry, even though it didn't excuse the way he behaved and treated her. But everyone makes stupid mistakes, no matter if Lycan or human.

A breath of relief left her mouth as April leaned her head against Nikolaj's shoulder. Her eyes fluttered close and she breathed in his smell.

He wore no cologne, he never did, yet his skin held a scent that could easily make her light-headed. She didn't know what kind of smell it was, there was nothing that could compare to it, but she liked his scent.

She leaned in and took a deep breath, slowly, hoping he wouldn't notice but judging his amused expression he did notice. She shot him a bashful smile.

April felt comfortable, being so close to him. Her ear was pressed against his chest and through the silence she could hear his heart beating.

April was confused.

Confused about a lot of different things. About her feelings for Nikolaj and about Nikolaj's feelings for her. Her thoughts wandered back to the conversation she had with Lorena yesterday.

Lorena was strongly convinced that Nikolaj had romantic feelings for her. The talk with her left April confused. She bit her lip, wondering whether Lorena was right.

She doubted that she was, but in moments like these, when Nikolaj stared down at her with eyes filled with nothing but utter adoration, she couldn't be so sure anymore.

"I'm glad everything is fine between us again," April muttered and leaned her head into his shoulder.

Nikolaj's hand that was playing with April's long locks immediately stopped untangling the knots with his fingers. For a few moments, he was silent. April thought she would get no response from him because he was still too embarrassed about his behavior.

"I'm so sorry," he then apologized in a quiet voice.

"I know. You already apologized. And like I said before, I forgive you," she responded in the same quiet voice. She didn't want him to feel bad anymore. "There is just one thing I want to know."

Nikolaj nodded for her to continue.

April bit her lip. There was just one thing that she was curious about, but she wasn't so sure if she should ask or not. In the end, after hesitating for long moments, she blurted out the question. "What made you think that I was doubting you?"

A heavy sigh fell from Nikolaj's lips. He shut his eyes close for a moment, before opening them again and staring directly into her eyes. "I.." he began, but was hesitant to continue. He gritted his teeth and everted his eyes. "I was angry with Charles. Angry about him accusing me.. and when you looked at me with fear and doubt in your eyes, I just snapped."

His hands formed into two tight fists. He was looking on the ground, avoiding eye-contact. Nikolaj's gaze was hard, his jaw locked tightly.

April immediately pushed away from Nikolaj and watched him in a mixture of utter surprise and shock. Fear? Doubt? She didn't know what exactly he thought he saw on her face, but it surely wasn't doubt and definitely not fear. She could never fear him.

"Nik... I didn't believe Charles, not even for a second. I know that it isn't you who kills or turns the humans." she said with sincerity. "And I could never fear you."

"I know that now. I was just afraid that you would be scared of me... and realize that I'm just a monster."

"Nik.. do you hate being a Lycan?"

Finally, he looked straight into her eyes, surprised at the sudden question. Clearly, he wasn't prepared for this kind of question. His eyes turned sad.

"I don't hate it. But I don't fully embrace it either," Nikolaj admitted with steady eyes.

April let his words sink in. Suddenly, her throat felt dry. Never would she have thought that he might not like being a Lycan. But until a few minutes ago, she realized that maybe, he just wants to be normal. A simple human.

"Why not?"

Nikolaj sighed heavily. "Why would I want to be something humans are afraid of?" He asked in return. "In the end, we are just monster. That we call ourselves Lycans is just another term, but in the end we remain what we truly are- monsters."

"Nik, you're not a monster." April stepped forward and grabbed his hand, pressing her lips on his knuckles while taking in his features. "You're the sweetest man I've ever had the luck to meet. Don't ever think anything less about yourself, because you are so much more than you think you are."

April was unable to portrait him as anything less than the sweet man he was. She saw the brand mark on his neck, it was barely visible, but when paid attention to it, she was able to see it. She can't even imagine the amount of pain Nikolaj had to endure.

Nikolaj was not a monster. If anyone was a monster, then it was Viktor, who branded him like cattle. Who forced him into cage fighting and caused him to have dozens of scars on his body. A surge of hate washed through her.

"April," Nikolaj muttered softly, caressing her cheek and distracting her from all her previous thoughts. "Thank you for having faith in me. I'm sorry for my rude behavior."

His voice sounded strained and regretful. A pained looked crossed his face as he refused to look at her, too ashamed of what he has done.

For April, it wasn't really a big deal. What he had said to her hurt her and it was uncalled for, yes, but he already apologized for that. It was nothing but a simple mistake he did.

April pushed her head away from his shoulder and peered up at him through her lashes. She softly stroked his face.

"You don't need to apologize again," she whispered back and tried to catch his gaze. "We all say silly things from time to time. It's no big deal."

"Still.. it should have been me who makes the first step to-,"

April quickly covered his mouth with her hand. A look of surprise washed over Nikolaj's face. "Let's not worry about it anymore," she demanded in a strong voice. "It's in the past now."

Nikolaj's hard eyes softened. It took a long moment, but he finally nodded. Nikolaj grabbed the hand that was covering his mouth and kissed the palm of her hand with several kisses. He then pushed her closer to him and dipped his head down to her head for a swift kiss.

A slow grin formed April's lips. Her heart was fluttering in an irregular and fast pace. It was a strange, but very pleasant feeling she had yet to get used to.

Nikolaj led her towards his couch and gently tugged her arm, urging her to take a seat next to him. She sank into the couch and rested her head in the crook of his neck.

It was a comfortable position. The cottage was cold, no fire lit the fireplace, but he was keeping her warm enough to avoid goosebumps rising on her skin. Nikolaj being a Lycan, of course, wasn't affected by the cold at all.

His body temperature was incredible. On colder days, she had noticed with amazement, he was warmer than usual. She wondered if it had anything to do with the Lycan blood that was running through his veins. She had never met someone with a body temperature like his.

But then again, she had never met a Lycan before either.

"I missed you," he murmured huskily into her hair. A soft kiss was placed on her head and then another one on her forehead. His thumb was gently stroking her jawline.

"I missed you, too," April said as she enjoyed his touch.

"What were you up to the last few days?" He asked curiously.

"Not much," she admitted, thinking about the last two days. Then she thought about Lorena when she visited her after April called her and invited her over for tea. "Lorena came over yesterday," she told him.

"Oh?" He asked, surprised at the new friendship that was slowly forming.

"Yeah," she murmured into his neck. Her breath was fanning against Nikolaj's skin. April grinned to herself when he shivered in response. "I invited her over. She's really nice. What about you, what did you do the last two days?"

"Not much.." he trailed off mid-sentence. Nikolaj turned his head slightly, his green eyes turning serious as he gazed down at her with an unreadable expression. He pressed his soft lips into a thin line before parting them to speak. "Missing you. Thinking about you. Regretting that I spoke to you so harshly."

She snuggled deeper into him, enjoying the warmth his body provided. Nikolaj appreciated the closeness and kept a firm grip over her waist as he enjoyed her presence.

"I thought we already left this topic behind us," she responded in a sleepy voice, suppressing a tired yawn. She had made herself comfortable against his chest and was almost dozing off.

He chuckled with a small grin on his face. "We did." He ran his fingers through her hair, caressing her head.

"Then why are you bringing that up again?"

"Because you asked me what I've been doing lately."

April shifted her head and grinned at him with a shake of her head. "You're unbelievable."

"And you're beautiful."

April blushed. That was smooth. Was he flirting with her? He had called her beautiful before, but it still made the heat rise in her cheeks.

She leaned her head against his chest, listening to the beating of Nikolaj's heart. Her eyes fluttered close, suddenly feeling very tired and dozed off in his arms.

________

Hi! I know it's been a while since the last update and I'm very sorry for it. I had to take some time off. I will try and finish the next chapter as soon as possible. Hope you all liked the chapter!