Niko’s lips twitched before he took a step back and bowed. “As you wish.”
Chapter 11
After returning to her room, Gem got some much-needed rest. Surrounded by her crystals, twinkling lights, and colorful fabrics, she felt all her problems melt away. When the sun reached high noon, she crawled out of bed, showered, and got dressed.
Though rejuvenated, she still hadn’t replenished all her core light, and that affected her body temperature. Her hands were no longer hot, but now she couldn’t stop shivering. She decided it was nothing that a beige sweater dress and a pair of floral leggings couldn’t fix. It would probably take her another day or two before she felt one hundred percent. Walking the halls warmed her up, but when she reached Niko’s room, she found it empty.
Gem took a shortcut to the other side and visited all the rooms where Niko usually hung out. Each of her footfalls made a lonely sound against the stone, and goose bumps covered her arms when she walked past one empty room after another. Even Wyatt’s World was a ghost town. Gem wondered if the team had made any progress in tracking down Kallisto.
Instead of flashing or wearing skates, Gem took a leisurely stroll down to the dining room. “I should have known,” she muttered, reaching the foot of the grand staircase.
The sonorous sound of Hozier filled the hallway that led to the dining room. The music rose from the gym below. Since that was one of the few rooms in the mansion with electricity, they were able to listen to music while working out.
When she reached the dining room, she opened the door to the gym and tiptoed down the narrow stairwell. Since there weren’t any lanterns, there were a lot of dark corners, which created spaces where spiders liked to hang out. Christian called them natural pest control, but they gave Gem the heebie-jeebies. The second door at the bottom opened with an easy push, and she drifted a few steps through the recessed hall. It was pitch-black, and she felt all along the wall for the switch. When she turned on the overhead lights, the first thing she saw was Niko.
Wearing nothing but a pair of hakama pants, he was breathtaking.
The outfit also made it clear how much weight he’d lost. Yet despite his sinewy physique, Niko exuded strength with every move on the mat. With his eyes closed, he executed maneuvers as if battling an invisible entity. He turned and extended one leg forward, sweeping his arms as if he were shaping the horizon. Gem was awestruck as he twisted around and stomped the mat, his technique so flawless that she’d never seen anything like it.
The song kept repeating, “Move me,” and Gem pressed herself against the wall in hopes he wouldn’t open his eyes and notice her light. She could watch him do this forever. When he bent over and picked up a katana, Gem held her breath, spellbound by how blindingly fast and precisely he moved.
Spying on him was too invasive, so Gem backed up slowly and returned to the dining room.
“Is he still in there?” Switch asked from one of the booths.
She spun around with her back to the door. “When did he go down there?”
Switch finished his sandwich and wiped his hands on his grey-and-black shirt. “Before I woke up this morning. Want one? I’ve got good bologna game.”
“I’ll pass.”
After wiping his circle beard with a napkin, Switch tucked his hair behind his ears and stretched out one leg. He dressed the part of a man who rode a motorcycle: black boots and sometimes a bandana over his head. He was handsome, and Gem wondered why he would give up finding a mate for the next ten years to be a nanny. People never ceased to amaze her.
He stared at her for a beat. “Is this normal?”
“Niko working out?”
“No. Earthquakes, trees on fire, team members in a coma… that kind of weird shit.”
Gem shrugged.
Switch draped his arm over the back of the bench and gave her a wolfish grin. “What’s a nice girl like you doing in a place like this?”
Gem rolled her eyes and reduced the distance between them. “I hope you don’t use those cheesy lines on real women.”
“If you’re not a real woman, what are you?”
She plopped down in the seat in front of him. “Didn’t Viktor give you all the rules?”
“You mean the one about eating with the team or the one about debauchery?” Switch looked at her long and hard, questions dancing in his gorgeous brown eyes. He obviously wanted to know more about her and Niko.
She folded her arms on the table. “That wasn’t what it looked like. Viktor wanted us to stay together, and I needed rest.”
“Looked like you two were pretty cozy.”
Flustered, she picked up his uneaten sweet pickle and took a bite.
Switch laughed as if he’d been holding it in. “I’m just messin’ with ya. What goes on around here is none of my business. I’m not trying to start trouble. I’m used to being around a pack, so the solitude here lately is getting to me.”
“Maybe you should go out more.”
“I do. Sometimes I ride out and hang with a few buddies, but the long part of my day is spent here. It takes getting used to.”
“Where’s Hunter?”
“Napping. Kids need it at his age. Hell, I need it.”
“He’s so adorable. I’m not good with children, but I love having him around. He’s unpredictable, like me.”
“You seem like the type who would be good with kids.” His eyes skimmed up to her colorful hair, then back down to her blue nail polish.
She finished the pickle and tossed the nubby end back on his empty plate. “And you seem like the type who would repel children. Sometimes people aren’t what they seem.”
He gave her a one-sided smile. “Point taken.”
“How do you like it here so far?”
Switch swung his gaze up to the ceiling, and his eyebrows knitted together. “It’s a lot different from my previous jobs. Quieter. I’ve never had to look after just one kid. Usually it’s a house full of them, and packmates are always coming and going. Sometimes I spend a whole day here and never see another face.”
“Sorry.”
“It’s not a bad thing.” Switch rested his chin in the palm of his hand, and Gem couldn’t help but notice his biceps.
Swell. Another workout fanatic.
“You’re welcome to use the gym,” she offered. “Viktor would never restrict you from using anything in the mansion. Well, except for private rooms. And eating with us.” She felt her face flush. “I’m sorry it has to be like that. We do important work here, and we discuss confidential matters over dinner. It’s the one time when we’re all together, so I don’t know if that’s something we could change.”
When Switch shook his head, his brown hair sprang free from behind his ear and curtained half his face. “No big deal. As long as we can still hang out now and then. Raven likes rock climbing, and we go down there sometimes. Wyatt just likes to chill, but he can be a real ass.”
Gem chortled. “It’s a Gravewalker thing. You’ll get used to it. They think they have life all figured out.”
“Well, he needs to figure out some fair prices on that vending machine. What’s up with the five-dollar donuts?”