“Yes, but what is it?”
She looked down at the display of rocks. “It’s a butterfly. It’s the exact shape of a butterfly. I don’t know what colors you see, so they may not be right, but butterflies come in all different sizes and colors.” She paused and looked up at him, searching for his approval. “You said you’d never seen a butterfly before.”
Niko stood in silence.
“Do you like it?”
He knelt on one knee and touched an amethyst. “It’s… beautiful.”
“Stones have a unique ability to absorb energy. That’s why I like wearing them and having them around me. They feed me positive energy. There are tons of old books that illustrate their powers and how they were used for healing and rituals. Can you see color patterns?”
Only a few faint dewdrop lights around her bed lit the room, so it wasn’t easy to read his expression, especially with his hair in the way. She squatted beside him, and that was when she noticed a tear rolling down his face. The wet trail led to a tiny droplet that clung to his chin.
“So this is a butterfly,” he said on a breath. “Now I know. Now I understand.”
Gem hugged her knees and stared at the stones. They looked unimpressive to her, just a collection of different rocks spread out in the shape of a butterfly. She’d used amethyst to outline the wings and smoky topaz for the body. Though the coloring and spots looked right, she couldn’t imagine what colors Niko saw. Could he see the quartz antenna or the citrine accents?
“I could make more for you sometime using different stones. Maybe I can replicate an actual species. Maybe—”
Niko placed his hand on her back in what she interpreted as a hug. Not a squishy one filled with joy the way she liked to give them, but a meaningful touch coming from an ancient who rarely touched anyone. Gem leaned into him. His energy had a calming effect on her.
“Will you stay with me tonight?” she boldly asked.
His touch vanished.
Gem panicked, hoping he didn’t get the wrong idea. “To keep me company. I haven’t been swimming since… well, you know.”
Niko stood up. “Because of Arcadius?”
Gem touched one of the stones. “I see him in my dreams. I’m afraid if I go back in the water, he’ll pull me under again. I know he’s dead, but I’ve had nightmares about it.”
“He took something you loved, something that gave you peace, and turned it into a traumatic experience. For that, I hope his soul is forever banished.”
When Gem stood up, her sleeves drooped past her hands. “Viktor wants us to stay together.”
“I don’t think he meant in the same room.”
She strode to the window and searched the dark courtyard below. “What if Kallisto knows I’m the one who killed his brothers?”
“It was the wolves that did the final deed, wasn’t it?”
“Yes, but I put everyone under the spell.” She clutched her pendant. “If they climbed over the rooftops into the courtyard, he could get in here. What if I’m asleep, and I never hear him coming? That’s what happened with Arcadius. I didn’t hear him get into the pool, and I’m not strong enough to fight these men. Not without using my light and blowing up the mansion.”
Niko headed toward the door. “You needn’t be afraid of ghosts. Arcadius is dead. Don’t let those memories steal your joy. If you wish to swim, I’ll accompany you.”
“I don’t feel like swimming.”
“As for Kallisto”—the lock on the door slid shut—“I won’t let him come within ten feet of you. If my presence brings you comfort, then staying here is my duty. I am beholden to you for saving my life.”
“You’ll stay?”
“On one condition.” He closed the distance between them, the dewdrop lights softly illuminating his warm skin. “No intimate relations.”
Gem felt herself blush all over. The heat filled her head and spread all the way down to her feet in a wave.
Niko furrowed his brow. “Apologies. I-I had the wrong impression,” he stammered.
“I wasn’t offering. But you sure turned me down fast enough. Am I that repulsive?”
He bowed. “On the contrary, you’re a remarkable woman. I just have no wish to bed you, or any woman for that matter.”
Her jaw slackened. “Are you… I mean, do you like men?”
“No.”
She swallowed hard and studied his stoic expression. If he liked women, was it just about honoring Viktor’s rule? Raven and Christian had already broken that rule and survived. Not that Gem wanted to put her job on the line. “I don’t think I understand.”
Niko walked around the butterfly and stole another admiring glance. He’d never been in her room, so Gem watched him take slow steps until he bumped into the sofa. He patted the cushion beside him. “Come. Sit.”
Gem padded across the floor in her socks and took a seat. Instead of being positioned toward the fireplace, which she never lit, the sofa faced the door. She curled her legs beneath her and turned to face him.
Niko anchored his arm over the back of the couch and shifted toward her. Though he sat taller, his eyes remained low as if he were looking at her breasts. “If I tell you something about my past, will you do the same in kind and be honest with me?”
When she caught herself nodding, she quickly said, “Yes. I think.”
“Promise? Think carefully before you answer, because you don’t know what I’ll ask.”
Gem hesitated, but how could she not agree? While Niko called her his savior, she still felt an immense amount of guilt for putting him in that condition to begin with. She was lucky there had been a good outcome, because Niko had touched the brink of death and almost fallen. Gem wanted desperately to make things right between them.
“I promise,” she said.
Niko’s next words were concise and right to the point. “I’m a virgin.”
“Alas, I don’t have time for being the butt of a joke.”
Despite being fifty, Gem was naive and didn’t always pick up on social cues. Her housemates enjoyed teasing her with fabricated stories. She’d grown up living a sheltered life, both with her original owner and her Creator.
A ghostly smile haunted his lips. “I was ridiculed for it by Cyrus and his men. They took me to brothels in larger cities so I could hear couples moaning in pleasure. Cyrus carried the coins and always reminded me that I wasn’t his equal. Some women laughed, while others pitied the predicament of a blind man. Eventually, the blush left my cheeks around women.”
Unable to formulate words, Gem blinked in surprise. When she did, they weren’t the most compassionate. “Are you trying to tell me that you’re a fifteen-hundred-year-old virgin? How is that even possible?” She adamantly shook her head. “I’m not that gullible. Why are you teasing me?”
Niko bent his arm and rested his temple against his fist. “I spent centuries feeling like less than a man. But after my sister’s rape and the violence I witnessed since, I wanted no part of sex. Having never seen or touched a woman, I had nothing to covet.”
Gem couldn’t comprehend how a man could have gone that long without ever having had sex. “But fifteen hundred years? How is it even possible to control those urges? They’re natural, and the longer you do without…”