Bound to my Enemy novel Chapter 243

Chapter 243: Chapter 243.

So instead I make soup, Simple, light and something warm.

The entire time I cook, my thoughts drift upstairs toward Zane, toward the fact that he’s alive....Actually alive, here and breathing.

I still can’t fully process how close I came to losing him.

By the time I carry the tray upstairs later, the house has settled into an eerie quiet outside the occasional footsteps of security downstairs.

Zane looks half asleep when I walk back into the room but his eyes immediately open when he sees me.

"There’s my nurse."

I place the tray down carefully.

"If you call me nurse again, I’m charging you hospital fees."

"Can I pay in compliments?"

"No."

"In kisses?"

I try not to smile and fail miserably.

"Eat your soup."

He obeys surprisingly easily, though mostly because I sit beside him while he eats. At some point, his fingers curl loosely around my wrist, absentminded and it’s comforting.

When he finishes, I take the bowl away and settle beside him again.

For a while neither of us talks, the silence between us feels softer today.

Then suddenly his fingers tilt my chin toward him gently.

"You should sleep too," he murmurs.

"I slept."

"On top of me like a starfish."

"That’s a lie."

"You drool and assault people in your sleep."

I narrow my eyes.

"You’re incredibly annoying for someone recovering from surgery."

"And yet you’re still here."

Something softer enters his expression when he says it, something warm enough to make my chest ache a little and before I can respond, he leans closer slowly and kisses me, gently this time. Nothing franti or desperate, jst warm lips against mine.

Relief and comfort surges through me as I kiss him back immediately, my fingers sliding lightly into his hair as he hums softly against my mouth before deepening the kiss slightly and slighty slightly more....until his hand slides to my waist and suddenly the air shifts completely. Y

My heartbeat stumbles.

"Zane," I whisper against his lips.

"Hm?"

"You’re injured...we can’t..we shouldn’t."

"Minor inconvenience."

I pull back just enough to glare at him.

"You literally got shot yesterday."

"Yeahhh not on my dick though..:you look hot as fuck right now and I want to fuck the brains out of you."

I snort softly despite the heat crawling into my cheeks as his thumb brushes lightly across my jaw..j

"You’re beautiful," he murmurs.

The sincerity in his voice catches me off guard for a second. Then his gaze drops briefly to my lips again.

Oh no.

I immediately place a hand against his chest before this can go further.

"Absolutely not."

A look of deep offense crosses his face.

"Cruel woman."

"You need rest....plenty of it thoo."

"I can multitask.

"You can barely even stand."

"That sounds judgmental."

I laugh before leaning down and pressing one quick kiss against his forehead.

"Behave and I’ll decide if I’ll ride you." I warn him softly.

He sighs dramatically.

"For now"

———

The room settles into silence again after my words...no more sad story tonight.

For the first time since the attack, I see something ease in Zane’s face. The grief is still ther and the sadness pain too. But the sharpness in his eyes softens slightly as he studies me lying beside him.

"You sure about that?" he asks quietly.

I nod.

"If I think too hard right now, I’m going to lose my mind."

His hand slides gently over my waist beneath my shirt.

"You won’t."

"You sound very confident for someone who almost died two days ag.

A tired smirk touches his lips.

"I’m talented."

I snort softly.

"You’re ridiculous."

"And yet here you are....madly in love with me."

His voice lowers slightly when he says it.The look in his eyes makes warmth spread slowly through my chest. I shift closer carefully, mindful of his injuries. Even now I’m terrified of hurting him accidentally. Every little wince he makes sends panic rushing through me before I can stop it.

Zane notices me hesitating.

"You keep looking at me like I’m made of glass," he murmurs.

"That’s because you literally have stitches holding you together."

"I’ve survived worse."

"Not helping."

His fingers curl lightly beneath my chin, tilting my face toward his.

"I’m here."

I swallow thickly and look away before my emotions betray me again.

"No crying," I mutter to myself.

A quiet laugh leaves him.

"Talking to yourself now?"

"Trying to."

His thumb brushes beneath my eye gently.

"You’ve cried enough for a lifetime these past few days."

The tenderness in his voice almost undoes me anyway so I distract myself quickly by glaring at him instead.

"You scared me."

"I noticed."

"You got shot and still tried acting tough."

"I was tough."

"You almost passed out in the hallway."

"That’s called dramatic effect."

I stare at him for a long second before laughing despite myself...a real laugh this time.

The sound seems to affect him too because his expression changes slightly.

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