Page 131 of Feral King

“I love you, too.”

I watch the tension leave his face, as if he’s finally letting go of something that’s been tightly coiled inside of him for so long.

“I’ve loved you since the orphanage and the cemetery, and every day since. I just didn’t know how to say it. Or maybe I did, but I was scared.”

He says nothing. He gets up and walks around the bed, leans down, and kisses me gently.

“Oh, for fucks sake.”

We jolt apart.

Misha’s eyes are open but barely. His voice is just above a whisper.

“Misha!” I spring out of my seat, nearly falling backward over the chair.

“You know, if I’m going to die, I’d at least like to do it not being slobbered on in a hospital bed by you two.”

“You’re not dying,” Julian says.

“I could be. I’m very injured.” He coughs, then winces.

“Youweredying,” Julian corrects. “But you’re going to be fine.”

“Finally, some good news,” Misha says. Then he turns to me. “You good? And the baby…?”

“We’re both good. The baby is healthy.”

Relief washes over his face, and he nods, satisfied.

“Listen,” he says. “I’m so?—”

I cut him off. “Misha, if you eventhinkabout apologizing for what happened?—”

“I was driving,” he says. “I should’ve gotten you away from those pricks.”

“You took a bullet for me,” I say. “You almost died. There’s not a chance in hell I’m going to let you think that you screwed up somehow.”

Julian reaches forward and places his hand on Misha’s shoulder.

“When you recover, you and I are going to have a serious conversation about a vacation.”

Misha opens his mouth to speak, but Julian cuts him off. “No arguing,” Julian says. “It’s not up for discussion.”

Misha closes his mouth and nods, accepting the order.

“Listen,” he says, “If I pass out again and you haven’t proposed to her by the time I wake back up, I’m going to haul my sorry ass out of this bed and do it for you.”

Just then, Ethan steps into the room. His shoulder is back in a sling, and he looks exhausted. But he’s walking solidly. “Make an honest woman out of her, Julian, and get all this sugary nonsense out of Misha’s recovery room.”

He looks at Misha. “It will be a while before you’re back up to fighting status. I’ll take care of your light work.” He playfully punches at Julian with his good arm and gives me a wink.

"Sounds like you're just jealous because you haven't found your own true love yet," Julian quips. “How are you feeling, brother?”

“Like I got shot three times with Kevlar on,” he says with a grin. Then, “I’ve found her. I just can't have her."

Julian and I look at each other, then he smiles. Big and genuine.

"You're wrong about that," he says. He pulls out his phone, types a quick message, and sets it on the bedside table. "Give it about thirty seconds."