Chapter 228

Kane's POV:

Willow is lying curled up on her side with her back to the door. All I can see is her tiny frame under the blanket, and a mop of red curls. It takes every bit of self-control I possess not to rush over and gather her in my arms.

“She hasn’t slept like this in days,” Jackson whispers. “Queen Ida…slipped a little something in her food.”

“Good.” I glare at Mario, who at least has the decency to blush and stare at his feet. “I’ll deal with you when we get home,” I growl at him, and step inside, quietly closing the door behind me.

I tiptoe around the bed and stare into Willow’s pale face, my eyes falling on a new scar on her neck. The bite Phillip had left on her was too deep, and not even Alhora’s nearly two-thousand-year-old vampire blood could heal it all the way.

I pull my boots off and as quietly as I can slide into the bed next to her. She doesn’t wake, but she doesn’t have to be awake to know I’m here. She smiles in her sleep and cuddles into me. I lift her hair away