Chapter 175 - Nik

His warm hand on the base of my neck should have felt stifling. Instead, I felt a curious sense of belonging. I wasn't going to tell him that. The contrary man would probably remove it. So I would enjoy it while it lasted.

Headed back to the rooming section of the mountain facility, I let my eyes take in everything around me. It really did remind me of a seaside town on the sparkling edges of the Mediterranean sea. Soft-looking stone in blinding whites and beiges. Crisp blues and greens that had been painted or glazed to create visual interest and the appearance of the outside world. It was truly a wonder.

"How the heck did you guys build this inside a mountain?" I looked up at the man who was taking me to the gates of Valhalla with the promises of coffee.

He smiled, his white teeth bright in his burnished face. "According to family legend, the original Amatucci came here in the mid-1880s with the original familial migration. They bought land here in Upstate New York. Since the