Chapter 35: In Transit

Chapter 35: Chapter 35: In Transit

Nero did not put Sebastian down once.

Not when they crossed the secured corridor from the imperial wing, not when palace security opened the private vehicle entrance, and not even when the armored car waiting beneath the covered portico had to be rearranged because nobody had apparently planned for the Crown Prince of Saha to enter while carrying a six-foot-nine dominant alpha like an injured bride.

Sebastian noticed all of it.

He simply lacked the energy to object properly.

That was different from acceptance, and he intended to make Nero understand the distinction later, preferably when he could stand without his knees threatening mutiny.

For now, Sebastian remained against Nero’s chest with one arm loosely around the prince’s shoulders, mostly because allowing it to fall would require effort he had no intention of spending. His face stayed near Nero’s neck, where the warm summer scent of the enigma’s pheromones remained strongest and where breathing did not hurt quite as much.

He would also deny that later.

The car door closed behind them with a heavy hydraulic seal.

Nero sat without releasing him.

Sebastian opened one eye.

"There is an entire seat."

"I can see it."

"You’re not using it."

"I am."

Sebastian looked down at where he was still half across Nero’s lap.

"This is not what seats are for."

Nero adjusted one arm beneath his legs when the motorcade started moving.

"It is now."

Sebastian considered arguing.

Then the vehicle took a turn, and Nero’s hold automatically tightened around him before his body could shift even an inch.

Sebastian closed his eye again.

Fine.

He would remember all of this when revenge became medically advisable.

Outside, the imperial palace disappeared behind armored vehicles and flashing security escorts as the motorcade moved through Roslew under priority clearance. Palatine police had already closed intersections along the route to the military airfield, and the convoy passed through the capital with enough official spectacle to make pretending this was private impossible.

Sebastian’s phone had been confiscated by Melanie before departure from the council corridor.

She had claimed it was because he was in no condition to deal with the press.

Sebastian suspected Trevor had ordered it.

Nero’s phone, unfortunately, remained operational.

It had vibrated six times since they entered the car.

"You’re famous again," Sebastian murmured.

"I was famous before you."

"Tragic."

Nero glanced down at him. "Our engagement announcement is being prepared."

Sebastian’s eyes opened.

"That quickly?"

"You said before we landed."

"I was bleeding heavily when I said that."

"You were still legally competent."

Sebastian stared.

Nero smiled faintly.

There it was.

The expression Trevor had specifically asked Dax to prevent.

Sebastian let his head fall back against Nero’s shoulder.

"I’m going to regret surviving."

"No, you’re going to regret giving me administrative permission."

"That too."

The motorcade reached the airfield less than twenty minutes later.

Sebastian expected one of Saha’s royal aircraft.

He should have expected excess instead.

Nero’s private jet waited beyond the security line beneath the pale afternoon sky, enormous enough that calling it a jet felt insufficient. Its black-and-silver fuselage bore the Sahan royal insignia near the tail, and a covered boarding staircase had already been positioned beneath the forward entrance.

Sebastian stared through the window.

"That is ridiculous."

Nero looked outside. "What?"

"Your plane."

"It’s practical."

"It looks like a palace developed wings."

"That sounds practical."

Of course it did.

Saha had always possessed a cultural inability to distinguish elegance from overwhelming financial confidence.

Nero carried him out of the car before Sebastian could reconsider whether walking might preserve some dignity.

The airfield wind caught Nero’s long pale hair immediately, sending it across the shoulder of his black coat and over Sebastian’s arm while security moved around them in coordinated lines. Hale walked ahead toward the aircraft, already speaking with flight staff. Claude followed from another vehicle with a medical case and enough equipment to make Sebastian deeply suspicious of what awaited him at the villa.

Sebastian looked toward the stairs.

"I can walk those."

"No."

"You didn’t even consider it."

"I considered it in the car."

"And?"

"No."

Sebastian lacked the strength to produce the insult the situation deserved.

Nero climbed the stairs carrying him without the smallest sign of effort.

The interior was worse... Or better.

Sebastian was too tired to decide.

The main cabin looked less like an aircraft than a contemporary royal residence compressed into several hundred square meters. Pale stone-look flooring gave way to thick carpeting near the seating areas, dark wood and brushed metal lined the walls, and the forward salon contained broad cream sofas, low tables, a dining area, and enough concealed technology to coordinate a small war.

Farther down, a private bedroom and bathroom occupied an entire enclosed section.

Sebastian stared at it.

"Of course."

Nero looked down. "What?"

"You have a bedroom."

"It is a long-range aircraft."

"You have a marble bathroom on an aircraft."

"It is lightweight composite."

Sebastian closed his eyes.

"That makes it much less offensive."

Nero carried him directly into the bedroom and sat on the edge of the wide bed without releasing him.

Sebastian waited.

Nero did not move.

"Nero."

"Yes?"

"You can put me down now."

"I could."

Sebastian opened his eyes.

"Do it."

Nero considered him for a moment, then finally shifted Sebastian onto the mattress beside him.

The loss of contact was immediate.

Sebastian’s breathing tightened.

So did Nero’s expression.

Neither commented.

Nero simply kept one hand against Sebastian’s side until the plane began taxiing, his pheromones maintaining the same controlled warmth around him while Claude completed another examination and complained about readings that still refused to reflect anything useful.

Only after the aircraft climbed above the clouds and the seatbelt indicator switched off did Nero stand.

"We’re cleaning up."

Sebastian looked down at himself.

His suit was ruined.

Blood had dried across his shirtfront and one sleeve, and Nero looked worse because most of Sebastian’s bleeding had happened directly against him.

Sebastian sighed.

"I need a shower."

"Yes."

"Alone."

"No."

Sebastian looked up slowly.

Nero had already removed his jacket and was unfastening his cuffs, apparently treating the argument as settled before it began.

"I am capable of showering without royal supervision."

"You nearly collapsed ten minutes before boarding."

"I’m feeling better."

"Because I’m standing beside you."

"That sounds unbearably smug."

"It is also true."

Sebastian pushed himself upright.

The room tilted.

He froze.

Nero was in front of him before Sebastian could pretend otherwise, one hand catching his shoulder and the other settling at his waist.

Sebastian glared at him.

Nero raised a brow.

"Excellent demonstration."

"I stood too fast."

"You stood."

"That is generally how getting to a shower works."

Nero’s grip tightened when Sebastian attempted to move again.

"You are not showering alone."

Sebastian stared at him.

"Nero."