Page 60 of Ivory's Ruin Romance

“Okay,” he said. “You’re going to be okay.” Her head fell to his chest, and she drew her first steady breath. At least that calmed her down. He let her relax, stroking her hair down to her back and focusing on the puff of hot breath on his skin.

She felt so good. Her heart beat against his, arms wrapped around his back, and sweet face nuzzled into his neck. So much better than anything he’d felt in the past five years.

“I’ve wanted to hold you for so long,” he admitted quietly.

Her arms tightened, and he tried not to wince at the pain lingering in his left side.

“Why didn’t you?” Her question sunk into him like barbed wire, so much more painful than the cracked rib.

“Because I’m a damn fool.” He buried his face in her hair. “Because I knew once I did, I’d never be able to let go.”

“Then don’t,” she whispered. “I don’t want you to let go. Not ever.”

“I won’t,” he whispered back.

???

Anger boiled like hot lava under his skin. The next time he saw Jace, there would be no talking. No discussions, not even a chance for a snarky insult.

He was going to ground that scumbag to a pulp.

“So that’s why I thought it was my fault,” Ivory finished, blowing on her cup of steamed milk and taking a delicate sip.

Adrian set his mug on the table, resisting the urge to chase down Jace right this minute.

Before leaving the cemetery, Ivory asked who he was going to visit and then made him stop at Luke’s grave despite his insistence on getting inside. They paid their respects, and while they walked, he explained everything from the beginning. Everything about his dad, the shooting, and the dragon tile, including his fight with Jace.

Back at his apartment, she’d finished recounting the events that sent her spiraling. Color returned to her face, and now she sat snuggled on the couch against his side, warm and happy—just the way she should be. He’d held fast to his promise and hadn’t let her more than an arm’s distance away since their embrace in the graveyard.

“Do you really think he has the same ring as the shooter?” she asked after a pause. “Could it have been Jace who…”

He shook his head. “I doubt it. But there’s probably more of those rings for different family members. Besides, Jace would have been in middle school when it happened, and while I’m sure he had access to a gun, he’d have to be a real prodigy to pull it off and not get caught.”

Ivory snorted, then caught herself. “Sorry—it’s not—nothing about this is funny.” She sighed and looked away as her fingers circled the mug. “I don’t see Jace being any kind of prodigy.”

He wished he could laugh with her and take the whole thing as a cruel joke, but right now, all he wanted to do was teach the son of bitch a well-deserved lesson. Forcing himself to exhale, he rubbed at the permanent furrow in his brow. “As much as I want to storm over there and rip him into shreds, and as much as I wanted to get the bottom of my fucked up life history, I need you to know something.”

Turning to face her, he took the mug out of her hands and set it down. “None of that is worth putting your safety at risk.”

She met his eyes, the corner of her lips pulling into a frown he wished he could kiss away. “I was perfectly fine—”

“You weren’t.” He brushed a strand of hair back from her precious face. “Jace acted out of line because I provoked him, and you got hurt.” If fate hadn’t led them to each other in that graveyard, she could have ended up in a far worse situation. “I was trying to get this all taken care of before we got too involved. I didn’t want my issues to become yours, but it’s clear to me now that it’s too late.”

Her hand circled his wrist, warm and reassuring as she kept his hand pressed to her face. “So what now? I can’t ask you to abandon your search. Not when you’ve gotten so close.”

He sighed and pulled her against him, bringing his lips to her forehead. “Sweetheart, I have to stop. We both know it.”

“No.” She pulled away. “I’m not going to let you do that. You can’t give up because of me.” Her words were as sincere as her undaunted expression, the same one she wore so many moons ago when he tried to walk away from her—and failed.

Conflicting desires warred inside him. On one hand, abandoning his quest for revenge would feel worse than getting punched by Jace. But he’d take it if that would protect Ivory.

“We just have to be more cautious,” she continued, barreling ahead. “Before you say anything, I’m not making this out to be a glorified hero mission or pretending it’s a movie where the good guys are guaranteed to win. But I can’t live with the guilt of holding you back. I know there’s a risk. I know I’ll need to let you do all the work. Just pretend like I’m only here when you need me.”

He leaned into the couch and dropped his hand to her waist, playing with the hem of her shirt. “First of all, I would never treat you that way.” He switched to drawing small circles on the soft skin on her hip. “And second, if you weren’t here, I wouldn’t have had a future to look forward to. The things I’d be willing to do out of disregard for my own life aren’t something I’m proud of.”

“There has to be a middle ground,” she argued, reaching for the free hand on his lap. He let her take it, much like he’d let her take almost anything if she asked. Her fingertips tenderly traced around his nicked rings.

“We don’t have to come up with an answer tonight. Being smart means taking a step back and giving it proper thought.” He wove his fingers between hers. No more unnecessary risks.

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