Page 6 of Once A Crime Lord

“I live for you,” he said.

Her heart thudded against her rib cage. “I know. You’re risking your life for me.”

“Since my life means nothing without you, it’s not a hardship.” His eyes bored into hers. “What do you want, Lyla?”

“I want to feel safe.” It was the one thing he couldn’t give her, not until Sadist was dead. It was the reason she couldn’t sleep. When she slept, she had nightmares of the knife-wielding psycho. Her paranoia even leaked into her waking hours. A slamming door or tone of voice could send her into the past where she drowned in bloody memories.

“I’m going to get him,” he said.

If there was one man who would find the fucker who haunted her nightmares, it was Gavin. “I know.”

“I’m going to bring his head to you on a platter,” he vowed.

She grinned. “Is that your idea of romance?”

When he grimaced, she laughed and wrapped herself around him.

“Anyone can give me romance, but no one can give me what you do.”

The monster inside him that made him the most feared man in the underworld watched her with starving eyes.

“And what’s that?”

“Real love.”

He stopped moving.

“Any man handing out roses on the street can charm a woman. Any man can plan an elaborate proposal with jet planes spelling out the big question, but no one can promise to love you forever. No one can promise that they won’t get divorced or be there for each other through thick and thin.” She gave him a mock glare. “Do you promise to love me forever?”

“Yes.”

No hesitation. Her heart warmed. She smiled as she clasped his face.

“What about a divorce?”

“Fuck no.”

“You promise never to leave me?”

He leaned down and said against her lips, “Once this is over, you won’t be able to get rid of me.”

She didn’t have to ask the last question because they had been through more than most couples went through in several lifetimes.

He made love to her with a gentleness that brought tears to her eyes. He adored her. It was in every touch, every look. He teased her until she clawed his back and cursed at him. He brought her to an orgasm so good that she cried. She held him tight, absorbing the fact he was strong, warm, and alive. Sending him back into the underworld made her sick with worry, but they had no other choice.

“I love you,” he whispered.

She smiled with her eyes closed. Maybe Gavin wasn’t what most people would call romantic, but he was her type of romantic, and that’s all that mattered.

He shifted to get out of bed, and she clung to him, not wanting to end this moment.

“Not yet. Ten more minutes,” she mumbled sleepily. She couldn’t remember the last time she slept through the night. If he just lay with her for an hour...

“I’m not leaving.”

One eye opened. “You aren’t?”

“You think I can leave you now that I had you again?”

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