Page 131 of Theirs to Ruin

"Thank you for being here for me," he murmured into my hair.

I nestled closer, letting my hand rest on his chest, feeling the rhythmic thud of his heartbeat under my palm.

I love you.

I locked the words in tight. As much as I’d fought ever feeling this way again after Ty, I was in love with a dangerousman whose darkness probably eclipsed more than I could ever imagine but whose light had still managed to revive in me something I thought I’d lost forever.

I was walking into flames, but I was also the fire. The storm.

And I loved it.

What that meant for my dealings with Dante and Ty, I didn’t know, but I was holding on to Kage as hard as I could.

Soon, a heavy blanket of exhaustion covered me. Whatever lay ahead—recriminations, complications, the potential for more loss—felt momentarily suspended as we drifted into sleep, our arms serving as mutual shields against whatever challenges were to come.

Chapter 55

Camille

The first rays of dawn cast a soft glow on Kage's sleeping face as I nestled in the curve of his arm, our legs tangled, and the steady rise and fall of his chest against mine. His face, usually so guarded, had a softness to it now. The creases of pain that had marred his features in his grief for Ava were smooth.

My heart ached with a mix of tenderness and anxiety, my contentment and courage from last night transforming with the rising sun. I’d loved Ty so much, and I'd convinced myself that I'd never feel that way again. But I loved Kage now. He held the power to destroy me, even more than Ty had.

He’d said he told his brother I was the eighth wonder of the world. What had his brother said in return? Because I couldn’t shake the memory of Kage’s distance when he came back from visiting his family. Had they filled his head with doubts? Poisoned his thoughts against me? And then there was what he’d learned about Ava’s death. The preliminary findings had suggested a heart attack, but what if the final findings said something different? Would he blame me, even subconsciously?

There were a million questions I wanted to ask him. To understand his thoughts and fears, and to reassure myself. But he needed peace and rest, and I was determined to give him that.

Suddenly, Kage smiled. “I can hear you thinking.” His eyes opened. “What’s going on inside your head?”

I smiled and lied. "Just thinking about Family Day," I murmured, tracing lazy circles on his chest. "I haven’t heard a peep from my dad about it. He missed last year, so I won't be surprised if history repeats itself."

He cupped my face, tilting it gently upwards. "Maybe he’ll surprise you," he said. "I did, didn’t I?"

"In some ways," I acknowledged, warmth permeating my voice despite the flickers of apprehension that lingered inside me. "Especially with your interest in me."

He frowned. “Why?”

I shrugged. “Let’s just say no one is going to pay me to walk a runway in Paris anytime soon.”

He brushed a thumb gently across my cheekbone, his gaze unwavering. “Then it’s their loss. You’re fucking beautiful.”

I looked away, but he cupped my chin and turned my face so I had no choice but to look at him. "Say it, Camille. Say you’re beautiful."

Resistance trembled within me, but it was gently eroded by the soft kisses he planted along my jawline, the playful nip at my earlobe, an affectionate tickle that made my sides flutter with involuntary laughter.

"Okay, okay!" The words spilled from my lips, as much a surrender as a playful protest. "I'm beautiful."

He drew back slightly, eyes searching mine, not satisfied. "And you can have any fucking guy you want."

I repeated the words. “I can have any fucking guy I want.”

Then, as quickly as the playful, teasing air had swirled around us, it vanished. He leaned in close, so that his words werea private contract between us, his gaze fierce, unyielding. "Don’t you dare forget it."

“And if I do?” I said, teasing him.

“I’ll take great pleasure in reminding you.”

He kissed me, stealing the air from my lungs. I arched into him, my fingers threading in his hair and holding him to me, my leg curling over his hip.

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