Page 67 of Ruin

The hiss of her pod finally opening had him jolting and spinning around.

He started to lunge toward her, but held back at the last second. Instead, he stood rigidly, not blinking, not even sure he was breathing.

Her lashes fluttered open, revealing those beautiful, pale green eyes.

Fuck, but this was torturous. More so than any battle or near-death situation he’d been in.

“Ruin?” she called hoarsely, scanning the room for him.

The breath exploded out of him as he darted forward.

“I’m here,” he rasped. “I’m right here, my love.”

She focused on him, then reached for his hand, gripping it tightly. “I remember.”

Chapter 22

Ruin moved to the side so Lira could walk past him. “These are our- my rooms.”

They were a relatively small crew of thirty and the ship had modular capabilities, allowing each of them to have decently sized quarters customized for their species.

His weren’t huge, but they were plenty for him. He had a front room with a food prep area, and a sleeping room with an attached cleansing room.

She stepped inside slowly, gaze flitting over the sparse furnishings. For the first time, he really noticed the lack of personal touches and decorations. Others had customized wall colors, added creature comforts, and personalized their quarters.

Looking around his, he grimaced. Everything was utilitarian and a dull grey.

Maybe she’d appreciate the ability to decorate it to her liking? And if she wanted more room, he could put in a request with Whisper. The male was reasonable when it came to matters ofcrew comfort, even if he was a bit of a hardass about everything else.

Of course, that was assuming she wanted to stay here at all.

He had no idea what she was thinking. She hadn’t said much since waking up, and it was giving him wicked fucking anxiety.

Gods, but he wanted to lock her in his quarters so she could never escape and leave him. But that was a bad idea. Right?

He tilted his head consideringly. Beep was still in the medbay, getting its casing repaired. For the moment, it was just him and Lira. No one would know, not right away, at least.

He shook the thought away.

No, no. Definitely a bad idea. She had to choose to stay of her own volition. And if she didn't…

Then he'd follow her.

Yes. He'd stalk her for as long as it took to convince her she loved him as much as he loved her. He was a mercenary, after all. A villain. They weren't exactly known for playing by the rules.

Feeling a little better with a plan in place, he watched her explore his rooms.

She stopped in front of aSokovesiansinging stone he’d been given by a Na’vah child after saving their life.

“I sold myself into slavery,” she whispered.

Ruin's thoughts ground to a halt.

“My mother and I lived in the slums onProtus Station.”

He couldn’t quite hold back a wince. Protus was an ugly place, rampant with poverty and crime. Despite not being in the Outer Rims, it would’ve been right at home there. Hells, he could think of a dozen places in the Outer Rims that were significantly nicer and safer.

“It wasn’t an easy life, but we got by, and we had each other. And then she got sick. We tried scraping up enough to pay for treatments, but she got worse so quickly. So… I sold myself. I backdated the start time and used the money to pay for her care.” She huffed a laugh that sounded more like a sob. “I lied and told her I found some antique tech, repaired it, and sold it to some Rodians. I’ve always been good at fixing things, so she didn’t ever question it.”

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