Page 87 of Guarded from Danger

“And I want to wake up next to you every morning. See that adorable face you make when the alarm goes off and you’re not ready to get up yet. Have coffee with you. Look at your clothes in the closet next to mine. I want all of it.”

“Xavier.”

“And I want to know you’re safe.” My chest goes tight, and I take a quick breath before continuing. “Eventually, I’ll haveto travel for work again. And I can’t bear the thought of you—” I stop. Take another breath. “If you live here, I’ll always know you’re safe. Protected.”

Before Lucy can respond, I hurry to get out the rest. “But if you don’t want to stay here, or in San Antonio, or Texas, even, if it’s too triggering, I’ll go anywhere with you. Anywhere you want. You’re my home, sunshine. That’s where I want to be.”

“Oh, Xavier.” She bites her lip, and a moment later, her eyes fill with tears. “You would leave? Your team? Your friends?”

“In a heartbeat. I love you, Lucy.” Thumbing away a rogue tear, I kiss the damp spot it left behind. “I will do anything to make you happy. Anything.”

Soft hands frame my face. “I would never ask you to leave here. Ever.”

My heart seizes. “But you?—”

“I would love to live here with you.” Sparkling like brilliant topaz, her eyes meet mine. “Blade and Arrow feels like home more than anywhere else I’ve lived. And everything you said about living together? I feel the same. Except maybe not the inhaling hair part. Yours is too short.”

All at once, all my muscles relax. “You want to live here? Permanently?”

“Yes.” Her face lights with that wonderful Lucy-glow. “I’ve been trying to think of how to bring it up without making you feel like you had to say yes.”

I grin at her, feeling lighter than air. “Me too.”

After a moment, her smile sobers. “But Xavier. I’m not sure… I might not be ready to go back to work yet. Not out in public. Dante said I can keep helping here, and I’m starting to get back into my writing, but will that be too much? I’ll be at the apartment a lot, and if you want some space…”

“Luce. I don’t care about that. Well, I care, because it’s about you. But if you decide to write full time and just work out of the apartment, that’s more than fine with me.”

And honestly, I’m not ready for Lucy to work in public yet, either.

“Plus,” I add, “The B and A property is huge. If I wanted space, which I don’t, I can go to the gym. Or the range. Or I can go to Dante and Sarah’s place and harass them until they cook for me.”

The somber expression brightens again. “Well, if Dante and Sarah are cooking, I want some, too.”

“So it’s decided?” After a soft kiss, I meet her gaze. “You’ll live here, we’ll be deliriously happy, and we’ll both bug Dante and Sarah to cook for us?”

Lucy smiles at me, and my heart fills with joy. “It’s decided. Now, what do you think about heading into the bedroom and celebrating?”

I stand, scooping Lucy up so quickly she lets out a yip of surprise. As she clutches my neck, giggling, I race towards the bedroom.

“I think that’s an excellent idea.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

LUCY

There’s nothing to be nervous about.

Just because I haven’t been anywhere on my own for almost two months doesn’t mean there’s anything to worry about.

And anyway, I’m not on my own. I’m going to be at Kali’s apartment, which is perfectly safe, snacking on junk food and hearing all about the new guy she’s dating.

Plus, it’s been two weeks since Peter Amberson—or Piece of Garbage, as Xavier prefers to call him—was arrested, and it doesn’t look like he’ll be getting out of jail for a very long time.

Well, he’ll be transferred to a maximum security prison after his sentencing, but that’s as far as he’s going. And given the slew of charges against him, chances are good he’ll spend the rest of his life there.

No other accomplices have popped up in the meantime, and both the FBI and Blade and Arrow are confident Peter masterminded the game on his own. He hired out contractors and subcontractors on the dark web to do his dirty work, like abducting innocent victims, but without him involved, the rest of the operation fell apart.

So it’s safe for me to get back to normal life, whatever this new version of it is.

---