Page 32 of Derick

The family also owned, through shell companies of course, the houses around us. A lovely family paid next to nothing to live in one, Jaxson had currently claimed another, and my parents were looking into a couple of families for another, and they’d offered one to me.

Thanks to our money though you wouldn’t know we lived in a house more secure than Alcatraz. We had the best of the best. We’d caught the two bikers, and they were now in the hands of the police.

We paid for the insane security we had, so I figured why not make them work for their paycheck. I was sick of being a victim, and I wasn’t going to hide anymore. We were always on people’s radar. The Devil’s Queens biker group was one of many. My family had a lot of companies and shell companies. We got a lot of death threats. When you had the kind of money we had and did business deals like my family had and still did, unfortunately, it comes with enemies.

Ruby’s squeal of joy had my focus returning from my thoughts to her. Our entourage was huge as we walked to the entrance of Dreamworld.

“Oh my God. Dreamworld,” Ruby yelled excitedly. She wrapped her arms around me and squeezed me tight. “Thank you. I needed some fun.” She rose on tiptoes and kissed me. The car windows were tinted so she’d had no idea where we’d come. Now that we were in front of the entry, she was abuzz with excitement.

Easing from her embrace, I took her hand and intertwined our fingers as I headed to the entry gates. “I can’t believe you’ve lived on the Gold Coast and haven’t been to the theme parks. We are going to remedy that. Today we’re having a Dreamworld date.”

“Not everyone has money to spend on things like this. It costs a lot to go to the theme parks. Toby took me to a fair once. He said that the theme parks are just like that.” She shrugged like it wasn’t a big deal, but I knew it was. “I have money saved now, but this is still going to cost me a lot.”

“Why would it cost you a lot of money?” This was a date, and there was no way my woman was paying for anything. She deserved to be spoiled, and I had the means to do it.

Ruby wasn’t getting it though. She kept thinking and acting like she was still poor. She was mine, and that meant that what was mine belonged to her too. I had to get her to understand. Icouldn’t spend the day arguing with her as she tried to pay for things. She could keep the little money she had. I didn’t need it or want it. I needed her to understand that she didn’t need to worry now either or use the money she got from the government.

“My family is very wealthy. You don’t have to ever pay for anything.” I squeezed her hand.

“Yeah, I know you’re rich. It’s why my father’s gang took you.” She tried to untangle our fingers.

“Ha, if they really knew what we were worth, they’d combust. We’re richer than we state. We have shell companies and money hidden everywhere. My family decided a long time ago we don’t all want the limelight. Some of us want to live a normal life.”

“Normal,” she huffed. “Even I, who hasn’t had much and am far from normal myself, know you are even further from normal than me.”

Rolling my eyes, I smirked at my woman, because I still didn’t think she was getting my point. “Fine, as normal as possible life. It’s bad enough now with all the attention we get. It would be worse if we were all known to be so crazy wealthy that we could buy some countries. My cousins Orion and Maddox are actors, and I have no idea how they handle the attention they get.”

“Tyson is famous with his own show too,” Ruby added as we stopped at a side entry to the park. Brand had organized for us to get in safely. “I’m shocked he’s got the time to do Hope’s—not one, but two—extravagant cakes. Oh, and doesn’t your aun?—”

Letting go of her hand. I turned her so she faced me and tilted her chin so she stared into my eyes. “Okay, I get it, but what I’m trying to get at, very badly, is that me taking you here and spending this money on you isn’t even a drop in my, our, bucket. We have a shit-ton of money. Argh, why do I sound like a jack arse? Ruby, I don’t want you to ever worry about money again.” I held my hand up as she opened her mouth.“Nobut. You are more than just my girlfriend, Ruby. You’re my woman. So what’s mine is yours. I mean it when I say you’re my soulmate. You are mine.”

I pulled her against me and claimed her mouth. Tracing her lips with my tongue, seeking entry, before her own meets mine and she melts against me.

I’d learned Ruby had rescued and saved a bunch of women from her father’s club, and she’d even helped some of her half-siblings escape. I wondered why she stayed herself. She was always looking out for others. She put everyone but herself first. I wanted Ruby to let go and have fun.

“Today is your day, Ruby. What do you want to do, see, and go on?” It was time to have fun. Ruby had been looking after others for so long, she needed to learn to let go and take care of herself, and sometimes that meant just having a day of excitement and loads of fun.

The pupils in her eyes became huge, and the color of her eyes went grey. Her mouth opened wide, and then she blinked a couple of times. I handed her my phone so she could look at the map. She stared at it for a while before she darted her gaze around us. We had four guards close, but I knew we had a bunch more scattered about. We had VIP passes, which would help us pass any lines.

“Water rapids first.” Ruby yanked on my arm and nudged me toward the ride. “I want to build up to the more…” She stopped and looked at the map. “Scary, er, adventurous rides.”

Her bottom lip went between her teeth, and she chewed on it as she gazed around in wonder. She was nervous, scared, and I thought maybe a little overwhelmed, but the sparks shining bright in her eyes and the skip in her step told me today was going to be memorable.

How the fuckdid I get so lucky? I love Ruby Decker. She was fascinating. Her courage and utter kindness for others amazed me. I thought we’d cruise through the day skipping lines, but no, Ruby made sure we waited, and she always let families go before us. Sure, we didn’t wait as long as the normal line, but I wasn’t used to waiting. I’d been doing way too much of it lately.

“I can’t wait until we can do that again. That was beyond amazing. I can barely believe how much I loved the roller coaster that went upside down and then just dropped backward. It was so thrilling. I felt so alive. It helped me feel so free. It reminded me that I am free. Do you think I’m weird?” She raised a brow as she looked at me.

Shaking my head, I leaned down and took her lips in a gentle, sensual kiss. My hands trailed up her back and she curled into me. The SUV jolted, and she eased back against the seat. “No. You’re perfect. I can’t wait until we find time to go to the other theme parks. The joy and your reactions to the rides mesmerize me. You remind me not to take my life for granted. You bring me so much sunshine.”

The pink that tinged her cheeks had my cock throbbing, eager to get home, hopeful. I had a feeling the talk we needed to have would douse my rising need though.

“You’re so sweet to me. No one has ever spoken to me like you do, and I love it.” She beamed at me, and all was right with my world. “Hope would love that. I saw they have a kid’s section and characters too. Thank you.” She brushed her lips over mine quickly. “This has been one of the best days of my life. I’ve had so much fun.” She sighed and leaned into me.

It was time to talk. It was the end of the day. I was hoping with her having such a big day that she’d be calm and wouldn’t hold back when I asked her about herself. It was a bit of a dickhead move, but I wanted all her guards down. I wanted to ask her about some things I wasn’t sure she’d enjoy talking about.

“Jaxson will come to Hope’s party if he finds out Jasmine is there.” This was an easy and safe start.

“Mmm. Sorry, what?” Ruby mumbled against me. She was sitting in the middle seat in the back of the SUV, next to me, her head rested on me.

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