Page 57 of Redemption

“We have to go,” Ryder grumbled.

After she said everything she needed to, she joined him walking down the sidewalk. “Are you mad at me?”

“Not thrilled.”

“That was a rush.” She wrapped her arms around his neck as he pulled her behind the building. “Ryder. Ryder?”

“Never—” He stopped and pulled her close, kissing her as his name fell from her lips again. “Do that again. Never.”

“It worked out though.”

“Not my concern. You can’t go around saving the world if it’s you who’s put in danger.”

She leaned back, her fingers knotted behind his neck, and let her weight hang. “Why not? You love it when I do.”

She was right.Fuck it.She was always right. The looks on their faces when she handed them food… His chest compressed at that exact moment, even as he wanted to yell that they needed to go. Ryder tugged her close. “Then do it safer.”

Their stomachs touched, and he hugged her until the silliness wiped from her face.

“Who would have thought two orphan kids like us would have found each other?”

“I would.” Ryder gave her sides a squeeze, hanging on to the special girl in his life, the one he could show he wasn’t all tough guy and foster-kid fights. “I was supposed to find you that first night—”

Zoe laughed at the memory. “That was almost so bad.”

“Almost.” That night could have gone a much different way, but all he did was help her out, and it changed his life. He could see how she wanted to help people out all the time, and maybe she hoped it changed their world.

She stared up as if she’d read his mind. “Got my best mate and my boyfriend. That’s a two-for-one deal when I didn’t have anyone in the world. All because you helped me out when you didn’t have to.”

“I love you.” The sound of the city faded away as he waited to see what she would say even if he knew what she would say.

Still, he’d said those words a thousand times, positive it would come out rushed, and she’d miss it. But he’d been wrong because he’d been slow, articulate. Like every time, “I love you,” raced through his head had been a practice round.

“I love you, too.” There was her smile, plus a happiness Ryder had never seen. She glowed.Like an angel.

Calm washed over him. She was his place in the world. He might’ve been a no one to everyone, an orphan kid bounced from home to home, but when no one had ever loved him before, having one person want to remember him was like an anchor dropped, and his future came into focus.

He pulled her close and kissed her because he loved her, because she loved him, because she did good things for people when neither of them had the ability to do a lot of good. She was the best, and the best was worth kissing as long as he could.

“We have to get back.” He took her hand in his. “What do you want to do?”

She swung his arm back and forth. “Make a list of everything we’ll do when we grow up.”

“After I do my time. That’s a guaranteed job. Money. Things we need to get set up.”

“What if you love it? Being in the military?”

“Then I guess that’d make you an Army man’s wife one day.” He squeezed her hand. It wasn’t as though they hadn’t talked about the future. Together forever. Today just seemed more real.

She beamed. “Guess so.”

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Present Day

The man in the mirror stared back at Ryder and mocked him. Victoria was downstairs having breakfast, and Maddy had just hung up on him after telling him he should be having sex with her. There was no question that he agreed with Maddy. But yet, he was alone, staring at a very keyed-up man who was within an inch of his life in need of an orgasm.

Getting Victoria off wasn’t just about getting her off, though, God, if that hadn’t been insane. He could hear every gasping breath and feel every tightening muscle. He needed her to know that she could, that it wasn’t about him. Everything about that was for her because so much had been forced from her for someone else.

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