Page 220 of Blood and Ruin: The Complete Series

I blink back tears that are threatening to spill.

“Thank you. For not giving up on me and coming after me.”

“You don’t need to thank us for that, or anything else, Princess. You’re ours, and we’ll always come for you, no matter what.” Axel narrows his eyes on me. “No more running unless it’s from Jax. Then I’ll fucking help you get away from him.” He finishes with a smile as Jax’s eyes bug out.

“She’ll be runningtome to get away fromyourstubborn ass.” Jax looks at me. “And I’ll be waiting with open arms. We’ll head off into the sunset and hide from all of these idiots.”

Luka elbows him in the chest. Jax sighs. “Fine… and Luka.”

Luka nods his head like he approves, while the rest of the guys just shake their heads.

“I can’t believe I’m finally here.” I feel a large smile spread across my face, and any lingering tension in the room disappears along with it.

Jax jumps on the bed beside me. “It’s real. I can always prove it… again. This time with a little more—”

Luka slaps the back of his head, giving him a frown. “Knock it off. She needs to rest.”

Jax rolls his eyes, kissing me on the cheek while whispering into my ear, “Later.”

Axel pulls him off the bed, standing in his place. “You’re here. You’re safe, and we’re never letting you out of our sight again.”

A laugh escapes my lips, thinking they're joking; but with one look around the room, I can see each one of them is dead serious.

I narrow my eyes on them all. “I realize the past couple of weeks were hell…”

“You can say that again,” Jax mumbles, dragging a hand down his face, the exhaustion written all over it.

“But I’m also not some fragile doll you can keep locked up and away from anything that might be dangerous.”

I have plans. I meant it when I promised myself that I will never run from King again. He is going to pay for what he did to me and my family and all the years he’s taken from me.

Axel leans in, mad as hell. “Watch me—”

Kai gives him a sharp look, cutting off his threat. “We’re not suggesting that. We want you to live and enjoy everything this world has to offer, but we’re not losing you again. If you need to go somewhere, know that one of us will be there with you. If you want to go out, it won’t be alone.” The others nod, backing him up.

I sigh, giving them a small smile. Maybe now wasn’t the best time to bring up my plans for revenge.

“I get it, okay. I’m not going anywhere, so drop the alpha act. But you all know I’m not some fragile little thing that needs to be handled with care.” Going through the last few years has proven that. “I like my independence and have fought like hell to get it—”

Axel opens his mouth to start again, but I narrow my eyes on him.

“But… I also realize what you all have gone through and what the last couple of weeks must have been like, so let’s move on and figure it out as we go.”

Axel clenches his jaw, not liking my reply, but he can’t expect me to stay by their sides every second of every day. I understand where they were coming from. If our roles were reversed, I wouldn’t want them out of my sight right now, but down the line, they’d also want their own time.

“We don’t think of you as fragile. We justcan’tlose you, not again.” Jax’s voice breaks, as if pleading with me.

“Jax…”

Before I get a chance to reply, Axel moves closer. “Don’t make us choose, because if we do, your ass is getting tied to the bed until you see fucking reason.” He leans in, lowering his voice, making me lose my train of thought at his enticing scent. “I’ll make every delicious minute worth it, though.” Axel's eyes darken, a smirk growing the longer I stay silent. His eyes dart to my lips as I wet them, remembering Jax’s hands and fingers as they…

Rion clears his throat, shaking me from my heated thoughts.

I drop the previous conversation for now, knowing neither of us would get anywhere. “How did I get here?” The last thing I remember was the strange werewolf creatures and the guards attacking us.

“We found your location, but I think you had already saved yourself.” Luka smirks, looking proud.

“How? How did you find me?” I ask them as Luka takes my hand in his, running his thumb along it.

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