Page 98 of Ruin
“Your father will be so disgusted when he finds out whoyou’re in bed with now,” Joseph says, glaring up at me with his lip curled into a smirk.
“Oh, darling… Have you learned nothing?” I ask, placing a hand on Sebastian’s shoulder when he tenses. I lean forward, my own smirk firmly in place. “I don’t give a shit what that man, or you, think of me.”
A snarl slips from his lips. “Whore,” he spits, and I tighten my hold on Sebastian’s shoulder, knowing he’s seconds from exploding.
“Yes I am. And you know what?” I lean closer. “I fucking love it.”
His eyes flare as I fix him with an icy smile and walk out of the room. I don’t wait for the men to join me, instead making a beeline straight for his timid little assistant, who cowers behind the desk.
“Do yourself a favour honey, and find a new boss. That one is dangerous and you don’t want to get mixed up with him.” She stares up at me with wide eyes before eventually nodding.
Knowing there’s nothing more I can do, I nod and walk out to the car where Peter is waiting. I cannot wait to get out of here and never see this place or the man inside ever again.
Daniel and Sebastian eventually appear, followed by Gerald, who heads for his car after shaking both their hands.
Daniel opens the front door and climbs into the passenger seat while Sebastian joins me in the back.
“That was beautiful. That’s the Lily I grew up with!” Daniel grins at me over his shoulder as Sebastian squeezes my hand.
I smile, just barely holding onto my emotions.
Sebastian notices the way my lip wobbles and slides closer, wrapping his arms around me.
“It’s okay,” he murmurs into my hair, and I suck in a breath before burying my face into his neck.
I don’t fall apart though. I just need a minute to composemyself and wrap my head around everything that just happened.
“Can we go home now?” I ask after a moment.
Sebastian chuckles, rubbing his hand up and down my back. “Yeah, let’s go back to the club.”
“No. Back to Brisbane. I know we were going to stay here again tonight, but… I just want to go home.”
He pulls back to study my face before exchanging a look with Daniel, who nods.
“Yeah, we’ll get on the next available flight.”
I give him a watery smile. “Thank you.”
“Anything for you, Lily.”
It’s late when we land in Brisbane, and I’m exhausted by the time we get back to Dark Desires. It’s been a long, draining day, and I just want to collapse into bed.
After a hot shower, I come out of the bathroom to find Sebastian sitting on the couch in his sweatpants, his hair damp from his own shower.
“Hey, I thought you’d have crashed by now,” I say, towel drying my hair as I stand in the open doorway.
He gets to his feet and stands in front of me, running his hands up and down my biceps.
“Come to bed?” he asks, and I look up at him with wide eyes.
“Is this what we do now?” I ask.
He lets out a breath as he cups my cheek. “Only if you want to.”
I swallow, searching his face. “I want to be with you. That’s all I’ve ever wanted. But I don’t want you to feel like you have to do things like sleep in the same bed as me, or do couply-stuff.”
He smiles gently, stroking my cheek with his thumb. “I’ve never wanted that with anyone, Lily. Except you. And I’m done lying to myself and everyone else about that. I love you.” He looks like the words have taken a lot out of him to admit, and I smile softly. “Yes, our relationship will probably be different to most conventional ones, but you’re the one I want to fall asleep next to each night. Regardless of who we both might have fucked that day.”
