Page 103 of Destroy (Deadly Hearts 2)

ChapterForty-Six

CILLIAN

The mood is quiet on the way into Manchester from Ruby’s house. I have never been over here before, so it should be all new and exciting. Instead, it’s all new and terrifying. It’s been a very long time since I felt fear for another person, but Ruby brings that out in me. She is crazy. The hot kind of crazy though. She dives in headfirst to get her hands bloody and won’t let anyone sideline her for anything. I admire it, but it scares the living daylights out me. If she got hurt, or worse, I don’t think I could cope. It kills me knowing she was hurt before I knew her, now…I just don’t think I’m as strong as the other men when it comes to stuff like this. I love with my whole heart, and while I’m not saying they don’t, it actually, fully, truly consumes me. She aches, I ache. She’s happy, I’m happy, that kind of thing.

“It will be fine,” she reassures me, from the seat in front of me in the minibus.

“That’s supposed to be my line,” I remark, meeting her gaze.

“You looked like you needed it,” she says with a smirk.

“Please don’t do anything reckless,” I blurt out. “Stick to the plan.”

She blinks. “I will,” she says after a beat.

I narrow my eyes at her. “Stick to the plan or do something reckless?” I ask, knowing her wily ways by now.

She laughs loudly, drawing the attention of everyone else.

“You’re learning,” Declan says.

I return his smile, but it’s stiff, just like his. We haven’t seen Connor for a while. All of my dealings with him have been through higher-ups than me, and that’s the way I liked it. Seeing his face, our da’s face, looking back at me is just too much to deal with.

I grip the handle of the black knife that is sticking out of the top of my boot. I retrieved and cleaned it after Ruby was done enjoying it and it’s now burning a hole in my boot waiting to be used to gut Connor like it did with his brother.

“I won’t be reckless,” Ruby says, bringing my attention back to her. “I think I learned my lesson earlier.” She shivers and murmurs, “Brrrr.”

Layton snorts with amusement. “Sure you did, sweetheart. But I’m going to warn you now, seeing as it has come up. If you stick one toe out of line tonight, I will smack your arse so hard, you will feel it for a week. Are we clear?”

“Ooh, promises, promises,” she says with a sassy wink, but then goes serious. “Yeah. We’re clear.” She gives him a mock salute, which makes him roll his eyes at her. She always has to have the last word, even if she doesn’t speak it out loud. She is the boss. There are no two ways about it.

She is exquisite and fierce. She is dressed head to toe in fighting gear, her knives strapped to her thighs, the gun Declan took from her, also stowed safely. Her gorgeous dark hair is tied up in a tight bun on top of her head. I have the sudden need to pull the pins out and watch it cascade down around her shoulders before I wrap it around my fists and kiss her so hard, I will bruise our lips.

I rise, crouching under the low ceiling of the minibus and grab the back of her neck. Smashing my lips to hers, I thrust my tongue into her mouth and devour her to her surprise. After a second, she returns it, clinging to me, her hands fisting tightly in my shirt. I suck her bottom lip and nip it gently before I let her go.

“You dare get hurt, or worse,” I warn her, my hand around her throat. “I haven’t given you my very soul just to lose you. If you step even half a toe out of line, Layton’s threat will seem like a good time over what I will do to you.” I tighten my hand around her throat. Her eyes bulge, and her hands come up to me in an automatic survival mode. “Blink twice if you understand what I’m saying to you.”

She blinks once and then defiantly waits a few seconds before she blinks again.

I don’t loosen my hold on her just yet. I wait until she is really struggling for air before I let go and kiss her again. She gulps air into her mouth before she crams her tongue into my mouth confirming my worst fear.

She totally gets off on the danger.

She thrives on it.

She will stop at nothing to see this through to the end or die trying.

I know I have no choice but to let her.

She is panting and breathless when I pull back and sit back down to stare out of the window into the darkness.

I can feel her gaze on me before she turns her head to face the front again. I turn my head slightly to stare at her snuggling up to Declan to seek comfort from him, or just to be held. What they have is special and something that I don’t want to get in the middle of. We will find our own path and when we do, the life we will share will be beyond my wildest dreams. She is everything and if anyone lays a finger on her, I will chop their hands off to protect her.

“I love you, Ruby,” I mutter loud enough for her to hear.

She turns her head again with a serene smile. “I love you too,” she murmurs and then faces forward again.

Moments later, we pull into the car park at the back of Ruby’s club-slash-illegal casino, and I turn my attention to the mission at hand. We cannot fuck this up in any way whatsoever.

“Okay, it’s time to get this show on the road,” Ruby says, climbing out of the vehicle. “Ramsey, you’re first in the back. Layton and David through the actual back door to the top of the stairs. Once I get to my office, and I’ve let The Banker know I’m finally here, give us three minutes and then set about clearing the building of all bystanders, innocent or otherwise. We cannot let anyone know what we are up to or what we are doing. Every single person not involved in this needs to be outside, that means bathroom checks, David. Got it?”

“Yep,” he says, and then we are a go.

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