Page 46 of Destroy (Deadly Hearts 2)

I hear her shrug her shoulders. “Don’t know. We need to talk.”

“You will come back from this, Ruby,” I venture after a beat. “Stronger than ever.”

“I know.”

“I hope you do, because I believe it. I’ve always believed in you, since the day I first met you at Derek’s office. He loved you so much,” I add quietly. “He was in awe of you. He said you were a dark goddess. I didn’t get what he meant at the time, but I do now. I was so jealous of him. Working for him started to become a massive pain in the arse because all he would do is gush about you. Before he died, he knew it was coming.”

“Oh?” she croaks out.

“Yeah, he made sure that I promised to go and work for you. He said he would make sure you asked because you needed me. You needed me to bring a bit of light to your world. He knew you had a glowing future ahead of you, and he wanted me there so you would always have someone you could trust. A light in your darkness that would guide you home.”

She doesn’t say anything. I know she still gets a bit upset over Derek’s death. He was her mentor. He wanted so much more than she was prepared to give, but it didn’t stop him from making sure she was set up with the keys to his kingdom before he was taken out.

“He said all that?” she whispers.

“He did.”

“You are my light, David. You always have been, I just didn’t really see it before in all the murk.”

My heart pounds in my chest when she feels for my fingers and grips them tightly.

“Don’t ever stop being that for me. I think I would truly fall if you did.”

I shuffle over to kiss her forehead. “You don’t have to worry about that. I love you, Ruby and that will never change.”

“I mean, don’t ever lose your light. This world is…well, you know. I don’t need to spell it out for you. I’m going back to it after this. I can’t say for sure something like this will never happen again. Is it going to stop me? Fuck, no. I won’t let it beat me, or scare me into giving up everything I’ve worked for. But it chips away at your soul. I’m scared that you will become like me.”

“I can’t promise what the future brings, Rubes,” I say lightly. “But I do know that I will always be what you need me to be. Even if the light fades, it will always shine only for you.”

“Move in with me,” she blurts out.

I blink in the darkness. “What?” I ask, sure I didn’t hear that right.

“When we get back home, move into my house. I don’t mean romantically, not yet anyway, but I need to keep you close. All of you.”

“Have you asked the others yet?” I ask, hoping that I’m the first one. It’s silly, but it’s a valid reaction in my case. I don’t feel inferior to the other men, exactly, but they are all big, badasses and I’m…just me.

“Not yet. I only just thought of it. We need to stick together. I need you, all of you, close by.”

“Then consider it done,” I reply.

“Thanks,” she mutters.

“You ready to get out of this cupboard?”

“Yes,” she says and sits up.

I stand and help her up.

“Before we go out there. I’m glad that you managed to find a way to beat the fear. I’m glad Cillian was there for you. You have my blessing if you want to give it a go with him.”

I slide the door open in time to see her smile. “Thank you. I really needed to hear that from you, especially.”

“Anytime,” I reply, but then frown. “Well, no, not anytime. Last time, ’kay?”

Her smile widens and she nods. “Promise.”

With her looking a hundred times better than she did when she arrived here, holding hands, we head down the stairs, and for the first time since this happened to her, I actually feel like this won’t destroy us and we might make it through this in one piece.

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