Page 110 of Swerve (Boosted Hearts 1)

I couldn’t read his expression.

There was so much going on behind his eyes, so damn much. I had no idea what he was about to say, and it wasn’t a stretch to assume it wasn’t going to be good. But right then, I was finding it hard to feel much of anything except relief. He was okay.

“Ruby . . .” He shook his head. “Fuck.”

I braced.

A rough breath shook past his lips. “You were amazing tonight,” he said, voice husky. “You scared the ever-loving shit out of me, but Jesus . . . baby, you were amazing.”

I sat there, stunned. That I had not expected. Not at all. “What?” I whispered.

He lowered to his knees in front of me, his large, rough-skinned hands taking mine. “Don’t get me wrong, I hated it, every fucking minute, but I’m so damn proud of you.” He leaned in and kissed my knuckles. “I held on too tight, I know that. I knew it when I was doing it, but I didn’t know how to stop. I’ve always known you were capable, that you could do this job, but the thought of losing you, of anything happening to you . . . it was . . . is, too much to bare. I love you, Ruby, I can’t live without you, which means I have to let you be you.” He lifted his head, eyes locking with mine. “To get out of your way and let you do what you need to make you happy.”

Oh God. My chest hurt. “You’re letting me go,” I rasped, pain so excruciating it stole my breath, slicing through me.

He jolted, shaking his head. “Fuck no. Never again.”

I twined my fingers with his, gripping tight. “Okay. But what happens now?”

“Are you willing to come to a compromise?” He searched my face and I could see he was holding his breath.

I could feel his fingers trembling around mine. “Yes.”

His thumb slid over my palm. “I want you to keep sparring with Zeke, or me. You keep training.”

“Of course.”

“And you quit your job with Harry . . . and work with us, with the people we both know and trust. We ease you in, we take things slow.”

“Neco . . .”

“Not because I don’t trust you, not because I think you need me to protect you, or you can’t do it, but because I need that, baby. I need to ease into this, even if that’s just knowing that you’re working with men I can trust. Will you give me that?”

“I can give you that,” I whispered, pressing my forehead to his, blinking rapidly. “I love you, you know that? So much, sometimes I think I was born loving you.”

He slid his fingers onto my hair, the other curling around the side of my throat. “We were born to love each other.”

“You’re my whole world, my boy across the street with the beautiful green eyes, so fierce and protective. You saved me,” I said. “And I will always need you in a million different ways, no matter where I am and what I’m doing. You looked after me, cared for me, loved me when no one else did. Now I’m going to take care of you, too.”

He groaned, the sound tortured, filled with emotion. “We’ll take care of each other.”

Then he lifted me and walked to his bedroom. Lowering me to the bed, he came down on top of me, the weight of his body covering me. I wrapped my arms around his neck, staring up into his eyes.

“I love you,” he said.

“I love you, too.”

Then he closed the space between us and kissed me, unhurried and deep and filled with everything we were both feeling. Our hands roamed, caressed, slowly undressing each other. Finally, we were skin to skin, nothing separating us, and I wrapped my legs around his waist. He cupped my face, holding my gaze and slid inside me. I arched against the mattress, crying out his name, and he started moving, the pace slow, each thrust so damn deep.

“I missed you,” he said against my lips. “Promise you won’t ever leave me again.”

“Never,” I said. “This is where I belong, in your arms.”

His expression grew fierce. “Mine.”

“Mine,” I whispered back.

Then he took us over the edge to blissful oblivion. A place only he could take me. A place I would never leave, that I would fight for until my last breath.