Ruby

I stared at the bullet hole in the opposite wall.

Jesus Christ.

David had missed Valery by mere inches. Her shot, however, had found a target. I gaped down at David in stunned silence. He lay on his side, one of his arms at an odd angle, his legs splayed out in front of him. There was also a hole in the center of his chest, hemorrhaging blood.

She’d killed him.

I spun to Neco to make sure he was all right. His eyes were wild and full of rage. My stepmother still stood behind him. She looked stunned herself, but then I watched her shake it off, eyes sliding from her now dead lover, back to me.

I’d recently seen two dead bodies, but I’d never seen anyone shot and killed in front of me before. It was as awful as you’d imagine.

“You have to know you won’t get away with this,” I said, gaping at her.

She shrugged. “I already got away with it twice.”

Shit. “Scott and Jimmy?”

The gun in her hand was still extended, aimed at me now. Neco hadn’t taken his eyes off it, nostrils flaring with each breath.

“I had help with Scott . . .” She glanced at David’s dead body. “I wanted him to suffer a little first, for betraying me. For choosing you over me.”

That explained Scott’s broken legs. Jesus.

She waved the gun around when she started talking. “Scott’s father was a good-looking man, my type. You remember, Ruby? Your type, too. You made damn sure they took notice of you. You were a little slut, even back then.”

My belly rolled. She’d been jealous of an innocent child, had been jealous of the attention some of her disgusting boyfriends turned my way. She was warped, sick, a twisted, ugly human being. “You should have protected me. I was just a child.”

“You were an attention-seeking little whore.” She sneered. “This time it was only me, you were gone, and for once, I had all the attention. I met Scott and we had a connection. When his dad walked out, Scott stayed. He was all mine. But we had expenses; we needed cash. We owed a few people money and had no means to pay. Scott knew about the site, and I offered you up as our first recruit. All he had to do was chase off your roommate and take her place.”

“But that wasn’t enough, was it?”

She shrugged. “What can I say, I was offered a lot of money for you.”

“So that’s why I’m here?”

She snorted. “What did you think this is? A happy reunion?”

“Why did you kill Scott?” I asked, still trying to buy time.

“The night he attacked you, he was supposed to bring you in, the buyer was all set, but at the last minute, he decided he couldn’t do it.” Her expression turned bitter. “He’d developed feelings for you and decided to save you by running away with you instead. When you didn’t cooperate, he tried to force you. You turned his head, like the slut you are. You spent too much time with this piece of shit.” She shoved Neco’s head. “And his whore mother.”

I hated the woman in front of me in a way that went far beyond that word. “Celeste was more of a mother to me than you ever were.”

Her eyes narrowed, but she carried on, like I hadn’t even spoken. “Then Scott started hacking into my email and phone accounts and found out we were still negotiating with Edwards. He tried to stop me, warn you, but I got to him first.”

Neco, who had been sitting quietly through all this, moved suddenly. His hand shot out, grabbing for Valery, knocking her back. She collided with the wall, hard. Neco’s ankles were still tied to the chair and he only had one hand free, but Valery rolled out of the way before he could get a better hold on her.

She shot to her feet, gun aimed at me, screaming, telling me not to move, as she came at me. Grabbing my arm, she pointed the gun to my head.

Neco yanked the gag from his mouth, then held up his free hand in surrender. “Ruby was right, Valery. You won’t get away with this.” His eyes slid to mine then back to her. “There’s not even a buyer for Ruby anymore. He’s dead. Taking her is pointless.”

She stilled. “You’re lying.”

“I put the bullet in his brain myself.”

“I don’t believe you,” she screamed.

I checked out the windows. Nothing. It felt like we’d been in this living room for hours, but it could only have been minutes. I knew the guys were out there somewhere, or at least I hoped they were.

“We’re going to leave now,” Valery said. She was freaking out, sweating and shaking. “And I’m going to make sure you don’t follow.”

I knew exactly what she planned to do. “No,” I whispered. “Stop this now, before you make things worse for yourself. Put the gun down and walk away. I won’t try and stop you. Neither will you, right, Neco?”

He nodded. “Put it down, Valery.” His eyes slid back to mine, and I knew what he was telling me.

We both knew she wasn’t going to put down the gun. It was up to me.

She shook her head, crazy-eyed and desperate. “I can’t do that.” Then she aimed for Neco.

She was going to shoot.

My training kicked in, all the things Zeke had taught me. I lunged, latching onto her wrist, and shoved the gun toward the ceiling as she squeezed the trigger. She fired two rounds into the plaster, dust raining down on us. Spinning, I jerked her back, twisting her arm until she hit the wall and the gun fell from her fingers. Then, jamming her arm up her back, I kicked her legs out from under her and took her to the ground, going down with her and pressing my knee into her back. She screamed and spat and cursed, but I ignored her, holding her down.

Neco quickly freed himself and strode over, using some of the rope they’d tied him with to secure her arms behind her back, then he dragged me to my feet and, cupping my head in his big hand, shoved my face against his throat.

I jerked back and grabbed his arm. “You’re bleeding.”

“It’s just a graze.”

The door flew open and Van followed by Hunter barreled through the front door, Jude shouldering open the back. They took in the scene then looked at us.

“Well, shit,” Jude said, then pulled out his phone, and a second later was talking to the police.

Neco and I didn’t talk much after that, just held each other until the police arrived. Valery was towed away soon after, for once quiet and subdued.

We all gave our statements, then Neco took my hand, and I walked out of that house for the last time.

* * *

Neco’s hand was still wrapped around mine as he led me into his apartment, then over to the couch. He gently sat me down then paced away, hands running over his head. Then he paced back, stopping in front of me.

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.

I woke several hours later, wrapped tight in Neco’s arms. He was behind me, chin resting on my shoulder.

“Hey,” he said softly.

“Hey.”

His hand left my hip and he reached back for something. The sound of Usher singing our song filled the room a second later, and my heart tightened.

“You know what this song means to me?” he said.

I shook my head.

“I remember watching you walk away, that night, after letting you go. How much it fucking killed me. You were my girl, had always been my girl. I’d always believed that one day, we’d be together. That when you were old enough, we’d take what we had to the next level. Then you came to me, in your pretty birthday dress, hope in your eyes, shit, written all over your beautiful face, and I knew in that moment that I couldn’t have you. That I had to let you go, that I couldn’t let the shit I was doing touch you.” I felt him suck in a breath. “And then it did anyway. That night, I lost the promise of you, of us. You became the girl I once knew. The girl I couldn’t have no matter how fucking badly I wanted you.”

I turned in his arms, tears running down my face. “Neco . . .”

“I promise I won’t hold you down, hold too tight. I can’t promise I won’t worry and act like a jackass at times, but I know how lucky I am. That whatever higher power brought us together, brought you back to me.” He kissed me gently. “You’re my girl and you’ll always be my girl.”

I sniffed, trying and failing to rein in the emotions overwhelming me.

His grin was soft and gentle as he swiped his thumbs over my cheeks, then leaned in to kiss my damp skin. “Don’t cry, baby. You know how much I hate to see you cry.”

“This time they’re happy tears,” I whispered.

“Fuck. I love you.”

“I love you more.”

“Not possible.”

I let the joy wash over me and smiled up at him. “You know, I’m okay with being held down occasionally.”

Heat radiated from his beautiful eyes. “Yeah?”

“Mmm hmm.”

He carefully lifted my arms above my head and curled his fingers around my wrists. “How about now?”

I nodded and his mouth came down on mine, kissing me hard and deep.

Then he made love to me, holding me down, holding me tight.