Page 48 of Ruined
The warmth of her body stung the scratches on my chest, the skin there still raw. In her rage, she’d torn several areas open, but I couldn't blame her. None of that mattered anyway, I would’velet her inflict far worse to be able to have this moment with her. The pain had been worth it because she trusted me. I could see it even now, while she slept in my arms. Her fingers had slowly uncurled from their forced grip, and her forehead smoothed over in a blank expression. Even her jaw had softened, allowing her lips to part just slightly with each breath.
This had been the goal, the entire reason I’d taken off my mask in the first place. I knew for us to make headway, I had to offer her a fragile piece of me first. In hindsight, it was the least I could do for her. There were a dozen reasons she had spiraled tonight, and most of them had something to do with me. Forcing myself to accept some of the responsibility for her, I tilted my head back and leaned against the wall behind me, careful not to jostle her. The beat from below vibrated us gently, but for the most part, the sound was hidden like always. Like us.
After warning everyone I'd be stepping away, I knew no one would come looking for me here, which meant we’d have this space for as long as we needed it. The best part was the fact she was already comfortable here. For now, everything was handled—except Knox, who was taking far too long.
Although it seemed like such a small thing, I knew the steps involved. I also knew he was taking this seriously because when I left, he promised me he would find answers. I was now waiting on that to crack this mystery wide open.
I lifted my hand and traced the curve of her cheek. Her body twitched in response to my touch, as if she still guarded in someway. Each of the layers that I planned to rip away were mine to keep safe now. I wanted to know everything. I wanted to hear her thoughts, her fears, and I wanted to take them all away.
Here in my office, nothing was going to touch us anyway.I could bet my life on it.
Settling into her with that thought, I closed my eyes. Would it be smart to rest now, with her in my arms? Just for a few minutes? If I didn’t sleep while she did, I would have to create time for rest later—that was a luxury I didn't exactly have at the moment. Figuring it was for the best, I shifted her higher on my chest and let her weight settle against me. I had just closed my eyes when vibrations erupted in my pocket.
I sucked in a sharp breath, tightening my hold on her. Looking down, I noticed Ember stir from the sound, but thankfully, she didn’t wake.
Groaning as quietly as I could, I slid a hand down the back of my jeans, fishing the phone free without moving her. The screen’s immediate glow lit the dim room around us in a pale blue.
Message from Knox
I clicked as soon as I saw it, trying to control my anxiety.
All three phones of the roommates have been cleared. There’s no sign it’s any of them. I’m running through the others who have been at her house recently. Apparently, teammates are in and out a lot. I’m handling things as fast as I can. Just keep her there with you and don’t let her out of your sight.
I read the message over and over, especially the last sentence.
That was the plan, for however long she would let me.
The text came with a rush of disappointment. He hadn’t found much to go off of, but at least it wasn’tnothing. If it wasn’t her roommates, that could help us narrow the potential list of people down by quite a bit. The fact it could be any potential number of teammates made it harder. If they were in and out, that meant a lot of access and even more opportunities for them to be in her room. My jaw flexed as I realized way too many people had access to her.
I slid the phone onto the floor beside me instead of putting it back in my pocket. One less interruption was one less risk of waking her. She shifted slightly as I did so, her nose brushing against my collarbone. A quiet, unconscious hum left her, and the sound vibrated straight into my chest. The quick jolt I felt as a result had nothing to do with the wounds on my chest and everything to do with her. Gently locking my arms around her, I cradled her head beneath my chin and tilted us up against the wall behind me.
The thought of letting myself rest pulled at the edge of my vision. The door was locked, and no one could come inside. Knox was busy, figuring out all the things I couldn't do. In every way I thought about it, taking this time to close my eyes would only benefit me in the end.
I let myself drift, just slightly, keeping my arms firm around her as sleep edged closer.
26
Ember
I woke feeling the farthest thing from panic. My eyes weren’t even open yet, and I was already calm from being wrapped in the smell of him. For a moment, I stayed still, listening to the beat of his heart. Both of his arms were looped around me, like he’d fallen asleep making sure I was comfortable and that I wouldn’t disappear. His head was tipped back slightly, his dark hair pushed to one side. With the black mess falling into his eyes, he looked almost childish. Next to me, at this moment, he didn’t look like the dangerous man I’d made him out to be.He just looked exhausted.
Lifting my neck slightly to look up at him, I let my gaze drift across his skin. The tattoos that covered him in different places were truly beautiful. The inked lace curled in the same directions as his muscles. I hadn’t noticed exactly how much ink there had been before, but then again, I hadn’t exactlyletmyself look either.
As carefully as I could, I moved my hand from his chest, down to his arm. My fingers grazed over the skin just below his wrist, and I traced one of the veins that ran up his arm. I moved slowly, following the path up his forearm, and the faint pulse proved hewas actually real. His arm twitched the higher I went, and the sudden movement reminded me of my own bandaged wrists and how I’d felt toward him in the car ride over here.
Was this the same man?
I swallowed and gently lifted his arm from around me. Shifting my weight, I crawled out of his lap like I was extracting myself from something fragile. The air instantly felt colder without him, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about that.
I crossed the room to the first aid kit, looking down at my bandages. I could see I’d already bled through one of the gauze pads, and the other seemed to be ripped open,probably from me attacking him earlier.Although I could potentially wait to change it, I do it anyway. I decided to let the task distract me from the confusion in my head. Kneeling over his desk, I had just popped open the case, when Silas suddenly shot upright. The sound making me jolt and causing me to drop the supplies. The plastic edges snapped loudly as they hit the ground, but that wasn’t what startled me—it washim.
His breath came out hard as he pulled himself away from the wall. Both eyes wide, scanning the room like he was searching for something. His fear was immediately palpableand genuine.I couldn’t help the way my eyes widened from his reaction. If I was really someone he was going to hurt, he wouldn’t wake uplike thatlooking for me.
His gaze found me across the room, and everything within him changed. His shoulders instantly dropped as the panic drained from his face. Dragging a hand through his hair, heexhaled slowly, looking down at the items I had dropped. “Sorry,” he muttered toward me, voice rough with sleep.
I responded simply by shrugging my shoulders at him. Then, I bent down to pick everything up and set it back into the container before peeling off the dirty gauze that was attached to me. He watched me intently the whole time,like he didn’t want to let me out of his sight. It was only when I’d finished and closed the kit that he looked away.
I walked back over and stopped in front of him, waiting for his blue eyes to come back to me. For a second, we sat in silence as his gaze settled on me, neither of us knowing what should come next. I hesitated before speaking, debating on how I wanted this to go. To my surprise, he knew my thoughts before I did.
