Page 41 of Taming a Ruthless Heart

“God!”she echoes.

I wrap an arm around her chest and pull her up until our mouths fuse in an endless kiss.I keep pumping her butt and she keeps trembling in my arms as our lips suck.

When we finally come down from the pleasure high, I let go of her mouth.She leans into me, her head resting against my chest.For a moment, everything else falls away.The world outside doesn’t matter.The dangers that lurk in the shadows, the fears we haven’t faced—they’re all gone.

I hold her close, feeling her heart thunder like a frantic drum, matching mine.For the first time in a long while, I allow myself to hope.To believe that maybe, we can have something beyond the violence, the chaos.That we can find peace together, even in the middle of this war.

But I know it’s an illusion.The outside world is waiting, and it won’t stay at bay for long.

16

Dave

The warm steam from our recent shower is still swirling lazily in the air around us as I step away from the armchair.

“Don’t move.Be right back,” I promise her and dash into the bathroom for a washcloth.

I turn on the tap to dampen the soft fabric and go back.I wipe away the mess on Alexia’s perfect skin, rubbing her ass cheeks and hips.

“Thank you,” she whispers before taking the cloth from me and returning the favor, cleaning my cock.

I inhale sharply and chuckle, “We’d better not get carried away again.I bet you’re hungry.”

She hands me the washcloth, and I throw it in the hamper in the corner of the bedroom.

“Starving,” Alexia replies, glancing around.Her face turns red, and she covers her mouth with one hand.“Oh, shoot!Dave, I can’t go downstairs wearing the same dress I had yesterday.”

“Put it on and go to your room to change while I put on some clothes.We’ll meet in the hall and go down together.”

She smooches my lips, slips the dress on, and leaves.I watch her go until the door closes behind her with a loud click in the silence of the early morning.For a second, I just stand there, caught in the aftermath of the intimate moments that we shared since last night.

The bedroom is peaceful.So fucking peaceful that it almost feels unreal, like a dream I don’t want to wake up from.The high, vaulted ceiling makes the room feel open; the white wooden beams stretch above me like a sanctuary.I glance around at the muted tones of the walls, the luxurious bedding, and the clean lines of the furniture.It’s a stark contrast to the chaos that’s constantly lurking at the edges of my life, of Alexia’s life.

I take a deep breath, letting it out slowly as I run my fingers through my damp hair.I go into the walk-in closet and select a black pair of jeans and a black polo shirt.My heart is still racing, not only from the heat of having sex with Alexia, but from the weight of what I’m feeling.The realization has hit me like a fucking freight train.

I want her.Not just in my bed.Not just for a night.I want her in my life.I want her in a way that feels deeper than anything I’ve ever known.And it scares the hell out of me.

As I put the clothes on, I look out of the arched windows.I let my eyes drift over the sprawling landscape.The safehouse sits on the edge of the woods, isolated, protected.It’s supposed to be a fortress—a place where no one can get to her, where I can keep her safe from Igor.Now, I realize that bringing her here wasn’t just about that.It wasn’t just about keeping her safe.

It was about giving her a space to heal.

If I were to be honest with myself, it was also about creating an opportunity to win her back.

Her scars were never a part of my plan, though.I had no idea until I saw them.Now they haunt me with their reminder that I wasn’t there to protect her.I let her slip through my fingers once.Now I can’t shake the fear that once she’s truly safe, she’ll walk out of my life.

The thought makes my chest tighten, a cold knot forming in my gut.I won’t survive losing her again.

I turn my gaze away from the window, shifting to the bed.The rumpled sheets are evidence of the passion we shared last night.I run a hand over the back of my neck, trying to clear my head, but the thoughts keep coming, raging out of control like a fucking tornado.

What if she doesn’t want this?What if she doesn’t want me?

I’ve built this bubble for her where she can be free from the horrors of her past—but what if that’s not enough?What if safety, for her, means something different?Something I can’t give her?Something that involves walking away from me?

I clench my fists, trying to steady the emotions crashing through me.I’m not good at this.I’ve never been good at it.I can lead men into battle, I can run a fucking criminal empire, but when it comes to the woman I love—the woman I’ve always loved—I feel like I’m on unsteady ground.

Because if Alexia decides that freedom means leaving me, I don’t think I have the right to try to stop her.

The thought sends a wave of dread through me.I don’t want to be the reason she feels trapped.I don’t want to be the one who cages her after everything she’s been through.I also can’t bear the thought of losing her again.

---