Page 114 of Sapphire

“We fucking love you, Zoe.”

Hearing those words makes me break. I can’t believe this nightmare is over.

“We are never leaving you, okay?” Tomas whispers as my sobs fill the car. “We are going to keep you safe, and you will never have to look over your shoulder ever again.”

I nod because I understand exactly what they are saying. Nikolai thinks I have been bought by some brothel owner, but instead I have been saved. My hands touch their faces, not really believing they are real.

“You’re real.” I stare at them both in awe.

“Damn right we are,” Mateo growls.

Tomas swipes the tears away from my cheeks. “We can’t believe you are finally in front of us, it’s been too long.”

I nod as I reach out and hug him.

“I thought I would never see either of you ever again.”

“Us, your family, they would never have stopped,” Tomas says.

“How’s Gracie?”

Mateo laughs. “She can’t wait to see you.”

“I was so worried Nikolai wouldn’t let her go.”

“She’s upset you sacrificed yourself for her,” Tomas says.

“I’m sorry.” I look down at my hands. I have done so much since I left them.

“Hey, no.” Tomas lifts my chin so I can look into his hazel eyes. “We don’t care what you had to do to stay alive. All that matters is that you are safe and well.”

I try to give him a smile, but I know it doesn’t reach my eyes.

“No, Zoe, no—you will not feel guilty over anything. Gracie told us what happened.”

“Actually, we kind of demanded she tells us,” Mateo adds.

“Yes, she was not very forthcoming with what she had been through and what she had seen happen to you.”

My stomach churns at the images running through my mind. Now that they know even a small portion of what happened, they must be disgusted.

“Hey, you don’t think we’re going to look at you differently?” Tomas asks.

My eyes catch his.

“We love you, all of you, the good, the bad, and whatever ugliness happened to you,” Tomas declares.

I move forward and press my lips against his, feeling their warmth, their softness. I need this, I need to feel his lips on mine. I press my tongue against his lips, urging them to open, and he tentatively opens for me and everything, all the ugliness and bad, melts away as I feel his tongue against mine. He opens and takes me against him, those soft lips making me feel safe, his tongue lovingly caressing my own. I’ve come home, I’ve finally made it.

He pulls away from me and gives me a smile. “I think Mateo is getting a little jealous.”

I turn to see Mateo’s stunning face looking at me, a slightly worried expression on it. “I haven’t forgotten you.”

“I’ve missed you, angel.” He takes my lips ever so softly.

“I missed you both so much.” I snuggle into Mateo. “I can’t wait to get home.”

We travel in silence, my hand in Tomas’s and my body on Mateo’s. We are comfortable and happy.

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