Page 93 of Brutal Knight

I wish I could have known him then. I’m sure he would have been everything I wanted, even then. He would have been strong, a fighter, serious but not grim.

He keeps talking, describing more places they used to go and things they used to do, and it makes my chest ache pleasantly.

I’ve never cared about this city. If anything, I hated it for being the place where my cage was built. But when Connor talks about Boston, he has all the beautiful memories of his life here. He’s known so much love and beauty in this place, and it’s obvious how much it means to him.

He’s happy and energetic, and his joy is fucking infectious. A smile stretches across my face, and as emotions rise inside me, it hits me in a rush—I’m not just crazy about this man.

I’m in love with him.

I love Connor, completely and absolutely.

My feet stop moving, my body frozen by the force of my feelings. Connor stops with me, looking down at me with his brows drawn together.

I almost can’t say the words. It takes me a long time to form what I want to say in my head and the entire time, he stands beside me, waiting.

He waits for me, and that just tells me even more how perfect he is. How good he is to me. He’s not just attractive, not just ruggedly handsome. He’s not just someone better than the monster that held me before.

He’s everything to me now.

He’s someone that fills spaces I didn’t know I had. His warmth can thaw me when I’m at my lowest. His strength makes me feel safe and protected. I know the world we live in is dangerous, but he’d be able to protect me from it. He’d do anything to make sure I am never hurt again.

I unstick my tongue from the roof of my mouth and finally say the words.

Looking up at Connor, I whisper, “I love you.”

His face lights up in a way I didn’t realize was possible. I never thought that phrase made any sense, but it’s true. It’s like there’s a sun inside him, and it flickers to life when he hears me say those words.

“I love you too, angel,” he says.

Some part of me was still terrified even as I said it, but hearing him say the words just makes my entire body burst with warmth. He leans down and kisses me, deep and hungry. It seals the words we’ve both said, locks them in this perfect moment so they can last forever.

When we finally break apart, it’s like a flood has been let loose. I can’t keep myself from saying everything I’ve been feeling.

“I was so afraid,” I confess, my words almost a whisper. “I didn’t want to admit it to myself, but I started to love you a long time ago.”

He pushes my hair away from my face, his eyes searching mine. “I know. I always thought you were beautiful. I knew you were strong when you came with me, when I tried to help you change. I knew that we could be different.”

“It’s been happening for a while, but I pretended it wasn’t,” I say with a soft, breathless laugh. “I don’t even know why.”

“You needed time,” he says softly. “And I would have waited. As long as it took.”

His words make my heart clench. I know he means it.

“Thank you,” I whisper.

“For you, angel?” he rests his forehead against mine. “I’d wait forever.”

We stay like that for a long moment, then Connor wraps his arm around my waist, and we keep walking. I almost don’t want to leave this place, this corner where the street light illuminated the words we couldn’t say for so long.

I feel like I’m about to burst from all the joy being held in my chest. I look over at Connor, unable to help my grin, and—

Pop!

A gunshot rings out in the night, but I barely even hear it.

I just see the crimson of blood flying from his wound, then feel the warmth hit my face and arm. For a second, my brain tries to make sense of what’s happening, and I wonder if someone has thrown a water balloon at us.

It’s surreal, like an image from a music video or a movie. But then reality hits me in a rush, and life goes from slow motion to blinding speed.

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