Page 39 of A Midnight Romance

River

I walk over to her, my heart breaking for what she’s been through. “Talk to me,” I say softly.

I let Sebastian think I wanted this time for sex, but I can tell Lux isn’t okay and I want her to have the space to share privately whatever she’s feeling.

Her teeth are chattering as she slowly blinks, her head angles upward. “I’m fine, it’s just adrenaline.”

I wrap my arms around her, and pull her closer. “Probably, but I know you better than that.”

Lux gives me a weak smile and steps deeper into my embrace.

“You don’t have to talk about it, but I’m here if you need me.”

“I just hate that he got to me again.” Her voice cracks.

Then a realization forms in my head. Lux has never shared with me what happened the night I found her, but I always had my suspicions that Andrew had been the one to hurt her.

“Did he…” I trail off, not wanting to verbalize it. Lux’s clothes are back in place, but still done with the marks of battle. Scarlet markings litter her once beautiful white sundress, which my sweater attempts to cover.

“Not this time,” she whispers as tears spill down her red, swollen cheeks. “I didn’t want to tell you at first because I knew you’d kill him the moment you got your hands on him. But I wanted it to be me. I didn’t want someone else to carry out my own justice. ”

Lux’s hand comes up to swipe a hair that’s fallen on my forehead. She cups my cheek lovingly. “I want to go home.”

Home.

That simple word which now carries so much meaning. The manor was just the manor before, but now it’s become a home. And with it, I’d like to believe is the hope and possibility of a future for Lux and me.

“Let’s.” I wrap my arms around her waist just as the boys come into view with containers of gasoline.

“Was that enough time?” Sebastian clips sarcastically.

I straighten to a stand. “Light this place up,” I tell the guys, ignoring my cousin’s comment.

“Yeah, River!” Hayden gleams. “We’re gonna burn it to the ground like the good ol’ days,” he says with excitement, but when his eyes land on Lux, his face falls. “Are you all right, Lux?”

“I am.” She smiles at him, masking pure relief and exhaustion.

I grab her hand and give it a gentle squeeze. “We’re heading home. Make sure you take care of this place and leave no traces behind.”

They all give me a quick nod.

Sebastian steps forward, his eyes scanning the room. “Well, shall we leave them to their work?”

“Is there anything you want to do before we leave?”

Lux’s large almond-shaped eyes flick toward mine. I’ve watched the color change dramatically over time and it’s been one of the greatest gifts.

“No.” Her voice sounds softer than a low whisper. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”

I look back at Andrew’s body, slumped over against the wall, blood pooling around him. “Well, my friend, it’s been fun.”

Sebastian chuckles, slinging his bag over his shoulder. I do the same with mine, then grab Lux’s hand to help keep steady .

Her eyes squint in disgust as she gives the man who tormented her one last glare. To my surprise, she lets go of my hand and stalks toward his body.

Lowering, she crouches in front of him. “You’re going to rot in hell,” she threatens with a subtle smirk playing on her lips. She angles her head to the side as an animal would after it’s captured their prey. “And I’m going to sleep like a baby every night knowing I’m the one who sent you there.”

The room is quiet. Ten men in total, including myself and Sebastian, all who have taken many lives without thinking twice. But this tiny brunette, who has been to hell and back herself, even hiding monsters of her own, renders us speechless.

Watching Lux is almost like staring at different versions of myself.

She is one woman by day, another by night.

Lux flips her back to Andrew, her shoulders squared with confidence. “Let’s go, River,” she beckons me, and I’m right on her heels.

When we reach the top, protective instincts kick in even though all perceived threats have been eliminated and I slip in front of her to grab her hand in mine to lead us through the obscure, grim building. Lux is silent until we get outside into the cool night air.

The crisp coastal breeze dances across my skin with a subtle sting, and with a desperate breath in, I fill my lungs with rejuvenation.

A dense silence settles around us in the heavily wooded area.

I turn to Lux, a fire in my soul and relief flowing in my veins.

With a grateful smile, I twist her arm in my arms and she moves with me positioning her front against my front.

“It’s almost midnight.” Although she smiles, she’s hiding additional trauma that will need to be unpacked in the hours, or days, to come.

“Yes. ”

“Thank you for saving me,” she whispers into my thin, cotton shirt.

She never should have been taken to begin with.

Keeping my tight hold steady, I lock my arms in place imagining the sheer agony I’d experience if I was to lose her again. “I told you I’d always keep you safe.” A low rumble of thunder vibrates through the forest from miles away. “I’m sorry Andrew got to you.”

“It’s not your fault.” Lux’s head shakes.

I gently pull her away, bringing my index finger and thumb to her chin tilting her head skyward. “It is.”

“What do you mean?”

“I saw a man who’s been on the team’s radar for a while and I went after him,” I tell her, ashamed at my admission.

“And what does this have to do with Andrew taking me?”

I swallow a cotton sensation in my throat and my thumb across the slickness of her chin searching for the proper words to explain my darkness in a way she’d understand. “I left you at the police station and went after him. I failed you.”

Lux’s eyes flick to mine, laced with a strong conviction. “It’s not your fault.”

“I put my own impulses before your safety,” I say painfully.

“You were doing what you thought was right,” Lux retorts, defending my actions.

Lux knows I’m what most might call a vigilante, but what she’ll never know is my darkness craves the kill.

And every day, I have to choose to use the darkness for good instead of bad.

But I love this woman and I can’t let my urges get in the way.

My life is not about myself anymore, it’s about her.

And I’ve caught glimpses of a similar darkness in her, but she’s different.

She was driven by rage, revenge. I am, but not in how I get my fill.

The more I kill, the greater the hunger to do it again grows—it’s a never ending perpetual cycle.

“That doesn’t matter if it means you get hurt,” I say.

“Then what is all this about then?” she rushes out. “I know you don’t do this simply because you want to bring justice to people, River.”

“Lux,” I say to her in shock.

Has she always known this?

Her eyebrows knit together as her voice lowers. “There has to be a level of pleasure you get out of it.”

“You think I take pleasure in it?” My heart pounds inside my chest, replaying her words.

Lux’s hand comes up to cup the side of my face. “Yes. Why else would you do it?”

“Fuck, it’s getting cold out here,” Sebastian shouts, jumping from the top step of the wooden deck. “It’s supposed to be summer.”

My head snaps over at the interruption, and I see the team laughing amongst themselves while jogging out of the house.

“This baby is gonna blow!” Hayden excitedly yells.

Lux has seen the darkness in me, obviously with what we’ve been through together, but I need to say the words to her. She needs to fully understand this is not only about justice, it’s about me too. We’ll talk again once we’re back at the manor.

“Ready?” I ask Lux.

“More than ready. Let that fucker burn.”

A smile breaks over my lips. An authentic, truthful, and borderline loving smile. “Anything you want.”

The guys finish dumping the rest of the gasoline around the exterior of the building before gathering a short distance away. With their heads angled upward, they look on with prideful expressions. These men love this almost as much as I do.

I give Sebastian the final nod, and he steps forward. Within seconds, the fire races up the walls, engulfing the building.

I pull Lux with me as we all slowly back away, creating a distance between us and the flames. The powerful heat radiating off the fire pierces through my pricked, cool skin.

As the team’s eyes bore into the building that will soon collapse, mine are on Lux. The blaze reflects in her retinas as a subtle sparkle flashes across them. Although hurt and shaken up, she settles into a sense of peace. That visceral feeling I get when I claim someone’s life.

Lux’s hand comes up to my chest. Her wild, fierce eyes shifted now on me—and for half a second, I believe we might be the same.

Am I capable of loving another human?

Lux accepts all the sides of River Thompson: tech mogul, vigilante, and a hero who helped get her life back. Something I’d never thought possible.