Page 69 of Forbidden Boss
I roll my eyes. “Don’t start,” I warn. “He said he didn’t want to be shot in the leg for leaving me. We really need to talk about your anger issues.”
His mouth twitches, but he doesn’t argue. Instead, he bends and kisses my forehead.
“I love you,” he murmurs. “You scared the hell out of me.”
“I know,” I whisper. “I was scared, too. I really didn’t think I’d be here now. I was sure tonight was it for me.”
He exhales like he’s been holding his breath for days. Then he stands and walks around to the other side of the bed, sliding in carefully. I move over to make room for him. He stretches out beside me and pulls me against his chest. I feel his heartbeat against my cheek, strong and steady. His arm comes around me, heavy and safe.
For a long time, neither of us speaks. The machines hum softly. The world outside fades away. All I can think about is how warm he is, how alive I feel just being near him. When he finally speaks, his voice is rough.
“I thought I lost you,” he says into my hair.
“I’m right here,” I promise him.
He presses his lips to my hair. “You have no idea how worried I’ve been all day. I’ve never felt so out of control.”
“You can’t go around shooting people,” I tell him.
He looks down at me, eyes soft but unrepentant.
“You were missing. I’d set the world on fire if it meant getting you back.”
I don’t argue with him. There’s something incredibly humbling about being loved like that. I snuggle deeper into his chest.
“I’m glad he’s dead,” I admit quietly.
Lev doesn’t answer. He just holds me tighter. I know what happened in those woods. I know what he did. I also know he’d do it again if he had to. There’s blood on both our hands, one way or another, and neither of us will ever be clean again. But at least we’ll be unclean together.
After a while, the nurse comes in to check my vitals and tells me I can go home in the morning. Lev refuses to wait that long, stating he has a personal physician on calls to see to all of my needs. He signs whatever forms she hands him, and by midnight, we’re in the car heading back to the penthouse.
The ride is quiet. Streetlights flash across his face as he drives, and I watch the tension in his jaw, the way his hand grips the wheel. He looks calm, but I can tell he’s still wired from everything that happened. I reach over and rest my hand on his arm.
“You don’t have to protect me every second,” I say softly. “We can breathe now.”
He glances at me, then back at the road. “Maybe you can. I don’t think I’ll ever breathe easily again.”
“Lev.”
“I saw him holding a gun to your head,” he says quietly. “That’s not something I’ll forget.”
I don’t know what to say to that, so I don’t. I just take his hand and hold it until we reach home.
When we pull into the garage, the guards stand a little straighter. No one speaks. They just nod and look away. Lev helps me out of the car, even though I tell him I can walk. My legs still ache, and I’m grateful for the steady arm around my waist.
When we get inside, he takes me straight to the bedroom and tucks me in like a child. I don’t argue. My body is so tired, so heavy, that I think I could fall asleep in seconds. But I don’t want to take for granted how good it is to be here with him, to have him taking care of me. I force myself to stay awake a little while longer.
He examines my arms, looking at the places where the hospital cleaned and bandaged all the cuts and scrapes I got in the woods. He frowns as he checks me over, at least as thoroughly as the doctor did.
“Nothing’s broken?” he asks.
“No.” I shake my head.
“And the baby is fine?” he asks again, as afraid for our child as I’ve been all day.
“The baby is healthy,” I confirm, smiling. “I heard his heartbeat. He’s so strong, Lev.”
He takes my face in his hands, gently swiping at a tear I didn’t realize had fallen. He stares at me with such adoration and love that there’s no doubt in my mind that everything Marcus said to me was a lie. Lev loves me enough to burn the world down for me. And I love him just as much.