Page 52

52

RYUJI

I palmed the knife in my hand, twisting it over and over again while I waited for her to leave her room. We’d spent the rest of the day yesterday planning and preparing, and we’d all gone to bed late. But as soon as my phone vibrated with the notification that the knife had arrived, I practically leaped out of bed to retrieve it.

Would she like it? Was this stupid?

Fuck . I felt like an idiot.

I didn’t give gifts . And especially not something so stupid. Caspian gave her a ring. This was the best I could come up with?

But she needed it. She needed to be able to watch out for herself, especially if she’d only have the bodyguard by her side at the board meeting. She needed the ability to fight back if anything happened.

The door opened, interrupting my spiral of insanity, and I lifted my head. She smiled when she spotted me.

“Oh, Ryuji,” she said, shutting the door behind her. “You’re up early. Actually, I’m glad you’re here. Do you want to train with Wynn and me? We’re headed down to the gym. He said he wants to show me some new moves, but he might need a dummy to practice on.”

“Are you calling me a dummy?” I responded with a smirk.

Her eyes crinkled. “Dummy.”

I laughed, poking her cheek. “Sure. I’ll knock him flat on his ass.”

She rolled her eyes, but leaned against the wall next to me. The two of us were always caught in each other’s orbit, being pulled closer and closer.

“Did you get a new knife?” she asked, eyes on the weapon still in my hand. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen that one before.”

I hesitated for just a breath before I extended it to her.

“Here,” I said. She grabbed it, inspecting the handle, and the blade tucked safely inside. “I got that for you.”

My heart lodged in my throat as she turned it over. Did she like it? It wasn’t much. But it would work.

“For me?” She pulled the blade out of the handle, extending its full length. “Why?”

I rubbed the back of my neck. “I don’t know if you remember, but when we were in LA and we got attacked, you were cornered while Obi and I were taking out the rest of the hitmen.”

I’d almost lost my mind when I’d turned around and saw her wrestling with that man. If anything would have happened to her…

“I remember.”

“I—” My words cut off. I cleared my throat. Fuck, why was I so fucking nervous ? It was just a goddamn knife. “I just wanted to get you a weapon that you could keep on your person at all times. Just in case you ever get cornered again.” I watched her turn the small blade over in her hands. “I want you to have a way out. If you need it.”

I’d special-ordered the knife from one of my contacts in the Yakuza. It was simple and small. If it were for me, I would have ordered a much longer, thicker blade. But I’d had this one designed specifically for her, to fit the palm of her hand with flexibility and speed.

“Thank you,” she breathed. She looked up, emotion written across her face. I looked away, my own cheeks burning. Fuck, hold yourself together.

“It’s small because I want you to be able to keep it concealed,” I added after clearing my throat. “But the blade is fucking sharp. I sharpened it myself. It’s not long, but it’ll cut a motherfucker, and it’ll hopefully be enough to get you out of a bind.”

She closed the blade back into the handle before she grinned. “What kind of binds are you going to put me in?”

I laughed, leaning close enough that my nose brushed hers. Her brown eyes sparkled. Binds, indeed . “I have plenty in my room. Want to come find out?”

I wanted to tie her up again. She looked so stunning with my bright red rope wrapped around her delicious curves, rubbing against that beautiful skin. She’d get wet for me again immediately, knowing I held her pleasure in the palm of my hand.

She turned to press a kiss to the side of my cheek. I straightened, touching the skin. The kiss triggered a wave of heat through my body, like a bolt of lightning had cracked.

The words whispered through my brain.

I loved her .

“Thank you, Ryu. Seriously. I’ll keep it on me no matter what.”

My heart pounded, trying to process the realization, as I leaned down to kiss her. “No matter what, okay?”

I loved her. I loved her . I loved her teasing, her smile, her viciousness. I loved her kindness and her mean streak. I loved her ponytails and the smell of her sweat and the way she ran her fingers through my hair.

Should I tell her?

No.

“I bet it could fit in my bra. Or my underwear.”

I groaned as countless dirty thoughts laced through my brain. I loved her sass. I loved how she teased me. I loved the feeling of being buried inside her. I cornered her against the wall, hands on either side of her head. My dick was already pressing against my zipper, practically begging to be let out. “How about we play a game? You hide it, and I’ll try to find it.”

“I like this idea.” She giggled, slipping the knife into the pocket of her leggings for now. “I have to find a good hiding place.”

I loved her, but I couldn’t tell her that. I didn’t even know how . What was love when you lived a life like mine?

She stood on her tiptoes to press a kiss to my lips, and I couldn’t resist rutting my hips against hers.

Sunshine .

She tasted like sunshine, a bright light sustaining me through the dark.

It was at that moment that I truly understood what Caspian meant all those times he said we were supposed to protect her, keep her out of harm’s way. The sudden fear that I might lose her laced through my heart like a harpoon.

I gave her that knife, but I prayed to the great cosmic void that she’d never have to use it.

“We have to go down to the gym,” she murmured, but she grabbed my cheeks and held my lips to hers. “Wynn is waiting.”

“He can wait,” I murmured as I carried her back to my room and kicked the door shut.