"His name is Ghost. He's discreet, skilled, and perfectly trustworthy. Not to worry." Azura's tone was perfunctory and as energetic as ever, despite the fact that it was three in the morning.
"Alright. Thank you. I don't know what I owe you for all this, but just put it on my tab," I said wearily.
Her tone took on a hardness that brooked no argument whatsoever. "When it comes to helping victims, I don’t charge. We'll handle this for you, Knox."
I blinked. "Okay." The word "we" implied that they had some kind of vigilante team running around the country rescuing people, and as intriguing as that sounded, I also didn't want to know any more than I already did. "I appreciate it."
"Ghost will contact you tomorrow. Get some sleep."
I let the phone drop and rolled onto my side. Gemma had turned on her side as well, her IV arm out straight and her cornflower blue eyes taking me in with visible charmolypi. "Thank you," she whispered.
I reached out and gently caressed her knuckles above the IV port. "Always, Gem."
She gave me a weak smile. "I like that you call me Gem."
I shrugged. "It's fitting."
She rolled her eyes. "Don't tell me it's because I'm—"
"Precious." I skated my fingers up her left arm in a soothing rhythm. "Yes. You are."
Her chest rose and fell with a silent sigh. "My anger at you seems so insignificant now."
"It wasn't." I cupped her elbow and rubbed her skin with my thumb idly. "You had every right to be furious with me. And I'm deeply sorry for it. I made the mistake of not trusting you, and in doing so, I treated you as an inequal and I used you for my own ends. It was unforgivably foolish."
"It's definitely forgivable," she countered gently. "I forgave you for it before I'd even realized it. I was just… lost. Unsure of where I belonged."
"You belong here," I said with quiet insistence. "Whether I'm here or not, this is your home. I'll make sure it stays that way."
"You sure?" she asked, her eyebrows tilting up with worry.
"Absolutely. No matter what else happens, this is your home. Even if you don't want me in it, I won't put you in a position like this again."
“Of course, I want you here." She reached out and cupped my cheek, heedless of the fact that she was attached to the saline bag. I closed my eyes at the gratification of the contact. "Actually, I will be bossy and insist on it."
I turned and kissed her palm. "I won't argue with that. How are you feeling?"
"Better." She let her hand fall, and both our gazes seemed to catch on to the enormous engagement ring. She tilted a scrunched look up to me. "What do we do about this whole thing?"
"Nothing." I took her hand in mine, resting it on the mattress between us. I fiddled with the ring on her finger. "No more games. No more underhanded schemes. I'm buying this apartment outright from myfatherbecause he's a spineless jellyfish, and that will be it. Azura will be contacting their legal representation on Monday about their unethical terms, and if they push back, then we will move somewhere out of their reach. We'll make it work."
"You keep saying 'we,'" Gemma grinned. "And I like it."
"I'll be honest," I said with some intensity. "I never intended to let you go, Gem. Not really. I can't imagine one more second of my future without you there. Being alone here tonight illustrated that clearly to me."
Her soft, blond hair had fallen across her cheek and down her shoulder, and she looked nothing short of angelic in that moment. "I want to be with you, too."
I took hold of the ring and slipped it off her finger, snuggling closer to her until I could take her bare fingers in mine and gently bring them to my lips. "Gemma Daise, will you date me?"
She smiled brightly. "I will."
Chapter thirty-three
Gemma
Rule #28: Use the home security system.
Knox brought my babies back home the next morning, and seeing them washed all the pain away. I'd insisted on leaving the bed, despite Knox's bullying about lying down for the day, and when Mini bounded through the elevator doors, and Pumpkin scrambled to escape Knox's arms, I hurried off the couch to meet them. Mini scampered and slipped across the hardwood floors, her nails loudly clattering and her joyous "woof!" filling the apartment. She tackled me so fast, I fell back to the couch, hugging her enormous neck and allowing her to cover me in slobbery kisses. "My baby!" I crooned.
