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I sagged against him and did the unthinkable—I burst into tears.
Never in my fucking life had I…
My brain blue-screened.
I couldn’t…
What the—
“Shh, shhh,” he rumbled against my ear, stroking his hand over my hair, soothing me, gentling me. “It’s okay. You were so beautiful, Star. So fucking beautiful.”
“It felt… I couldn’t…” I garbled out more nonsense words.
“Shh, shh,” he whispered, rolling back onto the sheets and drawing the corner of one blanket over us.
As he cuddled me into him, he kept on murmuring the sweetest of words, words I didn’t deserve. God…
“I don’t deserve you,” I sobbed. “I’m a horrible person and you’re not.”
“I’m capable of horrible things too,” he replied softly, his hand continuing that slow, long stroke as he soothed me when I was the one who should be soothing him. “But maybe, together, we can do something better? We can be better. Or we can at least try…”
I bit my lip. “I killed Priestley.”
“I know you did.”
“Brennan told you?”
“No. Ma said that Niall was with Callum’s mother now. Full time. I read between the lines.” His throat bobbed. “I trust that she deserved it?”
“She did,” I whispered. “Some people need to die, Conor. Forrest and Bagpipes, hell, even Brennan softened up because she had a pussy. But I fucking knew she was scum. She turned.” I clicked my fingers. “Just like that and just for me. How can I not… How could I stop? She was dangerous. She’d have made that kid hate the O’Do—” I broke off. “—us, too.”
He pressed a kiss to my temple and, slowly, as if he were allowing the words to form organically, murmured, “I’ve never needed you to be anything other than yourself. I think I forgot that today. I’m sorry, Star, and I’m grateful that you do the dirty work to protect the people you love.”
I pressed my forehead against his chest. “Even if that dirty work makes you hate me?”
“I could never hate you.”
“You say that now.”
“I say it and I mean it. Just… the only thing you could ever do to make me hate you is to leave me.” His arms tightened around me. “And to take Kat away. Don’t do that. Please.”
I closed my eyes and hugged him as tightly as he hugged me.
“Never,” I whispered. “No more leaving. I swear.”
That was the easiest promise I’d ever made in my whole life.
56
CONOR
As I lay in bed, Star cuddled into my side, my gaze fixed on the ceiling, I listened to the silence of the apartment.
With Katina still in school, waiting to be picked up by my driver, Craig, the place was how it used to be.
Dead.
There was no denying that Star brought life to the penthouse. That she brought life to me too.
