Chapter 18
Ruby
Cristox had interrogated Charlene extensively and came to believe she had no idea what her brother was doing.
She was heartbroken, devastated by the revelation that Peanut had killed those she'd complained about, thinking he was protecting her.
I almost felt sorry for her. But then I thought about what she said to Teddy, and my sympathy didn't last long.
Thankfully, Charlene was gone from Tau Ceti.
An Alliance vessel had picked her up a few days ago.
After what happened with Peanut, the Prime decided to wipe her memories and send her back to Earth.
A fresh start, they called it. I wasn't sure how I felt about that.
The ethics of erasing someone's past, even a painful one, sat uneasily with me.
My own past was fraught with painful memories that were now precious to me.
Teddy was doing well, all things considered.
He still had nightmares sometimes. I would hear him cry out in the night, small and frightened, but Cristox made him feel safe.
The way Teddy's face lit up whenever Cristox walked into a room made my heart swell with warmth I'd never experienced before.
It was like watching a flower turn toward the sun.
A knock at the door pulled me from my thoughts. "Come in!"
Mei stepped inside, her usual confident stride somehow more purposeful today, her expression serious. "Got a minute?"
"Always. What's up?"
Mei settled into the chair across from me, fingers drumming on the armrest in that restless way she had when she was working through something important. "I wanted to talk to Cristox, actually. Is he around?"
"He's with Teddy at the park. They should be back soon." I set my datapad aside and gave her my full attention. "What's going on?"
"I want to offer him the peacekeeper's job. For good, not just temporary."
My eyebrows shot up. "Really?"
"He's good at it, Ruby. Better than good. And the village trusts him." Mei leaned forward, her dark eyes earnest. "I know he's got ties to Historia, but I thought since the two of you... I'm hoping he'll stay. I'm hoping you all stay."
My chest tightened with emotion I couldn't quite name. I hadn't let myself think too hard about what came next, afraid of wanting something too much. "I'll make sure he knows you want to talk to him."
After Mei left, I stared at my datapad without really seeing it, the numbers and notes blurring together as my mind spun with possibilities.
When Cristox returned with Teddy an hour later, both windswept and laughing, I relayed Mei's offer. We talked that night after Teddy was asleep, lying in bed in the darkness with only the soft glow of the village lights filtering through the curtains.
"What do you want to do?" I asked quietly, my head resting on his chest, listening to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat.
Cristox was silent for a long moment, his fingers tracing lazy, contemplative patterns on my shoulder. "I don't know."
"We'll go with you," I said, the words tumbling out before I could second-guess them. "If you want to go back to the Historia. We'll figure it out."
"I don't know about the peacekeeper job." Cristox's voice was soft, almost wondering, like he was discovering something as he spoke. "But I have no doubts about you and Teddy."
I lifted my head to look at him in the dim light, trying to read his expression. "Are you sure?"
"I've never been more sure about anything." His hand came up to cup my face, thumb brushing my cheekbone with infinite tenderness. "Ruby, I would never uproot you two. This is your home, and Teddy is finally feeling safe again."
My throat tightened with unshed tears. "He is doing well, isn't he?"
"He is." Cristox's voice was warm with something like pride, something paternal and protective. "I know he still has nightmares sometimes, but..." He paused, and I heard the smile in his voice. "He comes to find me now when he's afraid."
I remembered the small weight of Teddy pressed against my side just two nights ago, his little hand clutching my shirt, Cristox's arm stretched protectively across both of us. "You make him feel safe."
"We make him feel safe," Cristox corrected gently, his voice firm on that point.
I bit my lip, the worry I'd been carrying finally spilling out.
"But what about you? Will you be happy here?
Stuck in one place?" I traced the edge of his collarbone with my finger, feeling the solid warmth of him.
"You've spent your whole life jumping from planet to planet, ship to ship.
Adventure after adventure. What if you get bored?
What if you wake up one day and realize you're... trapped? "
Cristox was quiet for so long I thought maybe I'd said the wrong thing, exposed too much of my own insecurity. Then his chest rose with a deep breath.
"You think I'm addicted to adventure?" His voice held a note of amusement, but also something deeper—understanding, maybe.
"Aren't you?" I asked softly. "You were a spy, for heaven's sake."
"I was," he agreed. "But Ruby..." His hand slid into my hair, tilting my face up so I had to meet his eyes in the darkness. What I saw there made my breath catch. "You and Teddy are the greatest adventure of all."
My breath caught.
"Every day with you two is something new," he continued, his voice thick with emotion.
"Watching Teddy discover the world. Seeing him smile when he tries something for the first time.
Hearing him laugh—really laugh, not that careful sound he made when we first met.
" His thumb traced my lower lip. "Waking up next to you.
Learning what makes you happy, what makes you worried, what makes you come undone in my arms."
Heat flooded through me at his words, at the intensity in his voice.
"That's not boring, Ruby. That's not being trapped." His forehead pressed against mine, his breath warm on my lips. "That's finally coming home."
Tears pricked my eyes, hot and insistent. "Cristox..."
"I don't need to jump between planets to feel alive anymore," he murmured, each word deliberate. "I just need you."
His words wrapped around my heart and squeezed until I could barely breathe. I kissed him then, soft and slow, trying to pour everything I felt—all the love and gratitude and wonder—into it.
When we finally pulled apart, I stayed close, my fingers tracing idle patterns on his chest, feeling the steady rise and fall of his breathing. "We should probably talk about practical things," I said reluctantly.
"Practical things?" His voice was lazy, content, satisfied.
"Like where we're going to live." I bit my lip, feeling heat creeping into my cheeks. "We can't stay in Mei's guest house forever. It's generous of her, but with us..." My cheeks heated further. "We need our own space. And maybe a bedroom that's not quite so close to Teddy's."
Cristox chuckled softly, the sound rumbling through his chest, and his hand stilled on my back. "About that."
Something in his tone made me pull back to look at him, suspicion and curiosity warring. "What?"
"I may have already taken care of it."
I blinked, processing his words. "What do you mean?"
He had the grace to look slightly sheepish, a rare expression on his usually confident face. "I bought a house."
"You what?" I sat up fully now, staring down at him in disbelief.
"It's just a few blocks from the restaurant," he said quickly, words tumbling out.
"Close enough that you can walk to work.
Three bedrooms—one for us, one for Teddy, and one for guests or an office or whatever you want.
" His gaze softened, becoming almost vulnerable.
"Or maybe a nursery someday. There's a small yard in the back.
The neighborhood is safe, the school is nearby. "
My mind was reeling, trying to catch up. "You bought a house. Without telling me."
"I was going to tell you," he said, reaching for my hand and lacing our fingers together. "I just... I wanted to make sure everything went through first. And I wanted to get the furniture ordered so it would be ready. We should be able to move in within a few weeks."
"Cristox..." I didn't know whether to be touched or annoyed. "That's a huge decision."
"I know." He sat up too, keeping hold of my hand like he was afraid I might pull away. "And if you hate it, we'll sell it and find something else. But Ruby, I wanted to give you this. Give us this. A real home. Not a temporary place, not someone else's space. Ours."
The sincerity in his eyes, the raw hope there, melted my irritation. "You really bought us a house."
"I really did." A small smile tugged at his lips, boyish and uncertain. "Want to see the holos?"
Despite everything, I laughed, the sound bubbling up from somewhere deep inside. "You have holos?"
"Of course I have holos." He reached for his datapad on the side table, his movements eager. "I'm not completely impulsive."
As he pulled up images of a charming two-story house with a warm stone exterior and large windows, my heart swelled. It was the kind of place where we could build a life, create memories, grow old together.
"The kitchen is huge," he said, swiping through images with barely contained excitement. "I thought you might like that. And there's a reading nook by the window in the master bedroom..."
I looked at him—this male who'd been a spy, who'd lived a dangerous life full of secrets and shadows, who was now showing me pictures of reading nooks with the enthusiasm of a kid on Christmas morning—and felt overwhelmed with love so intense it almost hurt.
"It's perfect," I whispered, my voice thick with emotion.
His eyes met mine, vulnerable and hopeful. "Yeah?"
"Yeah." I cupped his face in my hands, feeling the slight stubble on his jaw. "I love you. So much."
"I love you too." His voice was rough, breaking slightly.
"Our home," I said softly, looking back at the images with wonder. "Our family."