Burn Me Once Burn With Me (Ruby Grayson) novel Chapter 82

Ruby hurried to the hospital.

Cameron Lockridge was sitting up in bed under the nurse's care, sipping a bowl of warm soup, an IV still attached to his arm.

"You're here," he said.

At the sight of her, a spark lit up in Cameron's usually calm eyes.

"How are you feeling?" Ruby managed a smile and turned to ask the nurse.

"He's recovering well," the nurse replied gently, collecting the empty bowl from Cameron's bedside. "If things keep improving, he'll be ready to go home in a couple of days."

Now only Ruby and Cameron were left in the quiet hospital room.

Relieved by the nurse's answer, Ruby finally let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding and settled into the soft chair by his bed.

"How about you? Are you still feeling unwell?" she asked with genuine concern.

Cameron's eyes crinkled as he smiled, suddenly looking as docile and eager to please as a loyal retriever. "No, I'm fine. Didn't you hear the nurse? I'll be out of here in no time."

Ruby nodded.

With that, a strange silence fell between them, heavy and awkward.

Cameron pressed his lips together, searching for something to say, but suddenly every topic seemed threadbare.

It was Ruby who finally broke the quiet.

"I'm sorry."

She lowered her head, guilt swirling in her eyes.

If Cameron hadn't taken her in out of kindness, Cassian never would have targeted him.

Cameron was caught off guard by her apology. For a moment, the confident lawyer who could command a courtroom was at a complete loss. He fumbled for words and finally managed, a little stiffly, "This isn't your fault."

Ruby shook her head, silent.

Cameron's brow furrowed with concern as he looked at her. "Don't blame yourself for everything. You're the one who's innocent in all this."

It was as if, for just a moment, someone gently tapped on the door Ruby had carefully closed around her heart.

Since being released, she'd turned herself into a hedgehog—prickly, guarded, never letting anyone get too close. Whether it was Frieda, Gennifer, or Cassian, she met them all with an icy indifference. But underneath it all, every move she made was to protect herself and Mira. She'd been forced to grow strong, forced to be resilient—building walls of pretense just to survive.

Verify captcha to read the contentVerify