Total pages in book: 61
Estimated words: 59804 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 299(@200wpm)___ 239(@250wpm)___ 199(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59804 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 299(@200wpm)___ 239(@250wpm)___ 199(@300wpm)
She was lifeless against the deck.
I laid her flat and started chest compressions, not realizing how small and frail she was, until I saw my tanned hands taking up most of the real estate against her sternum.
“Come on.” …seven, eight, nine. “Come on, piccolina.”
I pinched her nose, tilted her head back, and pressed my mouth to hers, giving her my air in a way that felt too personal for words.
I took lives.
I didn’t save them.
I didn’t offer my air, my help. If she wasn’t my only way to freedom, I would have left her; it wasn’t worth getting shot over, even now, we were running out of time. Men would be searching for us.
She had to breathe.
And we had to get the hell out of there.
I did another round of chest compressions.
And pressed my lips to hers again. Water splashed over my mouth as she choked it up, then turned onto her side and puked a mix of water and bile.
“Can’t say I’ve ever had that reaction,” I muttered in a gruff voice while she wiped her mouth with shaking hands. Her lips were blue, her skin pale; she looked like a fallen angel, all wet and still half-dead.
Beautiful.
Something I tucked away and refused to think about.
Besides, I was twenty-seven.
She might well be a pre-teen.
My eyes lowered to her breasts.
Or not.
What the hell was wrong with me?
“We gotta go.” I grabbed a dry shirt from my pack and tossed it at her. “Put this on. Hurry.”
She gaped at me, lips swollen. “What?”
“Shirt.” I pointed at the shirt in her hands. “Goes on your body.”
“Caught that,” she said in a hoarse voice. “I just—” She chewed her lower lip.
“Stop stalling and put on the damn shirt!” I hated being questioned. I wasn’t used to people who didn’t just cower in my presence or shit themselves.
“Fine.” She peeled her wet shirt over her body quickly.
I saw a flash of skin.
And then I understood.
She hadn’t been wearing a bra.
Hell.
I didn’t so much as flinch on the outside.
But I sure as hell did on the inside.
After all, I was a man who’d taken an oath to marry into another Family, a man who was—for all intents and purposes—already married.
I still stared. Emotionless. Heart pounding. Body straining. It was sick and twisted that I stared at her, but once the lust receded, all I saw was damage. Bruising all over her body, a gunshot wound, head trauma, and lack of nutrition. The fact that she was even alive was a miracle. I shook myself out of being impressed with her fight. “Keep your head down just in case.” I shoved her to the floor of the boat. “Head between your knees, yup, just like that.” I grabbed my gun started the boat, and said a quick prayer they didn’t have any heavy artillery in that place.
The boat accelerated fast.
She didn’t move.
Just stared down at the boat deck like I’d told her to. Eyes empty. Body shivering.
Finally. She was finally listening.
The boat ride took an hour, even though I was pushing as fast as I could, and by the time we pulled up, complete darkness had fallen across the city.
And those who wielded it—were waiting at the shore.
Six black Range Rovers were parked with their lights on, several men standing outside them, all their guns trained on me.
“What’s that?” She finally said something. Her voice was so damn raspy it was almost impossible to hear her without leaning in.
“Overkill.” I rolled my eyes, drove the boat right up onto the sand, and tucked my gun back in my holster. “Up you go.” I grabbed her by the elbows and pulled her to her feet just in time for her to cover her chest. My loose white Henley was doing nothing to hide her perky breasts from the men.
She didn’t know they were all happily married and would rather chop off their own arms than cheat.
The Americans at least had that going for them.
Loyalty.
“So you broke me out of one prison just to put me in another?” She backed into me, her body shaking, her eyes darting from one face to another.
“You run…” I lowered my voice and ducked my head, accidentally grazing her ear with my lips. It was cold against my mouth, soothing. “…and they’ll just chase you. It’s their favorite part.”
She gulped. “What’s yours?”
I hesitated and then whispered, “The catch.” I trailed my fingertips down her back.
She shivered against my palm.
What the hell was I doing? Comforting her? Flirting? Had I hit my head? This woman was traumatized, abused, and while I had no soul, even I didn’t want to know what she had faced in that dungeon.
I gave my head a shake as Tex approached. “Any issues?”
“Bullet grazed her arm.” I shrugged. “And I pissed off a lot of people who now want to kill me, but other than that, can’t think of a thing.”