Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 109695 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 548(@200wpm)___ 439(@250wpm)___ 366(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109695 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 548(@200wpm)___ 439(@250wpm)___ 366(@300wpm)
His boss, Quentin Vanetti, decides Stone needs help to stay alive long enough to find the assassin, so he enlists Serenity Jones. The only problem? She's a psychic.
Stone thinks Vanetti's lost his mind, but when Serenity proves she's the real deal, Stone has to play along. Now, he's stuck with her, and it's not just the danger of getting killed that's keeping him awake at night... it's falling for the psychic that he can't stop thinking about.
As the assassin closes in, will Serenity's psychic powers be enough to save him? But even worse... who will save him from her?
A steamy, laugh out loud, forced proximity romance that will keep you reading to the last page.
Perfect for fans of Lucy Score, Meghan Quinn, Emily Henry, and Pipa Grant
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
Chapter 1
Stone
The blast knocked me off my feet, sending me rolling into the wall. Hitting it hard, pain erupted in my arm and head. Heat from the blast grew, and I blinked the disorientation away, knowing I had to get out of there.
Smoke billowed, blocking my way out the door. Coughing, I rushed toward the window across the room, pulling my shirt over my nose. Without a moment to spare, I yanked the window open, and jumped onto the fire escape.
My feet landed on the rickety grating, and the whole thing groaned, threatening to collapse. With every step, it wobbled beneath me, and I hurried faster, knowing I wouldn’t survive the forty-foot drop.
At the next landing, the grating groaned, before a crack sounded, followed by a puff of brick dust. Several screws holding the metal to the brick wall pulled loose, sending the staircase into a dangerous slant.
Off balance, I slammed against the stair railing, barely gripping the center pole to swing out over the drop. Adrenaline spiked through my body, giving me strength to swing toward the next landing and let go.
Stretching my arms as far as I could, I managed to catch the railing. As I jerked to a stop, sharp pain spiked through my right arm, but I held on tight. Groaning, I climbed onto the landing, grateful that it held my weight. Holding my arm, I hurried down the remaining stairs and hopped off the landing to the ground.
The closest route to my motorcycle took me under the window, where smoke billowed into the blue sky. Without looking up, I crossed the street and ran down the alley to where my bike waited. Taking a moment to slip on my helmet, I jumped on and started it up in one smooth motion. Cutting a tight U-turn, I headed down the alley in the opposite direction of the explosion and made it onto the street.
Damn, that was close.
About a block away from the building, I caught the wail of approaching sirens, and heaved a sigh as the firetruck sped past me in the opposite direction. I’d been lucky to make it out of there as fast as I had. If not for my sense that something was off, I’d probably be dead.
Hot anger surged through my chest. I’d been set up… again. I couldn’t deny it any longer. A low growl curled my upper lip. The bastard had nearly killed me this time. If only I knew who it was.
Vanetti would enjoy saying I told you so. I’d convinced myself that he was being paranoid when he said someone was after me. But he’d been right, and I’d nearly gotten killed. My jaw tightened. I should have listened to the old man.
Blood dripped from my elbow, and the sensation of something hot and sticky seeped down my face and into the padding of my helmet. Dammit. This was my favorite helmet, and now I’d have to replace the padding. Could this day get any worse?
I cracked my helmet visor open to get a breath of fresh air. Even after opening all the vents, the aroma of blood, sweat, smoke, and blasting powder overwhelmed me. I’d to have to check every inch of my skin to make sure I hadn’t been impaled by anything. Wouldn’t that be something? Survive all that crap just to go down from tetanus? I should probably get another shot.
Shaking my head, I turned onto my street, but before I got to my house, my phone started ringing through my helmet-com system. Damn. Now what?
“Call from Vanetti,” the voice assistant announced. “Answer it?”
I was tempted to say no, but I didn’t have that luxury, so I sent the call through. “Yes?”
“Stone. I need you in my office, now.”
I huffed out a breath. “Now’s not the best—”
“I don’t care what you’re doing,” Vanetti interrupted. “Drop it and come in. This can’t wait.”
The line went dead and I groaned. Dammit. Apparently, this day could get worse. Shaking my head, I rode past my house and turned back toward the city. Sometimes, being the big boss’s right-hand man was a pain in the ass. At least I could clean up and change in my apartment at the office.
It was hard to believe that I’d known Vanetti for ten years now, ever since that fateful day when I’d saved his life. Of course, if not for him, who knew where I would have ended up? He’d taken a chance on a discharged army vet like me, and I owed him everything.
That’s why it was hard to believe that someone thought they could take me on. My reputation alone would stop most people from even thinking about it. Whoever it was, they either didn’t know me, or they didn’t care.
∞∞∞
Fifteen minutes later, I pulled into the parking garage of Vitality Ventures, and cut the engine. Stepping onto the elevator, I glanced down at my black t-shirt, and my mouth twisted. I hoped Vanetti didn’t need me for anything formal, since I was covered in grime.