Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 107720 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107720 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
“The bullet went straight through, and Auntie Mei sent one of the gardeners to fetch two of her healer friends from the village. One of them sewed me up, dumped a bowl of horrible-tasting medicine down my throat, then let me leave.”
“How’s Uncle Wen?” I asked warily, bracing for bad news.
“He’s fine.” Dillon looked in my direction. “Last I saw he was being fussed over by his wife. He refused to let them treat him until they’d stitched me up so I could chase after you—”
“How did you come after us?” I cut in. “I get that you’re here because you tracked Rook like a stray dog, but it doesn’t explain how quickly you got here.”
“I take offence to you calling her a dog.” Dillon pursed his lips, fighting a smirk. “I tagged her like the runaway heiress she is. And I told her.” He pointed a finger in her face. “I told you one of these days I would resort to desperate measures and...after what you put me through on the mountain, the first thing I did while you were lying there—not waking up, by the way—was to follow through with that threat.”
Before Rook could say anything, he muttered under his breath, “Also, you and I are going to discuss a more permanent method when we’re home. Preferably something that can’t be removed.”
My temper bubbled. “If you’re thinking of implanting something in her, I’ll knock your teeth out.”
“I would’ve thought you’d be on board with a plan to keep her safe.”
“I am. I’m the plan. I’ll keep her safe.”
“You were by her side the entire time, and that didn’t keep her very safe now, did it?”
“What did you say?” My temper overflowed as I stepped toward him. “Say that again—”
“Eh, Mr. Brooks?” A black-suited man—who I vaguely remembered was the head of the team who’d helped us escape the bed and breakfast a few weeks ago—leapt out of a black 4WD. “We really can’t contain him any longer. He’s—”
A massive roar split everyone’s eardrums.
The sound hit me like a physical blow—deep and guttural and achingly familiar. I moved before I could think. Stumbling toward the vehicle, I didn’t make it far before the back door flung open and a blur of midnight fur launched out like a cannonball.
“Whisper!”
The panther hit me with full force, two hundred kilos of feline fury slamming into my chest. I went down hard; the air knocked completely out of me as Whisper pinned me to the road and rubbed his massive face against mine. His happy, rumbling purr vibrated through my entire body.
“Get off me, you stupid beast.” I chuckled, the sound cracking halfway up my throat as the faint taste of bitter blood appeared. Swallowing any evidence that I was breaking apart, I grabbed the huge cat around his ruff and hugged him.
He purred like a hundred chainsaws, giving me his entire weight, his tail lashing the air like a whip. His huge paws kneaded my shoulders, his claws threatening to stab me like tiny daggers.
“Get off, you crazy creature. You’re turning me into a pincushion.” Shoving him off, I sat upright and dragged him back, burying my face in his fur again, breathing in smoke and musk and home.
“I missed you too.”
Whisper made a low, chuffing sound, then swatted away my embrace to fling himself at Rook.
Rook laughed as the giant cat went to spring, but I grabbed his tail and kept him grounded. “Gently.”
She gave me a grateful look and dropped to her knees, hiding her wince as pieces of her continued to break just like they broke in me.
“Hey, little kitty cat.”
Whisper whimpered, licking her hair like she was his cub.
Rook’s giggle hurt my heart. My chest ached with loss.
Fuck, I can’t lose her.
Even though Dillon had managed to enlist the Sovereign Retrieval team...how much time did we have before this became a funeral procession instead of a recovery mission?
Staggering to my feet, I went to Rook’s bodyguard and held out my hand. “Thank you, Dil. For everything.”
He snorted and eyed up my hand. “Are you going to set me on fire?”
I smirked. “One day perhaps, but not today.”
He clasped my hand, squeezing roughly. “I’m glad she has you. Truly.”
“And I’m glad she has you.” My mind went to dark places, envisioning a future where I wasn’t there. Where Rook stayed alive without me. Where only one of us made it. And despite the agony at the thought of leaving her—despite the possessiveness of another man watching over her, loving her....I was glad she had Dillon. No matter what happened.
Whisper nudged Rook to her feet then pushed her toward me, pressing her against me as if he knew we did so much better when touching. He studied us, sensing our pain—knowing better than anyone just how close we were to the end.