Total pages in book: 180
Estimated words: 182075 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 910(@200wpm)___ 728(@250wpm)___ 607(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 182075 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 910(@200wpm)___ 728(@250wpm)___ 607(@300wpm)
They knew about Hope?
A whimper escaped her.
“It’s all right, Boo,” Slade soothed. “We’re going to hand it over nice and slow. Did you bribe the lawyer? Is that how you knew he had the pen drive and that he was bringing it here today? Why didn’t he just give it to you?”
“Billy told us that the pen drive was with his lawyer, locked up tight and secure. The lawyer has been overseas and we were having trouble finding him. We broke into his office but couldn’t find the pen drive. So we decided to put a guy on him once he returned. We did debate just taking the pen drive from him. But before he died Billy said the information was locked up tight and that we’d never access it without her. We assumed that you were the her he was talking about.” He nodded at Indie. “So we decided to let this play out.”
“You turned up here awfully quick even with a guy on the lawyer,” Quaid said. “And then you managed to get into the club with one of our codes. How did you get hold of a code? Who was the other guy with you?”
The guy just smiled. “Can’t reveal all of my secrets, now, can I?” The guy held out his hand and Quaid stepped forward, handing him the pen drive.
“Thank you. Good doing business with you,” he said as Quaid stepped in front of her again, pushing her back and nearly causing her to fall. Quaid was never rough with her, which mean he’d done that deliberately.
So that he could take the bullet.
No!
She attempted to throw herself at him, expecting to be shot at any moment. This was it. They were going to die.
At least Hope had Spencer and Rock. But, God, this was not the way she’d expected things to end.
All she wanted was to live peacefully with her men and baby girl.
She slammed into Quaid, who caught her with a grunt. Seconds passed as he held her, cradling her against him.
“It’s all right, baby girl,” Quaid said. “They’re gone. You’re safe. We’re all safe.”
Moving her head, she glanced around her. They were gone? They’d just left?
Slade moved his hand, revealing a gun that he must have had hidden behind the desk. She let out a whoosh of breath. She hated to think of what would have happened if he’d had to use it.
She felt like none of them would have gotten out of here alive.
“They were dumb fucks,” Slade growled. “They should have made me move away from the desk. As soon as they raised their guns, I would have shot them.” He grabbed his phone, talking to someone. But the words were garbled, like they were coming from a distance.
Her heart was racing and she felt light-headed. A wave of nausea hit her hard. “I think . . . I think I’m going to be ill!”
Quaid grabbed the rubbish bin, holding it to her mouth as Slade ended his call, racing over to help her sit. They crouched next to her, Slade rubbing her back as she threw up. Both of them spoke to her soothingly, using soft touches and reassuring words.
Finally, her stomach settled. She sat back up. She was trembling. What was going on? Why did it feel like her heart was going to race right out of her chest?
Quaid carried the bin into the attached bathroom and returned with a wet cloth while Slade wrapped a blanket around her and picked her up in his arms, sitting with her on his lap.
After wiping her face with the cloth, Quaid grabbed a bottle of water from a small fridge and helped her drink a few sips.
That felt better. The cool water combined with the warmth of the blanket and the safety of Slade’s arms helped calm her.
“You’re safe,” Quaid told her, crouching in front of them. “We have you. Nothing is going to happen to you.”
“You were going to take a bullet for me, weren’t you?” she asked him.
“Of course,” he replied matter-of-factly. “I will always try to protect you, at least until Slade shot them.”
“You . . . you shouldn’t do that.” She pulled the blanket away so she could reach out and cup his cheek. “I need you here. All of you.”
“But you come first,” Slade told her. “You and Hope.”
She really needed to get back to her baby.
“Should we call someone? Go somewhere?” There was a rising note of panic in her voice.
“Shh, it’s all right, Little one,” Slade said. “Daddy has you, you’re safe.” He slid his finger along her lips and she parted them, sucking on it.
That helped calm her even further. Then she realized that Quaid had stood and was on the phone.
“Yeah . . . yep. We don’t know, but I’ll find out. She’s all right? Good, don’t take your eyes off her.” He ended the call and glanced over at her with concern. He was really trying to engage his emotions. “Hope is fine. Rock and Spencer will be extra vigilant.”