Total pages in book: 34
Estimated words: 31905 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 160(@200wpm)___ 128(@250wpm)___ 106(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 31905 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 160(@200wpm)___ 128(@250wpm)___ 106(@300wpm)
Ash held me while Kevlar rushed forward to pull Baylor off him. “It’s done. I got him. He’s not gonna hurt your woman ever again.”
“I don’t understand,” Susan whispered. “What just happened?”
“You invited my stalker to our meeting.”
13
WIZARD
Ispun around, and as soon as I spotted Thea, I opened my arms. She ran at me full speed, nearly knocking us both to the ground when her body collided with mine.
“You okay, baby?” I asked, holding her tightly against me.
“I am now,” she said softly.
When I realized she was trying not to cry, my arms tightened around her. “That was a fucked-up situation. Not gonna think less of you for crying.”
“It’s so stupid,” she grumbled, then sniffed and buried her face against my chest.
“Just makes you my damsel in distress,” I teased. “And playing the hero is good for my ego.”
Thea giggled, and I kissed the crown of her head before scooping her into my arms.
“Hey,” Ash said as he walked up beside us. “Nice move, Thea. How’d you know what Wizard was planning?”
She looked at him with a grin. “He mentioned The Spy’s Return.”
At Ash’s puzzled expression, she explained in more detail. “There’s a scene where the heroine is confronted by the villain. He gets the drop on her, and when the hero shows up, the bad guy is holding a gun to her head.
“She plays along like he’s the one saving her and drops her head back and to the side, ostensibly to look up at him. This moves the barrel so it’s pointing just beyond her and exposes the villain’s head just enough for the hero to take him out. So I relaxed and played along with Mark until Baylor had the perfect opportunity to save me.”
Ash scratched his cheek and shook his head. “You got all that from the title of a book.”
Thea twisted her neck to look up at my face. “We have our own kind of…shorthand,” she mumbled with a sly smile.
“That kinda thing happens when you’re in love,” I drawled to Ash.
Thea gasped and stiffened. Silently, I shouted at myself for being a stupid motherfucker. This was not the time or place for her to hear me tell her that I loved her for the first time.
She stared at me with a stunned expression, and her mouth opened to say something.
I shook my head, then gave her a quick, hard kiss. “Not here.”
Thea pursed her lips together before nodding.
“You got this?” I asked Ash.
He waved me off. “Yeah. We’re good.”
With a muttered, “Thanks,” I rapidly exited the building. When we were settled in the truck and on our way home, Thea cleared her throat.
“Not yet,” I told her gently, giving her thigh a pat before resting my hand there.
When we arrived at the clubhouse, I parked and got out of the vehicle. Thea obediently waited for me to jog around the hood of the truck and open her door.
“Good girl,” I praised quietly, smiling when her cheeks turned pink and she shivered.
Then I engulfed her hand in my much bigger one and led her through the front door.
“Got one stop to make, then we’ll go to our room and talk,” I promised her.
Lucky for me, Blaze was in his office when we stopped by.
“That package arrive?” I asked in lieu of a greeting.
Blaze nodded and pointed at a box sitting on the conference table.
“Appreciate it,” I muttered gratefully as I picked the package up and stuck it under my arm.
Thea looked at me expectantly, and I smiled, shaking my head. “Patience, baby.”
She huffed and glared at me as I towed her to the stairs and up to our room.
Once inside, I ushered her to the little sitting area and gently pushed her down onto the couch before sitting on the coffee table right in front of her. It was a sturdy piece of furniture, and I knew it wouldn’t break under my weight.
“That was a shit move,” I told her softly. “Saying I loved you in the middle of the chaos like that.”
Her head dropped forward, and she whispered, “It wasn’t true?”
Scowling, I cupped her chin and forced her head up. “Didn’t I promise never to lie to you?”
Thea chewed on her bottom lip, then conceded, “Yes.”
“I love the fuck outta you, woman. Just meant that the timing was bullshit.”
“Oh.” Her lips lifted at the corners of her mouth, and her green eyes brightened. “You really love me?”
“Didn’t I just say that?” I growled.
Her smile grew, and she beamed at me.
“Probably shoulda told you sooner,” I admitted. “But with all the shit happening around us, it never seemed to be the right time.”
“That makes sense,” she agreed softly.
I waited a little bit, then raised an eyebrow and gave her chin a squeeze. “Got something to say to me, baby?”
Thea’s cheeks turned pink, and she tried to duck her head but couldn’t because I was still holding her chin.