Rocco fought to move his body from under the door but it was no use. The metal was too heavy. He watched as the gun leveled at his face. He stilled his body for the blast he knew was coming. The one that would end his life.
His only regret was he didn’t tell Jemma how he felt about her.
He would never get to tell her that he loved her.
Chapter 47
Jemma didn’t think.
She reacted on instinct.
Vance Neville had pointed a gun in Rocco’s face as he lay pinned underneath the cargo container door. He couldn’t move. Couldn’t free himself. Couldn’t stop El Sombro’s top lieutenant from ending his life.
But she could.
Lowering her weapon, she forced it into the holster then ran from the edge of the jungle to Rocco’s side. The expanse of cleared land sat empty. The tracks of tires scattered across the ground were the only evidence that cargo trucks had been in the area.
Vance’s dead body was several feet away. His blood and brain matter splattered across the ground. Droplets smeared across Rocco’s face. But he was alive.
“Nice shot,” Rocco said with a pained smile and muffled chuckle.
Jemma dropped to her knees next to him, unable to stop the smile erupting on her face. “Almost lost you.”
Rocco reached out and gripped her hand with surprisingstrength considering his predicament. “You could never lose me. Ever.”
A flutter tickled her heart at his words, but this was no time for romance. If she stopped to think about how close she’d come to watching Rocco die, she would be crushed by a wave of emotions. Rocco needed her to focus and get him out of danger. There would be plenty of time to process what happened later.
“Jemma, you saved my life.”
“And now you owe me big time. Don’t think because you’re pinned under this metal door that you get out of paying me back.” Jemma gripped the edge of the thick metal as she squatted next to Rocco and pulled with all her might. The damn thing didn’t budge a millimeter.
“Hey …” Rocco said, his breath labored.
“I need your help to get you from under here. Can you move at all?”
“No and believe me I tried like hell,” Rocco said grimacing. “It’s heavy but I don’t think I have any broken bones. My hips and legs are pinned underneath the damn thing.”
“Maybe I can find a branch or pole to use as a fulcrum. With some extra leverage I might be able to get it off you.”
“It’s too heavy. Maybe if someone else was here, that could work but face it. We can’t do this by ourselves.”
She gazed down into the face of this amazing man. He’d become the first thing she saw when she woke and the last face she saw before she went to bed. She realized that was what she wanted her days to be like … forever. She didn’t want to know a life without Rocco.
“Fine. You’re right,” Jemma said, then reached into her pocket for her phone. “I need to call Proteus.”
“Signals have been jammed out here. I’m not sure you’ll be able to.”
Checking her phone, she realized he was right.
“You have to leave me and go get help.” Rocco cleared his throat. “But before you do, there’s something I need to say.”
“We can catch up later?—”
“No,” Rocco insisted, reaching for her. “I need to say this now.”
Jemma sat down next to him, holding his hand in hers.
“When Vance had that gun pointed in my face, I didn’t know if I would ever see you again. I had so many regrets. I hated that the last time we’d talked had been a huge argument. That I’d walked out on you?—”
