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“Hello?” Kaylie spoke into the phone, and my eyes darted from Johnny to her. She gave me a long look, then turned her gaze down and nearly whispered, “Is this Dominic Ramírez?” She glanced at me, then blurted, “We need refuge from Mr. X.”
Fuck!I snatched the phone from her hand, twisting my shoulder in the process. Fresh pain ripped through me, and another string of curses made Kaylie wince.
“Who’s this?” A voice from the phone asked. “Hello?”
Kaylie shot me a sour look, then took the phone from me while I was too busy riding out the fucking burning shoulder to stop her.
Kaylie spoke into the phone, briefing the guy on our situation, and I had to fight the urge to take the phone and toss it out the window. She said it herself. She didn’t trust anyone. How could she expect me to take her to a man who could be working with the people we were running from? We could be walking straight into a trap. No fucking way I’d let—
“Okay. We’ll be there.” She cut the call, and I rounded on her.
“Are you fucking insane?” The moment the harsh words left my mouth, I regretted them. She flinched, then a hard look came over her face, replacing the hurt and the fear.
“Maybe,” she said. “But I don’t see you doing anything to get us out of this.”
A harsh sound escaped my lips. “I took a bullet for you. What else do you want from me?”
Her anger deflated as fast as it flared, leaving her with regret on her pretty face.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I didn’t mean it like that.”
“I know,” I muttered. “I don’t like this.”
She let out a little laugh. “Neither do I, but I don’t think we have a choice. We are on the run from the freaking mafia. Don’t you—”
“Thewhat?”
Johnny let out a little whistle from the driver’s seat.
“Mafia,” she whispered the word, lifting her gaze to me. “We need to take this risk. Without protection from someone who knows their business, we’re screwed.”
I stroked a thumb over the gun, contemplating it. If Alex told the truth, this Dominic could prove valuable to us. But if not… a chill skittered down my spine as the possibilities flared through my head. If not—we were about to meet a painful death. It wasn’t nothing I hadn’t done before. A cold sense of determination filled me. If she wanted to go through with this, I had conditions, and she wasn’t going to like them. I swore to keep her safe. This was my doing that.
I spoke with my eyes locked on the gun in my lap, refusing to meet any of their gazes. “You’re not coming with me.”
“What?” They said in unison.
“Marc…” Johnny begun, but I cut him off.
“Don’t fucking argue this.”
“No shit I will!” Johnny exclaimed.
“I’m not leaving you again,” Kaylie whispered. “Don’t even think—”
“You too!” I snapped, finally meeting her gaze. The emotion in her eyes slammed into me with a force that stole my breath and made me choke on the next words. “I’ll go alone. You stay with Johnny.”
Kaylie’s eyes darted to Johnny, who looked just as shocked.
“Marc—” he tried again, and I held up my hand.
“No.” The one word shut him up, and as he and Kaylie shared desperate looks, I gripped the gun.
“I know what I’m doing,”Marc said, and I seriously doubted it. Icy cold fear had my belly in a tight grip as the headlight of the car coming toward us blinded me. Rain splattered across the windshield, blurring, and distorting the oncoming vehicle until it looked just as muddled as the feelings battling inside.
I reached out to the man in a moment of desperation. Johnny and Marc’s arguing. The knowing they were right. That we had nowhere to go and no way to defend ourselves. Marc’s condition. I made the decision without thinking of the consequences, and now I had to pay the price.
“I’m coming with you.” I tried to keep my voice steady, but it was hard when knowing I was about to lose him—again.
