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Luka’s jaw tightened, his hands gripping the wheel. He drank in the gentle curve of her waist and the swell of her ass in those jeans. When she reached to brush her fingers back through her hair, her white T-shirt lifted to show a flash of her pale midriff. Luka watched her hips softly sway and her auburn hair flutter in the breeze. She was stunningly gorgeous, even at the end of a long shift, with no makeup on, dressed in modest street clothes. Luka’s hands itched to touch her, but he knew he had to keep his distance, at least for now.
He silently opened the car door and slipped out. He closed and locked it, then ducked into the shadows along the side of the buildings. He was at least half a block behind Kira as she walked to her car. His heart thumped hard in his chest. She was so close. He just wanted to see her safely to her vehicle and then home, not intervene in any way.
But then he saw two men lean out of an alleyway after her. They were crouched down, dressed in black coats with ski masks over their faces. Luka instantly knew they were up to no good. He pressed himself flat to the building so they wouldn’t see him. The men muttered something to each other, mostly gesturing without words. Luka saw them point after Kira and nod to one another. Then, they began to follow her.
Luka picked up the pace but kept his footsteps silent. He was a professional tracker and he knew how to pass undetected. The men tailed Kira, and Luka tailed them. Kira was oblivious, looking down at her cell phone with a faint smile, like she was texting someone.
One man quietly pulled something shiny from his jacket pocket. Moonlight glinted off the long, serrated blade. The other man slipped off his belt and held it taut between both hands. Possessive rage bubbled up inside Luka’s chest. He pulled the gun from his holster and moved faster, already preparing for a fight.
“Hold on a minute, ma’am!” the man with the belt called out.
Kira startled and whipped around, surprised to see them. She clapped a hand over her mouth and stumbled back when she saw the blade flash in the streetlight. Kira turned to dart away, but the men had sufficiently stunned her and used it to their advantage. In a few short steps they were on her, one man brandishing the knife while the other swung his thick leather belt around Kira’s neck, jerking her backward with a gagging sound. She was flailing, eyes bugging out, trying to cry for help to no avail.
Luka broke into a run and reached the scuffle within seconds. Without a single word he lifted the gun and whacked each man in the back of the head with the blunt metal end of his firearm. The belt guy fell to the ground instantly, and the knife wielder dropped his blade.
“Fuck!” he shouted, and tried to run off.
“Not so fast,” Luka snarled between gritted teeth.
He reached out and grabbed him by the back of his jacket. He yanked him back and slammed the heel of his gun into the man’s nose, shattering it in a bright spray of crimson. The man let out a blood-curdling cry and curled into the fetal position, shaking, with both hands over his bloody face.
“What the hell, man? What the fuck?” he was wailing.
Luka spat on the sidewalk right next to the man’s face, then grabbed Kira’s hand. He pulled her along with him in the opposite direction.
“Luka? What are you… Where are you taking me? My car is that way!” she shouted hoarsely. “Luka, stop!”
“We have to get out of here,” he hissed to her.
“I can’t keep up!” she whimpered.
Without missing a beat, Luka scooped her into his arms and kept running. They reached Luka’s sedan and he tossed her into the passenger seat. He dove behind the wheel and peeled out onto the street amid angry honks from other drivers. Luka was unfazed, focused fully on weaving through traffic across town to his apartment.
“Where are we going?” Kira asked.
“Somewhere safe,” he said.
“What even happened back there?” she spluttered.
“Those guys were trying to mug you. Or kidnap you,” he answered.
“Why were you there? How the hell did you know where to find me?” she demanded.
Luka glanced over at her in the glow of the dashboard. She looked furious, frightened, and impressed all at the same time. She was staring at him with those big, blue eyes.
“Why did you quit the casino?” he asked her.
“To get away from you!” Kira shot back.
“If not for me, you’d probably be dead,” he hissed.
“How do I know those guys weren’t working for the mafia too, huh? How am I supposed to just trust you when I know who you really work for?” she hurled at him.
Luka’s car whipped into a parking space near his apartment building. He cut the engine and whirled to glare at Kira. She was pressed against the window, as far from him as she could reach. As thoughhewere the threat.
“I would never, ever let anyone hurt you,” Luka growled. “No matter who I work for.”
“Why? Why do you care about me?” she pressed, leaning closer to him now.
