Total pages in book: 23
Estimated words: 21817 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 109(@200wpm)___ 87(@250wpm)___ 73(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 21817 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 109(@200wpm)___ 87(@250wpm)___ 73(@300wpm)
He lunges for the pistol on the dresser, but I’m faster. I grab his arm and snap it in the wrong direction.
“Fuck!” he screams in agony as I grab him by the neck and carry him to the balcony.
“She’s mine,” he hisses through gritted teeth. “I paid for her fair and square. You just can’t handle losing!”
I squeeze his neck a little harder and his eyes bulge.
“You took the game too far, Novak,” I growl as we pass through the French doors and onto the balcony. “Taking a bear’s mate will always end up in a checkmate.”
He claws at my wrist, trying to say something. His feet are off the ground and he’s kicking my legs, desperately trying to wiggle free. I loosen my grip so he can speak.
“What?”
“I have money!” he hisses. “I’ll pay you!”
“It’s always money with you,” I say as I shake my head. “Your money has saved you for the last time.”
With a grunt, I launch him off the balcony. He screams the whole way down and then dies with a splat.
I look over the edge to make sure he’s dead.
My Kodiak grumbles with satisfaction when he sees the puddle of blood leaking out of his cracked skull.
There’s no guilt or sadness when I see his dead body, only relief. All threats to my mate must be ruthlessly eliminated. There’s no other option. When it comes to keeping my Ava safe, there’s nothing I won’t do.
His four goons come running out of the darkness and surround Novak’s dead body. They look stunned as they stand there staring down at their former boss.
“Up there!” one of them shouts when he sees me.
Shit!
I dart back inside as they hurry into the mansion.
The beautiful sight of my girl on the bed staggers me for a second, but I fight through it and race over.
“You came back for me,” she whispers as I untie the string around her wrist.
Her blue eyes are so magnificent. I just want to stare at her for hours, admiring every stunning detail but those fuckers are on their way up and we have to move fast.
“Of course, I did,” I say as I free one hand and then get to work on the other. “You’re my girl, Ava. I’ll die to keep you safe.”
I get her second hand free and she grabs the back of my neck and pulls me toward her, crushing her lips to mine. My whole body goes numb when I taste her sweet mouth.
It’s torture to pull away, but those goons are on their way up.
I pull my mouth away from hers with my head spinning. “We have to move. Now.”
She leaps off the bed, but it’s hard for her to move with that long train on her dress dragging behind her.
“Hold on,” I say as I grab the thick fabric at her knees and tear it off.
I look at her, expecting her to be upset that I ruined her gorgeous gown, but she’s got wide excited eyes and a fiery smile on her face.
“We’re going to have to jump off the balcony,” I tell her. “Are you ready for that?”
“Wait!” She runs over to the desk and grabs the gun and a stack of papers. “The marriage certificate. I didn’t want to marry him. I was hoping you’d win.”
She tosses the stack of papers into the fire and they light up with a roar.
I spot the file full of all the contracts I signed this afternoon that give Novak the deed to my ranch, so I grab them off the desk and toss them in as well.
“I will win,” I say as I wrap my arm around her waist and pull her against me. I kiss her soft lips and then scoop her up into my arms as the papers burn. “And you’ll be my wife.”
The grizzly bear shifters are thumping up the stairs, so I run to the balcony with Ava clutched to my chest.
I hold her as tightly as I can and leap off.
Chapter Seven
Ava
“Holy shit!” I scream as Elias leaps off the balcony with me in his arms. I curl into his big warm chest as my stomach drops.
We hit the ground hard, but Elias absorbs all of the shock. He lands on his feet and starts running into the forest.
I peek over his big round shoulder and see the four bear shifters running onto the porch. They look at us fleeing and then leap over as well. I duck down with a whimper.
There’s a gun in my hand, this huge shirtless beast of a man is holding me to his naked chest as he runs through the forest, and four vicious bear shifters are chasing us down with the intent to kill. I wanted adventure and now I got it.
I’m kind of changing my mind on the whole adventure thing. It’s terrifying. I think the biggest adventure I can handle is maybe slipping a lemon slice into my tea for a change and switching up my book genre from romance to thriller.