Total pages in book: 158
Estimated words: 144908 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 725(@200wpm)___ 580(@250wpm)___ 483(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 144908 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 725(@200wpm)___ 580(@250wpm)___ 483(@300wpm)
His teeth bit down on her shoulder, this time much harder, and she stilled, ignoring the flash of pain, recognizing that the tension was coiled tight in him.
“You were worried sick about me? You were exposed out here,” he rasped against her shoulder. “Those men were trained assassins. They were focused on me, or they would have seen you. They should have. They knew a sniper was on them, but they thought their man was hunting her. Still, the four of them kept checking with him to ensure they were safe. That divided their attention as well. That was why they didn’t spot you.”
“Or maybe I’m good at hiding.”
“I was aware the moment you slipped out onto the patio,” he corrected. “Let’s get back inside. They’re going to start cleaning up out here, and we have guests. Czar and Blythe can only hold the fort for so long.”
“I would have thought your club would hustle Blythe out of here the moment you knew for certain those assassins were here.” She hated that he’d dropped his arm from around her waist, but he took her hand and they made their way across the patio floor.
Savage held the door open for her. “Nice job, Ambrie, welcome to the family.”
“Don’t encourage her, Savage,” Master snapped. His voice came out more of a growl, and he coughed.
Ambrielle looked up at him, worried. Savage followed them inside. “Did you tell Steele that throat thing is back?”
“What throat thing?” Ambrie demanded, when she noticed Master trying to subtly warn Savage off.
Master glared at Savage. “It’s nothing to worry about, princess.”
She stopped moving right in the hallway of the restaurant, a difficult feat when he was such a big man. “Tell me right now.”
Savage turned away, but she caught a flash of what could have been a smirk he exchanged with Destroyer. She didn’t care what they thought. Master had made a promise to her, and as far as she was concerned, he’d already broken it. She wasn’t having him do it again.
Master sighed. “This relationship crap is getting out of hand. You’re supposed to do what I tell you in front of the brothers, not the other way around, remember?”
Ambrielle hastily looked around to make sure the members of Torpedo Ink had abandoned them before she put her hands on her hips and tilted her head to look up at him, narrowing her gaze so he knew she meant business.
“I have not disrespected you. I haven’t even argued with you. If anything, I’ve backed you when you were in trouble.”
Ambrielle held her breath, seeing the struggle in him. He wasn’t used to sharing his life with anyone. He didn’t want to talk about his health. He’d just kicked ass, taking out his enemies in seconds, yet he didn’t want to appear weak in any way. A quick overview of his childhood, growing up in a prison surrounded by sadistic, cruel men, forced to learn to survive in such a place—she could only imagine the smallest hint of weakness would mean death.
Ambrielle slid her palm along his forearm. “We’re partners, remember?”
“Yeah, I remember.” He all but gritted his teeth.
She had the feeling he was regretting his decision.
“I get nodules on my vocal cords sometimes. Growths. Always benign. They’re caused by tension or stress. Most likely going to prison. It’s nothing big.” His voice really did sound gruff, and his eyes avoided hers.
That meant this had happened repeatedly. She wanted to have a conversation about it, but clearly this wasn’t the time or place. She just nodded. “Thank you, Master. I would have been worried if you hadn’t told me. I guess we’d better go back in and pretend nothing happened. I can’t believe my friends wouldn’t have been aware of what’s been going on out here all this time.”
“How could they? Everything happened outside, other than the one man Destroyer had to dispose of, but he was fast and he took the body out through the kitchen.”
She took a couple of steps toward the dining room and stopped again. “Are you certain Lana is all right? If she was the one on the roof covering you?” She put her free hand to her throat defensively when he refused to relinquish her other hand and looked down at her from his superior height, giving her his frown.
“Yes, Lana was watching out for me. I wasn’t worried though. I’m telling you, princess, these men were second rate.”
“I believe you. I saw you in action. They didn’t know what hit them. It’s just that Thompson has four men with him—Gleb, Denis, Simon and Stas—who I think are elite Russian assassins. They were hired by Walker Thompson, but they would have killed him and his entire security team in a heartbeat if Thompson threatened them in any way. There was no hesitation at all with any decision they made. They didn’t make mistakes.”