Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 70162 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 351(@200wpm)___ 281(@250wpm)___ 234(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70162 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 351(@200wpm)___ 281(@250wpm)___ 234(@300wpm)
I patted Mischief’s neck, “Work with me, and I’ll spoil you extra good.” She sped up just like she understood.
Once again, I was racing toward Ghost on horseback, but this time, I wasn’t considering running him down. I was going to save him, and neither of us was going to get shot. Please let that be true.
We locked eyes, and he smiled at me. He’d never even been on a horse, but he’d been force recon like my brothers. He knew how to learn on the job. We could do this.
I stretched out my arm and flexed my hand. He nodded, and I prayed as hard as I ever had that we could pull this off.
42
GHOST
When Rogue came into sight riding Mischief, he looked like a movie cowboy. His jean-clad legs clung to the sides of his horse. His white t-shirt showed off all his muscles, and his Stetson stayed on his head despite the speed at which he was moving.
He used simple gestures to communicate with me as easily as Rhys would have. He wanted to pull me up onto his horse. I wasn’t sure that was going to work, but if anyone could pull it off, he could. He’d even positioned himself so I’d be pushing off on my good foot.
I braced myself and reached for him. He clasped his hand around my forearm, I grabbed his and jumped, and he swung me around like he’d done it a million times. I took hold of his waist and just managed to keep myself from sliding off the other side of Mischief.
As soon as I was seated, Rogue raised his gun and put a bullet in each of the men chasing me.
I whooped. “You’re a goddamn hero!” I’d seen all kinds of daring rescues, crazy stunts, and incredible shooting, but none had exhilarated me like Rogue did, and the fact that he’d done it weeks out from being shot made it even more incredible.
A truck came barreling toward us, driving across the terrain like roads were completely unnecessary. I tightened my grip on Rogue so I could look over my shoulder. It was Blade, coming to our rescue. Rogue waved at him, and he slowed down, obviously recognizing we were no longer in danger. I could only imagine how hard it was for him to drive into danger after all he’d been through. He was a damn fine man, and I was as determined as Rogue and his brothers to help him in any way we could.
Rogue slowed but kept moving, giving Mischief a chance to cool down. I hadn’t ever planned to be on horseback, but while I hadn’t been sure if I could stay on at high speed, it was a lot more fun than I expected. Maybe that was because I was pressed against Rogue, hands on his hips, drawing in his warm scent with every breath.
When he brought the horse to a stop, he turned and smiled at me. “Good work.”
“You were… That was… Fucking wow.”
He laughed and held out a hand. “Do you need help down.”
I shook my head. The ground was farther away than I’d predicted, but I still managed to slip slowly down the horse’s side and land only on my good foot.
Blade had stopped at the fence, climbed over, and headed our way. “What happened?”
I gave a brief explanation.
“And you’re all right now?”
I nodded. “Thank you. I know this isn’t… I appreciate you coming.”
He held out his hand, and we shook. “For you. For them.” He tilted his head toward Rogue. “I’d do anything.”
The roar of ATV engines had us all turning toward the far end of the pasture. Grant, Rhys, and TJ were racing toward us. Blade glanced toward his truck then back at them.
“Go on,” I said. “We’ve got this.”
He nodded and ran back to his vehicle. Maybe one day he’d be comfortable around all of us again.
When they brought the ATVs to a stop, TJ pointed at the bodies on the ground. “Who are these assholes?”
“Two of the men who saw me at the warehouse.”
“So either the Russos sent these fools, or they came on their own.” Grant said.
“Right, and they have another friend behind the shed,” I gestured toward where I’d dropped the first of the three. “I don’t think the head of the family would be stupid enough to send these men after a fed. The fact that they came means they were probably trying to hide what happened the other night.”
Grant’s phone rang. “It’s X. I called him on the way.” He took the call and put it on speaker. “Everyone is safe. Three of the men from the warehouse incident are dead, and there’s no sign of anyone else.”
“Good. My intel indicates that the family head doesn’t know about this. Teddy and these bozos were keeping your presence to themselves, hoping to profit off it.”