Page 42 of Sniper

“Careful,” I growled and pushed her behind me again. There were three of them, not ideal odds but I’d been outnumbered before.

“Oh, he’s protective,” another one joked as they all got off their bikes and stood as one with their arms crossed.

“Just back off and I’ll let you walk away.”

All three of them laughed but I noted the wariness in their gazes. “Hand her over and we might let you live.”

“Suit yourself.” I took a step forward and pulled my arm back to punch the middle asshole I pegged as the leader, right on the nose. His legs crumbled until he was down on all fours.

“Motherfucker!” The one on the right lunged forward and landed a glancing blow to my jaw.

“No!” Katey shouted, her voice frantic.

Her voice was laced with fear as a fist landed on my back and it was officially two against one. They hit me from both sides, but I landed blow after blow, hitting them wherever I could.

“Stop it you asshole!” Katey sounded like she was struggling but every time I tried to look up, there was a fist flying at me to block my view. “Stay back,” she shouted frantically. “Don’t touch me.”

I tried to look up again and got another jab for my efforts. I rewarded that bastard with an uppercut that sent him stumbling backwards.

“You bitch.” The voice was pained. “You’re dead.”

“You first,” she shouted back with a grunt.

I turned just in time to duck another shot, landing two punches that put one of them down. Temporarily. That fuckergot up fast and charged at me, knocking me to the ground with a thud.

“Sniper!” Katey’s voice rang out and when I turned, she was also on the ground with one of those fuckers on top of her struggling form.

I saw red and jumped to my feet, only to be met with four fists on my chest and my back.

“That bitch stabbed me,” the man behind me shouted. “I’m gonna kill you!”

Over my dead body.

I squared up and landed a jab-hook combo that finally put one of those assholes down. Just one more to go.I turned and found the third asshole standing behind me with a gun in his hand.

“No,” Katey shot out before her foot appeared between the asshole’s legs.

His eyes widened in shock as his legs shook before they finally gave out and he fell to his knees.

“Jerk!” Katey kicked him and he fell face first into the blacktop parking lot. “Asshole!”

“Okay killer, let’s get out of here.” I looked down at the asshole holding his arm. “You really did stab him?”

“No,” she frowned. “I slashed his wrist the long way while he was trying to choke me.” She showed me the bloody switchblade as she wiped it on her jeans. “And a kick to the balls is an oldie but goodie. Always effective.”

“Better him than me.” I handed her the helmet and then we got on my bike and got the fuck out of there before more of Ethan’s men showed up.

Which only caused more questions. Where the fuck was he getting money for hitsanda crew? I had so many questions for Katey, and I wasn’t sure I’d get any answers.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Katey

All day I felt unsettled, which shouldn’t be all that alarming since I’d been feeling unsettled for more than a year at this point. Longer if I was being honest. But this wasn’t that fizzy water in the belly type of unsettled, oh no, this was something else entirely. There was a hitch stuck in my throat and every time I opened my mouth I felt as if I wanted to cry. My stomach was full of wasps, all buzzy and angry, which only made me anxious.

This wasn’t impending doom, at least not the kind of doom that loomed with thoughts of Ethan. This doom was particularly unsettling in that it wasn’t all that unsettling, but it should be. I promised myself when I spent my first twenty-four hours free of Ethan, that it would be a long time—years preferably—before I gave my heart away to a man. And that man wasn’t going to be a biker, that was the promise.

Yet here I was on the verge of handing my heart over to a man. A man who was in a motorcycle club, no less. I must be really fucking stupid.That was the only explanation for why I got all warm and tingly when I thought about Sniper. Why I smiled when I saw him. Why my body shivered when he smiled back at me, especially that little smile that curved his lips in that moment before his lips crashed down on mine.

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