Page 42 of Property of Legend

I’m fumin’.“Figures.Ezekiel always had his fingers in somebody else’s pockets.That bastard’s deeper in this than I thought.”

Before she can say a damn word, the whole barn shudders.I look up and there’s a faint glint on the beam overhead… like a wire.A sick crack echoes through the air, sharp and violent.

Sophie gasps, grabbing my arm.“What the hell…”

The barn groans again, louder this time.I hear the snap of support beams giving way.

“We gotta go.Now!”I bark, hauling her to her feet.

We make a break for the door just as the roof behind us caves in with a thunderous crash.Dust explodes into the air.Through the cloud, I catch a flicker of movement, figures sprinting off into the fields.A laugh follows, echoing in the darkness, cold, taunting.

“Who the hell was that?”she pants, eyes wide and wild.

“Trouble,” I growl, fingers locking around hers.“Come on.”

My blood’s pumpin’ now, adrenaline in my veins like jet fuel.We take off, boots pounding the ground.Behind us, I hear them, footsteps, fast, chasing.

Sophie stumbles, nearly eats it, but I’m already catching her, scooping her up without missing a beat.

She wraps around me like she belongs there, breath hot on my neck.

Then.Crack crack crack.

Gunfire.

Bullets slice through the dark, too close for comfort.Dirt kicks up near my boots.I grit my teeth and push harder, heart slammin’ in my chest.I’m not stoppin’.Not with her in my arms.

We hit the porch.I shoulder the door open so hard it rattles off the frame, kick it shut behind us, then throw the bolt.

Breath ragged, I press her tighter to my chest, heart still thunderin’, but the fight’s not over.Not yet.Her breath shakes against my neck, but her eyes… they’re hard now.Not broken.Just more fire.

Whoever came for us tonight?They just signed their own damn death sentence.

Chapter 23

Sophie

My heart’s still pounding like a runaway thoroughbred when Legend set me down, slow and careful like I might shatter if he moved too fast.His hands linger at my waist a second too long.Thank God.I don’t want to be alone in my skin right now.My fingers tangle into the front of his shirt like I needed it just to breathe.

"Are you alright?"His voice’s all grit, low enough to melt the panic still buzzing in my veins.

"I think so."I force out a shaky breath."Unless I’m dying and this is the sexy part of the afterlife."

He huffs out a rough laugh, but his thumb was already on my cheek, brushing away something I was too proud to admit might’ve been a tear.I hate feeling weak.But right now?I’m unraveling, and he saw every thread.

"We were close to something," he says, voice serious.His eyes search mine like they might hold the answer.

"Welcome to my life lately," I mutter, trying for brave but landing somewhere between exhausted and wrecked.“Legend…”

His name tastes like aged bourbon on my tongue.Dark, hot, spicy.I swallow hard, suddenly too full of everything I’d been holding in.

“I’m scared,” I admit.“My father’s legacy, the farm, the Derby.It’s all coming apart.I don’t know who I can trust anymore.”

His muscles tick beneath that stubble I shouldn’t be thinking about right now.

"You can trust me," he says, fierce and final, like a vow."Ain’t nobody touching you.Ain’t nobody stealing what’s yours."

Something cracks open inside me.All those walls I’d spent years building brick by brick?He bulldozes through them with one look.And the worst part?I don’t even want to stop him.

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