Page 88 of With This Kiss
That was all I needed.
I lunged forward, catching Tito off guard. He slashed wildly with the knife, but I was ready. I grabbed his wrist mid-swing, twisting until I heard a crack. The blade clattered to the floor. Before he could scream, I slammed my fist into his throat, feeling a small sense of satisfaction from the guttural sound he made.
Heavy footsteps moved up the metal stairs, and I turned around to see more of the Caparelli’s men. Fuck, how many men did this fucker manage to turn?
I picked up the blade Tito dropped and rushed over to Jamie, cutting the ropes and pulling her down to me.
She wrapped her arms around my neck, clinging to me as more tears fell from her face. I pushed her behind me and took in all the men. Seven total.
We were outnumbered, and usually I didn’t let something as small as being outnumbered stop me, but I had Jamie with me. I couldn’t risk her getting hurt.
Movement from outside the window caught my attention. Either Tito had stationed more men outside on the upper level of this warehouse that I didn’t know about, or my reinforcements had arrived.
Thank fuck.
I tensed, getting ready. The next moment, glass shattered, and three figures swung in through the windows. Gunfire erupted immediately. Two of Tito’s men went down before they could even raise their weapons.
“Stay down!” I yelled, pushing Jamie to the ground.
The remaining men scattered, trying to find cover. One ran toward us, gun raised. I didn't hesitate. I threw my blade, catching him in the throat. He dropped, gurgling on his own blood.
The gunfight was over in seconds. One moment, there was pure chaos—the next, dead silence. When the shooting stopped, I heard a familiar voice call out.
“All clear!”
I looked up to see Makar standing there, his gun still drawn.
“Tito Costa,” I said, looking around for the fucker and not finding him anywhere. He shook his head.
Fucking hell. The coward ran and left his men behind.
I stood and was about to give chase when small hands clasped my wrist. I looked down to see Jamie’s terrified expression. I swallowed my anger, knowing I wouldn’t be able to go hunting tonight.
Taking a deep breath, I bent down and pulled Jamie up, carrying her in my arms. She instantly buried her face in my chest, her tears wetting my skin, making the heart that I thought was dead a long time ago flutter rapidly.
“I’m taking her home,” I said.
“And what about the remaining men?” Baran asked, coming up to me. He frowned at Jamie in my arms, but thankfully didn’t comment on that.
“Call Caine. Let him take care of his men. But let him know I want them alive long enough for me to have my fun. And Baran? Burn this fucking place down. I want nothing but ashes on this land.”
Baran nodded.
Jamie tensed even more at the sound of her brother’s name.
There was no more keeping this a secret from her.
She also couldn’t keep her secrets from me either.
It was time to come clean.
And then…
And then, I was going to make sure she stayed mine, and that was all there was to it.
19
JAMIE
