Page 63 of Stella's Christmas Rescue
“Kowalski wasn’t the only reason I left.”
He peels my shirt from my shoulder, then kisses my collarbone. “That a fact?”
“Mm, hmm. That was just the catalyst.” I run my fingers into his hair and hold him tighter to me. “I knew you’d never accept me leaving you.”
He murmurs against my cleavage, “What’s that now?”
I press him to me tightly. Then I whisper into his ear, “Living a fake life in Witness Protection is better than faking my orgasms for the rest of a miserable life.”
Riker pushes me away, then backhands me across my face. I tumble back and land on my ass. He’s stronger than I remember. “You bitch! You never faked a thing with me!”
My lip is bleeding and swelling. “Every. Single. Time.”
“You’re a liar! You can’t fake that sort of thing, I?—"
I moan, “Mm, oh my god, yes, Simon, oh yes!” Then I roll my eyes. “I can do anything I set my mind to, you said it yourself.”
His nostrils flare, and he stomps over to me. “You think pissing me off is a good idea right now, Stella?”
“I think making you understand what a pathetic piece of shit you are is a good idea.”
“It’s a long flight to the Maldives, Love, you don’t want me angry with you for the trip, do you?”
I laugh. “You think I’m going to the Maldives with you? I’d sooner die!”
“That can be arranged!” He pulls out his gun and takes aim at me. But I stand up. “Rather die on your feet?”
I blurt, “There’s something else you should know first, Simon.”
He laughs. “And what’s that?”
“Guns have a limited range of efficacy.”
His brow scrunches. “What?”
I push his gun hand upward and it goes off. Then I take the rescue knife and shove it into his neck. His eyes bulge and he kicks me backward. I fall and hit my head against the table. I’m dizzy and my vision isn’t great. But a blurry Riker raises his hand again. Two gunshots ring loud.
21
Itake out the two guards, incapacitating them before I throw the office door open. A man stands over Stella, but his eyes are on me. I shoot him in the thigh, and he drops next to her.
I grab her and yank her small body to her feet. He rolls over and takes aim at her. His gun goes off, missing us both. Before he has time to take aim again I finish him.
The adrenaline rush makes my voice tight. I can’t take my eyes off the thin stream of blood coming from his neck around a rescue knife. He’s a well-dressed corpse. “Who were they?”
“That one is Riker. I don’t know the other two,” she mumbles. Her eyes are wild, darting all over the scene.
By her reaction, I’d guess this is her first dead body. “Riker is dead…good.”
Stella nods quickly, then blurts, “Jordan, you’re bleeding.”
“You put that knife in him, didn’t you?”
“Yeah, why are you bleeding?”
“Got stabbed. What happened to your lip?”
“Riker backhanded me.”
