I gasped. “What are you doing?”
He didn’t respond. Holding me tightly in his arms, he strode out of the park.
“Put me down.” I hated that my voice was shaky.
“No.”
My vision blurred and I tried desperately to hold onto consciousness. “Where are you taking me?”
“I’m going to take care of you, and stop you from bleeding all over the place.”
I couldn’t pick apart the emotions and feelings welling inside me. Take care of me? No one did that. That was my job.
“And Lark?” Bastian said.
I met his black gaze.
“This time you’renotgoing to try to kill me, and you’renotgoing to run.”
CHAPTER 11
BASTIAN
Icarried Lark into my penthouse. There was no sign of our earlier fight. I was grateful to the guys for getting it cleaned up.
As soon as Nash had found Lark on the CCTV, I’d raced to her location. I’d known she was going to take someone down.
“Who was the target?” I set her down on my kitchen island.
“Serial rapist who’s been eluding police.” Her voice was a low, pained rasp. “Someone will find the body. His victim saw me.”
“No one will find him. I sent someone to clean up.” I glanced at her blood-soaked shirt. “I’m annoyed you let him stab you.”
She touched her side and winced. “Me, too.”
I gripped her chin. “I mean it, Lark. You went after him unprepared. Worse, you were emotional. We both know that can get you killed.”
“If I die, no one would notice. Or care.”
My heart hit my ribs hard. I leaned closer, our lips an inch apart. She tensed.
“I’d care.”
Her lips parted.
Quickly, I pulled her Army-green jacket off, then grabbed the hem of her shirt and whipped it over her head.
“Hey,” she protested.
I froze. She was wearing a gorgeous lace bra in a pretty moss green. It cupped her small, but perfectly shaped breasts.
I’d expected plain cotton, maybe a sports bra.
She glared at me, but I noted that her face was pale. I made myself focus on the blood smeared on her side and not the nipples I could see through the lace. I touched her side and she hissed. I probed the stab wound. Thankfully, it had stopped bleeding on the drive back to the casino. I released a breath. She hadn’t nicked an artery like I’d feared.
“I probably left blood all over your fancy sportscar.”
“I don’t give a fuck.” I contemplated calling Landon, or my casino doctor, but I figured she’d put up a fight.
