Page 58 of The Billionaire Who Saved My Cat From The Mafia

I race outside in time to see her bolt out from the forest.I catch her in my arms as she runs into the camp, and the instant I pick her up, I see she’s hurt.There’s blood on her fur.

Just then, Special K steps out from the tree line.He’s panting.I see the muscles in his abs and chest ripple as he steadies himself.But he’s very much alive.I take a deep gulp of the night air, not sure how long I’ve been holding my breath.

I stare at him in shock.

“I’ll be back in a minute,” he says, like he’s running out to the convenience store for a half gallon of milk.

Then he disappears again.

I rush inside with Pussy, collapsing to the floor next to the lanterns.She’s licking her fur where she was injured, but even through my sudden flood of tears, I can see it’s not deep, not an emergency.It looks like she got scraped by a twig.She’s fine.

I feel him before I see him.I glance up to find Special K taking up the entire height and width of the doorframe.I blink away some of my tears, enough to get a good look at him.From my spot on the floor, the man looks like a storybook giant.

“She okay?”he asks.

I nod, words not possible.I’m on the verge of sobbing—from relief and the adrenaline crash.I have absolutely no idea what just happened out there.But he’s okay and so is my cat.

Special K leaves.I hear him rustling around in one of the storage containers outside.He steps back through the door.

“Can I take a look?”He’s got a first-aid kit dangling from one hand.

I nod.

He closes the door and comes to sit next to me on the floor.Pussy immediately jumps in his lap and starts rubbing her face against his chin, neck, and cheek.I see that his whole upper body is covered with a thin sheen of perspiration.

Whatever he did out there took a lot of effort.

“Okay, okay,” he says, gently removing my cat from his face.“You’re welcome, Pussy.Stop squirming so I can get the IFAK open.”

“A what?”

His eyes flash at me.“Individual First Aid Kit.Navy term.Can you keep her still for a moment?”

I hold her in place while he uses an antiseptic wipe to clean her off.Then he moves a lantern closer to inspect the cut.“She’s fine,” he says.“I’d put antibacterial ointment on her, but I suspect she’d just lick it off.She’s got all her shots, right?”

I nod, silent.I wonder if I’ve permanently lost the ability to speak.That’s when I see that the knuckles of his right hand are raw and bloody.“Oh, shit!”I grab his wrist and hold the lantern up to his hand.“What did you do to yourself, Special K?”

“I’m fine.”

Pussy jumps out of his arms and finds a soft place to curl up on the bed, where she can keep an eye on us.

“Are you always this damn stubborn?”I ask him.“What were youdoingout there?What were you punching?”

“You don’t want to know.”

I swallow hard.“Did something have ahold of Pussy?”

“You don’t want to know that, either.”

I let go with a nervous laugh, grabbing a few more antiseptic wipes from the first aid kit.He hisses softly as I clean off his knuckles.They’re all cracked and scraped up, but the cuts aren’t deep.

I grab the tube of ointment and dab some on his broken skin.“You got all your shots, cowboy?”I ask chuckling.“You’re not going to lick at this, are you?”I replace the cap and throw the tube into the first aid kit.When he doesn’t answer me, I glance up at him.

His eyes hold intense hunger.The force of his stare knocks the wind from me.

“Yeah, I got all my shots,” he says.“But I’d rather lick you.Everywhere.”

My breathing becomes shallow.My heart thuds so hard that I worry it’ll bust out from my chest.