Page 134 of Trapped Truth

“Nothing is going to happen to you, I swear.”

“I’m not concerned about myself. You’re the one Madden wants mounted on a spike for his entire crew to see. Boxing us in where no one can see is the perfect plan.”

“This is too cloak and dagger for my father.” I scrutinize the closed, grey-scale façade. “He would sooner strike outright and land the killer blow. Just look at your penthouse.”

“Maybe that taught him to try another tactic.”

“In that case, I’ll take great pleasure in running down every last traitorous motherfucker waiting inside to kill us over sandwiches and tea. Satisfied?”

The frigid look she spares me reveals she’s not impressed. I do love that furious blaze in her eyes. Brows all scrunched, red head tilted, pouty mouth pinched but still eminently kissable. Her rampant fury is an entrancing thing.

“This isn’t the time for messing around.”

“Relax.” I reach over the centre console to snag her hand. “It’s going to be okay.”

“How can you trust this woman?”

“I don’t trust her. But we have all the backup we need, a viable escape route and plenty of reason to blow the place to hell if need be. I’m not playing nice anymore.”

After circling for a third time and spotting nothing out of the ordinary, I release Ember’s hand to steer us into a parking spot.

We both take a moment to attach our comms, slotting the flesh-coloured mechanisms into place.

“HQ, do you copy?” Ember tests.

“Copy that,” Warner responds drily. “Be careful.”

“We will,” I affirm, checking mine.

“Anything happens to our girl, I’ll be holding you personally responsible, Blaine. Trust me, you don’t want to know what that looks like.”

“I don’t mind describing,” Axel chimes in down the line.

“No need.” I roll my eyes in Ember’s direction. “I can imagine just fine.”

“Damn. Why is everyone always spoiling my fun?”

“You can describe it to me later, Ax,” Ember purrs down the line. “All the gory details.”

“Sounds like a hot date, babe.”

Our resident enforcer is suspiciously silent. I suspect he’s watching the surrounding area through a scope, preparing to pick off any unfortunate souls passing by at a moment’s notice. Less than an hour ago, Hyland was grumbling about the plan and scheming over ways to prevent Ember from attending.

“Are you ready?” I glance at her.

She nods, smiling encouragingly. “As I’ll ever be.”

Now that the time has arrived, I’m almost reluctant to exit the SUV. Indecision and child-like fear paralyse my limbs. When Ember cranes closer to lightly peck my cheek, I twist to snare her mouth in a deeper kiss.

The brief flash of contact settles my thrumming pulse. With her ferocious strength at my side, I can surely walk in there and face whatever lies ahead. This cliff dive won’t change anything. Not the past. Not my future. And not our partnership, forged in the hottest of flames.

“On my six?” I nibble her plush bottom lip.

“Always. I’ve got your back.”

“Then let’s get this show on the road.”

We part to climb from the car, both resting prepared hands on our weapons. In broad daylight, it wouldn’t be wise to draw so early. If there’s any chance of this meeting being legitimate, the last thing I want is to run in all guns blazing and scare the woman who birthed me.