Chapter Ten
Zane
I had to fight every muscle in my body to keep from ripping that old man’s heart out with my bare hands. The way he spoke to her. The way he’d forced her to sell her body to pay off some bullshit debt, one that had probably been settled long ago.
Fucker.
I was no saint and I’d done many despicable things.
I had a motherfucking bad temper and had choked men just for looking at me the wrong way, but there was a line I rarely crossed when it came to innocent women.
I might have been a criminal all my life, but it didn’t mean I didn’t follow rules and live by my values.
I’d been raised by incredible women too, and that had to mean something. Even for someone like me.
Chloe sat silent in her seat as the car speeded through the night, streetlights catching her from time to time and I didn’t want to miss one.
Her trembling hands curled into fists on her knees, and they were stained with blood.
My blood. She looked so small and lost that it was hard to imagine her having anything to do with those fuckers. Yet here we were.
I glanced down at my shoulder and cursed again at the sight of blood. Of course. Of course something had to go wrong tonight. This woman attracted problems the way flowers attracted bees.
And yet, I couldn’t deny how much I’d enjoyed watching her on stage. If taking a bullet was the price, I’d take another without hesitation.
The memory of the way her hips swayed. Worth it.
The way her thighs locked around the cold metal. Worth it.
Every move she made got me hypnotized like she was capable of freezing time, making me feel like a sailor lured by a siren’s call. Her legs were perfect and smooth. That ass, so round and perky, meant for my hands to fit. Her tits weren’t super big, but good enough to make my mouth water.
And that lingerie… transparent enough to tease, enough to show me the shape of her hardened nipples and freshly shaved pussy.
Rage curled my gut because she was showing it to me and a dozen other salivating bastards, making me want to put a bullet in every single one of them.
My instincts screamed at me to storm the stage, wrap her in my jacket, and drag her the fuck out of there.
But I couldn’t.
I’d already gone far enough, already walked around her world longer than I should have.
I could only imagine what she’d been through in a place like that. The thought alone made my hands clench.
The more I learned about Chloe, the more I understood the depth of her fears. It wasn’t just me she was afraid of; it was her own ghosts, the shadows lingering after her. I knew those shadows very well and the last thing I wanted was to become another monster in her life.
I left the club with no intention of coming back, sliding into the SUV determined to leave her alone for good. She was not my problem—
—not until armed men walked in.
I didn’t even hesitate. Something was about to go down and I couldn’t walk away knowing she could be caught in the crossfire. Before I knew it, I was already moving in, fast and blinding. And like everything about her, I was completely unprepared for what I found.
After the shooting, I’d known right away who those men were. The scorpion tattooed on each of their necks left no question about that. Red Scorpion’s men. The fuckers I’d been hunting for years and for some reason, they wanted Chloe.
And before I could think on it, arms wrapping around me pulled me from those thoughts. The gesture was foreign. I couldn’t remember the last time someone hugged me and I almost felt myself melt in those little arms. What the actual fuck.
“Get the fuck off of me.” I barked, pushing her away on reflex, and it was the first time I felt the burn in my shoulder.
I’d been hit and still, what was making my blood boil were the red marks and bruises all over her doll face, already turning into a shade of purple. Just the thought of it made me want to go back and set that club, fuck, the whole fucking street on fire.
I shifted in the seat with a hiss, and not because of the burning in my shoulder.
No doubt she was involved in something more than she was willing to say and for that reason, I had to take her.
I’d never done anything like this before; I didn’t leave witnesses or take hostages, but I didn’t want to hurt her before knowing everything and I couldn’t risk the safety of my family and my business because of a woman.
This was my only option.
I’d been distracted. No more. Now, we were back to business. I took a bloody bullet for her and then, paid two million fucking euros to set her free and bring her under my family’s protection—the amount of money I’d made with the business tonight, all gone.
Even though I had plenty, money was money, and when I put it into something, I expected a return.
And if she was somehow involved with the Red Scorpions, she had no idea what she’d just brought upon herself. Because there will be no rules or values that will protect her from me.
Not with this.