6. Matheus
I told her the truth.
She’s going to be my wife.
My little firecracker and I are getting hitched.
The contract was signed with a few minor details left to thrash out. Nonetheless, it’s me and her, together.
Informing her of the deal I”d made should have been a happier moment, yet her expression was blank and then she swiftly pushed me away, told me to marry her sister and threatened me.
What the actual fuck?
Now I’m chasing after her, spraying bullets at the fuckers firing at us, and pulling the pin from a grenade with my teeth.
I toss it behind me and take cover. My heart is pumping and the rush of adrenaline flows through me at a rapid rate.
But it”s got nothing to do with this war I’m fighting. No, it’s all her. The way she charges my soul is fucking electric.
Ahead of me, she darts out of sight and as the grenade goes off, the thunderous explosion matches my temper.
Don’t run from me, little firecracker.
Hunting, I stay low, intermittently shooting at moving targets and constantly looking over my shoulder for hidden dangers.
When I move to the rear doors of the farthest truck in the yard, I see her, hunkered down beside Dario near a parked van.
I take a heartbeat to blink her all in. The way her disheveled hair is tucked behind those cute ears and blood smears her angular cheekbone like a warrior”s stripe.
She doesn’t falter, her direct aim pinpoints the enemy.
Quick, professional, and fucking lethal. A shiver starts at my scalp and races down my spine.
The woman makes me feel dangerous.
In a hurry, I dig out a handheld radio, squeeze the button, and give the order for our guys to pull back.
We’ve got what we came for.
“Everyone out,” I instruct, simultaneously shielding my body with a red forklift truck. “Once we’re all clear, blow this place to pieces.”
I peer over the top of the driver”s seat in the small cab and lock eyes with her laser sharp glare.
My blood runs red-hot, fully aware she’s caught in this spell with me. Dani mindlessly licks her lips and then breaks eye contact as if she’s nervous.
“Dario…” I say into the radio. “Get her the fuck out of here. Now!”
Seconds after I bark out the order, something heavy hits me from behind and my forehead slams into the steering wheel.
The radio clatters into the footwell and my injured shoulder screams with pain. I spin around, grab the machine gun slung around my neck and face the guy who prods the barrel of his Glock into my cheek.
On quick inspection, his jeans are saturated in blood and his other wrist is cuffed to a––severed fucking arm.
“You actually came to save her.” He laughs, limping a little to steady his footing. “I knew it. She’s your bitch and you let her murder my uncle, motherfucker.”
I recognize this asshole.
To?o Salazar—Eduardo Salazar’s nephew.
The same guy who’d kidnapped Dani earlier and was caught on Blanco’s surveillance cameras.
When I go to move, he shoves the gun in harder and bares his teeth at me.
“You’re gonna pay for what you did to my uncle. They won’t let your brothers get away with it, either. And the puta who killed him––she’s dead next. But first…” He lowers his face to mine. “I’m going to send your eyeballs to Tomás as a warning. We’re taking down your family. One cocky cunt at a time.”
On his last word, warm blood spatters my face and his knees buckle.
My chest rises and falls, anger knotting in my stomach. I look left where swirling smoke moves around the womanly figure of my little firecracker as she slowly lowers her gun.
Her feet are planted wide and flyaway strands of hair dance in the breeze, catching in her lashes.
My heartbeat goes haywire. I jostle the dead guy off me and stand, ignoring the burn in my shoulder.
Running my fingers through my hair, I comb the lengths back off my forehead and wipe the blood covering my face with my forearm.
In four fast strides, I’m before her, a victim of dark desire.
“You can’t help yourself, can you, little firecracker?” She frowns at my statement. “Protecting what’s yours and only yours,” I answer for her, dishing out a cocky grin.
She swallows and blinks, the veins in her throat thrumming. When it”s just the two of us, the chemistry is more powerful than any bomb blast.
The sexual energy is nuclear.
“We need to get out of here, smartass. Come on.” She gestures with her head to the boundary fencing.
Dani takes a few steps to leave and my instincts suddenly flare. I glance left, noticing a few soldiers aiming their rifles right at us––at her.
In one breath, I charge at Dani and throw myself on top of her as we come under fire. She grunts when we land awkwardly on the ground together.
I angle my chest, still shielding her beneath me. Yet ready to shoot in defense until a bullet hits my vest.
The powerful impact punches my lungs and steals the air from inside them. Immediately, they cramp and I can’t breathe.
From out of nowhere, the soldiers Giovanni had organized to help circle us. Hands tug at my arms while I struggle to inhale, dragging me backward.
In the chaos, Dani stays by my side, her furious hands padding the edges of the bulletproof vest I’m wearing, checking for blood.
“Fuck…Mat…” she mutters, her tone verging on angry.
Sucking gusts of oxygen, I yank my arms free and latch onto her hand, craving the buzz of her body. Those silver irises of hers darken even in the sunlight.
Worried creases at the corners of her eyes furrow deeper as I gasp for air.
“Slow down…breathe.” She stays tight to my side and squeezes my hand. “The vest saved you. You’re winded, that’s all.”
A sensation of peace pours from my head to my toes. Her voice, the only thing I focus on, anchors me to her.
Getting to my feet, I manage to straighten while inhaling through my nostrils. I growl at the pain in my ribs, link our fingers together and kiss her knuckles, smiling right at her.
“Let’s get the fuck…out of here,” I manage to say, clawing at my vest.
Together, we hurry towards Dario and the Blanco soldiers, all of them working alongside my team to ensure our safety.
There’s another explosion and I’m immediately crowded by the men paid to protect me with their lives.
Dani lets go of my hand and allows herself to get swept away by the Blanco soldiers protecting her too.
The sunlight fades when I can’t see her anymore and my chest aches. At least she’s safe and we’re all heading to the same place.
Moving quickly, we pass through the wire gates and march towards the waiting choppers in a nearby parking lot.
Even though I’m surrounded, I’m still on high alert, searching for her face in a sea of soldiers.
Except she’s nowhere to be seen and a wave of nausea crests in my chest.
I push men out of my way and head straight for Dario, getting up in his face. “Where is she?”
Dario shrugs. “Gone.”
“What the fuck do you mean, she’s gone? Gone where? With whom?”
Meeting my gaze, he stares at me, his expression deadpan.
“She didn’t want to get in your chopper, Souza. She wanted to leave. On her own.”
“You’re fucking lying,” I hiss at him, my fists clenched. “What have you done to her?”
“Look, man, that’s who she is. A lone wolf. I take orders from Daniela because I’m a Blanco soldier. Comprendes, Souza?”
My blood boils and the thin thread keeping my decorum intact snaps.
Everything blurs and a thumping pulse pounds in my skull. In a blind rage, I throw a fist at his jaw and continue to unleash furious punches.
Dario fights back and the two of us end up on the ground. One minute I’m bearing down on him, the next he’s head-butting me square in the nose.
He didn’t get much momentum for the impact. I doubt it’s broken and the blood seeping into my mouth would stop eventually.
I don’t even feel pain, because I’m too driven to punish the fucker for letting her leave.
“Lower your gun,” a man shouts, his commanding voice breaking into the madness in my head.
“Get your fucking hands off him,” another barks out. “Or you’re all dead.”
From the darkness clouding my mind, a flicker of recognition punctures the black haze.
I’m acting like Papá would, rather than how Mama taught me to be. And I sure as fuck don’t want to be like that paranoid asshole.
Killing Dario won’t bring Dani back and starting a war between the Souzas and Blancos—between soldiers who’d fought together to save the two of us—would only make her hate me.
I should keep the Blanco soldiers close, not slaughter them.
After all, they know how to reach her.
And let’s face it, once we’re married, they’d serve me too.
Rearing back, I spit out a wad of blood and scramble to my feet, doing a slow one-eighty while telling everyone to put their weapons down.
“We aren’t at war,” I announce. “I just want to find Dani and I’ll pay one million dollars to anyone who can bring her to me.”
Dario rises and stretches out his jaw, panting heavily.
“Why should we help you? We won’t hand Daniela over to a Souza. No fucking way.”
“I like you, Dario.”
I offer him a show stopping smile, full of charm.
That smile usually gets me whatever the fuck I want, even though it’s fake. I’ve never had to force it on Dani. When I laugh with her, it”s one hundred percent natural.
“You’re loyal and a decent fighter too.”
His eyes narrow, skeptical of my sudden praise.
“But I’m not her enemy…I’m her fiancé. Ask Blanco yourself if you don’t believe me. Dani and I are tying the knot, Dario. That’s why you need to help me.”
There’s a collective gasp from everyone around me and Dario folds his arms.
“That might be the case, Souza, but Daniela wanted to leave––on her own––without you. From where I’m standing, she couldn’t give a fuck about your arrangement.”
I take a steadying breath as black wisps of anger creep over my vision, doing my best to contain the surge of emotion before it swallows me whole.
Hearing the bomb blasts demolishing the Souza owned transportation company behind us, I step into Dario’s personal space.
“Two million dollars for anyone who brings my fiancé to me within twenty-four hours. Hurt her, though, and I’ll shove a grenade down your throat.”
Once I’m strapped into the helicopter, I send Giovanni a text message to warn him about the war I’ve started and then glare out the window.
How the fuck am I going to get my woman back to Sicily?