Chapter 3
CHAPTER THREE
Malachi
The moment I hear the bullet being fired, I push Jade to the floor and get on top of her, shielding her with my body.
She’s trembling, and she looks even smaller holding onto my collar as if her life depends on it.
Ironically, she should be used to these things having grown up as a mafia princess, but once that bullet fired, she turned into someone incredibly… human.
I hear another round of bullets being fired without lifting my head from the ground.
The crack of gunfire echoes across the estate, followed by the dull thud of rounds burying themselves into stone.
My men return the fire, finally coming out of hiding.
As soon as we have an opening, I pull Jade to the side and we both hide from the bullets behind the huge flower pot, my body hovering over hers.
Jake, who came in pretending to be one of the waiters.
Lucas, the bartender. And Milo and Josh, who came in as regular guests thanks to their friendly relationship with someone on the Moretti’s side.
I brought them knowing that all hell would break lose once Nolan was provoked and I wasn’t wrong.
Though if there was ever a moment, I would have wished one of my predictions didn’t come true, it’s this one.
The pulsating pain in my arm continues spreading to the rest of my body, but I don’t move.
“Stay down,” I whisper in Jade’s hair. “I’ve got you.”
She stays silent and if we weren’t in the middle of a gun fight, and she wasn’t scared out of her mind, I would use this as another opportunity to tease her.
The warmth radiating from her body mixed with the slightly too peachy, sweet smell of her perfume makes me forget that this is a business deal for a moment, but I force myself to focus.
Feelings get men killed. Another bullet tears past the flower pot, showering us with dirt.
“Fuck,” she gasps, holding me close. When I look down at her, her eyes are already staring at me, the expression in them full of realization. “You protected me first…”
“Don’t flatter yourself.”
The fire seems to have died, and the shouting and insults in both Italian and English, echo from the inside of the house. That’s my cue. I grab Jade’s wrist, pulling her to her feet.
“What are you doing?” She blinks, her feet planted.
“You’re coming with me,” I keep my voice low, not wanting to draw any unwanted attention to us.
“Did I tell you you’re crazy?” She raises an eyebrow, trying to tug her hand from my grip, but my grip is too strong and she doesn’t manage to make any progress despite all of her effort.
“A few times,” I respond, turning around and trying to pull her after me despite her protesting. “It’s getting a little old.”
“Well, then maybe do something normal to prove me otherwise,” her voice rises just a little, but enough for one of the nearby guards to hear us. It’s one of the Moretti men, but that alone isn’t enough to make him trustworthy.
I push Jade behind the corner of the house, pinning her in place with my own body, my palm covering her mouth before she gets any funny ideas and puts herself into danger.
Once the guard returns to the other side of the yard, I slowly remove my hand from her mouth, my eyes studying hers. “You’re bleeding,” her voice is barely a whisper and I realize that she’s been holding onto me the whole time.
Wasn’t she trying to get away from me? Why was she holding on so tight?
“I’ll survive,” I glance toward the guard one more time.
His entire focus is on the main gate, and after quickly scanning the rest of the property, I pull Jade over my shoulder and run towards my car.
The wound stings for a brief second as I adjust to the intensity of the pain, but the adrenaline overrides it and by the time I reach my car in the back, I can barely feel it at all.
“What are you doing?” Jade shouts once we’re all alone, but my grip doesn’t loosen. “Let me down!”
“If I do, you’ll do something stupid,” I answer, opening the passenger seat of the red Mercedes Benz.
“I could hardly beat you at that!”
“Not a risk I’m willing to take,” I force her into the car and close the door behind her, before rushing to the other side of the Mercedes and getting behind the wheel.
“I need to stay with my family, Malachi,” The panic in her voice cuts through the air, overpowering the gentle roar of the engine.
“You have a target on your back and I need you alive?” I say, speeding through the gates of the Moretti estate and driving to the main road.
“My family wouldn’t hurt me,” she insists.
“But your almost fiancé wouldn’t blink before pulling the trigger.” My grip on the wheel tightens and I have to force myself to keep my eyes on the road. “That kiss put a target on your back, Jade.”
“And who put that target on my back?” She turns in her seat, her whole body facing me.
“You’re safe. You’re no use to me dead.”
“That’s not comforting.” She chuckles bitterly.
“No,” I respond, turning on the left blinker. “But it’s the truth.”