Page 76 of The Afterthought

Kai twists around and tries to take down the man who had the gun to his head. He appears young, and the shock from his boss lying dead on the floor is enough for Kai to get the upper hand on him. Kai seizes the gun from the guy's hand and knocks him down to the floor. He kicks him a few times, making him cry out.

Greyson quickly unties Knox and takes the tape from his mouth before locking eyes with me. His nostrils flare, and he seems more tense than I've ever seen him. I flip the safety of the gun back on and shove it in the pocket of my dress before running over to him. He grips the sides of my face and stares down at me, letting his body relax into my hold.

"You came for me, baby?" Grey whispers, and I see tears well up in his eyes. I'm too stunned by his vulnerability at this moment to say anything back to him. I've never seen Greyson cry before. As quickly as they appear, he blinks them away.

His hand finds the back of my neck, and he pulls me into him. Soft lips land on mine, demanding I surrender to him. I lose myself in his arms, knowing that he is safe. He nips and bites at my lip, forcing a moan to escape. I can't believe I almost lost him today.

Someone next to us clears their throat, and I pull back enough to look over and see Knox standing there staring at Grey and me while we make out.

"Ava, I owe you my life. I don't know how I'll ever thank you for what you did here today," Knox says sincerely.

Kai finds his way next to Knox, dragging the younger man along with him. He leaves him on the floor and places the gun in Knox’s hand. For a second, I wonder if they will let him live. My thoughts are wrong. Knox doesn't hesitate to point the gun and pull the trigger. Blood splatters around us from the close proximity of the shot. He doesn’t react to the murder he just committed. He simply places the gun in the waistband of his pants before looking over at me and Grey.

Grey squeezes my hand, reassuring me, as members of the crew finally appear in the doorway. They are stunned at what they see in front of them. One by one, they filter in and glance around the room to see Alec lying dead on the floor not far from us.

Knox finally speaks to the crew members who have stepped inside. "This will need to be addressed. I'm calling a full meeting. Every member's presence is required. Send out your emergency messages and have everyone meet at the garage immediately. No exceptions."

They all pull out their phones and get to work sending messages. Everyone is still too stunned to speak. They want to know how Alec, out of all people, got the upper hand on Knox. This shouldn't have happened.

Knox clears his throat again, and everyone in the room looks away from their phones and back up at him. "You all have Ava to thank for being the only one to use her fucking brain and know that something was wrong. She is the only reason Greyson, Kai, and I are alive. She will be treated with nothing but respect going forward. This is your only notice of this. Should I find out that anyone disrespects her in any sort of way, they will pay with their lives."

"And I'll be the one to personally see it happen," Greyson adds. Knox nods, and all eyes in the room move to me. I flush from being the center of their attention.

"Now that we have that matter settled, we should wait for everyone else to arrive before going over some things. We need new protocols to ensure something like this never happens again," Knox says.

Grey leans over to whisper in my ear. "Do you even realize how fucking hot it was to see you kill Alec? You know guns aren’t my thing, but fuck, Ava, the sight of you holding that thing will be enough to get me hard for a lifetime."

I giggle, but he's not joking one bit. I glance down and see the outline of his cock pressed firmly against his pants. He catches where my eyes have gone, and immediately, I know he is up to no good.

He gets Knox's attention and whispers something in his ear. I see Knox nod and then move toward the door.

"I'm going to need you fuckers to take your useless asses up to the garage with Knox. My girl and I have something we need to take care of," Grey calls out, and chills course through my body.

Nobody objects. They all just filter out, following behind Knox and leaving us in the shed by ourselves. The last person to step out even gives us the courtesy of closing the door behind them.

The last time I was in here alone with Grey, he saved me from my past by bringing David and Officer Grant here. Today, I saved him. I'll never let anyone hurt him. If I have the ability to stop them, I will. This man is my entire future. I don't care where we are or what we are doing with our lives. The only thing that matters is that we get to do it together.

Chapter 34

Greyson

"First, I'm going to fuck you senseless. Then, we're going to talk about how you showed up here to save the day." My eyes darken as I take in every single inch of her. The only problem right now is that she's wearing too much clothing.

"Shouldn't we talk first? If you're fucking me senseless, how am I supposed to be able to talk after?" She tries hitting me with a smart-ass response.

"Does it look like I want to talk right now, little shadow?" I tell her.

I watch her chest rise and fall with rapid breaths. I bet if I stripped her bare and dove right into her pussy, she would already be soaking wet for me.

"Strip, now."

She obeys, not wasting a single moment. I watch the way she takes her dress off, carefully placing it on the floor before shimmying out of her tights and shoes. My eyes memorize every single part of her body. She's perfect.

Without giving her a chance to say anything, I pick her up and wrap her legs around my waist. Her arms land on either side of my head as she holds herself up. I walk her to the other side of the shed. We don't need to be around these dead fucks. I doubt she wants to catch a glimpse of them while I'm balls deep inside her. When we are far enough away, I slam her back against the wall, losing myself in her.

She pushes against my chest, causing confusion, so I pull away and look at her. "I think you're bleeding."

“I don't care.”

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