Page 12 of Caught in His Sights

Darkness descends when we enter the back alley, and the lights from the street cut off. I stumble forward, the brief flashes of Caleb’s pale, muscular arms in the shadows keeping me moving.

As we come out in the next parking lot over, Caleb catches my arm. “Almost there.”

He hurries me toward a black sedan with tinted windows, and I relax with escape in view.

But before we reach the vehicle, a scuff of shoes echoes from behind us, followed by a male voice shouting, “Freeze!”

Fear slices through me, chilling my veins and making it hard to breathe. Did the shooter catch up to us?

“Keep going.” Caleb’s grip tightens on my bicep as he pushes forward. “I’ll handle this.”

My heart hammers as I stumble toward the car.

The shout comes again, higher pitched this time, tugging on my memory. “I have a gun, and I’ll shoot if you don’t let the Omega go!”

In a split second, Caleb releases me and pulls his weapon from its holster, turning on the other man.

Instinct takes over, and I lunge in front of him to block his aim, my arms spread out. “Wait, don’t fire!”

A deadly calm settles over Caleb’s face. “Move.”

The order shivers through me, but he didn’t use Command, so I stay in place as I peer over my shoulder at the other person.

I spot the young Alpha from earlier—the one who propositioned me—standing at the back door of his apartment complex. He’s unarmed, but he clutches his cell phone in one hand.

“I’m fine.” I fight against the tremble in my voice. “You should go back inside.”

Concern fills his eyes. “I saw him dragging you into the parking lot.”

“I’m okay,” I assure him.

His focus drops to my bare feet, and his face hardens with determination. He doesn’t believe me. In his position, I wouldn’t believe me, either.

“Move, Oliver,” Caleb orders again, his tone cold.

When I turn back to face him, he still has his gun out, and I can’t help but think about what will happen if he uses it.

My hand shakes as I touch his stiff arm. “He’s just a local high schooler being brave. We should go.”

For several heartbeats, Caleb studies my face, and I hold my breath, knowing I can’t stop him if he wants to shoot the young Alpha.

Silently, I plead for Caleb to see reason, to understand this kid doesn’t deserve to die for trying to save me.

The weight lifts from my chest as Caleb puts the gun away, his jaw clenched. “Get in the car.”

Not needing to be told twice, I hurry around to the passenger side and slide in, dropping my bag at my bare feet. Caleb climbs behind the wheel, and the engine roars to life. He peels out of the parking lot, headlights off until we reach the street.

My heart pounds hard, adrenaline still coursing through my veins.

A few blocks away from my apartment, Caleb wrenches us over to the curb and slams to a stop. I throw my arm against the dashboard to avoid being slammed into it, cursing myself for not putting on my seatbelt.

Before I can react, Caleb fists my hair and yanks me halfway across the center console, growling into my face. “Next time you step in front of my gun like that, I’ll fucking shoot you. And if you ever again beg for someone’s life to be spared, you better be on your knees when you do it.”

My heart pounds, and I nod, the motion pulling at my scalp from Caleb’s tight hold. A shiver goes through me, focus dropping to his lips, and his nostrils flare.

“You’re so fucked in the head,” he says, and I’m not sure if he means himself or me before his mouth crashes over mine in a hard, dirty kiss.

It’s pure dominance, his tongue forcing its way in, teeth clashing and breath mingling. He tastes sharp and bitter, like the anger boiling beneath the surface of his skin. Whether he meant this to be a punishment or a reward doesn’t matter as I respond, my body straining toward him. Only the fist in my hair keeps me on my side of the center console.

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