Page 34 of Merciful Lies

Anna’s body is fucking perfect. She’s got all the curves I desire, just the right amount of meat on her bones, and being pregnant just makes her softer.

She probably thinks she’s overweight. In my experience, most women do, regardless of how they look. But that’s bullshit.

I’m a big fucking guy and even holding her like this, I’m able to get us down the ladder, using my legs and arms to create enough space between her back and the rungs.

By now, a crowd has gathered outside the building. It’s still super early. Not even four-thirty, but someone pulled the smoke alarm, and it’s ringing loudly.

I hear the fire engines pull up and check that Tommy moved the SUV to the corner.

“You can put me down,” Anna whispers when we reach the bottom rung, but I don’t.

I hold her tighter to me, one hand on her ass as I walk her to the truck. Tommy holds the door open, and I place my wife inside.

“Stay put and buckle up,” I tell her just as the fire department arrives.

Flames have engulfed the floor where Anna’s apartment is located, I can see them through the window in the stairwell.

Fuck.

Another five minutes and we’d have been truly trapped. I frown. There’s no way this is a coincidence, but I’m not going to tell my wife that.

Instead, I walk up to the truck’s lieutenant. His eyes widen, and I can see he recognizes me. Most people know who I am. Or if they don’t but they have a good sense of self-preservation, they can tell I’m something the first time they meet me.

“Hey,” he says, his eyes flash to mine then back to the building.

“Can you tell if it’s arson?”

“Will take a little while,” he replies, and I nod, taking a business card from my wallet.

“Call me when you know,” I say, watching awareness creep into his vision as he reads the name on the card.

I know what it says.

Nico Fury. CEO Viper Enterprises. The Vipers’ Den, Jersey City, New Jersey.

Followed by my contact information.

He might not know my name, but he’s heard of the Den, and that counts for something. The lieutenant eyes me before he nods sharply.

I walk away from him, back to the SUV where my wife is waiting.

“The condo,” I tell Tommy, and he gets in the driver’s side while I climb in next to my wife.

Anna already scooted over, making room for me, and I hum in approval. It’s the little things that make a person good, and I know she’s a good woman.

Even better, she’s my woman.

I know she’s grieving and maybe a little confused about everything that happened since she came back to town, but all I can think about is fucking her.

Guess that makes me a pig or something.

“So what’s going on? Is there really a fire?” she asks.

“Looks like it. But don’t worry, I’ll replace anything you lose,” I explain, hoping to ease some of her worry.

“Oh, I don’t care about that stuff, just wow, I mean, you saved me, us. You saved us.”

“Anna, I wasn’t gonna leave you.”

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