Page 114 of Roberto

“What are youdoing?!”Mei-ling shrieked.

I ignored her and pointed the gun back at the asshole’s head. His expression was vastly different from three seconds ago.

“Balls or head?” I asked again.

For added emphasis, I lowered the gun so it was aimed at his crotch.

The assholes in the rear turned and fled first.

When the leader saw he had been deserted, he glanced at me in terror –

Then bolted after them.

Once they were gone, I turned back to Mei-ling.

Her entire body was shaking as she stared at my hand.

I realized that not only was she afraid of the three thugs, she was scared ofme–

Because nowIhad the gun.

I glanced down at it…

Then held it out to her by the barrel so the handle faced her.

“If you’re going to kill me,” I said, “get it over with quick.”

She looked at the gun, then at me –

But she didn’t reach for it.

So I put it in my pocket, stepped forward, wrapped my arms around her waist –

And pulled her against me as I kissed her in the rain.

For the briefest of seconds, she froze –

And then she kissed me back with wild abandon, her hands clutching my head.

My heart soared.

I had never been more overwhelmed with joy in my entire life.

We kissed for 30 seconds before she broke it off.

“We have to get you out of here,” she whispered. “Someone must have heard the gunshot and called the cops.”

I grinned. “Let’s go, then.”

She took my hand in hers…

Pulled me towards the end of the alleyway…

And then we ran across the street through the rain.

49

Mei-ling got us into De Sade’s underground parking garage by punching a code on a keypad, which raised the latticed gate.

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