Page 71 of Lost Kingdom

“About a block away.” I hate that my voice rises. That emotion makes it bubble and steals the fierceness I wish I could ride into battle with. “I’m walking your way.”

“Alone?” He stalks through the bar and bursts through the door, so the sound on his side of the line changes from a muted buzzing of chatter to the constant hum of traffic. “You’re walking home alone, Aubree? What the fuck?”

“I walk home alone all the time!” I try for angry, but my voice breaks anyway and ruins my attempt. “Don’t get mad at me because I’m doing something I have every right to do.”

“You’re right. I know.” He starts running in the dark, his powerful form eating up the sidewalk as tears burn in the backs of my eyes. “I’m so sorry, Aubree.” His breath comes faster as he pushes himself in my direction. “I didn’t mean to get mad at you.”

“Hurry.” I drop my hand and kill our call, and though a smart woman would consider watching her surroundings, my eyes are all for him. My pounding heart and yearning stomach. I refuse to break eye contact with my hulking hero, then I open my arms and choke out a sob when he runs straight through me, picking me up on the fly and crushing my chest to his.

“I’m sorry.” Frenzied, he presses me to the brick wall and pushes hair off my face, his thumbs scraping beneath my eyes to collect the tears I hadn’t realized were falling. “I’m so sorry, Aubree Grace.”

“It’s okay.” I bury my face against his neck and burrow in deep. “I’m okay.”

“What happened?” He twines his fingers in my hair and attempts to pull me back. “Aubree? What happened?”

“The guy pushed me against the wall. He said Duane owes him money, and he’s sick of waiting.”

Fury burns between us like a tidal wave of lava. But he yanks me from the brick and turns to move toward the bar. Men march behind us. Men with guns. But before the panic can rear up in my blood and take me, Istudy their faces and recognize who they are. Guards. One from Felix’s wedding. And another, the driver who brought us home from the airport.

His men.

“You’re safe.” He tucks my face by his neck and croons by my ear. “I promise you’re safe. And I’ll make sure Duane is safe, too.”

“What the hell is going on?” I shove back again, forcing him to rearrange his grip or risk dropping me. “Duane’s in trouble?”

“You don’t have to worry about it. I’ll go find him now and take care of it.”

“You’ll find who? Duane?”

“I’ll sweep him up and put him somewhere Booth’s people won’t touch him.”

“Booth’s?” I unravel my legs and stretch until he has no choice but to put me down. “You knew Duane was doing something wrong?”

“No, I?—”

“I didn’t mention Nathan Booth!Youdid.”

“Aubree—”

“Just tell the damn truth! For the first time in your life, tell me something real. You knew about Duane?”

“Yes!” He grabs the back of my neck and turns me, forcing me to keep walking. “Yes, okay? I knew Duane was getting into trouble. I knew who he was getting into trouble with. So I’ve been intervening and trying to make it better.”

“And you didn’t tell me?”

“I didn’t want to make you worry.” He makes us walk faster, gently tugging my bag from my arm and handing it off to someone else. Anyone else. “Your brother is doing dumb brother stuff right now. He’s still young, and he’s making shitty, impulsive decisions. I knew he was brushing uncomfortably close to Booth, so I stepped in.”

“And what?”

Confused, he massages the back of my neck and searches my eyes. “What?”

“You knew he was coming up near Booth, so you stepped inand what? What did you do?”

“I told them to fuck off.”

“Why would you do that? Duane’s not your problem. You hadn’t even met him before two days ago.”

“Well…” He firms his lips, his head on a swivel as he searches the street around us. Then he cuts right and leads me through the bar door. “I intervened a while ago. When I found out he was making a dick of himself.”

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