Page 4 of My Vigilante Valentine

Smart man.

He was zip-tied to a deposit slip counter before I could even register the movement.

And then, because he clearly wasn’t as smart as his counterparts, the robber with the flesh wound tried to bolt.

The Blade was faster.

He blurred forward, cutting off the escape, and in the space of a single heartbeat, the guy was under the counter with his face pressed into the tile as The Blade secured him next to his friend.

I couldn’t believe my eyes.

And as Number Two’s sleeve made a ripping sound when he struggled free of his temporary trap, he only made it two steps before The Blade took him down just as easily as the other two.

Chris and I sat in stunned silence, and we weren’t the only ones.

The entire bank was silent as The Blade stepped back, surveying his handiwork—three men zip-tied, disarmed, and most definitely rethinking their life choices.

I blinked, then blinked again as I registered the distant wail of approaching sirens, growing louder with each passing second.

There was no movement, no talking. Just me, muttering the only thought in my head like a total lunatic. “I’m obsessed.”

The words had slipped out before I could stop them, a breathless confession that I wished I could claw right out of the air.

But, ya know, that wasn’t new for me.

Chris’s head slowly turned toward me, his face a perfect mix of amusement and horror. His brows were up, and I could practically hear the teasing remark forming on the tip of his tongue.

I clamped my mouth shut.

Nope. That didn’t happen. I didn’t actually say that. No one heard it.

But The Blade shifted. Just barely. Like maybe—maybe—he had heard it. His face was hidden from view by his hood and the mask that covered the lower half, but there was the tiniest tilt of his head.

It was a subtle acknowledgment, and it had my eyes going so wide I blinked so they wouldn’t pop out and hit him in the forehead.

Oh. No.

Oh no no no no.

Did he—did he just hear me?

Chris sucked in a breath beside me, his body vibrating with suppressed laughter, but I couldn’t process that right now. Because The Blade—actual urban legend, vigilante of Slate Harbor, man who just stopped a full-on bank heist without breaking a sweat—had just acknowledged me.

And I?

I panicked.

I did what any normal, well-adjusted human would do after a masked warrior of justice overheard theirmildly unhingedcrush confession.

I sank lower behind Chris, as if reducing my surface area would somehow make me invisible.

I curled into his back like a terrified possum, and I gripped the fabric of his polo shirt for dear life.

But I wasn’t safe. I could still feel The Blade’s gaze. I could almostsensethe amusement lurking beneath that shadowed hood.

I peeked out from behind Chris’s shoulder.

Yep. Confirmed. The Blade was still watching.

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