Page 51 of Casey's Hero

“Out!” she yelled. “If you don’t want this woman to die, you will get out of here. Now.” She shoved the barrel of the pistol against Casey’s temple and had her other arm looped around Casey’s throat.

“Don’t do it,” Casey said. “Get Hawk and Kalea out of here. I’ll be fine.”

Jacob’s heart swelled at Casey’s selflessness. At the same time, he clenched his fists. He wanted to shout out,No, Casey. You can’t do this. You promised me a date.But he kept hismouth shut, knowing that if he showed any affection toward her, Camila would use it against them.

Camila’s nostrils flared, and she looked down her nose at Casey. “You will not be fine. Not if I kill you.”

“You won’t kill me,” Casey said. “It’s not how you work. You have others do your dirty work. Killing might ruin your nails. And my blood will make a complete mess of your wedding dress.”

Jacob almost laughed at Casey’s logic. The woman held a gun to her head, and Casey was talking fashion? Only a wedding planner would say something like that.

Camila frowned. “Madre de Dios.This is my wedding. I will not have you ruin it for me.”

“Face it, Camila,” Casey said. “You’re not getting married to Hawk,” Casey said. “Not now, or ever.”

“But he’s mine,” Camila wailed.

“No. He. Is. Not.” Casey emphasized every word, speaking slowly as if to a dimwitted child. “And you leave me no choice but to go to Panama.”

Jacob knew what was coming, even as Casey slammed her elbow into Camila’s gut.

The woman’s hand shook, the weapon went off, and Casey fell to the floor.

Jacob cried out, “Casey!”

Kalea left Hawk and threw herself at Camila, batted the gun out of the woman’s hand, knocked her off her feet and sent her flying across the floor, sliding on the fabric of her wedding gown. She came to a stop when her head hit the wall. There, she lay still, unmoving.

Jacob rushed toward Casey, who also lay still on the floor, blood dripping from somewhere on her head. He rolled her over in his arms to find she’d been hit near her temple. A bump was rising on the opposite brow, and she blinked up at him.

“Hey, beautiful,” he said, pressing his hand to the wound to stem the flow of blood. “Looks like you took a bullet for the team.”

“I did?” she said, her voice shaky.

His heart tightened in his chest. This woman had risked her life for them. “It’s just a flesh wound. You’ll have a battle scar with full bragging rights.”

“Good. I can put that on my resume.” She smiled up at him. “Wedding Planner. Willing to do anything for a wedding, to include taking a bullet for the bride and groom. That option will cost extra.” She chuckled and winced.

“How do you feel?”

“Like I got hit by a truck.” She struggled to sit up. “Kalea?”

“Is fine. She tackled Camila after she shot you. I think we need to recruit the two of you into the Navy. The SEAL teams could use people like you two. You’ll have to show me this move you call ‘The Panama’.”

Casey looked across the room at Kalea, held close in Hawk’s arms, and the other men of the team, herding the cartel into the room where Casey and Kalea had originally been held. “Is it over?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Jacob said.

She frowned, her gaze sweeping the room. “Anyone hurt?”

“Nothing but a few scrapes and bruises. And mostly between you and Kalea.” He brushed the hair back from her face. “You had me worried there for a minute.”

She looked up into his eyes. “You had me worried.” She turned her face into his palm. “I thought you were going to marry that crazy witch.”

“No way,” he said. “I go for the smaller, petite wedding-planner type.”

“Then what were you doing? Taking Camila for the team?”

He laughed. “I was distracting her while Hank and his team came through the back door.”

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