Page 58 of Burning Bridges

"I know, and we're ready for him,” I assure her. She knows what we have planned for him, but I need him to suffer first the way he made her suffer. When his dealers work out there's no product, he is going to be in a world of pain, and that is when we strike and take him out completely.

“I’m not ready to go back home yet. Can we stop for a minute?” she asks.

I find a secluded spot in the desert just inside our territory to pull over. I feel the same as Piper. I need a second for us before we get back with the rest of them. I help her out of the car, her hand still shaky in mine. We sit on the hood, looking up at the stars, both quiet, lost in our own thoughts. Piper snuggles up to me, resting her head on my shoulder, the sweet smell of her strawberry shampoo filling my nostrils. My erratic heart starts to settle just knowing I have her here with me.

"I'm so proud of the man you have become," she whispers. "You're such a badass, but in the best kind of way. You give a shit about everyone around you. You’re not in this for the money or power. You really want to make a change for the benefit of everyone."

I chuckle, thinking how odd it is to hear her say something so positive about me. "You're the badass," I say. "You came up with the plan. You led the way."

"We make a great team," she says, looking up at me with a smile.

"Yeah, we do," I say, looking back at her with a stupid grin, still finding it hard to believe she fell into my lap the way she did. It was all Kylo’s manipulation, but it showed us who we really were to each other.

The air is cool and crisp, but Piper being next to me keeps me warm. I take her face in my hands and pull her toward me. I never thought I could feel the way I do for Piper, but I’m so in love with her it scares me. I need to know I can keep her safe and that us finally making our way back to each other isn’t just a temporary moment of ecstasy before reality takes her away from me again.

Her mouth meets mine, and instead of telling her everything I want to say, I kiss her like there's no tomorrow, letting our bodies wrap around each other like they were made to do so. Fucking her in the desert might just be my new favorite thing to do. Her hands run through my hair, and I slip mine under her shirt, grabbing a handful of her breast.

The buzz of my phone breaks me from the moment. I glance down to see it’s an unknown number.

“Speak,” I answer gruffly, wanting to know who the hell is interrupting me.

A nervous voice comes through the line. “Mr. Rivera? You said I should call you if I need to.”

“Yeah, and?”

“It’s Kylo. He found my sister, she’s in intensive care.” I close my eyes. Fuck, it's Ben.

I open my eyes to look at Piper. Her eyes are wide, and I know she’s wondering what’s going on. “What happened to her?” I utter, concern for this boy and his family taking over.

“I don’t know yet, but I’m on my way there now. He knows I’ve been helping you. He wants my blood. He had her at the old Acevedo house, and I think the only reason she’s still alive is because he got word of what you were up to tonight and he took off for the warehouse.”

“Fuck.” I run a hand through my hair, knowing this shit's far from over this evening. “I’m gonna call Jett. He’ll meet you at the hospital. Stay with Jett, he’ll watch over you all,” I try to reassure him. We might not be able to trust the security team who Jett had watching over them, but I know my brothers will keep them safe until this is all over.

“Okay, Mr. Rivera.”

I disconnect the call and immediately dial my brother. “Jett, you and Kobe home yet?” I ask.

“Nearly. We might just stop in at The Joker before we go home.”

“Skip it. I need you to head to Palm Springs Memorial Hospital. Kylo worked out Ben was working for us and got a hold of his sister. She’s in intensive care,” I say sadly. I was supposed to keep them safe. That was the deal.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” he roars. He hasn’t known Ben for long, but he’s taken a liking to him, and this is a personal attack on one of us.

“I need you boys down there to sort it all out. Make sure she gets the best care possible, and we'll cover the cost. Call in whatever connections you need to. We’ll be there soon.”

I tuck my phone away and turn back to Piper. "We gotta head back," I say reluctantly, knowing we're needed back home.

Piper nods in agreement and we hop back into my car. “We have to stop him, Leo. He'll keep doing shit like this to people until he's dead.”

“We implement phase two of our plan tonight, as soon as he's back in your old house. Are you ready?”

I take her hand, and she nods. I see the fear in her eyes, but she is just as determined to end this. And I can’t do it without her. “It makes me sad, but I’m ready. It’s time to move on from the past.”

As we drive back toward the highway, a car suddenly appears behind us, its high-beams flashing through my rear-view mirror, blinding me. I swerve and correct myself.

"Leo, watch out!" Piper screams.

Before I can even react, my car is hit from behind. The force of the impact sends us spinning out of control. The screeching of tires fills my ears as I desperately try to regain control of the car, but it's no use. We roll over and over until everything goes black. The last thing I hear is Piper’s voice calling out to me in desperation. But I can’t protect her this time.

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