Page 55 of Rescuing Tobias

Or was there any chance that assuming the vehicle really was out to get them, that it was Tobias they were after and not her?

Was that really any better?

She cared for the man, he’d saved her life and was the father of her baby, and she wanted a chance to see what could grow between them. She didn't want the vehicle to be after either of them.

Feeling like she was stuck in one of those dreams where you couldn’t seem to make your feet move, she just stood there. She wanted to move, wanted to try to fling herself out of the way, or go running up the street, or back down it to try to bypass the van.

But she couldn’t move.

Couldn’t even scream.

They were going to be hit. If the impact didn't kill her, it would certainly kill her baby. It was only six weeks into its development, and the force of being hit with a large van would surely end its little life before it even had one.

A tug on her arm had her snapping out of her panicked haze, and Isabella looked over her shoulder to see that Tobias really was some kind of superhero because he’d somehow scaled the brick fence while she’d been standing there doing nothing. He’dthen reached down to grab hold of her arm, and with what could only be described as superhuman strength, he hauled her up off the ground.

“I’ll lower you down as far as I can, then I want you to run to the house, knock on the door and ask them to let you in, then call 911 and Connor,” Tobias ordered as he swung her over the fence and then carefully dropped her down on the other side.

Before she could ask him what he was going to do, he pulled out a weapon she hadn't even realized he had on him and began to fire it, presumably at the approaching vehicle, even though she could no longer see it.

The roar of the engine seemed so loud, and she couldn’t make herself leave Tobias and run for the door. Though she did yank her cell phone from her pocket and dial Becca’s number.

“We need help, down the street, there’s a van aiming at us, Tobias is shooting at it,” she rattled off the moment she heard Becca answer the call.

Apparently, whoever was driving that van wasn't giving up easily, because she heard the screech of metal scraping along the fence. Isabella would have sworn that the fence rocked slightly, but that absolutely could have been her overactive and overstressed imagination getting out of hand.

After Tobias, who was standing steadily on top of the fence, his body balanced, handling the situation like he’d done it a million times before, fired a couple more shots at the van, the driver finally got the message because she heard tires screech again and then the fading hum of the engine.

Was it over?

Were they safe?

It wasn't until Tobias jumped down from the top of the six-foot-tall brick fence and ran to her, his hands grabbing her shoulders as he yanked her into his arms, kissing her hard beforefolding her into a crushing embrace that she even realized she was shaking.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt?” Tobias demanded, his voice harsh as he pulled her back so he could rake his gaze over her. The hard tone was only because he was afraid, too, she got that, but still it made her trembling increase.

“N-not h-hurt,” she managed to get out past her chattering teeth. “Y-you?”

“Fine.” He brushed off her concern like it was nothing, but she could see the pain hiding behind his fear. Jumping up a wall the same height as he was and then pulling her up behind him could not be good for his back.

Had he made it worse?

If this was because of her, if those people were after her and he’d made his injury worse trying to save her, she’d never forgive herself. Tobias was already worried about the injury and how it was going to affect him in the future. While she’d thought she was getting through to him that it would change his life, even make it harder in a lot of ways, but it wouldn't ruin his life, the last thing she wanted to do was make the injury worse.

“You didn't go inside,” he accused.

“C-couldn’t leave y-you,” she told him, her teeth still clattering together.

He swore, then he was yanking her up against him again, holding her there with first one arm and then the other as he shrugged out of the T-shirt he was wearing. The material was thin, but it had been warmed by his body. When he pulled her back just enough to slip it over her head, guiding her arms through the sleeves, it did in fact infuse her chilled body with warmth, and she sighed and rested against his chest again.

“You're okay, firecracker. They didn't get you, and they won't. I won't let them.” As he spoke, his hand smoothed the length of her spine, the motion soothing. “They won't get you too.”

Too?

What was he talking about?

Did he mean again? She knew he knew about the incident a few days ago, so maybe he’d meant to say that they wouldn't come after her again.

Only …

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