Page 80 of Prince of Tides
“What the fuck?”Eric got out.
“Shut up,” Rip growled, his mood instantly darkening as he shook my ex violently. “Wait. Why are you still here?”
He spun and hurled Eric across the warehouse straight into the shooter. I winced at thecrunch, followed by them falling to the ground limply, though Eric was still alive.
“Okay, that was a bit much for me,” I said, shaking my head. “Can we go now?”
“I’m sorry I left you,” Rip said, tearing apart the ropes holding me down. “I am. I really am. I should have been there for you in the hospital and—”
I pressed a finger to his lips, quieting him. “If you’d done that, Rip, then you wouldn’t be the man I knew. The man I cared for.”
He froze, stroking my cheek as his wings folded back into his shoulders. “I care for you, too,” he said softly. “A lot.”
“Good,” I said, snuggling in tight to him. “I had some time to think about it, you know. And I want you to understand that I will neverlikeyou going off to war. It’s not something I want, but I think I get it a bit better now. You don’t have to worry about me not being there when you get back—under one condition.”
The words were just tumbling from me as the shock of my kidnapping wore off. Or set in. I wasn’t sure.
“What’s that?” he asked, tenderly brushing my cheek with his knuckles while he stared adoringly down at me.
“Youcome back,” I hissed fiercely. “Every time. You go out there, and you be the strongest, fiercest, best prince you can be, and you comeback. I don’t want to do this alone. I want you there.”
“I will always come back to you,” he promised solemnly. “Every time.”
“Good. Now, can we go back to the hospital? I’m sure my father and family are worried sick.”
“Of course,” he assured, leaning in to kiss me.
“I love you,” I said, mostly without thinking, just saying what was in my heart.
He froze.
“What is it?” I asked, panicking. “Did I say something wrong? I’m sorry. I just thought—”
“It’s not that,” he said as the warehouse lights abruptly went out, followed by the clank of chains as the wall of garage doors at one end started to rise.
Beyond, I could see headlights and hear the rumble of heavy-duty engines approaching.
“Rip?” I asked nervously as he moved to put me behind him.
He didn’t say anything.
“Rip?”
He turned to look me in the eyes, cupping my face. “I love you, too,” he whispered, fear in his eyes. Not for himself, but for me.
Then everything was swallowed up in a wall of gunpowder and lead.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Rip
Igrunted, staggering slightly as an array of bullets slammed into my back and wings. I hovered protectively over Laurie, keeping her safe while my body took the brunt of the barrage.
“Where the fuck did Eric get so much goddamned firepower?!” Laurie shouted in my ear over the ear-shattering crescendo.
I thought about it. “He probably had to plan for your father to send in his own teams of men to extract you,” I said. “This is meant to counter them.”
“Are you going to be okay?” she asked.
