Page 77 of Blushing Bride

“Take your hands off my wife,” Ryker growled.

My stomach pitched forward at the sound. I was thankful in that moment that he’d never directed his ire at me that way. I whimpered as the man jerked my head to the side when Ryker took another step toward us.

“She’s to come with me,” the asshole spat. I flinched when his spittle landed on my cheek.

“She’s not going anywhere,” Ryker answered.

The man threw me aside. My body landed in a heap on the floor. My head bounced off the couch and I watched in a daze as the two men exploded into a flurry of activity. I brought my hand up to the back of my scalp, try to soothe away the ache at least a little.

The bastard that had dragged me inside reached to his belt and grabbed a knife. His was fierce and jagged looking, but it didn’t seem to faze Ryker at all. He rushed at the man with both arms protecting his face. The blade was angled outward in his hands.

I finally got a good look at my attacker.

He was even more enormous than I had thought. His body was one hard mass of bulging muscle. I’d seen him once before. He was Councilwoman David’s personal security guard.

He wasn’t an emissary. They’d sent him to kidnap me and recover the fusion reactor. He’d probably have killed me after he got it.

To them, I’d been expendable.

Ryker’s arm swept up, pounding into the side of the man’s skull hard enough for the crack to echo throughout the room. He stood there for a long moment and then shook it off, immediately going hard at my husband as if he hadn’t even hit him at all. He swung at Ryker with his knife, but thankfully, Ryker dove out of the way just in time for the man to sink his blade deep into the wall instead.

He yanked it, but it didn’t come out right away. Ryker took advantage and knocked him in the head again. His other hand wound around the man’s throat, pressing his blade firmly against his flesh.

“I’m not here for you,” the bastard blurted out.

“But you’re here for her, which means you have to go through me,” Ryker answered. The man jerked his own knife hard. He stumbled backwards when it came free, crashing into my husband and causing him to fall back onto the floor. Glass crunched beneath him, and I slapped my hand over my mouth to quiet my cry of alarm. Ryker could be really hurt.

I needed to do something.

They scrambled on the floor, and my gaze jerked around the room. There was another vase of flowers next to the couch. Ever since we’d married, Ryker had ensured that there were constant bouquets of flowers all over the house. He’d told me he liked the way that I smiled every time I looked at them.

I had something different for them in mind at this particular moment.

I pushed myself up to my feet as quickly as I could. The two men were locked in battle on the floor and neither one paid me any mind.

I had a difficult time watching because of the constant panic surging through me. One moment, Ryker would be on top and then the other man would flip him over and punch the side of his face. It wasn’t clear that Ryker would be the victor and that scared me.

I sprang into action, knowing that I had no time to waste.

I wrapped my hands around the heavy ceramic vase and lifted it off the side table. They fought for a while longer and when it looked like my attacker was gaining the upper hand, I lifted the vase over my head and crashed it down on the back of his head.

I hit him so hard that the ceramic cracked into large pieces and the water splashed down on his face. It got into his eyes, and he immediately tried to use one arm to wipe them clean. He wavered a little, clearly stunned, and Ryker took advantage of his momentary distraction to sink his blade into the side of the man’s throat all the way to the hilt.

The man grunted in shock before Ryker flipped him to the floor and pulled his knife free. I watched as a pool of blood started to grow beneath him. Ryker leapt up to his feet. Immediately, he rushed toward me and used his body to block the sight of the dying man on the floor.

“Shhh. It’s okay. You’re safe now, my sweet bride.”

CHAPTER18

Naomi

The rest of the night passed by in a blur. Ryker shuttled me out of the house and into a car. We drove to another place some distance away. I didn’t see where because I spent the entire ride curled up in his lap. Once we had arrived, he carried me into the bedroom and stripped me right there in the bathroom. He turned on the shower and disrobed beside me, making sure that he had a hand on me the entire time. I furrowed my brow, reaching towards him and tracing my fingers along the cuts and bruises that had been hidden beneath his clothing. His hand curled around mine, letting me know without words that he was alright and that everything was going to be okay. For some reason, that made me breathe easier.

By the time we dove under the spray together, I was feeling more like myself. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pressed my body against his.

“If you hadn’t come…” I began.

“Shhh. I’m here. Don’t let those thoughts continue any further, my love,” he murmured.

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