Page 76 of Parker

Including whereherewas.

She was in Chicago. That much, she knew. And that was only because she’d woken up just as the plane she’d been unwillingly placed onto was landing.

Her stomach clenched from the memory.

A headache had pulled her from unconsciousness, and Quinn remembered wondering why Parker had let her drink so much the night before. But as her awareness became clearer, she realized the headache wasn’t from too many margaritas on Parker’s deck…and it wasn’t the next day.

It was thesameday as it had been before she’d been knocked unconscious…by a freaking bomb!

Closing her eyes, Quinn ignored the tear falling down her cheek and hugged herself tight. With nothing but time on her hands, she’d learned that, if she tried hard enough…foughtagainst them hard enough…she could keep the terrifying flashes from that horrific moment at bay.

Mostly.

Why is this happening?

The confusion and fear she’d felt from seeing the Willis Tower from the view out her tiny round window had nearly been her undoing. That and not knowing if Sydnee and Asher were okay.

Please let them be okay.

Once she’d regained control over her barrage of emotions, Quinn had studied her surroundings for a clue as to who had taken her and why. Though by the unexpected, all-expense-paid trip to The Windy City was a pretty big one.

You know he’s behind this.

She had her suspicions, sure. But other than her, the small, private plane’s cabin had been empty, and the man who’d exited the cockpit upon landing wasn’t the face she’d expect.

He was, however, the man who’d broken into her home.

She’d bet her life on it.

He’d refrained from confessing, of course. Refused to talk to her at all, actually. Minus a few dickishly barked orders, that is.

But Quinn didn’t need a verbal confirmation of her suspicions.

She’d recognized his body shape and size the minute he’d exited the cockpit. Remembered the way he’d stood in her kitchen with that gun in his hand, ready to do God only knows what to her.

But his eyes…those were what really solidified Quinn’s conjecture that it was him. Those, and the slight muscle twitch in his left cheek when faced with the accusation that he’d been the one inside her home that night.

Oh, yeah. It was him, all right.

Not that it mattered. She still didn’t have a name. His or the person who’d hired him. Still had no idea where exactly she was, or what their plans were for her.

And worst of all, Quinn had no way of letting Parker know she was okay.

He must be going crazy with worry.

She could practically see that mask he sometimes wore—the fierce protector willing to kill to keep her safe. That’s how she’d come to think of it, but only as a romanticized exaggeration.

Until now.

Now, Quinn would give anything to see him burst through the doors. To come to her rescue—again—and take out anyone and everyone who blocked their path of escape.

It was a fantasy she couldn’t afford to get lost in. Not if she wanted to find a way out of here for real.

Because Parker wasn’t coming. Not without some way of letting him know where she was. And since she hadn’t figure that out yet, Quinn knew…

I’m on my own.

The thought had no more entered her mind when the room’s metal door began to open. Quinn spun around, flattening her back against the nearest wall to prevent a blind ambush.

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