Page 59 of City of Salvation

“Have you ever met someone, and you just knew their soul was worth loving? That you didn’t need to know anything more than what you saw before you? Nothing else would change how you were connected, because they'd already made a place in your heart?” she asked, her words coming out in a rush of emotion. I reached for her wrist, feeling the way her pulse had quickened.

My gaze locked onto hers, and I allowed my feelings for her to slip through. A silent confession. She had no clue she was describing how I felt for her, and I was jealous that Ryan was the one who’d earned Nikki’s love. I wanted her to feel that way for me.

Even if it was only fleeting.

“Yeah, Niks, I do know what it’s like to fall for someone when you know nothing about them—yet somehow know all of the important parts.”

CHAPTER 25

NIKKI

FLIPPING A BITCH: APPARENTLY ONLY A WEST COAST TERM MEANING TO TURN THE DAMN CAR AROUND

His stare mademe feel raw. Those hazel eyes stripped me of every brick I’d placed in my walls, revealing the scared and damaged soul it surrounded—protected. And I wanted so badly to let him in, to trust him.

His words reverberated in my mind.

He’s talking about you.

I wanted to scoff at my inner thoughts, spouting wishful bullshit. There was no way he could mean me…and when had my words shifted from sharing about Ryan to revealing how I felt about Dex?

My chest ached like all of the oxygen was being stolen from my lungs and the only way I would be able to breathe was if I let him in, sharing a piece of myself the way he had. Suffocating was the less terrifying option. Letting him in was a guarantee to heartache.

He’s already in.

When had that happened? When had I let this man through my boundaries? He’d slipped in, filling in my cracks and making me whole—but I didn’t tell him any of that.

I nevergot the chance.

A barrage of bullets hit the driver’s side of the SUV, pulling a scream from my mouth.

“Fuck,” Dex yelled, wrapping his arms around me and tucking our bodies down near the floorboard. Another round went off, pinging off the glass but not piercing it. “Baby, I need you to stay down here, okay?” he asked, smoothing his hands over my hair, searching my face.

“Yeah.” I swallowed down my initial shock, tucking away any fear. He needed me to be strong, not a fucking weeping mess. Luckily for both of us, this wasn’t my first time being in shit like this.

“Got an extra gun?” I asked.

He untangled his massive body from mine, maneuvering into the driver’s seat with surprising ease, “Spitfire, you don’t need a gun. You’ve got me to take care of you,” he said, throwing the car into drive and peeling out.

“That’s fucking cute, but I’ve managed to survive for twenty-seven years without you, Dex. I’m not sitting on my ass while we’re being shot at.”

He chuckled, but the smile quickly fell. “Shit,” he hissed.

Dread flooded me at the tone in his voice.

“Get in your seat, Nikki. Now. And buckle the fuck up.” The car took a sharp turn that sent my head into the door. I scrambled up off the floor and buckled up, pulling my phone out and shooting off a message. It was dark out now, and the headlights of the car following us were so bright I couldn’t tell the make or model.

“What’s the pla—” I didn’t get a chance to finish my question.

Glass shattered, the rear window exploding, sending shards of glass everywhere.

“Fucking hell, they have bullet piercing,” Dex shouted, yanking the steering wheel to the side and directing usbetween a set of boulders as we moved farther out into the desert. Without a second thought, I started digging through the glove box.

“Come one, Robert, I know you’ve got to have.” My hand wrapped the familiar grip of a gun. “Bingo,” I said, unbuckling my seatbelt and crawling into the back.

Dex’s hand grabbed my ankle, briefly taking his eyes off where we were going to look me in the eye. “What the hell are you doing?” he asked, his voice thick with concern.

“You gonna throw a fit about it, or will you let me help?”

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