Insatiable (The Edge of Darkness, #1)(106)

I stare at her: the freckles dusting her skin – which is turning paler by the second – the still windswept hair, the forest-green eyes I’ve pictured an unhealthy number of times. “You’ll be fine.”

She doesn’t shy away when I grab a rifle from Barry and leave the hotel room.

Slowly, we walk down the corridor, Stacey in the middle. We’re joined by more of my men, and we circle her, shielding her, taking each step carefully in case Archie decides to ambush us.

When we reach the bottom of the stairway, one of the guards opens the back entrance, and we slip out.

The blast of a gun vibrates in my ears as one of my guys takes a bullet to the head. Stacey screams as I cradle myself around her and rush us towards the car while bullets fly from each side. I shove her inside the car, slam the door shut then open fire with rapid bursts until my rifle runs out of bullets.

I throw it down, grabbing my pistol from my waistband and shielding myself with the passenger-side door so I can start shooting again.

“You need to leave, sir,” one of my guards says. “We can hold them back.”

I swear to myself, because I never leave my guys behind, but I need to get Stacey out.

Barry rushes into the front, and we slide down the windows and shoot as he reverses out of the lot, swinging us into the road and accelerating .

Stacey stares at me, wide-eyed, breathless. “This is your life?”

I shrug.

She wipes a tear. “What happens now?”

I stop her from taking the vest off. “You go home. I’ll have you watched for a bit to make sure they don’t track you. You go on and live your life the way you have been.”

Maybe I’m being stupid, but I have to believe it’s possible, that she’ll make it out of this shit okay.

Stacey doesn’t say anything; eventually, she yawns and rests her head on my lap, and it stills me as she gets comfortable while Barry drives us to the hangar that’s over two hours away.

When she falls asleep, I lace our fingers, my other hand playing with her hair. “You should have stayed out of my life,” I whisper. “But you’ve always been there. Always.”

“Do you know what you’re doing?”

I glance up, my eyes clashing with my assistant’s. “What?”

“The more time you spend with her, the more danger she’ll be in.”

“I know that, Barry. Why the fuck do you think I’m rushing her out the country?”

“Sorry, sir, but she’s innocent and you’re…”

“I know,” I reply. “I fucking know.”

The drive takes forever and no time at all. I spend every moment of it staring down at her.

When we arrive at the hangar, Barry scans his badge to open the gates. The jet comes into view as we veer around the corner of an abandoned building.

“Wake up, Freckles,” I say softly, stroking her hair. She stirs, then blinks her eyes open. The corner of my mouth tugs absently, and I flatten my lips. “We’re here.”

The car stops as she rubs her eyes, trying to wake herself up. She looks out the window at the jet, my team waiting to both help her escape and fight the fight that will inevitably come here.

“Wait. What happens when I leave? Where do you go?”

The pilot appears as the stairs lower, his messy grey hair a sure sign we’ve dragged him out of bed.

I stare at Stacey. “I told you not to worry about me.”

“Well I’m going to!”

Someone’s radio beeps, announcing that four SUVs are trying to enter the area.

I briefly close my eyes; I hate that my team is dying. “You need to leave. Now.”

Barry takes her things, standing beside her. “Miss, if you’d board the jet please.”

Another radio goes off. A casualty. Two. Three.

Bernadette’s army is coming.

When Stacey takes a step back, ready to leave, I snatch her wrist and pull her to me, crashing my mouth down on hers with my hands on each side of her face. It’s not deep or passionate but enough that I won’t regret watching her walk away without kissing her.

And fuck me, feeling her lips on mine is a dream, especially when she kisses me back and the world ceases to exist.

I’m no longer standing in the airfield. I’m playing dares in a tent with the girl I’ve fancied since I was fifteen. Her lips are on mine, and I’m no longer in darkness, swallowed by the shadows of my wrongdoings.

The butterflies are still there. The nerves and the shake of my hands.

She told me not to kiss her, but she isn’t pushing me away either.

I taste her tears as she whimpers against my lips. “Come with me.”

I release her and step back, putting distance between us, and shake my head. “I can’t.”

Another gunshot, and I turn to Barry. “Get everyone on. You included.”

He frowns. “Why?”

“Because they’ll kill you all, and I’m not letting that happen. Get on the fucking jet – that’s an order.”

He nods, but I see his hesitation over leaving me.

“Miss Rhodes,” he says to Stacey, trying to usher her on.

She shakes her head. “Please, Kade.”

“Go,” I tell Stacey. “Don’t reach out to me. They’ll have my phone.”