Under His Protection (18 page)
Read Under His Protection Online
Authors: Katie Reus
And she had to get help.
Scrambling back in between the cars toward the sidewalk, relief punched through her when she saw her purse near a wooden privacy fence that lined this side of the alley. Half of her belongings were strewn across the pavement, including her cell phone. Snagging it off the ground, she started to dial 9-1-1 when the sound of squealing tires made her head jerk up. A dark SUV with tinted windows was racing out the other end of the alley, thankfully in the opposite direction. But the big man who’d come to her rescue was lying on the ground.
Phone in hand she raced down the sidewalk, fighting panic that he’d been injured or worse. Maybe the guy with the knife had stabbed him… As she reached him, he groaned and shoved up to a sitting position.
“Are you okay?” he rasped out as he glanced around, diligently taking in their surroundings.
“I should be asking you that.” Kneeling next to him, she reached out to touch his temple. “Thank you so much for what you did…” A small trickle of blood trailed down the side of his face. “Crap, you’re bleeding.”
“It’s nothing,” he muttered, swiping it clean, but didn’t move away from her.
“Are you hurt anywhere else?” She scanned him, taking in the casual pants and loose T-shirt. That was when she saw the gun peeking out from underneath his shirt which had been shoved up. It was secured to the side of his pants by a small holster. Mina jerked to a halt at the sight of the weapon. Her throat constricted, but before she could move, he pushed up to a standing position and held out a hand for her.
“I have a permit and I’m fine, but we need to call the police. Whoever those guys were, they weren’t just out to mug you. They shot me with a fucking bean bag round.” He groaned as he pulled her to her feet.
At five feet eleven, she was taller than a lot of people so she was surprised when she stood in front of him and realized he had to be well over six feet. And he was really broad too. There couldn’t be an inch of fat on the guy. And why was she noticing that anyway? Maybe she had hit her head. “Wait, what?” His words finally registered as she tore her gaze from his wide chest to his concerned face. “A bean bag? What are you talking about?” And why had he even jumped in to help her like that? She wanted to ask but was struggling to remain calm.
He nodded at the ground and stepped past her. She watched as he bent down and when he came back up with something in his hand she was even more confused at what she saw.
He held it up for her to inspect. “They shot this at me using a shotgun with some sort of modifier on it. I’ve never seen something like that before. I barely heard the release.”
“You mean they shot you with something police use in riot controls?” That was beyond weird. But also deadly. She’d read an article about the kind of damage those things could do if they hit someone in the head or ribs. “Where did they hit you?”
“Barely clipped my shoulder. Trust me, I’m fine,” he said as he scanned her from head to foot. “Did they hurt you? Did they say anything?”
A shiver raced through her as the reality of what could have happened slammed into her all at once. “They didn’t hurt me, but they would have.” As thoughts of how truly horrific tonight could have gone settled in her mind, another shiver took hold and soon she was full-on shaking, her teeth chattering even as she tried to speak. There had been three of them. She hadn’t even seen the third until that fight. And there’d been a driver, so that was four.
“Shit,” he muttered, pulling her into a tight embrace. The sudden hold should have shocked her but she was barely hanging on after what had just happened. “You’re okay.” A big, surprisingly gentle hand, soothingly stroked down her back, helping steady out her breathing and slow her heart rate.
Acknowledgments
A great big thank you to Kari Walker for her insight with this book! I also owe thanks to Joan Turner for her copy editing skills and Jaycee with Sweet ‘N Spicy Designs for the beautiful cover. For my readers, the ninth book in the Red Stone Security series is here because of you. Thank you for reading this series. Every day I’m humbled that you love this world as much as me. I wouldn’t get to write so much without a supportive husband so as always, thank you. Last but not least, I’m thankful to God.
Complete Booklist
Red Stone Security Series
No One to Trust
Danger Next Door
Fatal Deception
Miami, Mistletoe & Murder
His to Protect
Breaking Her Rules
Protecting His Witness
Sinful Seduction
Under His Protection
The Serafina: Sin City Series
First Surrender
Sensual Surrender
Sweetest Surrender
Deadly Ops Series
Targeted
Bound to Danger
Non-series Romantic Suspense
Running From the Past
Everything to Lose
Dangerous Deception
Dangerous Secrets
Killer Secrets
Deadly Obsession
Danger in Paradise
His Secret Past
Paranormal Romance
Destined Mate
Protector’s Mate
A Jaguar’s Kiss
Tempting the Jaguar
Enemy Mine
Heart of the Jaguar
Moon Shifter Series (paranormal romance)
Alpha Instinct
Lover’s Instinct (novella)
Primal Possession
Mating Instinct
His Untamed Desire (novella)
Avenger’s Heat
Hunter Reborn (2015)
Darkness Series
Darkness Awakened
Taste of Darkness
About the Author
Katie Reus is the
New York Times
and
USA Today
bestselling author of the Red Stone Security series, the Moon Shifter series and the Deadly Ops series. She fell in love with romance at a young age thanks to books she pilfered from her mom’s stash. Years later she loves reading romance almost as much as she loves writing it.
However, she didn’t always know she wanted to be a writer. After changing majors many times, she finally graduated summa cum laude with a degree in psychology. Not long after that she discovered a new love. Writing. She now spends her days writing dark paranormal romance and sexy romantic suspense. For more information on Katie please visit her website:
www.katiereus.com
. Also find her on Twitter
@katiereus
or visit her on Facebook at:
www.facebook.com/katiereusauthor
. If you would like to be notified of future releases, please join her
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. Direct link:
http://eepurl.com/jEABv
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