Liesel just said that because of what was on her half of the letter. I suspected that marriage was the first step in searching for Liesel’s inheritance based on what my half of the letter said.
But Liesel married—it doesn’t make sense to me. She would never get married just to go after some treasure, and I don’t think the woman is capable of falling in love.
No, there is no way Liesel Dunn is married.
My skin begins to boil in jealousy just thinking about Waylon touching her. Proposing to her. Her saying yes. Planning a wedding. Saying I do. And then fucking as husband and wife.
I’m lying to myself. It was all too easy to imagine her married.
I hear gunshots, and I know I can’t focus on Liesel anymore. She’s safe. No one knows she’s here. It’s for the best until I can figure out who’s attacking us and why.
If Liesel were here, I wouldn’t be able to focus. And if she’s the target, then she really can’t be here. She’d do something stupid like get herself kidnapped.
I don’t have my gun on me, which is idiotic. But having a gun on me around Liesel is dangerous—for both of us.
If she smacks off, I might kill her. And if she tricked me and I let my guard down for a single second, she’d find it and kill me. I figured it was for the best to not put either of us in that situation.
I run up the hillside, staying as low as I can to avoid any stray bullets. Our assailants don’t seem to have made it past the front of the house. At least my security measures are working.
I make it to the open glass door at the back of the house and peer inside. My team of about a dozen is assembled in the middle of the living room.
I step inside.
“What are you doing standing around? Get to your positions, now!”
“Yes, sir,” they all mumble at different times and take off.
I sigh. I really should have found a better number two to train and prepare them for these scenarios better. Especially since I’ve been spending too much of my free time with Liesel.
Phoenix looks at me with concern in her eyes. “Liesel?”
“She’s safe.”
She nods.
“I need you to go to the bunker.”
“But I can help! I know how to shoot a gun as well as half of these yahoos.”
“I know, but you are way more important to me than those yahoos. I pay them to protect us. Your job is to stay safe.”
“What about you? Are you going to hide out in the bunker with me?”
I crack my neck back and forth, my face morphing into one of terror, preparing myself for what I’m about to face.
“Don’t worry about me, Dunn. No one can touch me if they can’t find me.”
She frowns. “You’re not invincible. You know that, right, Langston?”
I narrow my eyes and grab her hips, pulling her tightly against my body. “I’ve let these bastards get a ten-minute head start, and they haven’t so much as broken the exterior perimeter. Have a little faith in me.”
“I do, but I just worry.”
I kiss her forehead. “Don’t. Go to the bunker. I’ll come to you soon.”
I step away from her, putting an arm’s length of space between us. “Go.”
I don’t have time to make sure Phoenix gets to the bunker. She’ll either listen to me or she won’t. If she doesn’t, she’ll have to deal with the consequences.
I start to walk away, but Phoenix grabs my hand at the last moment.
“Dunn, I really don’t have time—”
She yanks my arm as hard as she can, closing the space between us. Her hands come up to my cheeks, grabbing me hard. She plants a hard, wet, all-out kiss on my lips.
I kiss her back, savoring how her tongue feels in my mouth.
Liesel.
Of course, my dumb-ass brain thinks of my kiss with Liesel instead of enjoying this moment.
When Phoenix kissed me earlier, it was greatly appreciated. I needed something to distract me from my kiss with Liesel. But this kiss now—all it makes me think about is Liesel. She’s the last person I want to be thinking about right now.
I want to end the kiss. I need to deal with whatever jackasses are trying to kill us all right now. But if I stop the kiss early, it will only make her desperate to kiss me more.
So I let Phoenix end the kiss.
“Get your ass to the bunker, now. I don’t want to have to worry about your safety.”
She touches her swollen lip with her finger. She’s going to spend her entire time in the bunker thinking about our kiss.
“Dunn,” I warn.
“I’m as safe as you are standing here, but fine, I’ll go.”
I watch as Phoenix walks away toward the more secure half of the house that sits on top of a bunker.
I stare at her legs tightly covered in jeans. I watch the sway of her hips as she walks away. My eyes drift up to her black long-sleeved T-shirt and her short red hair. Phoenix is the complete opposite of Liesel.
I like Phoenix’s body, but I don’t crave it like an addict craves heroin. With Liesel, if I get the tiniest taste, I’m going to lose myself. I’m going to become so addicted that I won’t be able to do anything but think about her.
A loud explosion grabs my attention again.
Jesus, I barely even kissed Liesel, and I’m already going down the rabbit hole. What would happen to me if I did more than kiss her?
That’s just one of the many reasons why I can’t.
I grab one of my many stashed guns by pressing my finger to the scanner under the kitchen counter. A compartment opens, and I grab the two guns inside, along with plenty of ammunition. Then I take off toward the garage.
The garage is dark when I get there. No one has entered yet.
I run to the Range Rover, pop the door open and then climb in.
This car is bulletproof, and the large tablet inside is hooked up to my entire security system. I’m a great fighter, but the best place for me to help my team is here, being their eyes in the field. My first task is finding the man who ordered this attack so I can put an end to this and save as many lives on my side as possible.
All of his team will end up dead, no matter how many surrender.
I turn on my radio, instantly connecting my voice to my team. “They are only attacking from the front. They’re trying to get past the minefield.”
“They won’t get past it, boss,” Seth says.
“Don’t get cocky. Be prepared and alert. I’ll let you know if any of them get through the perimeter.”
I need to find their leader and figure out why they are attacking. Whoever it is, they aren’t very skilled. Or at least, they didn’t bring very many men.
I dial Enzo’s number. Kai is technically in charge, and I love her to death, but Enzo and I go back since forever. And I don’t like to bother Kai and unless it’s important.
“What do you need?” Enzo says matter of factly, knowing that I never call him just to chat about how our lives are. I only call when I need something from him.
“The island is under attack. I don’t know who it is or if they’re after you or me.” I leave out the chance that they’re attacking to get to Liesel.
“I’m not aware of any threats against us, but let me do a security check and speak with Kai. I’ll get back to you in one.” He ends the call.