Nash: A Rough Romance by Piper Stone (book series for 12 year olds txt) 📕

A part of me knew he was forever damaged, but I didn’t care. He was a true hero.

At least in my mind.

The sound of a phone ringing brought a hiss from his lips. Very slowly he glared down at his cell phone, a snarl curling across his lips. “The sheriff.”

I sat up as he answered the phone, every nerve in my body standing on end.

“Sheriff Robertson,” he said in a tone that seemed like resignation.

Reaper’s face was pinched, his eyes darting back and forth. What the hell was she telling him?

When he jerked up, his chest heaving, I slipped my feet to the floor, sliding my drink onto the table as I stared up at him.

“What the fuck are you telling me, Sheriff?” he demanded, immediately turning toward the front windows. “Here? Are you certain?”

I knew instantly that Dante was in Montana.

“Jesus. Yeah, I understand. Any indication where he is or how many assholes that he brought with him?” He slowly turned in my direction, his eyes boring into mine. The man was searching for answers. How the hell could Dante have found out where we were?

As he sucked in his breath, shaking his head, the glare as harsh as I’d seen, I got off the couch, my legs shaking. My God. I would never get away from the asshole. Never.

“Fuck. Fuck!” he exclaimed, immediately reaching for his weapon on the table and storming toward the front windows, peering around the edge of the blinds. “Okay.”

The moment he ended the call, I could tell he was ready to toss the phone across the room. He grabbed the jump drives, shoving them into his pocket. Quiet. For a solid thirty seconds, there was nothing but the sound of the crackling fire. He lifted his head, slowly returning it in my direction.

“The fucker left Illinois yesterday, although the authorities waited to tell your buddy, Roger. From what the sheriff was able to determine, the asshole might be headed in this direction.”

“But he can’t find us here. Right?”

A snicker formed deep in his throat. “Evidently, an informant came clean, contacting the authorities and telling them that Dante was on a mission in Montana, in Missoula to be exact. And, at least according to that district attorney, Dante bragged about knowing exactly where you are.”

“No. Oh, God, no.”

“The question remains, Mitch. How the fuck could that asshole find you?” When he walked closer, the grimace on his face riddled with fury, I longed to shrink into the woodwork.

“I don’t know. How the hell would I know?”

He continued glaring at me for a full minute as he fisted his hand, the gun in his other drawing my attention.

There wasn’t a part of me that wasn’t shaking.

“We’re leaving.”

His statement was definitive. There would be no refusing him.

“And go where?” I wasn’t entirely certain my question was audible.

“I’ll fucking figure that out.”

As soon as he said the words, the sound of a text coming in on my phone seemed as startling as the horrible news. I swallowed before glancing down at the table.

“Who the hell did you contact, Mitch?”

“I, um…” As I wrapped my shaking hands around it, pulling the phone closer, a wave of understanding settled in.

Within seconds, he jerked the phone from my hand, snorting as he glared at the screen. “Get out, he’s found you.” He allowed the words to linger then shifted around the table, closing the distance. The heat of his body was entirely different than before.

He was beyond pissed.

“Who the fuck is this?” he demanded again.

“My friend. Okay? I wanted to let her know I was okay.”

Chortling, he shoved his weapon behind his back, driving it into the waistband of his jeans. “Do you understand that a single call allows anyone to make a connection? Those who have the means can even lock onto the location by using GPS? Do you have any fucking idea that you allowed this murderer to find you?” After tossing the phone onto the floor, he smashed it with his boot. “Christ.”

His words stung, more than I wanted to admit, although I was forced to realize just how stupid I’d been. “She wouldn’t have betrayed me. Jessica is my friend. She’s been my friend since…”

“Since when?” Reaper laughed bitterly. “Since about the time you began working on Giordani’s account?”

I took several deep breaths as my thoughts shifted to the past, trying to figure out exactly when I’d met Jessica. Then an ugliness settled in. She’d become my friend only a week after I’d been assigned Dante’s account. A flash of images floated into my mind. All the times I’d gone out for a drink with her. All the times she’d come to my apartment, sharing girl time over a movie and popcorn.

And all the times we’d discussed business on a limited level. My God. What the fuck was wrong with me? I’d been played on every level, monsters horning in on every aspect of my life.

“She told him,” I finally said.

He laughed bitterly as he yanked my coat from the hall closet, tossing it in my direction. “You bet she did. Get moving. The shit is about to get real.”

Chapter 17

Reaper

Rage.

The emotion was almost too much to keep buried in my system. While Mitch was a smart girl, she’d been played to the point that she’d lost her sense of reality. There was no time to waste. We had to get the fuck out of here.

“If you contacted anyone else, you better fucking tell me,” I barked as I shut off the lights, dragging her by the arm toward the door.

“Nobody. Jessica was the only person that knew what I was dealing with. I wanted to warn her.”

“Yeah? Well, my guess is that whatever conversation you had went directly to the fuckhead.”

To her credit, she didn’t attempt to fight me.

“Stand the fuck right here,” I commanded before slightly opening the slats on the blinds. While a slice of moon illuminated a portion of the front of the house, it did little to provide any