Page 94 of Taken With Trouble

Liam

I peel my bodyoff the floor with as much swagger as I can muster and with what I expect might be a broken rib. My gunshot wound has been bleeding for a while, and I’m feeling quite dizzy. Henchman twenty-seven was the lucky one to find me and wasted no time expressing his anger. It was brutal, but worth it for this moment right here.

To seeher. She’s alive.

“Liam,” Serena says again. Her dark eyes find mine wide with worry. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m a little offended you can’t tell. I’m saving you.” I smile, stepping toward the chair she’s tied to.

Her chin quivers, but a smile finds those beautiful lips. “You’re not doing a very good job of it.”

“It would seem so, wouldn’t it?” I’m honestly surprised to be alive at this point. I thought for sure they’d put a bullet in me before I reached the doors, but I’m not fighting the turn of fate.

A man clears his throat, and for the first time, I notice we aren’t alone. That ruins my plans to kiss her senseless.

Eh, who am I kidding? I might die here. What could it hurt?

I approach Serena’s chair and lean down, brushing a soft kiss against her lips. That’s all I’m able to purchase before I’m yanked away from her and punched squarely in the jaw by Serena’s ex.

“Liam!” Serena screeches.

I open and close my jaw. Still works. “Don’t worry, darling. I don’t blame the man for being jealous.” Another fist at the face. “I fear you make men crazy.” Sebastian shoves me into a henchman—who seems to think he’s been left out of the festivities—and knocks another punch into my bad arm.

I spin away, trying to keep my wound away from him, but something stops me in my tracks. The man in the corner of the room.

“You.”

The man lifts a brow but doesn’t say anything.

“You’re the one who attacked Serena in my apartment back in the States.”

Serena glowers at the man. “That’s Agent Ford—a disgrace to America.”

Ford approaches Serena like he’s going to hit her, but Sebastian stands and points him to the corner. Ford obeys like the good little henchman he is.

“He’s still learning his place,” Sebastian says as he picks up a bottle of scotch on the table and pours a cup, stomping toward me but not offering any. Terrible host.

Serena looks over at me. “You didn’t lie; youweresaving me.”

“I told you I never lied to you. Okay, that’s not entirely true, but never when it mattered.”

“Would you shut up?” Sebastian yells, spraying me with a mix of spittle and scotch. It’s extremely off-putting.

“Why? Do you have something to say?” I swipe at my face. So does he, but I dodge, which only serves to make him angrier.

“You should have run when you had the chance, boy.”

“Boy? I’m over thirty. How old are you?” I cast a reproving glance at Serena. “Did he steal you from the cradle?”

“Stop talking,” Serena says, right before I’m hit again.

“You have a death wish,” Sebastian growls.

“It’s merely a whim at this point.”

“Wait until The Boss gets here.”

“You mean you’re not the top dog? That’s disappointing. I think you have much more potential.” This time when he hits me, I feel a tooth shatter. But him hitting me means he can’t hurt her. Though it’s likely he wouldn’t hurt me, either… if I kept my mouth shut.