Page 77 of Beautiful Secrets

A trio of laughs makes us both turn to the mouth of the alley. Three men had been walking past, but I guess they heard me shouting because now they’re standing at the mouth of the alley watching Sarah and me.

“Let’s go back,” she says, her voice shaking a little.

When she slips her arm through mine again, I let her. I can tell even from here the men are drunk. For a second, I’m furious that Derek would let his pregnant wife walk down this dark, dangerous alley by herself…but he didn’t, did he? He told her to wait, and I was the one that dragged her down here.

“Oi!” one of the men calls out. “Where you pretty things going?”

They laugh among themselves as they turn into the alley behind us.

The club’s door suddenly looks like it is miles away.

“Faster,” I murmur, slipping an arm around Sarah’s waist and urging her ahead of me.

“I’m trying.” Her voice is tight, terrified. “But I need to pee.”

I grit my teeth and risk a glance over my shoulder.

The men are right behind us.

I gasp as the tallest one lunges at me. Shock has me in its teeth—I stand frozen to the spot as his hand closes around my arm.

“Looking for a good time?” he slurs, a lopsided leer crawling onto his face. “’Cos I know we are.”

I become dimly aware of the other two men grabbing Sarah and pushing her against the wall.

Blood roars in my ears. My heart wants to come out of my chest. “Let me go,” I manage in a pathetic, shaking voice.

The man’s eyes widen. “Oi! A fucking Russian!”

Anger bubbles…then fizzles out.

He drags me to the side, undressing me with his eyes. “I never ’ad a Russian before.”

Sarah screams.

There’s a crash. Cole appears at the door, but he’s too far away.

Too far away.

So I knee him in the groin as hard as I can. And when he bends over with a dry heave of pain, I slam my elbow into his upper back, toppling him forward.

Footsteps, running. I turn and bolt toward Sarah. The men have her pinned against the wall, one with a drawn back fist.

Oh my fucking God.

He’s going to punch her.

Right in the belly.

Fear and anger snarl and spit as they wage war in my mind. I’m not running as fast as I should because I’m so terrified one of them will turn around.

But then Cole hurls himself forward, catching one of the men with his shoulder and bearing them both to the ground. Derek is a moment behind him.

The sound of the first man’s head cracking against the bricks is sickening. Cole’s fist eviscerating his nose—even worse.

I run around them, scooping up a sobbing Sarah before she can collapse on the ground.

I haul her up, scanning the alley to make sure we are safe. The man I kicked in the balls is rolling around on his back making gagging sounds. Cole is getting off the man whose nose he broke, his bloody hand still curled in a tight fist.