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C haz wasn’t fucking around any longer. He broke the glass of the first floor window with his gloved fist, reached inside and unlocked it. Shoving the window frame up, he crawled through and his boots hit the floor of the mud room. Brand followed close behind and once he was in, they moved forward, pistols in hand.

Chaz was ready to burn the whole fucking house to the ground if that’s what it took to find Lottie. His gut screamed she was there somewhere. The moment his guys set off the first round of explosives, three mercs went running into the woods to investigate. That left two more and Ferrante. At least that they knew of.

Regardless, they were each about to get a bullet in the head.

Completely focused, he and Brand quickly began to sweep the first floor. There was always the possibility of more mercs, and they were fully prepared to take them all down. Right before they moved into the last room on that level, a gunshot popped and a merc appeared in the doorway.

“I’ll hold him off,” Brand said, nodding toward the staircase. “You go up and find Lottie.”

“Roger.” Time was of the essence and he jogged over to the steps and stuck close to the wall as he hustled up. Pausing on the landing, he looked up, but didn’t see anyone. Where the hell was Ferrante? he wondered. It suddenly seemed eerily quiet.

Resisting the urge to call out for Lottie, he stealthily moved forward, quickly clearing a series of bedrooms before running straight into the final mercenary who was stepping out of a room. Chaz fired, hitting the guy in the shoulder, and he flew backwards, landing in the doorway on what looked like a pile of ceramic shards from what used to be a lamp. The bedroom beyond was empty, but clearly there’d been a scuffle.

“Where is she?” Chaz hissed. The man groaned in response, and before he could ask again, he heard a scream. His body tensed.

It was Lottie.

◆◆◆

Lottie already had her back to the railing as Ferrante took another step forward. He was so confident he’d already won, but she wasn’t giving up. Not today, asshole . She let him believe it was over, that she’d resigned herself to her fate. Not even close.

Baiting him, Lottie lowered the hunting knife to her side. “P-please,” she stammered. “Please, don’t hurt me.”

It wasn’t too hard to sound desperate, like trapped prey on the verge of fleeing, because that’s exactly what she was. But this little doe had a plan. Eyes locked on Ferrante, fist tightening on the knife, she quickly calculated the distance between them.

Just a little bit closer…

“I’m sorry, Charlotte, but you’re going to have a terrible accident. Just like Andrew. Ironic, I suppose, but why shoot you when I can just push?”

The gap between them closed a little more.

He wasn’t paying any attention to the knife by her side. Why should he? In his head, the egotistical asshole already saw the ending to the story. His story. But that wasn’t how this was going to play out. This is my story , she thought.

Ferrante charged and she let out a scream. At the same time, she swung the knife up, sinking it into his gut. Ferrante’s dark eyes widened in surprise and he let out a pained groan, slumping against her.

Pinned between his heavy body and the railing, Lottie tried to twist away, but couldn’t move. All of his weight held her in place and she heard the glass panel crack behind her.

Oh, shit. Maybe she hadn’t thought things through very well.

Especially when he grabbed her neck in a chokehold. His eyes turned wild, demented, and he seemed to have the strength of ten men.

Panic filled her as he dragged her up onto her toes, and she caught a glimpse of the knife sticking out of his stomach. Maybe she could grab it, yank it out and stab him in the heart. Blood oozed from the wound. Why was he still alive?

“Now you die,” he hissed.

No! She kicked her legs and scratched at the backs of his hands, refusing to give up because she had far too much to live for. Reya needed her and she’d finally found her person. She and Chaz were so good together, and she needed him in her life. Needed him to show her what a solid relationship felt like.

She wasn’t done with this life and the people she loved most.

Without warning, Ferrante was ripped away. Gasping for air, she dropped, stumbling forward, and fell onto her knees. Looking up, she saw Chaz pistol-whip the mob man so hard, his entire body spun, slamming into the glass with enough force to break the panel.

Lottie gasped, hand covering her mouth, as Ferrante flew forward and tumbled over the edge into thin air. A moment later, she heard a loud thump followed by ominous silence.

Chaz rushed to her side, panic darting over his face at all the blood covering her. “It’s not mine,” she assured him. “I-I stabbed him.”

His shoulders sagged in relief and he pulled her into his arms. “Lottie, honey, are you okay? Did he hurt you?”

Pulling back, he ran his fingers over her neck. Her throat was sore and she was a little shaken up. She knew she’d have bruises for days, and probably some nightmares, but she was happy to be alive.

“I’m okay,” she said, looking up at him through tear-blurred eyes. “Thank you.”

“I almost lost you.” He pressed his forehead to hers, cradling her face in his hands and looking into her eyes before wrapping her tightly in his arms. His embrace was so strong she almost couldn’t breathe. He must’ve realized because he loosened his hold and pressed his lips firmly against hers. After a moment, he pulled back. “You’re sure you’re okay?”

He sounded utterly distraught, and she nodded, holding onto him for dear life. “Yes.”

After pressing another quick kiss to her lips, he laced his fingers through hers. “We need to go.”

They wound their way back through the attic and down the stairs. Chaz glanced down at the room where she’d been locked up and cursed under his breath.

“I shot one of the mercs, but he’s gone. Nice job with the lamp, by the way. I’m guessing that was your handiwork?”

She shrugged one shoulder. “A girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do, right?”

He smirked and lifted his gun, tucking her slightly behind him. “Stay close.”

They moved quickly toward the main staircase, descending rapidly and ran into Brandon at the bottom.

“Ferrante?” he asked.

“Outside,” Chaz answered. “Most likely with a broken neck.”

With a nod, Brand led the way down the hall and out the front door. As soon as they stepped outside, Jayson, Lex, Corey and Xander came running around the corner.

“Go, go, go!” Lex yelled, waving his hands.

Not stopping to ask questions, the group took off. Lottie ran as fast as she could, keeping close to Chaz. They’d barely reached the SUV parked down the road when a black van appeared, heading straight for them.

“Get in!” Chaz pushed a hand against Lottie’s ass, and she scrambled into the car. “Stay down.”

The guys all jumped in as Jayson yanked the wheel sideways and hit the gas. Gravel kicked up and Lottie dropped to the floor between the seats, watching as the team lowered their windows and got into position.

“Here they come,” Brand said. “Aim for the windshield and tires.”

Guns started popping and Lottie stayed as low as possible. It felt like she was running for her life in some big budget action flick when she’d much rather be in a small town Hallmark movie. But, nope, she was the star of a death-defying, balls-to-the-wall chase scene straight out of the freaking The Fast and the Furious .

After a few more nail-biting moments, Lex pumped a fist. “Eat dirt, fuckers!” he yelled.

“Good job,” Brand said. She felt the vehicle slow slightly and the guys all sat down around her.

Chaz pulled Lottie up off the floor and onto his lap, wrapping his strong, warm arms around her. Still shaking, she leaned into the comfort he offered.

“You got them?” she asked, looking over his broad shoulder and out the back windshield. The van sat at a funny angle, completely spun around.

“We got ‘em,” he assured her, nuzzling his face in her curls.

Relief flooded her and she sagged against him. Beyond grateful to be alive, she grabbed his rugged face and began peppering kisses everywhere. His nose, cheeks, eyes, beard. “Thank you, thank you, thank you,” she whispered between kisses.

“Hey, what about us?” Lex asked with a grin.

“Yeah, what’re we? Chopped liver?” Jayson was smiling at them in the rear view mirror.

Chaz grunted in response then captured her mouth in a fierce, passionate kiss that left no doubt to whom she belonged.

Beside them, Corey smirked and Xander merely shook his head looking highly amused.

“Another one bites the dust,” Xander murmured.

Up front, Brand groaned. “Break it up you two.”

Lex laughed. “Yeah, or am I going to have to get the hose?”

Ignoring Lex, Lottie wrapped her arms around Chaz’s neck and returned the kiss with all the love in her heart.

◆◆◆

After returning to the cabin, everyone grabbed their belongings and they drove straight to the airport. Chaz tucked the remaining condoms deep into his duffel bag, managing to hide them before the others could give him any more hell. They were already teasing him mercilessly. But what could he say?

Lottie was his weakness.

At least they weren’t giving her shit for falling for a decrepit old grump. He might have to maim them if they did.

Xander booked them all tickets on the first flight back to Montana and they managed to eat dinner at the airport before boarding—past security, just in case anyone was following them.

Once in the air, the group discussed the situation in low tones.

“When Rocco Ferrante finds out what happened to his brother, he’s going to be pissed,” Jayson said.

“That might be the understatement of the year,” Xander murmured. “That man has a ruthless reputation. Far worse than Donato.”

“No one is going to hurt you,” Chaz assured Lottie, squeezing her hand. He’d been holding it since before takeoff and nothing was going to break his firm grip.

“Can we send the gems to him?” she asked. “I don’t want anything to do with them.”

“That’s a good idea,” Brand said. “Without the gems, there’s no reason for Ferrante to go after Lottie.”

“Revenge for killing his brother,” Corey reminded them in a low voice.

“Fuck that. No one saw what happened except me and Lottie,” Chaz said. “If Rocco blames anyone, it should be the mercs who failed to protect Donato.”

“Give the gems to me,” Xander said. “I’ll make sure they’re returned to Rocco.”

“Thanks, Hawke.” Chaz lifted Lottie’s hand and kissed its back. She was under his protection now for the rest of her life, whether she knew it or not, and he would make sure she and Reya weren’t harmed by anyone. Especially some mafia asshole.

After landing safely, the group drove back to Cielo Springs. Brandon told Lottie to take the next few days off—with pay, he generously offered—and Chaz gave the other man a grateful nod. He and Lottie had things to discuss.

Lottie called Wes and Ellie, but since it was late, Reya was sound asleep. They assured her everything was fine and told her to come pick her up in the morning. As grateful as Chaz was about having Lottie all to himself for the night, he knew she’d been through a traumatic experience and might need time to process it. He didn’t want to get his hopes up or push her to do anything she wasn’t ready to do.

Chaz drove Lottie straight to his house, unloaded their bags and dropped them in the foyer. After locking the door, he’d barely turned around before she threw herself against his chest and their mouths crashed together.

The kiss was hard and desperate, and he ran his hands through her curls and down over her body, needing to remind himself that she was fine. They all were, thank God.

Lottie jumped up and he caught her, her ankles locking at the small of his back, their tongues tangling as he turned and started up the steps. Having her safe in his arms, her warm body wrapped around his, meant everything. For so long, he’d allowed his bad experience with Samantha to taint his view on marriage. But just because they hadn’t been right for each other didn’t mean he couldn’t find someone who was perfect for him in every way.

And that was his Sunshine.

She might be a tiny thing, but she’d bulldozed into his life spouting her positivity and brightening his black and white existence with every color of the rainbow. He loved her so damn much, he couldn’t imagine his life without her. And he refused to wait another minute to tell her how very much she meant to him.

She owned him—body, heart and soul. And he wouldn’t have it any other way.