Page 110 of Desperate Justice

Rafe fell back against the pillows and eyeballed her, marveling at what a miracle she was. “One question. How did you nail that son of a bitch when he was coming at you?”

“I told you, knives come in handy.” Allison studied the IV dripping fluid into his arm. “I stripped the lamp wiring and shocked him. Makeshift Taser.”

“They teach that at nursing school?”

“Nah. Saw it on television once.”

Her hand rested on his. “I wasn’t going to let them get you again, Rodriguez.” Allison’s expression turned haunted. “Not like the last time I treated your gunshot wounds.”

Stunned, he realized she was ready to cry. “When was that?”

“Last year.” Allison took a deep breath. “Now you finally know. When you got shot, you could have died. That one bullet nearly nicked your carotid artery. I applied pressure and...”

His eyes widened. “Allison? That was you?Mi angel, the one who saved me? Who told me, ‘Don’t you die, you bastard’?”

Heat crept up her neck to her cheeks. “Yeah. I was leaving a small convenience store a few blocks away after a night shift, heard the gunfire and called 911 and ran there.”

“Ran to the danger instead of away from it.” Rafe marveled at her dauntless courage. “I tried to find out who saved me that night, but police said the woman left before they arrived. They only saw the paramedics. Why didn’t you ever tell me?”

Her blush increased. “I wasn’t even sure it was you until I checked the hospitals later.”

“And then I roped you into being my CI for the Devil’s Patrol. I never knew.”

She met his gaze directly. “Your threats about jail time weren’t the reason I agreed to work for you, Rafe. I wanted to do it, get to know you better. That night on the street when you got shot doing your job, trying to keep the streets safe against drug dealers, told me exactly what kind of man you are.”

“And what kind of man am I?”

“The kind I wanted in my life because you made me believe I could love again. I love you, Rafael Jones Rodriguez. Took me a long time to admit it to myself, but I do.”

He wanted to kiss her. Later. When he could do it properly, and long into the night.

He would keep kissing her for a long, long time, if she had him as her partner for life.

CHAPTER 26

Two months later

The time had come to finally introduce Allison to his family. Rafe glanced backward at her parents and Diana.

“Ready?” he asked. “My family can be a little...overwhelming.”

“Ready.” Diana grinned. “You’re forgetting I’m used to overwhelming, Rafe.”

“That’s an understatement,” Allison agreed.

Diana looked sad for a minute, and then smiled. In the weeks since Paul’s arrest, she had started to smile a little more each day. Her testimony would help put her ex-fiancé behind bars for a long time.

“You sure I look okay?” Allison asked.

Glancing down at her pink sheath dress, with her silky hair spilling partly down her back, the black stockings and the Dr. Martens on her feet, he nodded. “You look fabulous and utterly yourself, Ally. I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

Her mother sighed. “The dress is divine, but the boots...

“They’re fine as well,” her father interrupted.

“Mom, they’re stylish. Ally looks great. It’s fashion,” Diana added.

“As long as you don’t wear them with your wedding gown, Allison.” Her mother looked worried for a minute. “You are having a wedding?”