Page 64 of Unbreakable Bonds (The Boston Romance #2)

The desire in his deep voice stirs something warm inside me, a welcome respite from the constant fear. I lean down, pouring all my love into one kiss. It deepens naturally, the roughness of his lips against mine pulling us into our own world where nothing exists but us.

"I should have known you were playing me."

David's voice shatters everything. I jerk back, heart stopping.

"Get the fuck out of there!"

I stumble backward as David storms into the cell, his fist connecting with Cole's ribs in a sickening thud. "Fucking bastard! She's mine!"

Cole's agonized grunt echoes off the walls as David keeps hitting him. "You just don't know when to stop taking what is mine, do you! Well, guess what? Tonight it ends."

Something in David's eyes shifts – that final thread of sanity snapping. The look he gives Cole turns my blood to ice. This is it. He's going to kill him.

My body moves before my mind catches up. I grab two pieces of cutlery from the table, tucking one under my dress and gripping the other tight. Now or never.

"Leave him alone!" I plant myself in the doorway, knife raised.

David's head snaps up, but instead of fear, his face twists into something worse – pure, lustful malice. "You've chosen your fate." His voice drops to a whisper. "I'll find myself another doll face."

Bile burns my throat, but I force steel into my voice. "I'll never be yours. You're nothing more than a pathetic piece of shit that feasts on control."

His grin turns feral. "Well, Mr. Walker," he purrs, eyes never leaving my face. "Pay attention, because you'll be the witness of what I do with a disobedient woman." That grin widens. "When you're dead, I'm going to lie your corpse in front of him on the floor."

Cole's face contorts in rage and terror. "Please, don't kill her. Kill me instead!"

"Too late for that. She made her choice." David lunges, faster than I expected. I dodge sideways, remembering Cole's training. My heel connects with his nose in a spray of blood.

"Remember, Alex, keep your guard up!" Cole's voice steadies me as I raise my hands, knife clenched tight.

David wipes blood from his face, rising slowly. His eyes have gone completely dead. "You expect to beat me, sweetheart?"

"Yes, and if not, I'll die trying."

He feints left – a trick. When I move to strike, his hand clamps around my wrist like a vice. Pain explodes through my arm as he twists, the knife falling from my grip. Then I'm airborne, skull cracking against the glass wall. Fuck, that hurt.

"This will be easier than I thought." His voice drips with sick pleasure. "I'm going to have fun stabbing you until you're unrecognizable."

I force his words out, focusing only on his reflection in the glass. Breathe and think. My hand inches toward the second knife hidden in my dress.

"Alex, turn!" Cole's voice cracks with desperation.

I wait, gathering every ounce of strength left in my body. David's footsteps approach – one step, two. Cole screams my name. I spin, exploding upward with a primal scream that matches David's roar.

His eyes are pure evil, but Samantha's face flashes in my mind – waiting for her father to come home. All those nights of terror after the alley attack, reading articles about how to kill an attacker... it comes down to this moment.

His right hand grabs my shoulder. I drive my arm up and forward, aiming for his throat just like I'd read.

The blade sinks in beside his larynx. His pupils dilate in shock as I change the angle, pushing deeper.

With everything in me, I wrench the knife sideways.

The sound of tearing flesh makes my stomach heave.

His weapon clatters to the floor as his hands fly to his throat.

Blood sprays in an arc as he stumbles backward, making horrible gurgling sounds.

He crashes to his knees, eyes wide with disbelief, desperately trying to stop the crimson flood pouring between his fingers.

His body spasms as he collapses sideways, still conscious but rapidly weakening as blood pools beneath him.

The knife slips from my numb fingers. I killed a man. I'm killing a man.

I stand frozen, watching death take him, until Cole's voice breaks through: "Alex, sweetheart! Grab the remote control and the keys for the handcuffs. Now, while you still can. They're in his pocket."

Moving like I'm underwater, I kneel beside David's body.

His eyes are still open, staring sightlessly at nothing, that grey gaze that once held so much malice now dull and empty.

Blood still seeps from his throat, spreading across the concrete in a dark pool.

My stomach lurches as I force myself to reach into his jeans with trembling hands, trying to avoid the growing puddle of red.

I find the key and remote, but as I start to stand, white-hot pain explodes through my side.

My hand touches something wet, warm. When I look down, my palm is covered in crimson.

Cole thrashes against his restraints. "Okay, baby, keep pressure on the wound."

I press down, hissing at the agony.

"Good, now move my way."

Kicking off the heels, I start crawling. Each movement sends fresh waves of pain through me. Blood seeps between my fingers as cold sweat drips down my face.

"I don't feel well."

"I know, but you're almost there."

Tears of pain stream down my face as I finally reach Cole.

Somehow, I find the strength to push up onto my knees, my whole body trembling as I fumble with the key.

The moment his hands are free, my legs give out.

I collapse, pressing my palm back against the wound as Cole tears at the ropes binding his legs.

He drops to the floor beside me, strong arm wrapping around my shoulders. "Alex." His hand covers mine over the injury, and the pressure makes me whimper. "Keep pressing, baby. I need to grab his phone and call for help."

"Hmm," is all I can manage.

Cole stumbles to David's body, cursing as he searches the pockets. Finding the phone, he rushes back, punching buttons with shaking fingers. He sets it on speaker, replacing my weakening hand with his own firm pressure. A woman's voice crackles through, and tears of relief sting my eyes.

"9-1-1. What is your emergency?"

"I need a fucking ambulance. My girlfriend has a stab wound, and she's bleeding." Cole's voice cracks with desperation.

"Sir, calm down, and tell me where you are."

"I don't know where we are. Can't you trace this phone?"

"I need you to remain calm, sir, we're trying to find your location as we speak."

"Don't you tell me to calm down when she's bleeding out. Hurry the fuck up!"

The world starts to blur at the edges. "C-Cole?" My voice comes out barely a whisper.

His jaw clenches as he looks down at me, eyes glistening. "Fuck it. I'm getting you out of here."

He presses my hand back over the wound and grabs the remote. The familiar click of freedom echoes through the air – the most beautiful sound I've ever heard. Then I'm in his arms, head resting against his chest, listening to his thundering heartbeat.

"Stay with me, Alex. We're leaving this hellhole, baby."

Stairs appear as he shoulders through a door. He keeps talking to the dispatcher, answering questions I can barely understand anymore. My hand slips from the wound, too heavy to hold up.

"God, I'm glad I'm not dying in that ugly basement."

"You're not dying, period." His voice is raw, desperate.

"But if I do, it's in the arms of my gorgeous man."

Cole's pace quickens. Suddenly, blinding sunlight assaults my eyes as we burst through another door. I squeeze them shut against the burn.

"I believe we're in an abandoned warehouse," Cole tells the dispatcher. I force my eyes open to slits, catching glimpses of massive windows on either side of the vast space.

"We've got your location. An ambulance and trauma helicopter are on their way."

"Hurry!"

Little stars dance across my vision. I blink, trying to clear them, but they multiply with each attempt. "C-Cole."

He sinks to his knees, laying me on what feels like concrete. His hands replace mine over the wound, pressing hard.

"Hold on, baby. They're coming."

I always thought dying would be terrifying, but here, with Cole, a strange peace settles over me. I won this fight. I saved him. I stare into those ocean-blue eyes I love so much, lifting my trembling hand to his cheek.

"I love you, and I'm yours, Cole Walker." The words come out breathy, weak. "All rights reserved. Forever and always."

His lips quiver as he leans down, pressing the softest kiss to mine. Tears – his or mine, I'm not sure – splash between us.

"Don't you dare give up on me!" Raw anguish breaks through his voice. "I need you. You're my power woman in heels."

I try to smile, but something's pulling me under. Like being dragged into deep water, watching the surface get farther and farther away. I fight it with everything I have left. "I... love..." But the words fade as white light bleeds into my vision.

The last thing I hear is Cole's voice, breaking on my name:

"Alex! Stay with me. ALEX!"

Then nothing but darkness claims me.