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We follow behind Carter slowly. Tahani reaches out and slips her hand into mine, squeezing my fingers. I squeeze hers, too, clinging to her. Thunder rumbles in the distance, and lightning crackles above the ocean in electric spider webs.
No one says anything as we walk down to the beach, Julio's gun trained on Carter, and Guerrero following right behind me and Tahani. I don't even attempt to turn around to see if he has his gun pointed at us, too. If he does, I don't think I want to know. Instead, I scour the beach below for Roman.
Raindrops fall faster, splashing against my skin in cold plops as we walk down the steep wooden steps. The beach below is dirty, with trash littering the sand. Aside from a guy on a surfboard out in the water and a couple walking toward the pier, there's no one around. The wind whips the water into choppy waves that crash against the beach in a pounding rhythm.
As soon as we hit the bottom of the stairs, my feet sink into the warm sand, sending the fine grains into my shoes. I keep plodding forward, scanning the beach for Roman.
My breath catches in my throat, and tears well in my eyes when I finally spot him standing near an outcropping of rocks on the far side of the beach, his back to the water. Dressed in a black t-shirt and jeans with his feet planted apart and a thunderous scowl on his face, he looks even more dangerous than Guerrero and so handsome he takes my breath away.
His eyes run over Tahani and then over me, softening incrementally when they do. Even from a distance, I feel the heat in his gaze as he scrutinizes us, meticulously checking us over to make sure we're both okay. My stomach flips when his hazel eyes meet mine, scorching hot. He looks like an avenging angel, ready to commit murder.
"What the fuck?" Julio mutters when they notice that Roman's alone.
Guerrero makes a sound from behind us.
Roman's gaze moves to Julio and then to Guerrero, his eyes narrowing. The softness leeches out, leaving nothing but implacable fury in its place. His jaw tightens, his hands clenching into fists. But he doesn't move toward us. He stays where he's at, forcing Guerrero to bring us to him.
Julio stops a few feet away from him, shoving his gun into Carter's side, forcing him to stop, too.
Tahani's hand tightens on mine, dragging me to a stop beside Carter.
"Mila, baby, are you okay?" Roman asks. He keeps his gaze trained on Guerrero and Julio, not even looking at me or Tahani again. His entire body is rigid, his muscles locked tight.
My stomach flutters as his voice washes over me. It's soft and lethal at once. He's pissed. Furious. If I didn't hate Guerrero for making the last thirty or so hours of my life a living hell, I could almost feel sorry for him. Roman is going to tear him apart.
"I'm fine," I whisper.
"Tahani?"
"I'm okay, Daddy."
"Carter?"
"I'm good, man," Carter mutters wryly, his hands still in the air.
"Where's Selena?" Guerrero demands.
"I'll tell you that as soon as point your fucking gun away from my girls," Roman growls, eyeing him coldly.
A tremor runs through me at his confirmation that Guerrero does have a gun pointed at our backs.
Guerrero makes another sound in the back of his throat, and then I feel him shift behind us. "Satisfied?" he mutters a moment later, his voice full of annoyance.
"Selena is safe," Roman says. "As soon as Carter walks away with Mila and Tahani, I'll tell you where she's at."
"That wasn't part of the deal," Guerrero says.
Roman's face is a thundercloud as he glares at Guerrero. Energy crackles in the air around him, absolute fury rolling from him in waves. I've never seen him so angry before, and I know this is the Roman who lives in Guerrero's world. The man who lies and cheats and steals and does what he has to do to survive. This is the Roman who's more than willing to murder…the one willing to go to war to protect what's his. This is the Roman kept tightly leashed by that iron will and steely resolve. The one who peeks out when he's inside of me, fucking me so hard I can't catch my breath. This is the dangerous man he warned me about, the one he never wanted me to see.
I'm not afraid of him though.
I'm fucking glad he's here, staring down Guerrero. Because this Roman? This is the man who never loses. This is the intimidating, bossy bastard who's survived years in Guerrero's world, living amongst murderers and rapists and pure evil. And this is the man who will get us all out of here alive.
"You burned my house down with my girl inside," Roman growls at Guerrero, taking a step toward him. "You planned to kidnap her." He takes another step forward. "You ambushed her and my fucking daughter, intending to kill them both. There is no goddamn deal, Guerrero. You're fucking lucky I didn't put a bullet in your girl's head as soon as I fucking found her. Keep pushing me, and I will."
Julio shifts nervously, digging his gun deeper into Carter's side.
Guerrero stands in silence for a moment, eyeing Roman warily. I think he knows how dangerous Roman is. I think he's afraid of him, not because Roman has his girlfriend hidden away, but because of who Roman is.
