Morgan, Nicole - Sweet Vengeance [Sweet Awakenings 3] (Siren Publishing Classic)
Page 18
Adam clenched his fists together and used every amount of willpower he had to stand still and not charge the man.
“Look, this is between you and me, Bianchi. Just let her go. She didn’t do anything to you.”
Still laughing, he answered. “Talk about hypocritical. Shit…I didn’t do anything to you, either. That didn’t stop you from sticking your nose in and agreeing to testify against me, now did it?”
“Are you insane, Bianchi? You fucking killed someone. Actually, you’ve killed a lot of people. Did you honestly expect to be able to kill people and have no one take notice? Shit, man, think about that. Look, you want me, you got me. I don’t care what happens to me, just let her go.”
Both men stared each other down. No one spoke, and for a moment he was actually worried that the silence meant he was ready to do something volatile. Then he saw something. While Bianchi was focusing on him, he had stopped paying attention to Chelsea, and she looked like she was trying to get Adam’s attention.
He avoided looking directly at her, kept his gaze on Bianchi and hoped that she wasn’t about to try anything foolish. Not wanting to rely on wishes alone, he tried to distract him.
“Look, Bianchi. You’ve killed people. I’ve killed people. It was part of my job, but you didn’t have to. Maybe if you just turn yourself in, then—” Adam held in his satisfaction when he was interrupted by the man’s angry shouts. He had effectively distracted him, and his hold loosened just a little more on Chelsea.
“Fuck you! I’m not turning myself in. You’re an idiot if you think that—oomph.” Bianchi doubled over when Chelsea took the back of her fist and slammed it into his cojones.
Adam’s fear intensified about tenfold, and he was sure he had just lost about five years off of his life, when he saw Chelsea first hit him and then run toward him.
In what seemed like the longest ten seconds of his life, he raced toward Chelsea and tried to shield her as he saw Bianchi raise his gun in her direction. He didn’t see, but rather felt the guns surrounding them draw and take aim in their direction.
He heard the first shot ring out at the same time he grabbed Chelsea’s hand and threw her to the ground. He lay down on top of her, his large arms encircling and covering her head, as his larger body completely covered her smaller one. He could hear her saying something to him, but his only focus was on protecting her and keeping her safe as bullets flew all around them.
The bullets continued to spray over their heads, and he had a sickening sense of déjà vu from a similar scenario that happened a little over a year ago. He wasn’t sure if it was seconds or minutes had passed before he could hear the officers reading people their Miranda rights.
Adam looked up and saw the man who he had spent the last year promising Ally he would kill and seek vengeance for her death lying in a pool of his own blood.
It hit him suddenly that he was completely smothering Chelsea. He got up off of her and framed her face in his hands. She was crying.
“Oh baby, don’t cry. It’s okay. It’s all over now.” He leaned down and brought their mouths together. Fusing her lips together with his, he was faced with the knowledge that she was completely trembling.
“Sugar, please don’t cry. I swear it’s all over with now. No one can hurt you, okay? God, come here.” He sat up and pulled her into his arms.
He was cradling her in his lap when he heard the paramedics speaking to someone who was shot, asking if he was okay. Continuing to hold her, his curiosity got the better of him when the paramedics tried again to get the attention of whoever had been shot.
“Sir? I need you to let me examine you,” a paramedic said while looking at him.
Adam was stunned, to say the least. “Why?”
The man looked at him with raised brows. “Sir, do you realize that you have been shot?”
Chelsea jolted from the paramedic’s question. “What? Oh, my God. Where? Are you okay?”
Still confused, Adam looked down at his shirt where the man had been pointing. On the sleeve of his T-shirt, there was most definitely blood, surrounding an obvious bullet hole.
Chelsea saw it at the same time and began to panic. “Oh, God. No, please, you have to help him.” She motioned for the paramedic to come closer.
Adam was surprised and in awe of how quickly she had calmed down once she heard that he was hurt. She was no longer shaking and was now directing the paramedics on just how they should do their job. Her whole focus was on taking care of him. All he could think was, she was so sweet, so amazing.
He glanced at the wound, and while there was a hole in the shirt, it was only from a graze. He had a pretty good gash, but it was superficial, and he was fine.
“Chelsea, I’m fine, honey…look at me.” When she didn’t look at him but was still directing the paramedics, he spoke again. “Please look at me, baby.”
Frustrated by her ignoring him, he finally let his restraint snap. “Damn it, Chelsea. I’m trying to tell you I’m sorry.”
Her head snapped back to look at him. She sat down beside him and asked, “What? What are you sorry about?”
He could not understand this woman. He had just bitten her head off, and she was still being so sweet. That was it. That was why he always called her sugar. She tasted sweet, acted sweet, and looked so damn sweet. The thought that he had almost pushed her away, let her go, simply because he didn’t think he deserved to be happy was idiotic at best.
She was sweet, and no amount of vengeance should have kept him from trying to keep her with him. Never again, though. He didn’t care that it’d only been days since the first time he spoke to her, touched her, kissed her, even made love to her, because it had been the best days that he’d ever experienced.
He brushed one of her gorgeous, blonde hairs out of her eyes and tucked it behind her ear. “Chelsea, you have no idea what hell I went through when I thought you were…I would die if I lost you.”
She was shocked to hear such touching, genuine, and obviously sincere words. “Oh, Adam. I’m fine. You saved me. You need to know that the only thing that got me through this whole thing was you. I…look, I know you don’t want to hear this, and I won’t push you, but after everything, I want you to know—”
He quickly interrupted her, knowing what she was going to say. “I love you, Chelsea.”
She sat there in stunned silence and listened while he continued. “I do. I know I didn’t want to. I know I didn’t think I was ready, but it’s not about any of that. I just love you. I couldn’t stop loving you if I tried.”
She began to cry. So much had happened in the last few days. It had been fast and a complete whirlwind, but what he said made total sense to her. It just did.
“Adam, oh, you have no idea…” She wasn’t able to finish as more tears flooded her eyes.
“Damn, honey. Are you gonna be like this on our wedding day, too?” He grinned at her mischievously and winked. “What? You know me, honey. I see something I want, and I take it.”
“Adam…I…”
“No. Don’t, honey.” He picked up her hand and held it in his. “Chelsea Hart…for the love of God, please say you’ll marry me. No one else is brave enough to fall in love with me. I’m a piece of work, honey. I’m rough around the edges and an arrogant son of a bitch, but I swear not a day will go by where you won’t know how much I love you.”
She tried to open her mouth to speak, but the sound was frozen in her throat. Finally, she asked, “Are you sure?”
He laughed at her, “Oh, hell, honey. Yes, I’m sure. Now put me out of my damn misery and say yes already.”
Laughing and crying all at the same time, she screamed, “Yes! Oh, yes, I will marry you. I love you, Adam.”
“I love you, too, sugar.”
“Um…I hate to break this up, but Shelby just called. Tamara’s water broke. Feel like helping me out with that guy over there running around like a chicken with his head cut off?” Rex asked and brought all of them to laughter.
THE END
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Nicole Morgan was an avid reader who kept having one recurring problem. Ideas for stories kept popping into her head. She ignored her desire to write until her curiosity got the better of her and she decided to research what steps she would have to take if she truly wanted to take a chance and write. After her research was complete, she sat down and started to write that first book.
Nicole took a chance and followed her dream. She has been blessed with some fabulous opportunities and has met some wonderful people along the way. Writing is a true love to her and has brought her a new and profound happiness with every step she’s taken along the way.
She currently lives in Colorado with her family while continuing to write and look for new and interesting ways to bring her characters to life for the reader.
Also by Nicole Morgan
Siren Classic: Intimate Temptations 1: Intimate Persuasions
Siren Classic: Sudden Devotion
Siren Allure: Love Knows No Boundaries
Siren Allure: Sweet Awakenings 1: Sweet Redemption
Siren Allure: Sweet Awakenings 2: Sweet Salvation
Available at
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Siren Publishing, Inc.
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