Lessons in Purrsuasion: BBW Paranormal Werelion Surprise Pregnancy Mob Romance (Chicago Catastrophe) Page 17

  “They’re here. Three guys plus Parker,” Stone announced grimly.

  “What? How the hell did they find us?” Kate exclaimed, already pulling guns out of the living room drawers, her icepacks and shitty coffee forgotten.

  They both knew the answer. Contacting Parker’s boss had been a necessity, it could not have been avoided. They couldn’t hide forever, which was very evident now.

  “Get me out of this chair,” Richard pleaded urgently, struggling against his restraints.

  Stone only hesitated for a second before grabbing a kitchen knife and cutting the man loose.

  Nothing left to lose.

  All Stone could think about was getting Selina out of the building. He was okay with dying today, just as long as she got to safety. He grabbed her in a fierce embrace, breathing in deeply and letting her sweet smell fill him. He was going to carry her scent with her for the rest of his life, no matter how short that turned out to be.

  When he pulled away, Selina’s hazel eyes were shiny with tears.

  “Don’t hold me like you’re never going to see me again. We are going to kick Parker’s ass, and we are going to do it together,” she declared, expression hardening.

  Stone gave her a quick, forceful kiss and a nod before turning to Kate. She was already standing by with a gun ready for him. Richard was carrying a piece as well, stretching his muscles and cracking his joints with a determined expression on his face.

  “Okay, we have no time to run. This limited space isn’t ideal, but we’ll have to make do. Spread out, find cover and shoot at anything that comes through the door,” Stone instructed, already knowing that this was going to get ugly.

  Kate handed Selina a 9mm, giving her an encouraging nod in the process. Richard was already in position by the door, ducking behind the wall that separated the living room from the kitchen. Kate set up in one of the bedrooms, leaning out from behind the doorway.

  I’m going to keep her safe. No matter what.

  Stone pulled the couch away from the wall and flipped it on its side and both he and Selina got behind it. Since Stone’s little team wasn’t all clustered together, they had a chance to confuse their enemies, with bullets flying at them from all angles.

  Stone positioned his body in front of Selina’s as footsteps came running down the hallway. The door burst open, but no one came through. A canister flew into the apartment instead, hissing before exploding in a plume of smoke.

  Parker is using my own tricks against me, Stone thought as a noxious fog enveloped everything around him.

  Thirty-One

  Selina

  Selina was having the worst sense of déjà vu as her lungs burned and she struggled to breathe. She could hear Kate and Richard coughing, but couldn’t make them out in the thick grey smog.

  Without even any thought, her right hand flew to her stomach, hovering there protectively as the smoke forced itself down her lungs. The significance of the gesture didn’t escape her notice, but she didn’t exactly have time to ponder it right now.

  Stone grabbed hold of her left hand, interlocking their fingers.

  “I won’t lose you,” he whispered in between suppressed coughs as footsteps entered the room.

  “We’re low,” Stone shouted to Kate and Richard, and gunfire erupted.

  Selina’s eyes watered and she clung desperately to Stone’s touch. She knew they were at a serious disadvantage, but she also still believed that together, they were a formidable team. She would do anything for him and he would do anything for her. It had gotten them out of some deep shit before, there was no reason it couldn’t happen again.

  Stone dragged her along, crawling on the floor. She heard and felt him fire his gun, but couldn’t tell if he hit anything or not. The whole apartment complex had erupted with motion and noise, people running and screaming in the hallways in an attempt to get out and away from the rattle of gunfire and bullets flying everywhere.

  Someone grabbed Selina by the leg, yanking upwards and eliciting a scream from her. She could feel Stone’s body shift towards her, the gun in his hand going off. The shot was too close to her head, making her ears ring and her head hum.

  Something snarled very close to Selina. She could hear it even over the chaos and her bleeding eardrums. A sickening chomp echoed somewhere close to her and Stone grunted in pain, his fingers around hers loosening. Something wet slid over her fingers as Stone was suddenly pulled away.

  “Selina!” he growled, but she couldn’t make out which direction he went in.

  She gripped the gun in her right hand tightly and started crawling in a random direction. She didn’t dare call out, not wanting to give her location away to Parker.

  Stone! Where the fuck are you!

  Someone grabbed her from behind, pulling her to her feet and flattening her arms by her sides. She tried to struggle, but whoever had gotten hold of her was far too strong to easily shake off.

  She was dragged out of the apartment and down the hallway. The acrid smoke seemed to burn right through her. The further away they got, the clearer the air became and she took deep, gasping breaths. She wiggled around, looking up at her captor, but all she could see was a black gas mask through her watering, stinging eyes.

  Seeing as she was already being taken, she screamed.

  “Stone!” she yelled, hoping he was okay.

  The unknown man forced her down flights of stairs, her feet tripping and ankles twisting with each step. They burst out of the back door into a nearby alley, Selina struggling the whole way. The guy wrung the gun out of her hand and pointed it at her, using his other hand to pull off the mask.

  It was just as Selina hadn’t allowed herself to believe. Parker’s hooked nose, scarred cheek and white hair emerged from under the rubber and metal, his lips twisted in an arrogant smile.

  “I’ve been looking for you,” he growled.

  Selina felt nauseated, and it had nothing to do with breathing in the gas.

  She flattened herself against the wall, desperate to put distance between herself and the man. There was nowhere to run, Parker was standing in front of the only way out of the alley, like a nightmare that had come back to haunt her. Even more frightening than the idea of having to go with him was the thought of Stone still trapped upstairs and not knowing if he was alive or not.

  “You can’t have me,” Selina countered, forcing her voice not to shake.

  Parker’s eyes took on a yellow glint as he reached for her, probably planning on dragging her to his car, still parked out front. There was no way she was going to let that happen. As soon as Parker got close enough, she kneed him in the groin, as hard as she could. He must have not expected any resistance from her because she hit dead-on and he doubled over, groaning.

  Selina pushed herself off the wall, shoving him away in the process and started running towards the street. She forced her muscles into overdrive, ignoring the voice inside her head urging her to look back, to see if he was following her. Parker was faster than her, she couldn’t waste a single second.

  A hand grabbed on to her hair when she thought she might just make it, pulling her backwards mid-sprint. Her scalp burned as her hands flew to her head, trying to protect it and also pry off the fingers tangled in her locks as she was jerked backwards. Parker laughed harshly as she stumbled and fell.

  “You’re not getting away this time, little one.”

  Disentangling his hand from her hair, Parker dragged her back up, twisting her arms painfully behind her back and pushing her forward. Tears sprung to her eyes as she tried to struggle. Each movement just made him tighten his hold and cause her more pain.

  “Let go of me!” she snarled.

  Images of Stone filled Selina’s head. The way he smiled, the way he growled when he found something she did cute or sexy. She wanted more time with him, but regardless of that, she was grateful for the moments they did get to share. She would cherish them.

  Even Parker couldn’t take that away from her.

&n
bsp; A roar ripped through the alley, and Selina couldn’t help but find it familiar. Air whooshed over her back and suddenly, Parker’s hands were no longer on her. She whirled around to see Stone, fully shifted, on top of Parker, his teeth gnashing at the man’s throat.

  Stone’s dark mane was already bloody and deep gashes red with blood ran down his back, but at least he was alive.

  Oh, thank God!

  Parker used his legs to shove Stone off of him, before letting his own change take over. Stone shook himself, preparing for the fight, and blood misted off of him. Yellow eyes faced golden ones as a tiger and lion stood off in the narrow alley, teeth bared and growling. The animals started circling each other, bristling and ready to attack at a moment’s notice.

  Parker leapt at Stone, his paws raking across the lion’s shoulders. Stone used his hind legs to push himself forward, slamming Parker against the wall in return. Their mouths snapped open and closed, teeth reaching for the flesh of their opponent.

  Stone sank his teeth into Parker’s back, and the man went crazy, trying to shake Stone off. They thrashed around, fur flying and blood falling to the ground. Selina sunk back, trying to get out of the way as best as she could. She didn’t want Parker to use her against Stone.

  Finally, Parker managed to get free and backed away from Stone, body low and mouth in a snarl. Selina bit down on her lip, her hands balled into fists, hoping that the next attack would be final, praying that Parker would be the one to collapse.

  It has to go well, it has to!

  Stone charged, finding a new spot for his teeth to rip into. Parker grabbed hold of Stone with his front paws, claws out, and they went tumbling down, rolling around on the asphalt.

  The brawl got bloodier and bloodier while Selina could only watch, helpless and nervous, as the lion and the tiger ripped each other to shreds. In a panic and not sure of what to do, she looked around the alley for a potential weapon.

  She could see her gun, laying on the ground behind the battling animals, but there was no way she was going to get to it without being mauled.

  She grabbed a loose piece of brick from the ground and held it in her hand, waiting for the perfect opportunity. Stone and Parker broke apart, bodies moving up and down as they gasped for breath.

  Just as Parker was about to go for Stone’s jugular once again, she took aim and threw the brick at Parker, using all the strength left in her body. It hit the tiger in the back of the head, momentarily distracting him, making him snarl and glance back.

  The way the blood dribbled off his fangs and his eyes burned bright would stay with Selina forever.

  With a flurry of swiping paws, Stone managed to get the upper hand then, using the moment that Selina provided him. He crashed into Parked and pinned the tiger down. Selina watched as Stone held him there, growling, even as Parker thrashed and scratched at him. With one determined movement, Stone’s jaws lunged at Parker’s throat.

  He chomped down and even Selina could hear the sickening crunch that followed. Parker’s limbs twitched as he gradually grew still. Blood poured out onto the asphalt and Selina kept her eyes on the tiger, not quite believing he was actually dead and wasn’t going to jump back up at any minute.

  Stone shifted back from a lion to a man, looking a little worse for wear but still upright, at least, though barely. Selina rushed to his side, supporting him with a shoulder. The backdoor slammed open and hit the wall, making Selina jump. Both she and Stone turned around, ready for anything, but not exactly in any state to meet another challenge.

  Kate tumbled out into the alley, gun draw, hair bloody, feet bare and cut up, but still wearing her diamond earrings. She lowered her weapon once he saw Parker lying lifeless on the ground.

  “Thought you might need some help,” she said, blowing a stray strand of hair out of her face.

  It fell on her forehead again, sticking to the sweat. She’d never looked quite so unladylike in Selina’s opinion. It suited her.

  “No, we got it,” Stone remarked dryly. “You okay?”

  “If you could call it that,” Kate replied.

  “What about Richard?” Selina asked, suddenly worried.

  Yeah, it was weird being worried about a man who once kidnapped you, but he wasn’t a bad man, really, just misguided. And he was trying to atone for his sins, however many there were.

  Kate’s lips thinned and she gave them a little shake of her head.

  Oh.

  “Well, seeing as I’m not needed here…” Kate commented, going back into the building.

  She was limping but the look she wore on her determined face told Selina that no shifter was ready to meet the wrath of Kate in the mood she was currently in. Selina had no doubt that the small, deadly woman would be perfectly fine, which was not something she could say for anyone who happened to cross her.

  “We did it. He’s actually dead,” Selina muttered, still wrapping her head around the whole thing and staring at Parker’s lifeless body.

  He had turned back to his human form moments after death, the animal releasing its vessel, and the sight of his torn and shredded body was a gruesome one.

  “You don’t have to run anymore,” Stone said solemnly, turning to face her.

  She looked into his green eyes and heat swirled in her.

  It seemed life or death situations really helped clarify things. Selina realized that more than anything in the world, she wanted Stone to be hers. And she wanted to be his in return.

  “And I won’t run from you anymore, either. That’s a promise. I want to share my life with you, given that being a baker’s boyfriend isn’t too boring for a Navy SEAL turned hitman,” she grinned, even though she was feeling a bit teary-eyed.

  I really need to stop that. I never used to cry!

  “Time spent with you could never be boring,” Stone whispered, before pulling her into a tender kiss.

  Pulling away, Selina nervously nibbled on her lower lip, wondering if now was the time to let Stone in on what all her womanly instincts were telling her was true. There was a new life inside of her, there was no denying it anymore. Their relationship had moved at such a rapid pace, but it still seemed early to be starting a family together.

  Or was it? Who made up the rules when it came to stuff like this anyway? They already admitted to wanting to spend their lives together without so much as going on a single date. Besides, she could barely hold in the elation and slight trepidation blooming in her chest. She was going to be a mom!

  “Actually, I think it’s going to be even more exciting than either of us had thought,” she admitted, glancing meaningfully at her stomach.

  Stone’s gaze followed hers and his eyes grew wide. Selina held her breath, waiting for him to absorb the news. Everything inside her relaxed as a huge grin spread out across his face and a large hand found its way to her belly.

  “I knew you’d find a way to keep me on my toes,” he said, swallowing up her giggle with another kiss.

  Epilogue

  Selina fidgeted with her dress as she stood in front of a full-length mirror. Kate was beside her, sticking a couple of bobby pins into her hair.

  “I’m definitely showing. Isn’t that trashy? To have a baby bump at your wedding?” Selina asked, anxious.

  “You are having a child with the man you love and are vowing to spend the rest of your life with. What’s trashy about that?” Kate answered, giving her updo a final once-over with her overly critical, but perfectly knowledgeable eye.

  Selina took a deep breath and ran a hand over her growing belly. Kate was right, of course, and it wasn’t like anyone in the wedding party was clueless to the fact she was expecting.

  Okay, so ‘wedding party’ was probably an exaggeration. There was her family, a couple of her closest girlfriends and then Stone’s side consisted of… Kate, pretty much. They shared her brother, Joe, who also happened to be Stone’s best man. Stone and Joe had really rekindled their friendship after Stone saved her from the lovesick lunatic who had turned
all their lives into hell for a week that had felt like it had lasted forever.

  Kate’s villa had been restored to its previous glory, meaning she and Stone could have their little ceremony in her gorgeous backyard. Kate had it decked out in white flowers and even added a wedding gazebo, ignoring all their protests.

  Selina gave the mirror one last twirl before heading out to get married to the man of her dreams. Adrenaline seemed to pound through her veins harder now than it ever had during the endless chases and kidnappings and fighting for her life three times over. It felt good.

  Her dress was simple, yet striking, flowing over her curves in a perfectly tailored way.

  “Ready?” Kate asked, looking as cheerful as she had ever seen her, not a furrowed brow or a sarcastic smirk in sight.

  Weddings really are magical.

  “I’m ready,” she answered, drawing a brave breath.

  Kate walked her to the backdoor before rushing off to take her seat on one of the tasteful chairs spread out on the lawn. She twirled her finger at someone hidden behind the corner of the house, and the wedding march flowed out from unseen speakers. As usual, Kate had planned everything to perfection.

  Selina stepped outside, following the trail of rose petals on the grass. All eyes turned to her, but all she could see was Stone, standing tall next to the priest and Joe at the end of the makeshift aisle. His dark suit fit him perfectly, emphasizing his lean, muscular frame and narrow waist.

  He smiled as she walked towards him, emerald eyes glowing in the sunlight.

  Am I the luckiest girl in the world or what?

  The music stopped as she reached her man, heart fluttering at the thought of being his wife. Stone took her hand and suddenly, it was as if they were the only two people in the world. All her nerves faded away. They were meant to be, after all. She believed that now, more than she had ever believed anything.

  The ceremony was simple and fast, just enough time for the guests to get teary-eyed, and before she even knew it, the minister was asking the all-important questions. She knew it was mostly for her family, as Stone had made it clear that shifter ceremonies worked differently and it would only be the two of them there, but Selina was happy to keep things ‘traditional’ too.