Player (A Secret Baby Sports Romance)(219)

Her book drops to the ground, and she's lunging to her feet and reaching for her bag. The men are shouting and raising their guns, and it’s about to go down. And all I’d have to do is walk away. All I’d need to do here is step back into the shadows and go on with being Javier Toro; escaped prisoner, war vet, mercenary, general piece of shit bad guy.

Yeah, fuck that.

The gun feels almost weightless in my hand as I raise it, the thundering of the chamber seemingly muffled as I level it at the men and start to empty the clip at them.

And Total. Fucking. Anarchy. Ensues.

The men scatter, ducking back for cover as I fire away, my lips tight as I move towards the, I’m sure, terrified blonde girl. I grab her by the arm and yank her behind me, pushing her back towards the other exit to the pool as I jerk my arm back up and fire a few more shots into the group of men.

“Go! Move!” I’m yelling as I grab her hand and start running towards the dock of the hotel marina, ignoring the way she's screaming at me as I calmly reload the one backup clip from my pocket and turn back to train the gun on the gate to the pool.

Just try and follow, fuckers.

They’re firing back as I shove her back behind me again, backing us onto the docks. She’s hitting me and yelling at me, and the spray of metal clanging off the side of the dock next to us sends a jolt of adrenaline through me; fuck, I kind of missed this.

But then something happens. The screaming girl I can ignore, but it's when I feel the press of cold steel into my back that she has my absolute attention.

What the fuck is happening?

“Javier Toro, you're under arrest by the United States of America. Drop your fucking gun, and get on your knees.”

I whirl on her in a flash, and it’s only then that the last puzzle piece falls into place.

Holy fucking shit.

We’ve never met, but that doesn’t matter because I know exactly who she is. In fact, there’s no way I couldn’t know her. Nine months ago in another lifetime, her older sister plunged a surgical scalpel three inches into my neck and put me as close to death as I’d ever like to be.

Chelsea Archer, all young blonde blue-eyed little coed in a bikini, is in full-on firing stance with a nine millimeter pointed right at my chest.

I repeat: what the fuck is happening?





4





Chelsea




My pulse is racing a mile a second as I squeeze the gun harder in my hands.

Don't let it shake. Shaking shows nervousness and you can't show them anything but cold-hearted killer. You got that?

Yeah, I got that. Training is drilled into your head with the Agency, but training is nothing like standing in front of a target with the weight of a loaded gun in your hand. The rush I expected, but the sheer hit of adrenaline that courses through me has me fighting to keep my body from shaking with every ounce of my being.

Javier Toro; the devil himself is standing three feet in front of me, staring me in the face like he can't quite believe what’s happening.

“I said drop it!” I yell, flashing my eyes at him and tightening my grip on the gun; “Now!” You're supposed to give one, maybe two warnings; then you shoot.

I'm not so sure I'm ready for that part.

“Now, Jav-”

The dock next to us explodes in splintering spray of wood, and I whirl away, covering my face. I look up to see the men from the pool, the men with the guns, barreling towards us.

Javier’s men.

It’s a moment of chaos, which I know is exactly what he's waiting for.

I whirl back to him, my gun raised; “I said on your knees, Javier!”

He looks at me wildly; “Are you fucking crazy!?”

“Now-”

His gun is up, and it's right at me; “Look, I saved your ass back there, princess, but I am walking away from this, right now.”

I shake my head, trying to meet his eyes instead of the barrel of the gun pointed right at my face. It’s a surreal standoff, eye to eye and gun to gun with Javier on this dock while a small army of men with guns runs towards us.

“I'm taking you-”

Bullets rake the side of the dock next to us, and suddenly, Javier lunges.

I'm pulling the trigger, but his grip is firm as he shoves my hand back and away from him as we both tumble backwards. I gasp as the gun falls from my hand into the water as we topple back into a rubber dingy anchored to the dock.

“Did you just try and fucking shoot me?!”

His face is livid, and before I can say anything, he raises his gun. I do flinch this time, shrieking as I close my eyes at the sound of him firing. But he's not shooting me, he's shooting them.

Ok seriously, what the hell is going on here?

Javier moves like lightening. He's got the rope off the cleat on the boat and the engine roaring before I even know what’s happening; “Drive, Archer!” He shouts, standing to raise his gun at the men at the end of the dock.