Grant whirled on me in a heartbeat and gripped my shoulders in his strong palms. Leaning in so his lips were a hairbreadth from my ear, he said, “Blaze, I need you to listen to me.” He pulled back to scrutinize me and then got right back in my face after the briefest moment. “For Christ’s sake,” he huffed. “Nod or say something so I know I’m getting through to you. We don’t have the luxury of time right now.”
I couldn’t blame the man for losing patience with me, given the harrowing situation. Now wasn’t the time for me to become a deer-in-headlights on him.
With a deep inhale, I gave a quick dip of my chin. But apparently, that wasn’t convincing enough. I needed to show him a glimpse of the warrior I knew was deep inside. I needed to fight alongside this brave man for once, instead of letting him take the brunt of all the shit storms that rained down on us. There wouldn’t be whimpering in the corner, acting helpless, and then apologizing for it later. This was Grant’s freedom at stake, and I couldn’t let these bastards take him from me.
“I’m listening,” I said quietly but steadily.
“Thank you.” He laid the gentlest kiss on my forehead before leveling his intense blue stare to mine. “Okay. Listen to me,” he gritted. “I don’t know what these douchebags want, but if they insist I go with them, I’m going to do it.”
I gasped. “No!”
“Yes,” he insisted. “It’s the only way, baby—especially if it means you’ll remain safe on this boat. But the second we leave and you have a cell signal, call Bas and Elijah.”
Undoubtedly, my eyes flared wide with rage at the mere mention of Sebastian fucking Shark’s name. Grant, clearly already prepared for my reaction, wrapped me in his arms and gripped my nape with one of his huge hands.
“Put that shit aside, Rio. He will be one of two people who will be able to help. I have little doubt this has something to do with him anyway. It always does. So call him. If he’s the problem, let him be the solution.”
He drifted off with his comment, but I heard every word since we were in a tight embrace. My blood pressure spiked at the sickening knowledge I was probably going to lose another piece of my heart because of that selfish bastard. I gulped hard, barely holding in a cavalcade of anguished sobs.
“All right, enough with the lover’s bullshit. Twombley, you’re coming with us, whether you like it or not.” The gang leader’s gravelly voice was like pouring water on a grease fire to my already ramped-up consternation. Then the slimeball continued, “Do it under your own will, or we’ll find ways of taking your will from you. Actually, that part might be kind of fun.”
He laughed, igniting a round of raucous laughter with his creepy cronies. Even the asshole Grant had kneed in the nose was back on his feet and very angry. Though he was holding our bathroom towel to his face, he still wanted his pound of flesh. His voice was nasally when he added, “Ways we’d enjoy very much.”
Number three held up his index finger while pointing out, “Boss said we had to deliver him without a hair out of place.” He quickly lowered his hand, though, when the others spat their disapproving reactions.
“Fuck that!” the bloody guy bellowed. “That was before he did this!” He held up the towel to remind his mate of the hit he’d taken.
By-The-Rules shrugged. “Well, I’m not going to be the one to piss off the boss. I just want my money when this is done.”
I couldn’t stay quiet any longer. “Is this all about money? If you want money, I’ll get your money. And who is this boss you keep mentioning? I’ll double what you’re getting from your big bad boss if you just get off this boat now and leave us alone. We can forget this ever happened.”
Grant stepped in front of me, blocking my view of the entire cabin. He took a few steps back, moving us both toward the bed until I bumped into the mattress with the backs of my legs, and he felt my body halt behind him. It was only then that he turned around to face me.
He bent low to speak for my ears only. “Baby, listen to me. I appreciate the effort and the offer, but I don’t want you to call attention to yourself again. Okay?” He only waited for a beat or two for my reply, and when it didn’t come, he continued. “We don’t know how long these creeps have been out to sea, and scumbags like these have very little, if anything, to lose.” He gave me a brief hug that felt more like desperation, and then after only a moment, he jerked me away from his body.
I could only guess it was to gauge my reaction to what he had said. But my face was twisted in confusion as I tried to follow whatever path he was leading us down with his weird comments.
My dearest let out an exasperated breath and spewed, “I don’t want to have to watch you get gang-raped by four fucking pirates right before they drag me out of here to beat me an inch from my life because of some fucking debt someone is trying to collect of Sebastian’s. Is that clear enough?”
“Very,” I croaked, feeling like I was going to vomit. “Grant.” I pleaded with my eyes while I begged with my words. “Please, please don’t give in. I can’t… I can’t do this without you.” A wave of my hand around the room symbolized the word this, meaning life, in my declaration.
But I had to continue. If this was the one and only chance I had to beg Grant to hear my heart, I had to really make it count. Planting my palms on his cheeks, I pulled his face closer until our foreheads touched. “I don’t know how to live without you. What am I going to do? Please. I’m begging you not to leave me. I’d rather die together than watch you leave and surely die apart.”
When I pulled back to meet his beautiful blue stare, maybe for the last time ever, tears scorched hot tracks down my cheeks.
And now, Grant had matching tear streaks on his cheeks, too. “Stop. You stop right now,” he said in a low, husky voice. “I told you what you have to do. Do you remember?”
“Please don’t do this to me,” I answered instead and wrapped my fingers around his forearm in a desperate grip. “Grant, please.”
“Rio.”
“Please.”
In a flash, everything changed about Grant’s demeanor. The set of his shoulders, the stiffness in his spine, even the light sky in his eyes darkened to a deep navy. When he spoke, the unmistakable Dominant tone vibrated through my entire body, and where goose bumps didn’t prickle, little hairs stood on end.
He leveled his question one last time. “Do you remember what I told you?”
“Let’s go, Twombley. Now.” One of the kidnappers barked the command from his position near the door while another jabbed the barrel of his gun in the small of Grant’s back.
“I love you, Blaze. Be brave for me.” Grant kissed the top of my head and quickly moved out of my octopus arms’ reach.
“Grant, please,” I moaned just as I crumpled to the floor. I couldn’t bear to watch him go.
“Get your fucking hands off me. I can walk myself,” I heard Grant growl to one of his captors as they shoved him down the narrow passageway outside our door.
And stole him from me.
“Well, we don’t want you getting any funny ideas,” the leader’s gravelly voice responded.