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She came. With a man. In a matter of five minutes, and it was good.
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Tempting Trent
Maybe it was his confidence, or the fact he was probably one of the few men in the
world that was as tough as she was. Or maybe it was his strong, capable hands. Maybe
it was just that she d never felt safe enough to let go before. Whatever it was, he had it
in spades and she didn t know how she was going to walk away knowing she might
never find it again.
 Mila, I 
Her heart sank, but she was saved from the  It s not you, it s me as the door next
to her creaked and swung open, slamming against the bricks.
Pretty Boy and three of his friends stepped into the alley. The last one turned and
shut the door behind him.
This wasn t good. Mila s brain raced to come up with a plan to get them out of this
without revealing herself or anyone getting hurt. That hardly seemed likely. These boys
hadn t come out here to play backgammon.
 We were just heading back in, Mila said, grabbing Trent s hand and trying to
yank him toward the door.
Trent didn t budge, his jaw tense.  Why don t you go ahead, and I ll catch up with
you. He met her gaze with his own, urging her to obey.
 I don t think so, tough guy. When Scotty told me you came out here together, I
thought, no way. That guy sure as hell doesn t like girls, I could tell that the other night.
He s got no use for that hot little piece. But he was sure it was you, and he was right.
Now it s time for your girl to see exactly how tough you are. When we re done with
you, maybe we ll let her back inside. Pretty Boy turned to face Mila, his gaze sweeping
over her from head to toe.  Then again, maybe we won t.
She tried to think rationally, but her usually cool, calm demeanor had a desperate
edge to it. She was afraid. Not for herself, but for Trent. It had been eighteen years since
she had cared enough to worry about a man. And that last man had been her father
before he d turned her away when she came of age and was called to fill her destiny.
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Chloe Cole
Mila tried to refocus and overcome her rioting emotions to look at the problem
clinically. Even though there was no chance of her being raped she could stop them
from touching her with a flick of her fingertips this was still a very sticky situation.
She couldn t really just start flashing magic around in public to circumvent a brawl.
Still, she could help Trent fight if he needed it. She didn t know how she would fare
against men that size, but she kicked the crap out of all the bags in the gym. She d just
have to wait and see how it played out.
There was no more time to think as two of the guys rushed at Trent and fists started
flying. Trent dodged the first blow, landing a solid uppercut to the larger of his
assailants, who crumpled to the ground. The second guy took a wild swing and Trent
launched a stunning kick to his stomach, causing him to double over.
Maybe she wouldn t have to interfere after all. Trent was a stone-cold bad ass. She
stood at the ready, just in case.
Mila s pulse jack-hammered as Pretty Boy and lackey number three came at him.
These two coordinated their efforts more efficiently and Trent took a hard shot to the
jaw, knocking him back a few feet. Mila s heart seemed to stop for a moment, but
started pumping again as he regained his balance and came forward, his face a mask of
icy fury and determination.
He bent low and ran in, knocking one to the ground with a grunt. Only Pretty Boy
remained standing, and they faced off. Trent s fist was like lightning as it shot out in
front of him in a crisp jab. Pretty Boy s head snapped back and his nose exploded in a
spray of blood. He stumbled, but remained upright. Trent moved in to finish him when
a flash of silver caught Mila s eye.
One of the guys on the ground had apparently gotten his second wind. Just as Trent
loosed a vicious blow to Pretty Boy s chin that sent him flat on his ass, a rusty pipe
whistled through the air, cracking Trent in the forehead.
As the pipe arced toward Trent a second time, rage and fear coalesced into blind
panic. Lifting a hand, she sent a blast of energy at the chest of the man wielding the
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Tempting Trent
weapon. The force threw him back ten feet and he smacked against the side of the
building with a scream.
She kept her hand raised as she bent to see to Trent on his knees staring at her, eyes
wide.  What the fuck was that? he demanded, his voice hoarse with disbelief.
Her stomach flipped as her adrenaline started to stabilize. Her terror that he might
have been seriously injured had overridden her common sense. She could have at least
made an effort to cover up the magic. She could have conjured a stone to
throw& something.
 Let s get you home. We can talk about it there, okay? She stripped off his coat,
pulled off her tank top and pressed it to his bleeding forehead.  Put pressure.
She wrapped his coat around herself again and helped him to his feet.  Can you
walk?
 Yeah, yeah, I m fine. He glanced around the alley where the four men slowly
began to stir.
 They re all alive and a couple of them will be ready for another round in a minute
or two. We need to get out of here. She pulled him down the alley toward the parking
lot as she reached in his coat pocket for his keys.
 Which one is yours?
 Black Chrysler. Not mine, though. And Bryan needs me to drive him home, I
can t 
 I ll take care of it. She opened the passenger door and pressed him back into the
seat.  Be right back.
She ran into the bar and explained the situation to Seamus.  Can you keep an eye
on Bryan and call them a cab when they re ready to leave? Use this to pay for it. She
handed him a fifty.  Call Trent s cell if he gives you any trouble.
Seamus held her gaze for long moment before handing the money back to her.
 Will do, lass. You ll take care of our boy, won t you?
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Chloe Cole
Something about his stare gave her pause. She shook off the eerie feeling and
responded,  I ll do my very best for him.
 That ll do, then. He nodded and waved her out the door.
A minute later, she was back, sliding into the driver s seat.
 Mila, I m fine to drive, just a little woozy.
 You probably have a concussion. I m sure I already know the answer, but would
you consider letting me take you to the hospital? She slid the keys into the ignition
with a shaky hand.
 I ve had two concussions, and survived just fine. I just need to chill for an hour or
so. But what happened back there 
 Enough. We can talk about it after I see to your head, okay?
He nodded, wincing at the movement before resting his head back against the seat
cushion.
He gave her directions to his house, and ten minutes later she had him seated on
the toilet as she cleaned out the gash on his forehead.
 When was the last time you had a tetanus shot?
 Recently. Got caught by some barbed wire on my last tour.
She pressed an alcohol-soaked pad to the area one last time and then patted it dry
with some gauze before bandaging it.
 Could probably use a few stitches.
 It ll be fine. Not like I m entering any beauty contest any time soon.
 Take a couple of aspirin. You ve got a knot growing already and it s got to hurt.
He pointed to the medicine cabinet behind her. Mila pulled down the bottle and
shook three into his hand. She handed him a paper cup full of water and he drank them
down.
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Tempting Trent
 I know you re going to want to argue, but if you won t let me take you to the
hospital then at least let me stay here on the couch for the night. I need to keep an eye
on you and wake you every hour to make sure you don t have a concussion.
To her surprise, he nodded.  I have guest room you can stay in. You just have to
put some sheets on the bed. They re in the closet in the hall.
She turned to go get her bed situated when his voice stopped her.
 We had a rough night and I ll be the first to admit, I ve felt better. But come
morning, we need to talk. About a lot of things, okay? [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]