"Fuck," Zane growls, tensing. "I think it's time to go, little rebel."
"Yep," I agree, slipping my hand into his. "Have you ever ran from the cops before?"
"No. Why?"
"Run!" I yell.
Everyone scatters, taking off in every direction. Zane curses, his feet rooted in place for a moment before he finally leaps into action. He charges after me, swearing up a blue streak as we run down a side street, away from the squad cars. Shouts ring out behind us, but I don’t stop.
Not today, Satan. No way.
"I'm spanking your little ass," Zane growls.
I throw my head back, laughing up at the sky as we flee toward the car. If any of the cops chase us, they don't catch us.
We dive into the SUV five minutes later, gasping for breath. At least I'm gasping for breath. Zane is barely winded. He probably runs marathons for fun. He certainly has the body for it. The only running I do is my mouth… and the occasional fleeing from the scene of a protest. Sometimes, I get lucky and I'm not the first one caught.
“Siri, remind me to fire Autumn Romano as a client,” Zane mutters, dragging me out of my seat and into his lap.
“You can’t fire me,” I remind him, looping my arms around his neck. “Jude is my attorney of record.”
“Siri, remind me to have Jude fire Autumn Romano as a client,” he mutters, his eyes locked on my face.
“Admit it, Mr. Montoya,” I say, smiling at him. “You had a blast.”
“The only thing I admit is that you’re ravishing when you’re happy, little rebel.” He brushes his thumb along my bottom lip. “And right now, you’re the most beautiful you’ve ever been.”
“Zane,” I whisper, clutching him to me. “It wasn’t the protest that made me happy. It was you.”
“Fuck.” He replaces his thumb with his lips, claiming mine in a kiss I feel deep in my soul.
CHAPTEREIGHT
ZANE
Isit at my desk, making sure I have all my ducks in a row, and hold my phone against my shoulder to grumble. “Your brother promised me he’d keep an eye on you until I get home,” I inform my little rebel. “Hopefully, we can tie this up quickly and make it home tonight.” Jude and I are heading down to San Antonio to meet with Josie Broussard and her daughter. The trip is necessary to get the proof we need to bury Jimmy Gatlin, but I can’t stomach the thought of spending the night away from Autumn. Over the last week, she’s become as vital to me as oxygen. When we returned to Silver Spoon Falls from our getaway, I convinced her to stay with me at my apartment. I expected Playboy to threaten my life, but the asshole was shockingly supportive of our relationship.
He actually threatened to cut off my dick if I hurt his sister, but I consider it a win since I’m still breathing and have all my appendages.
“Please don’t give Playboy the slip and stress me out.”Anymore,I add silently. Loving Autumn will definitely keep me on my toes for the next seventy or so years, but I’m not complaining. Well, except for my genes. I’m complaining about the Montoya genes’ tendency to produce gray hair in the face of stress. This morning, I stared in the mirror while shaving and found a goddamn gray hair. A gray hair. I’m too fucking young to have gray hair, but the combination of keeping my girl in line and my genes is too much for my body to fight. “You’re already giving me gray hair, little rebel.”
“I noticed that hair near your temple last night.” My little troublemaker laughs while neglecting to promise that she won’t cause any trouble while I’m in San Antonio. “It’s very distinguished looking.” Autumn’s voice drops low. “And it really turns me on.”
“You just have to fuck with me.” I groan, picturing her impish smile. “You won’t sit down for a week if you give your brother the slip and stress me the fuck out,” I threaten, but we both know I’m blowing smoke. I would cut off my own arm before I hurt Autumn.
“I promise to be good if you come home quickly.” I finally draw in a full breath as the constriction around my chest eases.
“It’s a deal,” I tell her and see my boss waving at me from my office door then pointing down at his watch. “I have to go, little rebel, Jude is about to have a stroke. Be good.”
“I’m going to miss you.” Her voice quivers, causing my heart to drop. “Come back quickly.”
“I promise.” I hang up and follow my impatient boss out the door.
Jude drops his overnight bag in the back of my SUV. “You’re not going to need that,” I tell him, knowing I’ll do whatever it takes to wrap up this meeting quickly so we can return to Silver Spoon Falls tonight.
“It’s better to be safe than sorry, honey bunny.” Fuck a duck. I’m not even shocked. You can’t take a shit without everyone in town knowing about it.
“How did you find out?” I slam my door shut and start the vehicle.