MY ENTIRE BODY SHAKING WITH a mind-altering orgasm, I didn’t realize the window shattered until a whistling noise rushed past our heads and Shade grabbed me and threw us off the bed.

His pierced cock ripped from my body as I fell on top of him, but I didn’t even have a second to catch my breath from the shock of pain the separation caused.

He grabbed his gun off the nightstand and rolled to put me behind him as he reached over the bed and fired.

The sound of gunfire exploded around us as cold air blasted into the room and stole all the heat.

Grabbing our clothes as shots hit the wood wall behind us, Shade shoved them at me and barked out instructions. “Head down, move fast, stairs. Now.” Going to one knee he aimed and fired shots out the broken window.

I didn’t think.

Clutching the clothes, I grabbed my boots and ran in a crouch out of the bedroom.

Wood exploded next to my head as I cleared the door, but I kept going.

Panic robbing me of all sense except to flee, I was halfway down the stairs before a huge arm caught my waist and hoisted. My naked back hit his front as his wet cock pressed into my ass and he lifted me off my feet.

Taking the rest of the stairs two at a time, his gun aimed in front of us, he looked around the corner with a quick glance then retreated before taking another quick glance. Then he ran us into the room where he had all the security cameras, slammed the door shut and locked us in.

Dropping me on my feet, setting his gun on the desk, he quickly typed something on his computer and his screens started flashing images of the property immediately surrounding the cabin.

“Clothes,” he barked, not taking his eyes off the images as he messed with a cell phone on the desk.

Shaking, from fear, from cold, I dropped the pile in my arms to the ground, fished his pieces out and handed them to him.

“Get dressed,” he ordered, pulling his boxers on.

I felt it a split second before my gaze dropped. The evidence of what we’d just done ran down my leg. But it wasn’t only the huge amount of his sticky release. Blood tinged color came with it and dripped onto the floor.

Startled, horrified, embarrassed, I stood there.

Someone was shooting at us and I was standing frozen in place as my core throbbed and another drop of blood landed next to the first.

The air shifted and he let loose with an exasperated curse. “Fuck. How bad?”

Fighting tears, I glanced up at him. “What?” I was bleeding.

He didn’t look at me, he was already moving to the shelf behind him and grabbing a big black case. “How badly did I hurt you?”

“I-I’m not hurt.” Movement on the screens caught my attention but before I could look closer, he came back and blocked my view.

Dumping the case on his desk, he opened it and pulled out a square paper-wrapped package as he glanced at the screens and frowned. Ripping it apart, he yanked gauze out and wiped between my legs.

I flinched. “I got it.” Mortified, I grabbed for the dressing. “I’ll handle it.”

“Stop,” he ordered as shots sounded outside the room. “Let me look.” A door somewhere in the house banged open.

Completely forgetting about the blood, I panicked. “Oh my God, they’re coming!”

“They can’t breach this room.” He wiped again and his gaze dropped as he looked between my legs.

Doors opened and closed, and heavy boots sounded in the house. “Shade!” I whispered-yelled.

His huge hand cupped my neck and he bent to eye level. “They cannot get into this room. Steel reinforced door and walls, secure locks—it’s soundproof, fireproof and bulletproof. It’s a small fortress.”

I shook. “They’re out there.”

“Not for long,” he reassured, but the look in his eyes wasn’t warm or calming. It was lethal. “You’re safe in here.” His hand still between my legs, he wiped one more time then tossed the gauze. “But I need you to get dressed.” Glancing at the screen, he grabbed his clothes.

I followed his gaze and my knees locked with fear. Two men in white parkas with huge rifles and ski masks covering their faces moved across the computer screens as they searched the cabin right outside the very place where we were hiding.

“Oh God.” The reality of the situation suddenly hitting me full force, I was more scared than when the bullets started flying in the restaurant parking lot. I was even more scared than when the SUV went over the side of the cliff.

These weren’t two crazy mafia guys firing from behind their car doors with their heads down low. They looked like professional hit men in arctic gear who’d wait us out until we had no choice but to emerge from our trap. “They’re going to kill us.”

“I won’t let that happen.” Glancing across all the screens, Shade grabbed his pants and I realized his intent.

My heart seized, then panic shot through my veins. “You can’t go out there.” They’d kill him.

“That’s exactly what I’m going to do.” He threw his clothes on, stepped into his boots that were next to the desk chair and laced them up. Then he unlocked the cage that housed shelves and shelves of scary looking supplies. “Get dressed, princess.”

Ignoring the mess between my legs and ache low in my belly, I pulled on my leggings. I was pushing my arm through the sleeves of my thermal, when he tossed something black and heavy at me.

“Put that on,” he ordered, slipping a version of what he’d given me over his head.

I held the article up and my hands started to shake. “A bulletproof vest?” He’d said we were safe in here.

“Precautionary.” His tone and movements all business, he tightened the Velcro straps around his chest as he eyed the monitors.

My gaze followed his and I sucked in a sharp breath.

One of the men was looking directly into one of the cameras. As we both watched, he held his gloved finger and thumb up, making the universal gesture for firing a gun, then he smiled.

My blood ran cold.

“Shade.” I couldn’t say his real name. Not now, not here. Besides, I wasn’t even looking at the man who told me in Italian his name was Sebastiano Hades Domani. I was looking at the warrior named Shade who shot without mercy and drove an SUV over a cliff and didn’t hesitate when a sniper shot into his bedroom. “Please. Call André. Or wait until the other guys get here. Don’t go out there.”

He took a gun off the shelf and checked the magazine before fitting it into a holster he’d strapped on. “Let me do my job, woman.” He grabbed a bunch of extra clips and shoved then into his vest.

My spine stiffened. “So, I’m a job now?”

His expression deadly, he spared me a single glance. “I’m not waiting for backup. The one advantage I have is that they don’t know where I am, but my window to get a jump on them is closing by the second. I’m not going to stand here and hold your hand while you have a fucking meltdown over semantics. I’m gonna do my goddamn job.” His eyes narrowed in warning. “Do not follow me.” Grabbing a cell phone off the shelf, he slammed it on the desk in front of me. “If I’m not back in thirty minutes, call Luna. Tell him we had a breach. Then wait for him or Ronan to come get you. There’s water and MREs. I don’t care how long it takes, do not leave this room and do not open the hatch for anyone except me, Luna or Ronan.”

Fear swept up my body in a rush. Like a drowning tide, it rose to my head and licked at my sanity as tears welled. “Hatch?”

He nodded toward the floor. “When I come back, I’ll knock in a one-three-two pattern.” His hand fisted, and he knocked on the desk to demonstrate. “You don’t hear that sequence, don’t open the fucking door. Period.” He grabbed a white parka off the shelf and shoved his arms in.

Choking on anxiety, panic seeped out. “What if they kill you?”

Grabbing more ammo and a huge rifle, he snorted. “I’m a Marine, woman.”

That didn’t make him invincible, but I didn’t say that. I was too scared. “What if André or Ronan never come?”

“They will.” He shouldered the strap on the rifle.

I didn’t want him going out there, no matter how many guns he had. “How will they know the knock pattern?”

“We all know it.” He grabbed a white beanie and black gloves and put them on as he watched the monitors.

Images of the men jumped from screen to screen as they moved through the cabin, searching every room.

“Please,” I begged, grabbing Shade’s arm as he reached for a rectangular cutout in the floor. “Don’t do this.”

“The hatch will lock after me.” Ignoring my plea, he pocketed the cell phone off the desk he’d messed with earlier. Then he lifted the door and a burst of frigid air rushed into the small room, stealing all the heat. Dropping into the hole that looked like it opened directly into a crawl space under the cabin, he stood in the waist high space and grabbed the edge of the hatch. “One-three-two. Don’t forget.” His intense gaze pierced me. “This is my job.” Dropping his voice to a low and threatening growl, he held his rifle. “It’s also personal.”

He disappeared into the crawl space and the hatch door slammed shut.