Total pages in book: 22
Estimated words: 20011 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 100(@200wpm)___ 80(@250wpm)___ 67(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 20011 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 100(@200wpm)___ 80(@250wpm)___ 67(@300wpm)
I sprinted over to the men and grabbed them both by their hair before slamming them to the ground. Once they were away from him, Avery dropped to his knees. He gave me a look of mixed relief and anguish before he laid down on his side. He needed to rest and recover. I needed to finish this.
One of the assholes got to his feet, but I wouldn’t let him get any farther. I unleashed my full strength with a punch to his temple. He spun on the spot before landing with a thud on his stomach, slapping his face against the pavement.
The other man was struggling to stand, so I gripped his shirt collar and hauled him to his feet. I wasn’t letting him off easy. He hurt my love and he was going to pay.
The fuckwad didn’t know when to quit. Instead of begging for mercy, he still tried to taunt me. “You’re too late. He got what was coming to him. You won’t be able to fuck him for a long while.” His lip curled as he gave a gravely laugh, and I got sick satisfaction from the fact that his mouth looked like raw hamburger. Avery was small, but mighty.
I placed my hands on the man’s shoulders to steady him. I leaned down to look him in the eye and smiled before answering simply, “Actually, he fucks me.” His look of utter confusion was priceless, but short lived. I laid him out with a powerful hook to the mouth. He went stiff as a board and fell back against the asphalt. His head rolled to the side, and a bloody tooth fell out from between his lips. Good.
I hustled to Avery’s side, dropping to my knees next to him. He was conscious, but just barely. His eyes focused on me, and he whispered my name.
“I’m here,” I reassured him. “I’m here and you’re gonna be okay.” I turned my attention to his beeping monitor on his hip. I was thankful he showed me how to read it and work it in case of an emergency.
The word ‘High’ flashed on the screen, making me curse under my breath. It meant that his blood sugar had risen beyond what the meter was capable of reading. When his body was under stress, his hormones raised his sugar, and I couldn’t imagine a more stressful situation than this.
I pressed the ‘Bolus’ button to deliver a dose of insulin through his pump. It would help until I could get him to the hospital. When his meter stopped beeping, I took his swollen, bloody face in my hands. “Avery, you are so brave and strong; you’re incredible. You’re my fucking hero, you know that?” His lips tipped up into a weak smile.
“I’m going to get you help.” I scooped him into my arms as gingerly as possible, though he still groaned with pain. “I know, sweetheart; I’m so sorry. I’ve got you, and everything is okay.”
His eyes cast over to the motionless lumps of worthless humans on the street. I could see the question he didn’t speak; what should we do with them?
“Fuck them,” I told him callously. “They’re knocked out, but they’ll live.” Unfortunately, I thought, though I kept that wickedness to myself. My only concern was Avery. I rushed him to my truck; we were only a few blocks away from the hospital, so I could get him there quicker than an ambulance could get to us.
I settled in behind the steering wheel, cradling him against my chest as I drove like a bat out of hell, telling him over and over how proud of him I was, and how very much I loved him.
His monitor was no longer beeping, and he was staying awake. He surely had a concussion and countless cuts and bruises, but he would be okay. I’d seen enough fighters to know when someone had internal damage, and Avery’s injuries all seemed to be on the surface, though he was surely in horrible pain.
But my man was a badass. He took on two guys nearly twice his size, and was the only one left standing. They saw him as small and weak, but they couldn’t douse the fire inside of him, and ended up getting burned. He was strong and obviously capable of taking care of himself, but I still didn’t plan to ever leave his side again.
Epilogue
Avery
18 Months Later
I stepped onto the next stair as the person ahead of me was called across the stage. After years of studying, projects, and classes, it was my graduation day. I was receiving my Bachelor’s Degree for Cybersecurity, with a minor in mathematics.
I’d gotten top marks all throughout my college career, and my future looked bright. A few months ago, I was approached by a headhunter from a major financial firm. They offered me a salary position upon graduation, where I would protect sensitive data and ensure the integrity of financial transactions.