*Bianca*
From the mont I saw Liam in the café, I’d known there was sothing not quite right about this whole situation. Why hadn’t I stayed ho the way I wanted to? I could have been in bed. Or at least sipping a cup of tea instead of staring at a man I’d thought could be a friend.
He was just as handso this morning as he had been the night before, but there was sothing sinister about that beauty now that I knew he was a bastard who would kidnap won to get what he wanted. He would kill if he had to.
It was a thought I hadn’t considered when I’d made my guards go away, but I hadn’t wanted things to get more heated than they already were. Liam looked different. There was an iciness to his tone and glaciers in his eyes that weren’t there the night before.
He’d played like a fiddle, and I was so pissed that he’d played so easily. I was an idiot. I was the one who’d left the house, thinking to have a good ti. I was the one who’d defied Leo like a recalcitrant child.
There went that word again. When was I going to stop acting like a child instead of a woman that was going to have one soon. I swallowed hard. I wanted to cross myself, but I couldn’t. I rembered the way Leo acted in the face of danger.
He was a hard ass. He’d give an icy glare and act as if he had everything in hand and knew exactly what was going on no matter what.
All Leo knew in scenarios like this was that he had to remain in control. I tried to stiffen my spine and sit up straighter. I wasn’t going to be defeated in this. I wasn’t going to let him get the upper hand. Mine and my child’s lives depended on it.
I was so relieved that Taylor said Isabella was safe. I was confused, though. How did Taylor fit into this scenario? He wasn’t involved in this. Was he? Did I need to feel afraid of another person that was supposed to be a friend?
I looked over at him. He was so cool and at ease. He seed to be well inford about all of this. I stared at him, trying to put the questions I had in my eyes. I saw him give a minute shake of his head and watched his eyes go from cheerful friend to hard glaring guard.
Was that what he was? I did not think Leo had anything to do with Taylor being one of my guards. Leo didn’t like Taylor and he’d even gotten into it with Taylor once. Maybe I was reading too much into the look Taylor flashed at before he turned back to Liam.
I sat in silence the way that look had ant for to do. I sensed Taylor wanted to play along with whatever he said or did, so I planned to.
“Bianca and I were having a nice chat. Why don’t you just keep walking,” Liam suggested.
I assud Liam was trying to be polite so as not to cause a scene. We were in a public place. Surely, Liam wouldn’t do anything to call more attention to us than the occasional glance from other coffee drinkers.
“Play along, sweetheart,” Taylor whispered and looked over at Liam with a grin.
“What’s going on, Bi?” Taylor asked, aloud.
“Go away,” Liam growled under his breath, giving Taylor a charming smile.
Liam’s eyes told the true story. They were shaded with anger and frustration. His lips didn’t quite pull off charming to . He looked more like an angry bull with his nostrils flaring and his jaw clenched so tight I wondered if he didn’t crack his molars.
I fidgeted under the table with the pants I wore and sat next to Taylor as he coolly glared right back at Liam.
“Oh, I don’t think so, bro,” Taylor said, his tone and smile still congenial, but his eyes shot daggers at Liam.
Liam glared at Taylor. Taylor gave him a wide toothy grin back and sat forward eting the other man’s eyes and shaking his head at Liam.
“There’s no way I’m letting you take her out of here, man,” Taylor said, still looking all happy from afar, but I had been around Leo for too long. I knew the subtle hints of anger and threats I heard in Taylor’s voice. He was all cool and laid back as if he did not have a care in the world, but I knew better.
Taylor’s shoulders were tight with tension. His eyes never strayed from Liam’s, and his jaw did that ticking thing Liam’s was doing.
“Don’t play with ,” Liam hissed.
“Who said anything about playing? You’re the one on the losing side. I’m just here to make sure it happens the way it’s supposed to. Now, let’s pretend we’re friends and shit for a few more minutes.”
I looked between the n. Liam was visibly sweating, now. His expression didn’t reveal fear, but he seed sohow lessened under Taylor’s relentless gaze. In fact, Liam’s face was so expressionless it was sowhat creepy to .
Taylor still reminded of Leo. He was all in charge and acting like nothing phased him, though I knew better. Liam wouldn’t see what I did, though. I was used to being around Leo like this, and Taylor suddenly had those sa moves. It made wonder even more about him and what he was doing in the café.
Was he mafia? I kept my mouth shut thinking it would only make things harder for and Taylor if I spoke out of turn. I knew that Liam was a bad guy in this. It was hard to differentiate to tell the truth. How can I judge Liam differently from Leo and his n other than the fact he was after .
It made a difference. I would never have thought Liam capable of harming , but with the way he was looking at Taylor, all expressionless, as if killing him and taking would be no big deal to him made shutter. It made want to scream at him.
I felt betrayed. I’d liked Liam and hoped we might form a friendship if I saw him again. Now, I realized he had kidnapped my friend and was there to hurt . Maybe he would not have hard himself, but that was not saying much when he would have handed over to whover wanted to hurt to get back at Leo.
Liam was a bottom feeder if Anyone ask . I wanted to slam his head into the table and cause him bodily harm. I had never wanted to hurt sobody as bad as I wanted to hurt Liam in that mont. I think he must have saw my change from fear to anger to murderous rage in that mont because that face of his finally had an expression on it even if it was a nasty sneer.
As his eyes t mine, and his expression went from sweaty straight-faced nace to venomous determination, he made a stupid move even I would have known better than to make. He pulled a gun and grabbed my wrist trying to pull from the other side of the booth.
I stared at him in horrified disbelief. Leo was going to kill him. Sure, I didn’t know exactly how things were between Leo and I right now, but one thing I was sure of was that Leo wouldn’t tolerate Liam trying to harm .
Liam would pay for this if all he was able to do was put a few bruises on my wrist where he gripped too hard.
“I said let’s go, Bianca, so we can talk in a more private place,” Liam said, coming out of his side of the booth to stand beside and hold the gun close under my left breast where no one else saw it but Taylor.
Was he fucking nuts? Okay, now, he had sounding like Leo in my head. No way was he going to get away with this. I felt like a B-movie heroine thinking that stupid crap.
Maybe he could get away with it and and the baby would end up dead, but in that mont all I could think was I hope Leo put a bullet between his eyes if he took to soone who hard and my baby.
Taylor stood and smiled at Liam. He actually grinned at him. Now, I wanted to punch him too.
As Taylor stood from the table, I heard the door open and people coming through the door. I shivered. It was too crowded for this, I thought. I hoped this didn’t turn into a shoot out or bloodbath.
Leo was worried about the war getting so out of hand that the press and cops kept coming into the mix. I was frustrated with Leo always restraining , but he had his reasons, and I was getting an upfront and personal introduction to the thod to his madness.
Fun, I thought, nearly rolling my eyes at my own stupidity, as Liam’s gun dug deeper into my rib and he yanked up from the booth by my wrist, using as a shield to cover himself and the gun he had pressed between the two of us.
That stupid gun was still pressed under my arm, forcefully pushing into my rib. I winced a little at the pain.
Taylor moved in front of us, preventing Liam’s escape. I heard him huff out a breath, and rolled my eyes. Did he really think Taylor was just going to let him take out of here? Liam really was an idiot.
I did not want Taylor to get hurt, but I was damn glad he was there to keep from being dragged out of the café with no one the wiser because I wouldn’t make a scene. I wouldn’t put anyone else in danger.
Taylor stepping in front of Liam and I revealed several guests in the café were planted. The n were at Taylor’s back and in different booths around the café. None of them looked like n who frequented trendy places like this. A few of them even wore Leo’s colors. I nearly sagged with relief.
The n must have steadily trickled into the café while Liam’s focus was all on Taylor and . The power plays between the two n had been intense and filled with tension. Liam’s posturing and Taylor’s subtle show of gaining the upper hand had been attention grabbing for them as well as .
Liam’s insistence on getting out of the café and to another location had been all he paid attention to. It was obvious now that he should have been more vigilant in keeping an eye on his surroundings instead.
Liam roughly shoved at Taylor and took off for the back exit. He did not make it very far. I turned to stare as Liam was grabbed by one of the n wearing Leo’s colors and shoved so hard into the wall opposite them it was a wonder Liam’s nose hadn’t broken from the impact his face made with the wall.
I covered my mouth with my hands, as I watched them unarm Liam, gag him, and roughly drag him out the back door. Taylor turned away from the back entrance and pulled into his arms.
Taylor held close for just a mont and gently took my hand and pulled out the front door. I was still a little in shock. I had a couple bruises and was a bit dazed with fear and horror. Then, I saw Isabella.
She was safe. Her cheeks were pale and streaked with drying tears and she seed shaken by the day’s events, but she was safe. I stumbled over to her and took her in my arms.
“Are you all right?” I asked, feeling dumb for even asking that question.
“Yes, I’m fine,” Isabella said, sniffing back another barrage of tears.
I looked her over, taking her hands in mine and scanning her for physical damages. She was physically all right. God knew how long it would take her to recover emotionally.
Seeing that she was all right, I turned the blast of my fury onto Taylor. He’d better have a damn good explanation, or I was going to find a way to get my hands on one of Leo’s guns.
“Who in the hell are you?” I asked, scowling at him and narrowing my eyes in anger.
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