“Do it, then.” I noticed one of my support crew shifting silently to the right, so I opened my arms and egged Petrov on. “I don’t think you can, old man.”

His hands shook. He lined up a shot, but just as he was about to squeeze the trigger, a figure dived at him, hitting him in the waist and taking him to the ground.

I saw a flash of blonde hair as the shot went wild, hitting the roof.

Willow.

Plaster crumbled to the floor. I jumped out of the way.

Petrov grabbed Willow’s hair and wrenched, but before he could do anything else, my man on the right hit him with the butt of a handgun. He let go, dazed, and I took advantage of the chance to wrestle the gun from his hand. Then, between the group of us, we managed to subdue him.

Seconds later, Kade and Sean appeared in the doorway.

“Everyone okay?” Kade asked. “We heard a shot.”

“Didn’t hit anyone,” I replied.

“Thank God. The apartment is clear,” Kade said. “It was just the three men we’ve already dealt with, plus our buddy on the floor.”

“You’re sure?” I asked.

He nodded.

“Good.” I turned to Willow, who was standing over Petrov, wide-eyed. “Sweetheart. You’re okay.”

She flung herself at me. “I’m so glad to see you.”

I wrapped my arms around her and inhaled her delicious vanilla scent. She trembled in my embrace.

“You didn’t give him the company, did you?” she asked.

“No, but I would have.” I peppered kisses all over her face, relief sinking deep into my bones. “I love you,” I told her. “I was scared out of my fucking mind when I realized you’d been taken.”

She gazed up at me with those glorious green eyes and opened her mouth to speak, but I pressed a finger to her lips. The room had fallen quiet, and I noticed the others had cleared out, taking Petrov with them.

“I need to say this. When I got snappy about you packing a bag, it wasn’t only because I wanted to protect you. I did—I think I’ll always worry—but the only reason I want you to live with me is because I’m crazy about you. I know it’s fast, and I’m happy to wait as long as you need, but I want you to know that how I feel has nothing to do with the danger you’ve been in. I can’t completely separate love from my protective instincts, because they’ll always go hand in hand. I love you, so I’m protective of you. That’s just the way it is. But it doesn’t mean I love you less.”

“I love you too, Ronan.” She went onto her toes and kissed me. “I was just overwhelmed by everything that had happened.” She framed my face between her hands. “Thank you for coming. I might not be able to count on Tom to have my back—he’s really shown where his loyalty lies—but I knew you’d be here, I trusted myself to survive until you came, and I’m sorry for pushing you away.”