The Bossy Prince (Rugged and Royal #3) - Lili Valente Page 0,60

more backup. If you can get there, you’ll be covered.” He steps away as I kick off my remaining sandal. I lost the other one when I jumped off the boat.

Though I’m dripping water from my soaked bathing suit cover-up, I hurry barefoot down the dock. The man keeps his distance as we move toward the fleet of Jet Skis bobbing at the end of the pier and stays a good six feet away while he points at a souped-up beast.

“Here’s the key.” He pulls a spiral elastic from his shorts and holds it out to me. “I’d throw it to you, but I’m afraid it might slip through the gaps in the dock, and we don’t have time to spare. I know Nick. Worked with him last year. I’d hate to see him go out like this, not if there’s still a chance to turn this around.”

I press my lips together, weighing his words in the few seconds I can bear to waste.

But my gut swears he’s telling the truth.

I step in, taking the key from his open palm, then open the locked seat of the Jet Ski and reach inside. In a small dry bag, I find a Sig P365, a delicate gun I’m familiar with. Quickly, I check to make sure it’s loaded and the thumb safety’s on before turning to my backup. “Tell Neville I’ll check in as soon as I can.”

“I will,” he says. “I’ll touch base and then grab a boat and come after you if I can. Be careful. If Nick’s out of commission, you won’t have cover on the open water or support until I get there. Stand down if you—”

“I know. Thank you,” I cut him off as I strap on a bright orange life vest and wedge the gun into the tight front closure for easy access.

I’m not going to stand down.

I won’t have to.

Nick’s going to be holding his own against Blaire and Stefano. Hell, he might have everything wrapped up by the time I get to the boat.

Even as I lift a hand in thanks to my backup agent and slam the Jet Ski into reverse, spinning around in the choppy water, I know I’m in the grips of magical thinking.

Blaire has a gun; Nick doesn’t. Stefano has arms the size of Easter hams; Nick doesn’t. Nick will be worried about protecting Beatrice; Blaire and Stefano don’t give a shit about collateral damage.

Nick’s at multiple disadvantages, but I have to believe he’s okay.

I have to believe we’re going to get a chance to become better friends, to remain family, maybe even to finish what we started this morning. Just a few hours ago, I was torn. Yes, I wanted him, but I could name a dozen reasons Nick and I shouldn’t sleep together.

But now, when he might already be gone and this day could be my last day…

Now, I wish I’d taken the chance, risked the pain of heartbreak for even an hour of pleasure.

Life’s too short.

It’s always been too short. But sometimes it takes moments like these, zooming across the water so fast the wind feels like it’s ripping my eyelashes from my lids, heart lodged in my throat, chest aching with terror, to realize at a visceral level that this is all temporary. Every moment is a gift, every second a chance to live a better life than the second before.

I don’t have to repeat the same mistakes.

I don’t have to stay on the sidelines.

Just because love has kicked my ass every time I’ve taken the field doesn’t mean I’m going to keep losing. Even a broken clock is right two times a day.

And I’m not broken.

My heart still works.

It works so well that by the time I’ve closed the distance to the slower moving boat, it feels like my ribs have been beaten from the inside.

I need Nick to be okay so much it hurts.

Thankfully, I’m starting to think Fate is on my side this time.

I zoom into the boat’s churning wake, jumping it on my Jet Ski to pull up behind. So far, no one has opened fire. I can’t see anyone on deck, in fact, but the front of the vessel is blocked from view by the enclosed stairs leading to the bridge.

I’m not sure who’s steering, but the boat is definitely veering to the right. Sooner or later, it’s going to curve back around toward the shore on the more populated side of the island, where the water is shallow and stretches