Chapter 9 - The Siege Ends
Within twenty minutes, the remaining Moretti enforcers had either been disarmed, zip-tied, or scattered into the dark alleys of the industrial district like terrified ghosts.
The docks were quiet once more, save for the hiss of rain falling on smoldering steel and the low rumble of police sirens wailing in the far distance, approaching too late to matter.
Dominic climbed the metal stairs of the gantry crane two at a time, bursting into the cabin where Harper was standing over the unconscious sniper, catching her breath.
He didn't say a word. He walked straight up to her, grabbed her by the shoulders, and pulled her so hard against his chest that the impact knocked the remaining breath out of her lungs.
“Are you out of your mind?” Dominic whispered, his voice shaking with a raw, primal panic that he had never once displayed in front of his men. “I told you to stay in the vehicle.”
Harper pushed against his chest, her eyes flashing with adrenaline and fierce satisfaction. “And I told you, nobody burns down my waterfront projects.”
Dominic stared down at her, the stern, terrifying mafia boss melting away entirely, replaced by a man utterly captivated by the fierce, brilliant storm he had brought into his life.
Without warning, he cupped the back of her head, pulled her face up to his, and kissed her—deeply, passionately, and with an absolute, consuming intensity that blotted out the smoke, the rain, and the ruined docks around them.
Harper’s hands gripped the lapels of his wet tactical vest, pulling him closer, returning the kiss with all the fire that had driven her to walk into the Obsidian Lounge three weeks ago.
When they finally broke apart for air, Dominic rested his forehead against hers, a rare, breathtaking smile breaking across his face.
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“You realize,” Dominic murmured, his voice thick with amusement and awe, “that the entire Chicago underworld is going to hear about how my fiancée beat a sniper with a wrench and hijacked a gantry crane.”
“Good,” Harper whispered back, her lips curving into a defiant, radiant grin. “Maybe it will remind them not to mess with our architectural designs.”
