What had happened?

Gun drawn, Spencer materialized from behind the BMW. So he had circled around and was behind them the whole time? Alani knew by his fierce expression and rock-hard jaw that he was the one who’d shot Chandra. He paused to remove weapons from the fallen guards, then strode right past Jackson on his way to Arizona.

Shaking so badly she could barely stay on her feet, Alani looked around in relieved amazement. Bodies were down. Blood had splattered. Glass shattered.

She shivered…and her gaze came right back to Jackson.

He wasn’t hurt, thank God. He didn’t even look upset. The explosion of gunfire hadn’t fazed him at all.

Gaze locked, he stared at Alani while lowering Chandra to the ground.

And then her brother was there, leaning over Chandra, searching her for other weapons, checking her pulse and finally, putting in a call on his cell.

In two big steps, Jackson reached her, scooped her up and carried her to the car to sit her on the trunk.

“Alani?” His voice was firm, in control, insistent. With a gentle hand, he cupped the side of her face. “Baby, you okay?”

She stared at him, her stomach recoiled, and she thrust the purse at him. It now had a giant black hole in it. “Are you nuts?”

A slow smile wiped away the worry on his face. “I don’t think so, no.”

She saw nothing funny in any of it. “You provoked her! Were you trying to get shot?”

“Dare, Trace and Spencer had things covered.”

“They couldn’t have kept her from…” She couldn’t say it. If Chandra had pulled that trigger, it could be Jackson on the ground right now, bleeding out. Tears welled in her eyes and clogged her throat, but she blinked fast and took two deep breaths. “That was insanely dangerous.”

“She didn’t have her finger on the trigger. She wanted to toy with us more than anything else.”

“You can’t know that.” And the truth of what he’d done shook her. “You wanted her focused on you, so she wasn’t focused on Arizona or me.”

“You think you know me pretty well, huh?” He kept touching her face. “Well, you’re right, and I won’t apologize for that, so don’t ask me to. Besides, the odds of her actually firing here, in the parking lot of an apartment complex, were pretty damn slim.”

But thanks to her nerves, Alani had fired. Oh, wow, had she blown his plans?

“Yeah,” Jackson said, reading her expression. “We figured the first group that Dare and Trace nabbed was just a setup. It was too easy. And when Chandra had the gall to show up in the BMW, I knew she felt safe, like she had all her bases covered. She wanted to play, but she’d have put us in the car and driven to a more private location before executing anyone.”

Horrid, horrid woman. “She’s…dead?”

“Not yet, but I don’t know if she’ll make it.” He gave her a stern stare. “She’s not for you to worry about.”

True enough. Alani nodded. “I hate all this covert crap.”

Smiling at her, Jackson smoothed her hair in a now-familiar way. “God, I never forget details, but I swear, I forgot all about you having that gun. Probably because never, not in a million years, did I expect you to use it.”

“I forgot you had Spencer’s knife,” she admitted. “I mean, I know yours is in your boot, but I didn’t see how you could get to it, and with your gun in the harness…and that crazy woman aiming at you—”

“I know.” He put her head to his shoulder, but she could feel his smile when he kissed her temple.

She punched his ribs. “How in the world can you be amused?”

“You’re alive and well. Arizona is fine.” He hugged her. “And the men Dare has under wraps already told him where to find the rest of Chandra’s operation.”

She pushed back to see his face. “So we’ll be able to free everyone?”

“No we to it, babe, but yeah, people are already on their way. Everyone will be taken care of, I promise.” He kissed her, but the kiss ended with a laugh.

Insulted, Alani frowned at him. “What’s funny?”

Still grinning, he shook his head. “Shit went south on me when that BMW showed up before we could get out of the lot. I wasn’t expecting that. I was improvising, making plans as I went along, and then you shot that damn gun and I had no f**king clue what had happened.”

“You didn’t look surprised.” She hugged him, reassured by his big warm body, his secure hold. “You are so fast.”

Trace came over to them, but he spoke to Jackson, asking, “She’s okay?”

Alani quit hiding against him. “She is fine.” And then to Trace, “Where did you come from?”

“We were keeping watch.” He tugged on a lock of her hair. “Dare has the other goons on lockdown, but he had clear shots if necessary. I was closer. No one would have let you get hurt.”

“I was more worried about Jackson.”

Trace gave a crooked grin, and nudged Jackson. “I wouldn’t have let him get hurt, either.”

Jackson nodded over at Arizona. She and Spencer were involved in a quiet argument. Arizona looked…well, shattered. Her eyes were red, her face stiff. “Trace, do me a favor and make sure she doesn’t split, okay?”

“Being that you’re preoccupied?”

“Something like that.”