“So you’ve seen her. She’s obviously still got some fight left in her. So put down the gun and the money and step away.”
Nate ignored Jerry and took a few steps to the right toward Annie. Confused by his movement, Eddie dragged her back toward the window and away from Nate’s approach.
“The money and the gun, Nate. Now.”
Eddie nervously pulled back the hammer on the gun. Nate couldn’t trust him not to shoot Annie, even if by accident.
“Okay, okay,” he said, easing the gun down onto the floor and kicking it toward Jerry. “Please stop pointing the gun at her.”
“After I get the money,” Jerry said. The old man bent over to pick up the gun.
The rest happened in a blur. Nate yelled, “Now!” A loud bang rang out. Annie screamed. Nate swung the duffel bag filled with poker chips at Jerry, the heavy and unexpected blow knocking him to the ground. Nate quickly scooped up the gun. He held it on Jerry, his eyes darting back to the shattered window. Annie stood there alone, her entire body trembling in shock and fear as she tried to process what had happened.
The door burst open and a dozen men in navy security uniforms rushed into the room. Once they had Jerry in custody, Nate dropped his gun and ran to Annie’s side. He crushed her against him, tugging her away from Eddie, who was howling in pain at her feet.
Gabe’s sniper training had served them well today. With Nate’s cell phone on in his pocket the entire time, Gabe had waited patiently across the hotel courtyard for Eddie to get into position and Nate to give the order to shoot. His bullet had crossed the distance and found its mark in Eddie’s shoulder.
Nate pulled Annie from the suite, taking her far away from the scene of her captivity. She didn’t speak, just cried against the lapel of his jacket until they reached the empty hotel room they’d set aside when they’d planned their attack. He sat Annie on the bed and wrapped her shoulders with a thick blanket.
“You’re going to be okay,” he whispered into her hair, gently stroking her back. “Gabe’s calling the police, and the ambulance should be here soon. They’ll take good care of you, okay?”
“I don’t want a divorce.”
Annie’s voice was so small Nate wasn’t quite sure he heard her correctly. “What did you say?”
Annie pulled away, gently brushing her tears from her cheek. She winced in pain as she moved, making Nate’s chest ache. If Jerry rotted in jail ten years after he was dead, it wouldn’t be long enough to make up for what he’d done.
“I said I don’t want a divorce.”
“We don’t have to talk about that right now. You’ve been through a lot.”
“No, we do. I’ve already waited too long and almost missed my chance to say it. I hate myself for what I said to you. Jerry made me do it, and it just broke my heart. I lied to you, Nate. I do love you. I always have, I was just too scared to say it. After today, I realize there are so many other things in life to fear than love. Tonight, all I could think about was that I might die without telling you how I really felt. That you might always think those horrible things I said to you were true.”
“Annie, I—”
“Let me finish,” she interrupted. “I don’t know how to be a wife, and I can’t always promise I’ll be a good one, but I want to spend the rest of my life with you trying to figure it out. If you still want me, I’d love to plant roots here in Vegas and travel with you by my side.”
Nate couldn’t help but smile. His heart was leaping in his chest. “If I still want you? Annie, I’ve never stopped wanting you from the moment I first laid eyes on you. I love you. More than anything.” Nate hugged her gently against him and pressed a soft kiss to her lips. “Don’t ever believe otherwise.”
They sat in silence for a few minutes, letting the truth of their words and the gravity of the situation they’d just experienced fully sink in. Nate could hear the police going up and down the hallway and Gabe’s voice ordering the staff around. It wouldn’t be long before their moment together would be disrupted by police interviews and EMT examinations.
“So you really think we can do this whole marriage thing?” Annie asked at last.
Nate sighed and leaned his head against hers. “I think we can have a great marriage. One you’ll want to run to instead of run from.”