“How long have you been down here?” he asks, leaning back against the counter watching me.

“Not long,” I mutter as I move around him to the fridge and grab the butter, stopping when he grabs me around my waist.

“I could have eaten you for dinner,” he says against my neck as his arms wrap around me.

“Oh,” I moan as his tongue licks up my neck, and then squeak as he lifts me up to the counter. “Dinner is going to burn,” I groan into his mouth as his hands move up my sides under my shirt.

“Let it burn.” He grinds against me, then mutters, “Fuck,” when his phone rings. Stepping back an inch, he pulls his phone out of the pocket of his shorts and looks at the number. “Give me a second,” he mumbles, kissing my forehead and putting his phone to his ear, walking away.

Letting out a breath, I hop off the counter then go to the fridge. I grab a bowl of salad and freeze when I hear Sven in the next room snarl, “You have got to be shitting me.”

Dropping the bowl to the counter, I walk toward the living room, where I hear him tell whoever is on the phone, “I’ll be there in fifteen.” Then he hangs up and looks at me.

“Is everything okay?” I ask, studying the pissed-off look on his face.

“A fire broke out at the club in one of the bathrooms. I gotta head out. The cops and the fire department are there.”

“What?” I gasp.

“I’ll call and explain everything, but I gotta go, baby.”

“I’m coming with you,” I tell him, but he shakes his head.

“Yes, I’m going with you.” Without giving him the chance to argue with me, I run through the house, out the backdoor of the kitchen, turn off the grill, and then run back through to head up the stairs, finding Sven in the bedroom. He’s already dressed in a pair of dark jeans and a grey V-neck tee. Running past him, I go to the closet, grab a pair of jeans, slip off my sweats, and put on the pants while hopping around before slipping my feet into a pair of sandals.

“You’re not coming,” he says blocking the closet door with his arms across his chest and his feet planted apart.

“I am.” I put my hands on my hips and glare at him.

“No, you’re gonna stay here. I don’t know what the fuck happened tonight, but I don’t want you there.”

“Sven—”

“Maggie, I’m not fucking around. You are not coming. As soon as I’m gone, I want you to set the alarm, keep your phone on you, and stay put.”

“I’m coming, Sven, and if you think I’m not, you need to think again, because the minute you leave, I’m in my car following behind you, so you can either suck it up and let me ride with, or—”

“Fuck!” He tilts his head back and looks at the ceiling then his eyes drop to meet mine. “Why the hell couldn’t I fall for a chick who does what the fuck I tell her to do?” he asks, and I feel my eyes go squinty.

“You would have been bored out of your gourd with a woman like that.” I tell him the truth; he would ruin a woman who didn’t stand up to him.

“You stay at my side. You are not out of my sight, not even for a second,” he barks, and I fight my smile, ‘cause I know he won’t appreciate me gloating right now.

“I’ll stick to you like glue,” I agree.

“Don’t make me regret taking you.”

“You won’t.” I smile, then walk past him out of the closet and then rush down to his Suburban before he can change his mind.

Driving past the club into the back parking lot, my head turns as we drive past the chaos. There are hundreds of people gathered on the sidewalks out front, along with police cruisers and fire trucks blocking the road.

“I thought it was a small fire in one of the bathrooms,” I mutter to Sven as I swing my head back around to face the windshield when I can no longer see the front of the club.

“When you’re dealing with any kind of fire in a club like this, they evacuate everyone and every cop and fire department in the city shows up,” he says, pulling into the parking space reserved for him.

“I hope no one was hurt.”

“The alarm sounded, they followed procedure, and they got everyone out. No one got hurt.”

“It’s kinda weird that the fire was in the bathroom.”

“People rarely follow the rules. My guess is some kid was smoking in one of the bathroom stalls and either tossed a joint or a cigarette into the trash. It’s not the first time something like this has happened,” he says, shutting down the Suburban, unbuckling his belt, and hopping out. Unhooking my belt, I open the door then take his hand when he helps me down.

Wrapping his arm around my shoulders, he leads me to the road then moves us toward two police officers who are trying to disburse the crowd.

“I own this—” Stopping midsentence, Sven turns and shoves me to the ground. My hands hit the concrete right before my knees do. Starting to push myself up, his body covers mine and his arms wrap around my head. People around us scream and the sound of gunfire registers.

“Stay down!” someone yells as the windows explode, causing glass to rain down on us.

“Sven!” I scream when his big body jolts on top of mine.

“Shhhhh.” His hands wrap tighter around me, and I feel the top half of his body lift an inch and I cry out.

“Don’t leave.” Wrapping my hands around his arms at my head, I hold on tight.

“I’m not going anywhere,” he whispers gently, and tears fill my eyes.

“They’re gone!” someone close by yells, but Sven doesn’t let me up. He stays on top of me, and I notice his breath is shallow and his weight has gotten even heavier.

“They’re gone,” I whisper, digging my fingers into the skin of his arms. Rolling him to his back, I scramble to my knees, pressing them to his side as I lean over him. Running my eyes over his torso, I see his grey shirt is turning red near his ribcage.

“Help!” I shriek, pressing my hands over the wound at his side.

“Are you okay, baby?” he asks, sounding short of breath, and my eyes swing up from my hands to his face, noticing his eyes look glossy and his face is pinched in pain.

“Stay still. Don’t talk,” I whimper, resting my forehead against his.

“Tell me you’re okay.”

“I’m okay, and so are you.” I kiss him then lift my head when a shadow falls over us. “Please,” I breathe, looking into the eyes of the firefighter across from me. Jerking his head once, his hands move over mine and he pulls them away, and then he yells at someone behind me.

“Miss, I need you to stand back,” an officer says, wrapping his hand around my bicep. Tilting my head back to look up at him, I feel tears fall from my eyes and down my cheeks.

“I need to stay with him,” I whisper, and his eyes fill with concern.

“I promise you won’t be far, but the paramedics need room to work.”

Biting my lip, I look from him down to Sven, drop my body forward, and press my mouth to his ear.

“I’m not going anywhere, but they need to look after you, honey.” He doesn’t reply or even move, but when I lift my head above his, his eyes lock on mine. “Promise I’m not going anywhere.” I lean in and press my mouth to his, holding it there as I try to control my tears.