His Nasty Virgin

JESSE

They ganged up on me all at once, throwing their hands and gnashing their teeth. That was their first mistake. It was all for show. They might have looked tough, but they were inexperienced fighters.

I may have been outnumbered, but they were sorely outmatched.

The first guy ran up and tried to lock me in a sleeper hold. I kicked him in the groin as hard as I could before he could get to me, immediately moving into his space to connect my knuckles to his jaw. The crack was swift and deafening. He was out like a light before he knew what hit him.

The second guy whipped out a gun, but he moved to slow, his size more of a burden in such close quarters. I was on him in milliseconds, knocking him against the side of the head with a nearby table lamp. It shattered, breaking into sharp pieces. He fell to the floor, his gun slipping out of his grip and sliding beneath the couch. He was down, but not out.

I’d deal with him later. I had to deal with the third assailant before he got to Vivian.

The second I told her to run, she made a break for the bathroom down the hall. It was a good call. It had a sturdy lock and a window leading out to the building’s fire escape.

With any luck, Vivian was already climbing down and putting as much distance between her and her apartment. Either way, I had to finish this up quickly and get to her. She’d be exposed without me.

I ran after the third man, tackling him to the floor. I landed harder than I wanted to, my joints cracking for my efforts. I’d spent too long behind my desk at the office, but it felt strangely good to be back at it.

I pinned the guy down, but not before his fist connected with my jaw. The sting made my eyes water, blurring my vision. He wailed on me again and again until our positions were reversed. He had me on my back, shielding against his blows with both my arms out in front of me. This wasn’t ideal.

In fact, things were going south and fast.

I was getting tired. My movements were sluggish, my limbs heavy, my breathing tight. I was taking more blows than I was dealing. My age was catching up to me, but I couldn’t give up. I wouldn’t. Not when I knew Vivian might still be on the other side of that door.

The image of her cowering in the bathroom flashed across my mind. Those big doe eyes full of fear. Shaking uncontrollably. Her face drained of color. I couldn’t go out

like this. I needed to get the upper hand. For her.

I caught my second wind, a sudden burst of energy numbing the ache in my bones and spurring me on. I managed to turn the tide with a swift punch to the man’s throat. He recoiled, gasping for air. It gave me just enough time to kick him in the chest. He went flying, hitting his head against the wall next to us. It left a dent in the drywall. This time, he was knocked unconscious.

I dragged myself onto my feet, bones creaking. The assailant with the gun was already standing, dashing toward me. He punched me in the gut, knocking the air from my lungs. I was dizzy, the taste of iron that coated my tongue making me nauseated. I wasn’t out of the woods yet. My concentration was slipping, my hits weren’t connecting.

The attacker managed to get behind me, locking my head in a chokehold. He squeezed hard, crushing my windpipe. There was a sudden pressure behind my eyes, in my skull. I couldn’t see straight.

The sound of something cracking reached my ears. The man released me, and I could suddenly breathe again, gasping for air. I turned to find him unconscious, flat on his face. Above him was Vivian, toilet tank cover -the half that hadn’t broken off- still in hand.

“Holy shit,” she breathed, rushing to me. “Holy shit, are you alright? Your nose is bleeding. Here, tilt your chin up.” She cupped my face and wiped at my nose with the sleeve of her sweater.

“I told you to run,” I said, voice hoarse and barely recognizable in my own ears.

“I wasn’t leaving you behind.”

“I gave you an order.”

Vivian rolled her eyes, but her shaky hands gave away her composure. “You can be angry at me about it later.” Her fingers grazed my cheek as she inspected me. The cool touch of her skin was a greater relief to me than an ice pack. “Good. I don’t think your nose is broken. Quit squirming, you’re going to ruin your shirt.”

I grasped her hands. “Why didn’t you listen to me? You should have at least stayed in the bathroom.”

“You’d be dead if it weren’t for me.”

“I would have been fine.”

“Oh, yeah,” she quipped dryly. “Fine and blue in the face.”

“This isn’t up for debate. You said you’d obey my orders.”

“Jesus, would it kill you to say thank you?”

“I’m not going thank you for being reckless.”

“Reckless? You’re telling me that taking on three gang members all by yourself isn’t reckless?”

“I told you already. It’s my job.”

Vivian’s nostrils flared. “I was just trying to help.”

She was probably trying to come across as serious and angry, but I got more of a pouting puppy impression. She was just so small and beautiful and wide-eyed that I wasn’t intimidated in the slightest. Still, there was no missing the way her eyes grew glassy and red at the corners, tears of frustration welling up.

I swallowed, ignoring the urge to dry her tears. “Thank you,” I mumbled.

Vivian sighed. “Was that so hard?”

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“Shush. Let me get you a cloth for your nose.”

I shook my head. “It’s fine. Bleeding’s stopped, I think.”

“We should get you to a hospital. What if you broke something?”

“Trust me, I would know if something were broken.” I grunted as I got up. I was going to feel it in the morning.

“Jesse, you really should-”

The gang member that Vivian nailed across the back of the head with the toilet tank cover groaned. He stirred, about to come to.

“We need to go,” I said. “If they don’t check in within the next couple of minutes, the Azure Cartel will send more of them after you.”

“How do you know all this?”

“Chalk it up to experience. You picked the wrong people to piss off.”

She glanced at her shoes, indignant. “It’s not like I did it on purpose.”

I took her hand and led her out the way we came. She had no qualms about stepping over the unconscious man at her feet. In fact, she looked like she enjoyed it. A little slice of revenge for the turmoil he’d brought down on her.

When we got outside, I made sure the coast was clear. There weren’t any suspicious vehicles nearby, but I had no plans of sticking around and waiting for cartel reinforcements to show up. I helped Vivian into the passenger seat before tossing her duffle bag into the back. We sped off into the night by the skin of our teeth.