Free Stealing the Billionaire's Heart by Melissa Hosack Page B

of
Nick’s Jaguar, staring dumbfounded at the front cover of a tabloid magazine.
Just like her mother said, there was a picture of her wrapped in Nick’s arms,
her legs bare for all to view. “Shit,” she grumbled.
    Nick glanced away from the road to
the tabloid photo. “I still say it’s sexy.”
    “You would,” she griped as they
pulled to the curb about half a block from her work. With a huff, she climbed
out of the car and began fishing around in her purse for change to put in the
meter. “How come good stuff always happens to you? Like finding a great parking
spot. That never happens to me. I always have to park in the grimy garage
fifteen blocks down.”
    Nick walked around the front of the
car to the curb just as she was shoving a quarter into the meter. “I’m just
lucky like that.” He pulled her to him for a quick kiss before releasing her
and starting the short walk to Joe’s Jewelry. “Is there anyone else out there
you know who can get robbed and somehow manage to get laid out of the deal?”
    Nixie laughed and shoved him
playfully in the chest. “Oh, shut up.”
    When she shoved him, Nick grasped
her hand in his and laced their fingers.
    “You know what, Nick? I think—”
Nixie’s sentence was cut off with a strangled yelp of surprise when Nick shoved
her roughly to the side. She tumbled to the pavement, scraping her palms and
tearing her nylons. “What the…” She trailed off as she looked up just in time
to see Nick bounce off the front of a moving van. “Nick!” she screamed in
horror.
    The driver of the van threw it into
park and hopped down to the pavement. “Bitch!” A vaguely familiar voice screamed
with rage.
    Nixie looked up to see Sarah Spade
stalking angrily toward her.
    “I don’t get dumped.” Sarah growled
with a feral snarl. “I do the dumping. I say when a relationship is through.”
Sarah stood over Nixie, her tiny hands balled into fists. “I understand the
urge to slum it every once in a while. I totally get it.”
    Nixie’s eyes narrowed. Slumming it?
That’s what this chick viewed her as?
    “This is ridiculous , though,” Sarah continued as if she hadn’t seen the
glare. “Nicholas looks…his face says that…” She trailed off, unwilling to admit
that Nick looked as if he was actually in love. Her features straightened out,
took on a calm look. “Well…if I can’t have him, no one can.”
    With that said, Sarah pulled out
the biggest gun Nixie had ever seen…not that she’d seen many. She’d seen a
paintball gun, once, and had managed to shoot herself in the foot.
    Sarah spun and marched toward Nick,
the gun pointed alarmingly at his chest.
    Nixie struggled to her feet and, in
a move that was braver than she felt, charged at Sarah. She jumped onto the
model’s back, dragging her to the ground.
    Sarah shrieked in rage.
    As they tumbled to the pavement,
the gun went off, blasting chunks of brick out of the building in front of them.
    The gun fell from Sarah’s hand and
skidded out of reach.   With a snarl, she
rolled to face Nixie. “He’s mine!” She screamed like a wounded animal. Reaching
up, she grabbed two fistfuls of Nixie’s hair and pulled with all her might.
    Nixie yelped in surprise but
quickly recovered. Eyes narrowing angrily, she used the palm of her hand and
drove it into Sarah’s nose.
    Sarah howled in pain and her hands
released Nixie’s hair to cover her own nose. Though she covered her face, blood
began seeping through her fingers. “I’m going to kill you!” She screeched her
threat and then attacked.
    Nixie and Sarah rolled back and
forth on the pavement. They fell into the embarrassing female habit of
scratching, biting, and pulling hair.
    Time seemed to stop as Nixie
desperately clawed for her own safety. They rolled and struggled. Finally, she
managed to get on top. She straddled Sarah’s waist and shoved her head back
against the pavement.
    An instant later, arms grabbed her
around the waist and hauled her away