Chapter 196
Chapter 196:
The VIP hallway of the Park Hyatt was completely still. The thick, custom-woven carpet absorbed every sound. The air carried the faint scent of lavender diffusers.
June collapsed against the wall and slid slowly down the expensive wallpaper until she hit the floor. Her chest heaved. Sweat soaked through the fabric of her velvet dress along her hairline.
The hallucinogen was a tidal wave, drowning her logic faster than she could fight it. She couldn’t lift her arms.
The tattooed thug stepped out from around the corner. He looked down at her with a sick, predatory grin spreading across his face. He crossed to her quickly, seized her wrist with brutal force, and began dragging her across the carpet toward the ADA restroom.
𝗦h𝖺rе 𝘺о𝘶𝗿 𝗳а𝘷о𝗋𝘪𝘵𝖾ѕ 𝘧𝗋о𝗺 ѕ.com
“Let go,” June forced out. The words came out barely above a whisper.
The thug laughed. He clamped his large hand over her mouth.
“Save your energy,” he sneered. “I’m getting paid a lot of money to make sure you have a very good time tonight p>
Pure, concentrated hatred ignited in June’s eyes. She opened her jaw and bit down into the thick flesh of his palm with everything she had left.
He yelled, cursing loudly, and wrenched his hand back. His fist rose, cocked to strike her across the face.
At that exact moment, the heavy double doors at the far end of the hallway burst open.
Crawford Love had been attending a private dinner with Wall Street executives in an adjacent dining room and had stepped into the corridor to take a phone call. His eyes locked instantly onto the struggle unfolding in the middle of the hallway.
When he registered the black velvet dress — when he saw June’s flushed, terrified face — Crawford’s pupils contracted to pinpoints.
A cold, explosive menace radiated from his entire frame.
“Take your hands off her.” His voice was not loud. It was a quiet, absolute promise.
The thug turned. He looked at the man walking toward him and felt his instincts fire in warning. Crawford was dressed in a bespoke suit, but the lethal energy rolling off him had nothing to do with wealth.
“Mind your own business,” the thug tried, his voice betraying him. “She had too much to drink. I’m taking her to her room p>
Crawford didn’t waste a word.
He covered the distance in three strides. His movement was a blur of precise, purposeful violence. He drove the heel of his leather shoe directly into the side of the thug’s knee.
CRACK.
The sound of bone giving way echoed in the silent hallway. The thug screamed and crumpled to the floor, releasing June’s wrist.
Without the thug holding her upright, June’s body went completely limp. She began to fall.
Crawford lunged forward, his arm wrapping around her waist and catching her before she reached the ground.
Her skin was burning. The drug made her writhe involuntarily against his chest, a soft, pained sound escaping her lips. Crawford went still — and immediately recognized what he was seeing. The unnatural heat. The blown pupils.
“June,” he said, his jaw tight. “You’ve been drugged p>