I Told New York’s Most Feared Boss I Was Going on a Date—Then His Security Interrupted Our Meeting

“Mason!” I screamed, dropping to the cold concrete floor beside him.

My hands shook violently as I pressed them over his, trying to stem the heavy flow of blood pouring from his abdomen. The vault was a massive, subterranean bunker equipped with medical supplies, weapons, and emergency rations. I scrambled toward the medical wall unit, tearing open a trauma kit and rushing back to his side.

“You’re going to be fine,” I sobbed, my tears falling onto his chest as I ripped his ruined shirt open and packed the wound with heavy gauze. “You’re going to be fine, Mason. Just keep your eyes open. Please.”

Mason leaned his head back against the concrete wall, his skin pale, his breathing shallow. But despite the agony, he reached out, his bloody hand gently catching a tear as it slid down my cheek.

“Don’t cry, Bella,” he murmured, his eyes heavy but fiercely locked onto mine. “I told you... I protect what is mine.”

“You shouldn’t have taken that bullet!” I cried, pressing my entire body weight onto his wound to stop the bleeding. “You are the head of the Orlov empire! You can’t die for an assistant!”

A faint, breathless smile touched his pale lips. “You were never just an assistant. From the day you walked into my office three years ago... demanding I pay you what you were worth... you owned me.”

His eyes fluttered, the blood loss threatening to pull him under.

“Mason, stay with me!” I begged, leaning down to press my forehead against his. The walls I had built to protect my heart shattered completely. The fear of his criminal world vanished, replaced by the terrifying, undeniable realization of how deeply I loved this ruthless, broken man. “I love you. Do you hear me? I love you, Mason. You don't get to leave me now.”

His hand tightened weakly around the back of my neck, pulling my face down to his. His lips met mine, tasting of copper and smoke, a desperate, fading kiss that branded my soul forever.