Madly Yours (Nora Reed) novel Chapter 496

Nora watched Olive's expletive-laced tirade with a helpless half-smile. She was just about to suggest they call an Uber when she suddenly felt the weight of someone's stare.

She instinctively looked up, meeting a pair of intense, striking eyes.

"Mrs. Lancaster, we meet again," Vincent drawled lazily, resting his elbow against the roof of his car.

Nora hadn't expected to run into him here. Surrounded by a dozen suited bodyguards, the scene looked like something out of a mobster movie.

She couldn't help but inwardly scoff. Bringing a small army to Northampton made sense since it was unfamiliar territory.

But this was Chicago—the Vaughn family's home turf. Did he really need to be this ostentatious?

Wasn't this overkill?

Despite her silent judgment, Nora kept her expression perfectly neutral. "Mr. Vaughn. What a coincidence."

Vincent chuckled softly, his gaze drifting to the broken-down van beside her. "Car trouble? Hop in. I'll give you a ride."

"No need, we'll just catch a cab. We wouldn't want to impose."

Vincent strolled over to the van, tapping a finger against his chin as he peered at the engine block. "Fuel system is shot. This thing needs major repairs..."

Nora had zero interest in listening to his mechanical assessment. She was busy trying to figure out how to get him to leave when she noticed something off about one of the bodyguards standing behind him.

The man was positioned slightly further back than the others, his hand slipping into his suit jacket in a jarring, unnatural motion.

Nora met the bodyguard's eyes, and his expression shifted. A split second later, he whipped out a gun and leveled it straight at Vincent's back.

"Look out!"

Nora screamed in sheer panic, but Vincent's instincts were already kicking in.

Bang!

The gunshot echoed through the cavernous parking garage, the deafening crack ringing off the concrete walls.

Vincent reacted faster than she could comprehend. As he lunged toward her, the bullet grazed the cuff of his trench coat and slammed into a white sedan behind them, leaving a smoking hole in the metal.

Bang! Bang!

"Are you out of your mind?" Still reeling from the shock, she gasped for air. "Why did you drag me in here?"

"If I hadn't, you'd be a human sieve right now!"

Vincent glanced at the rearview mirror. "Buckle up!"

Too shaken to argue, she hurriedly clicked her seatbelt into place.

"Get down!"

Hearing his sharp command, she reflexively ducked.

A bullet slammed into the window, shattering the glass into a spiderweb pattern.

With her face buried in the plush leather upholstery, Nora was overwhelmed by the scent of rich leather, expensive cologne, and the faint, unmistakable metallic tang of blood.

Her chest tightened as she snapped her head up. "You're hit?"