SEAL Protected by Rosa Foxxe Page A

toward the door.
     
    The girls must have jogged after me, because they were there a few seconds later. “Michelle, are you okay?” asked Taryn. She reached out to touch my shoulder but stopped a few inches short. I nodded and slid my jacket over my shoulders. It took a few, shuddering breaths before I managed to find the words.
     
    “I just need some air,” I said, almost too quietly for them to hear me. Taryn and Cindy nodded and followed me out the door into the side alley of the bar. Once outside, I sighed and leaned against the cool brick of the wall. My gaze went to the night sky above. We were too far into the city to see the stars, but a crescent moon hung in the sky, bright and slightly orange. I shivered and drew my jacket more tightly around me. The seasons were changing from summer to fall and the air grew colder each day. We only had a few more weeks before it would be too cold to get dressed up and spend a night clubbing. I was almost grateful. I loved clubbing, but sometimes it would have been nice just to spend a night drinking hot chocolate in front of a warm fire.
     
    “I have to pee,” said Cindy, breaking the semi-silence of the back alley.
     
    Taryn nodded and tugged Cindy back toward the door. “I need to get my purse from Dorian anyway, we’ll be right back.” I nodded and closed my eyes, listening to the distant sounds of the city streets and the sounds of the club on the other side of the wall.
     
    A few minutes passed and the sound of the door opening caught my attention. I rolled my eyes and turned to face the girls, smiling. “Took you long-” I froze. The person who had come out the door wasn’t Cindy or Taryn. It was a man – shorter than me but much broader across the chest – he was stumbling a bit, his eyes unfocused. I swallowed hard and took a few steps back from the man. One of my heels caught the edge of a can and I stumbled. The sound was impossibly loud in the small space. The drunken man looked up, his eyes coming into focus when he saw me.
     
    “You all alone out here?” he asked, taking a step toward me. I shook my head and he grinned. “You look alone.” His words were slurred and his breath was rancid – a combination of onion, alcohol, and something I couldn’t place. I took a few more steps back and squared my shoulders. My father was a senator, I reminded myself, and I was his daughter. I was strong. This man would not hurt me. But even as I locked my knees I knew I was in trouble. The man lunged, grinning at me. I stumbled and my foot bent sideways. One of my heels broke as I hit the gravel. He grabbed me and wrapped his arms tightly around my waist. His breath grew closer and fouler as he leaned in. One hand slid up my skirt and I shoved at it. With my good heel I kicked at him, driving the tip into his foot. He roared in pain and let go. I straightened - fists up - and kicked off my bad heel. I was panting hard. He grinned and lunged. I went left, but he suddenly slid left too and grabbed me again. This time his hands ripped my shoulder straps. I screamed and tried to kick him off. He laughed. He grabbed at my breasts and gripped tight. His lips found my neck. Tears welled in my eyes and I kept screaming and kicking. But he was too strong and the music was too loud.
     
    “Hey!” The voice was sharp and high. The man jerked off me like a puppet pulled on its strings. He almost flew backward and hit the ground a few feet from me. Taryn stood a few feet from them, her hair even frizzier now and two of her long nails broken and bleeding. She grinned, feral, and eyed the man. “You wanna try that again?” she asked. The man cursed, loudly, and got to his feet. He stalked off, leaving the pieces of my dress he’d torn behind.
     
    “Are you okay?” Cindy was at my side, brushing away my hair. I winced. I’d hit my head when I’d hit the ground and the left side of my face was throbbing. The world seemed to tilt one way, then the other. I shook my