Begging for a Second Chance (Sienna Sloan and Jarred Sterling) novel Chapter 103

Before she could finish, the man's icy voice rang out, raspy from just waking up. "Who were the people cornering you last night? How did you end up crossing a gang of ruthless criminals?"

Relief washed over Sienna, thinking he had regained his strength.

But looking closer, she noticed the feverish haze clouding his eyes. The muscles in his arm were trembling violently.

His grip was nothing more than sheer willpower; he didn't have the leverage to pull her back up over the ledge.

She glanced back in terror, staring down into the bottomless, shadowy ravine where the wind whipped up with a biting chill.

She shut her eyes tight, her eyelashes fluttering in panic.

"I don't know them," Sienna explained frantically. "But their leader told me someone put out a fifty-thousand-dollar bounty on my head. They're seasoned criminals, about seven or eight of them."

Jarred furrowed his brow, his eyes swirling with incredulous fury.

Sienna was here on a disaster relief mission. It was her first time in these remote mountains. How could she possibly have attracted a hit squad?

Watching his tense expression, Sienna finally voiced her suspicion. "...I think Celeste hired them."

"Don't be ridiculous," Jarred's voice darkened with obvious irritation. "Celeste is pure-hearted. How could she possibly know people like that?"

He recalled fighting the men last night. Their attacks were unrefined but lethal—absolute cutthroats.

One of them had even been armed with a gun.

Such a vicious, underworld element was entirely removed from the innocent, untainted image he held of Celeste.

Sienna opened her mouth, but swallowed the words she wanted to say.

She had known he would react exactly like this.

What was Celeste in his eyes?

A woman purer than the driven snow, a sweet girl who wouldn't hurt a fly, the absolute last person on earth capable of harming anyone.

There was no point in arguing.

He would never believe her anyway.

The dirt at the edge of the cliff crumbled further.

Just as Sienna began to slip, Jarred yanked her back up with brute force.

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