The Accidental Assassin (34 page)

“How do you know what I want?” I captured his face in my hands. “I don’t even know what I want. Shouldn’t I get to have a say in that? To decide?”

“I’ve never wanted anything as much as I want you.” He took a deep breath. “You’re so innocent and kind. You’re everything I’m not. I kill people, Ava. You can’t have a future with someone that works for death.”

“You kill bad people.” I narrowed my eyes. “And I’m not as sweet and innocent as you think. I did kill and then run over the dead body of a pimp. I’ve stolen a car, used fake identification, and carried an illegal weapon.”

“All of that happened after you met me.” He frowned.

“The point is…I don’t feel bad about any of it. Not even Mr. Song.” I shook my head when he started to say something. “I did at first, because I was the one that did it, but then I realized that I wouldn’t have been upset if someone else had done it. I mean I can’t be upset if the world lost one more bad guy.”

He opened his mouth but I gave him a stern look.

“It’s like those people that are okay with eating beef and Thanksgiving turkey as long as they don’t actually have to kill, skin, de-feather, or whatever the hell you do to prepare an animal to cook. You’ve been getting rid of all these horrible people so everyone else could eat their turkey. You deserve to have some turkey, too.”

His lips trembled and I realized he was fighting a laugh.

“I’m not explaining this very well.” Heat filled my cheeks. “Damn it. I’m trying to convince you to be happy, but I can’t make you. You have to decide to be happy. I read that in a book, but it’s true. You’re a fucking assassin, Owen! You don’t follow the rules and that works for you. You take what you want, what you need.”

I clamped my mouth shut. Any minute I was going to be using one liners from rom-com movies and ask him to love me—just a girl sitting naked on his lap.

His face turned serious and I felt my stomach drop.

“We don’t celebrate Thanksgiving in England, love.” He trailed a finger down the side of my cheek.

“You know what I meant.” I narrowed my eyes.

“And you compared yourself to a turkey.” A glimmer appeared in his eyes.

“Okay, I wasn’t making much sense—”

“You were rambling.” He leaned forward and kissed my chin, then the tip of my nose. “But you did say something that made sense.”

“I did?” My voice was breathless as he kissed one cheek and then the other.

“Yes, my American turkey, you did.” His chuckle lifted the weight that had settled in my stomach.

“You reminded me that I’m an assassin.” He wrapped his arms around my waist. “And I’m a really good fucking assassin. I’ve always had my own code of ethics. I do what I think is necessary. Even when that means stealing something important.” He kissed my neck. “Something valuable.” He kissed my shoulder. “Something I needed.”

I took a deep breath, trying to focus on what he was saying.

“I’ve been fighting what I wanted, what I needed. I wasn’t strong enough though. That wasn’t working for me.” In a quick move he rolled me onto my back and propped himself above me. “So I’m not going to fight it anymore. I’m keeping you, Ava. You’re mine and no one is taking you from me.”

I looked up into his eyes and felt my eyes sting. “That’s good, because you didn’t really have a choice.”

“I’m not much for words, Ava, but I want you to know something.”

“What’s that?” I brushed his hair out of his eyes.

“I love you.” The amount of sincerity in those three words brought tears to my eyes.

If I wasn’t looking up at him I would swear that I was floating. My body felt alive and my soul felt full. Full in a way that I hadn’t experienced in a long time.

“I love you too, Owen.”

EVERYTHING WAS BATHED in a dark shade of red. I would kill them all. Staring at the floor was the only way I could keep from meeting other people’s eyes and sending them scattering. The monster I kept carefully caged was prowling behind the bars, thirsty for blood and the need to cause agony.

Every single man that turned and stared at Ava’s ass as we walked through the airport was on my shit list and that wasn’t a list people wanted to make.

Her skirt hung well past her knees and yet that only seemed to enhance the sexiness of her curves. The teal of her low-cut sweater made her eyes almost glow. She’d added a little extra sway to her walk with the mile-high heels.

I couldn’t really blame the men; she was a knock-out.

But she was my knock-out and watching other men enjoy what I’d just claimed made me want to rage. Jealousy was a nasty emotion. No wonder some people paid to kill off their rivals.

“Ms. Gardner, can you hand me the information for the flight?” Mavis held her hand out without looking.

“Of course.” Ava reached into her bag and pulled out a sheet with flight information and placed it in Mavis’s hand.

“As you can see, we have all the appropriate information.” Mavis cocked her head at the woman manning the private terminal.

“Of course, Mrs. Thomasino.”

“Miss Thomasino,” Mavis corrected her curtly.

“Yes, ma’am.” The woman smiled and it almost looked genuine. “And I’ll need the documentation for the people flying with you.”

“It’s in with the rest of the papers.” Mavis looked away from the woman, boredom radiating from every pore.

“Ah, yes. I see it here.” She punched some information into the computer before stepping around the corner and lifting a rope. “This way, please.”

Private planes came in different makes, sizes, and opulence. From the grandeur of the terminal we were being led down, I felt it safe to assume the company wasted no money on their planes. Flying wasn’t something that I minded, but doing so on an expensive private jet certainly made it more enjoyable.

The woman from the gate handed us off to a different attendant that placed our bags on a cart and led us onto the tarmac. White paint so bright it almost blinded us was broken up by a thin silver pin-stripe that ran from nose to tail. A tall bloke ducked out of the door and quick-stepped down the stairs.

He pulled his idiotic captain’s hat off his head and watched us as we approached, a giant smile splitting his face. His eyes tracked Mavis as she swayed toward him before darting past her to check out the other possible conquest and stopped dead.

The wind ruffled Ava’s hair around her face and Captain Horny’s smile grew to unbelievable proportions. Mavis held out her hand and said something I didn’t catch, but it brought the dickhead’s attention back to her. I’d seen Mavis using her full charm before and it wasn’t something most men were able to escape, but the captain’s eyes kept darting toward Ava.

My Ava.

He took Mavis’s hand and brought it to his lips to kiss and I used the time to move closer to Ava. I shouldn’t have moved closer because it made his next words all the more clear.

“Sexy little Ava.” He grabbed her hand and lifted it to his lips for a lingering kiss. “I didn’t think I’d ever have the pleasure of seeing you again when I found out you had left the States, but today is my lucky day.”

“I didn’t realize you worked for this charter company.” Ava smiled at him and I tried to not be annoyed. She was merely playing a role.

“Come now, Ava.” His voice lowered and I had to strain to hear it without looking interested. “How many times have I begged you to run away with me? And now, here you are.”

“But I’m not running away with you, Captain.” She tossed her hair over one shoulder, almost hitting me in the face. “I’m here on business.”

“Business and pleasure often mix.” He winked at her.

Winked. At. Her.

“You two know each other?” Mavis stepped closer with a seductive smile. “Ava, darling, you didn’t tell me you knew the captain.”

“I didn’t realize I did.” Ava cleared her throat and pulled her hand away from the pilot’s. “Captain, this is my employer, Miss Thomasino. I work for her now.”

“Moving up in the world, then.” The captain replaced his hat and motioned for our group to move onto the plane. He held Mavis’s hand as she stepped onto the stairs and did the same for Ava. With a short nod to me and Kenny, he followed Ava so closely he needed to place his hand on her waist to keep from tripping on her. When they reached the top step, his hand dipped low enough to cup her ass. Ava stiffened when he touched her before willing herself to relax. A soft giggle floated back from her when he leaned down to whisper in her ear.

The other men in the airport had just received a reprieve. I would unleash all my hatred on the pilot.

Captain Horny must die.

A slight tug on my sleeve had me jerking around to wrap my hand around a thin wrist. I looked into Kenny’s annoyed face.

“Dude, you’re growling.” The teenager’s voice was low as he pulled free.

I clenched my jaw and stared into his eyes, trying to reign in my temper. The boy was right. I needed to get it together. If that bloody cocksucker was going to hone in on Ava, it wasn’t her fault. The fact that she hadn’t told him off was just her sticking to her part. We needed the fucking idiot.

“I don’t like him.” My teeth clenched shut after the words escaped. Emotions were a double-edged sword.

“Yeah. I get that.” Kenny straightened the suit jacket he was wearing. “There is a schedule to keep, though.”

He was trying to remind me that we needed to stick to the plan, as if I’d forgotten. I hadn’t forgotten our agenda; I was just debating if I still wanted to follow it.

Leaning forward, I lowered my voice. “If you play your cards right, I’ll let you use him as a practice dummy.”

“We need him to fly the plane.” Kenny grinned. I wasn’t sure if he believed me or not. “And other stuff, you know?”

“After, then.” I narrowed my eyes.

“Sounds good to me.” His smile grew even more. “Would be nice to not be the punching bag for once.”

A bruise still showed along his left cheek and his nose was a bit swollen. I slapped him on the shoulder and steered him in front of me. He hadn’t bitched once during the last couple of sessions, even if his face had warranted a good curse. He’d thrown himself into the work with vigor.

“You’re a good kid, Kenny.” I walked up the stairs slowly. “But you really need to learn to duck.”

“I duck just fine. I need to learn to be faster, is what I need to learn.” Kenny shook his head as he dipped into the plane. He hesitated for half a second before clearing the doorway. I knew by the way his eyes darted briefly in my direction that I wasn’t going to like whatever he had seen.

Ava was sitting in a chair across from Mavis and the pilot was crouched down next to her blocking the aisle, his hand on her knee as he asked her if she had been to Paris before. Not sure what to do, Kenny turned and grabbed the seat at the front, which left me with nothing to do but push past the prick hitting on Ava.

“Pardon me.” I let the bag I was carrying swing into the back of his head. “These bloody planes are so small inside.”

The pilot looked up at me with a careful smile. “Not used to flying in a private jet?”

“Not this small.” I threw my bag into a seat. “The last one had a gold toilet seat and a stripper pole.”

“That sounds like some plane.” Captain Horny stood up and looked around the plane. “What do you say, Ava? Think your old employer would throw in a stripper pole and gold toilet seat for a loyal customer?”

Ava dragged her eyes away from me with a grimace. I wasn’t sure what I’d said that had upset her. It wasn’t like I’d alleged anyone had been using the stripper pole.

“I’m sure they’ll put in whatever you want.” She smiled up at the pilot and I had to busy myself with the contents of my bag to keep from decking him while he stared down her cleavage.

“I’ll have to give that some careful thought.”

“Which arrondissement is your flat in?” Mavis crossed her legs and leaned back in her seat.

“Oberkampf,” he said.

“Oh, that’s a great area.” Mavis smiled. “I keep a place in Avenue Montaigne.”

“Rubbing elbows with the stars, eh?” He looked from Mavis to Ava. “If you want to see the real Paris, I could show you two around. It would be my pleasure.”

“You could really show us around?” Ava sat forward, a slight blush to her cheeks. She was a horrible flirt, which made her even more adorable. Bloody hell. “I’m so excited. I’ve always wanted to travel and Paris is at the top of my list, but I don’t want the tourist version. I want the nitty-gritty version of Paris. The real Paris. Exciting and edgy. Not just museums or tombs, you know?”