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“Thanks, Holly. See you in a couple of days.”
“No problem, Gary. See ya.”
I take my time on the way to his office, thinking that maybe he’ll get tired of waiting and just decide to leave. I’ve got twenty minutes until the next bus anyway. No reason to rush and wait in the cold. My mind starts to drift to memories of last Christmas, remembering the way my dad woke me up early so we could make cookies and watch our favorite holiday movies. I can still hear the way my stepmom had laughed when he’d brought her a plate of misshaped, not fully cooked cookies with a proud grin on his face. I gotta hand it to her, she’d eaten every damn one and told him they were delicious.
After my mom died when I was five, my dad remained single until I was a teenager, not wanting to let anything come between us, but finally I’d convinced him that he needed to start living life again. Marie was perfect for him, the breath of fresh air we both needed, and Shelly and I got along great before she decided she hated me.
Pushing the thoughts aside, I step into the empty employee locker room and realize I shouldn’t have dawdled. I’ve just made it to where I’m the only damn person left in the building. Everyone else bolted out of here the second they could, and I’d lingered like that dumb girl in the scary movies that everyone yells at for being so damn oblivious.
I quickly grab my bag and tiptoe closer to Mr. Belsky’s office, hoping that maybe he won’t be here so I can just slip out and then tell him later I tried, but he wasn’t in. I’m about to make my sneaky escape when I hear a familiar voice speaking that same language I’d heard earlier. It’s coming from further in the back by the fire escape and the old closet that’s used for storing random office supplies and the staff lost-and-found box.
Curious what’s going on, I tiptoe closer, wondering how in the hell Mr. Belsky knows my sexy stranger. I hear my pervy boss’s nasally voice speaking that same language, and I swear his voice sounds a bit shaky. The stranger speaks again, his voice hard-edged and no-nonsense, and a little shiver runs up my spine, and maybe it should be from fear, but it’s not, or at least notonlyfrom fear.
I decide that one more quick peek at Mr. Handsome wouldn’t be the worst thing I’ve ever done. Besides, I doubt I’ll ever see him again, so this one more look will have to last me a lifetime. I walk past the last line of lockers and turn the corner to the small hallway that leads to the emergency exit. As soon as I look over, I hear two soft pops and then watch as blood blooms on Mr. Belsky’s ill-fitting, ugly suit. His mouth gapes open in a silent scream before he falls with a thud to the hard ground.
I clamp my hand over my mouth to stifle the scream, but he hears me. The sexy stranger that I just had to have one more glimpse of looks over at me with a hard look in his eyes and a gun in his hands.
Chapter2
Aleksandr
“Fuck,” I groan in Russian when I look over and see the young woman I’d spent the afternoon eye-fucking. Her eyes are so wide I can see white all around, and she’s clutching at her mouth in an attempt to stifle her screams and not get my attention.
Well, too late for that, sweetheart.
When she runs, I’m ready for it. I chase her, knowing it’s not going to be difficult to catch her. She’s half my size and scared to death. She still manages to look surprised when I grab onto her from behind, though. Her arms and legs thrash about, annoying me more than anything, and when she starts to scream, it’s my turn to clamp a hand over that pouty mouth of hers.
“Quiet,” I whisper close to her ear.
Her body shakes against mine, her chest heaves with her heavy breathing, and when my body starts to respond, I pull far enough away so she doesn’t start screaming for a different reason. Turning her around, her blue eyes stare at me, and I recognize the wild look in her eyes and the way she keeps gasping for air like she can’t get enough.
“Look at me,” I say, waiting for her eyes to focus enough so I know she’s listening. “Close your mouth, and follow my breathing.”
I slowly breathe in through my nose, waiting for her to do the same, and then slowly let it out. She mimics me, and we stand in the deserted locker room about twenty feet from her dead boss, the man I just shot, and do some breathing exercises. The scar on her cheek that I noticed earlier stands out even more now that her skin has gone so pale, and I’m more curious about it than I should be. When she’s calmed down enough so that I’m not worried about her passing out, I try and figure out what in the fuck to do.
I’ve been a hitman for over a decade, and no one has ever snuck up on me. No witnesses, no evidence left behind, end of story. I’m damn good at my job, and that’s what makes this so infuriating. I knew I shouldn’t have kept watching her earlier. It was too risky letting her see me more than once, but something about her kept calling to me, and I couldn’t resist. Now we were both paying the price for that carelessness because there’s no way in hell I can just let her go.
“You’re not going to like this,” I say, noticing the way her eyes widen again. I’ve shoved the gun back in the holster under my arm, but she still looks scared to death of me. Maybe that’s for the best. I keep a tight grip on her upper arm and dig my phone out of my pocket. Finding the name I need, I push the button to call him and look down at the frightened girl in my arms, hoping like hell she doesn’t do anything stupid.
I switch to Russian as soon as Ivan answers. “I need you to come clean up. You know where I’m at. I’ve run into a slight snag, but it’s not an issue. I need to go take care of it, though.”
“I’m on my way,” he says before hanging up.
I know he’ll have questions for me later, but he’s a professional and knows that business always comes first. Wanting to get her out of here before he shows up, I start to guide her towards the emergency exit I disabled earlier. As soon as I pull on her arm, she snaps to attention when she realizes what I’m trying to do.
“No, no, no, no, no,” she says in a rush, eyeing the door I’m trying to pull her through.
“I’m afraid you have no choice.” I grip her arm harder and try not to laugh when she freezes in place like a stubborn toddler. Her red, knitted hat with prancing, white reindeers looks adorable as fuck on her, and there’s no denying she’s beautiful, but that doesn’t change the fact that she just witnessed me kill a man and has gotten herself into a very dangerous situation. When she keeps her knees locked, I let out a frustrated groan and bend down, slinging her over my shoulder.
She yells and thrashes her body. Small fists hit my lower back and ass, and when I’ve taken all I can, I give her ass a hard enough smack to catch her attention and say, “Keep screaming and hitting me and I’m going to gag you and tie you up. Your choice.”
I hear her huff out an angry breath, but she keeps her body still and her mouth shut. When I’m fairly confident she’s going to keep quiet, I carry her past her boss, hearing the muffled cry she gives when she sees his dead body before opening the door and walking out into the bitter cold. I know Ivan will get rid of the body and not leave a trace of evidence, but I still keep alert as I walk toward my black truck, making sure there aren’t any other witnesses lurking about. The dark alley is empty, though, and when I open the driver’s side door and shove her into it, she gives me a frightened look and scurries to the passenger side. I click the fob, locking the doors when I see her reaching to try and open it. That earns me a nasty look that has me laughing as I get in and start the truck, turning the heat on high.
“Can’t you just let me go? I swear I won’t say anything.”
I don’t even bother wasting the energy to roll my eyes. Instead, I start driving us away from the building and ask, “What’s your name?”
‘Holly,” she says. I swear I can see her mind frantically trying to come up with a plan, and I’m not at all surprised when she turns to me and asks, “What’s your name?”
