An Assassin's Deception Page 19

After Reese died, I never thought I’d feel this sort of connection again. And that’s why I can’t walk away. I’d rather die. I would die. For them. To protect them.

  My power shudders down my spine and I squeeze my eyes closed, tilting my head to the side as I work to suppress it back down into the locked cage I keep it in.

  After the fight the other night, it’s been growing, consuming me. And keeping it in check is becoming harder and harder. But there’s been too much going on, and I’ve just been dealing.

  My muscles are tense as I stride after the group, catching up in a few long paces, walking inside the rundown place just behind Mouse.

  “What do you think?” Jameson throws his arms wide, spinning in a circle as though he’s showing her Buckingham palace instead of the dump that surrounds us.

  “It definitely has potential.” Alexa offers him a small smile, his enthusiasm rubbing off on the rest of us as he claps and rubs his hands together at her answer.

  Tylin’s hand is still locked with hers, and he pulls her through the foyer and into a massive dining area that connects to a large, open concept kitchen. Tall windows line the walls letting in a plethora of light, but the floors are cracked and rotting. The kitchen needs a complete overhaul, and the chandelier is hanging from the ceiling on its last crumbling wire. I’m about to rush forward and pull her away from the danger of it, but Tylin expertly steers her around the obstacle, always a step ahead of me.

  It’s always been this way, and it’s one of the reasons he’s stepped into a leadership position. He’s also the most rational and assertive. It was a natural progression for our little band of misfits.

  “What is all this? Don’t we need to worry about trespassing? It’s worth too much. Someone will definitely be checking up on this place.” She turns the question to Tylin, knowing that Jameson won’t mind the danger of being caught one bit. A pleading look crosses her pretty face. She won’t say it, but she worries about all of us. It’s just one of the many ways she cares.

  Underneath her exterior, she’s warm and loving.

  And I don’t fucking deserve her.

  Tylin squeezes her hand and brings her knuckles to his mouth, pressing a light kiss to her silky soft skin. He always exudes a confidence, but just this once, I see a vulnerability in his gaze as he looks at her. He wants her approval more than he’ll ever admit. And I watch on, curious to see her reaction to the bomb he’s about to drop.

  “It’s ours.” Gray eyes narrow just slightly as he waits for her reaction. Her eyes widen, her eyebrows shooting up her forehead.

  “This place is… yours?” Skepticism tinges her tone, and I know she’s trying to connect the pieces to the puzzle we’ve presented her with.

  It’s Mason who steps forward and fills in the gaps. “This place is going to serve as the new headquarters of the Anti-League, but we want your approval before we make things official.”

  “It used to belong to my family,” Tylin says on a steady voice. “It was my mother’s birthright, but it was neglected before she ever inherited it. And then when she died, it just continued to sit empty. It’s mine now. I had my doubt about the shape it would be in, but it’s structurally sound.” My eyes can’t help but dubiously follow the jagged crack that lines the wall next to me, but I don’t interrupt. “We’d been searching for a place in the city, something to rival the League. But I think this is better.” Tylin looks around at all the work that needs to be done, but he’s not phased by it.

  I’m not either. We can clean this place up.

  Alexa peers around with new eyes. “There’s plenty of space. How many bedrooms is it?” I tune out as Mason, Tylin, and Jameson fill her in. I’m glued to the way her eyes are lighting up as they talk, and then she releases Tylin and starts wandering through the expansive downstairs.

  I’ve never seen her so excited.

  “This place used to belong to my grandmother. My mother always loved it here, but my father…” He trails off, and I move farther away, trying to give them a little space to talk. Still, their soft words echo easily in the cavernous space, bouncing off the walls that are in dire need of patchwork and paint. “He was cruel, and he kept her from this place. He controlled the money and wouldn’t allow her any to do anything with this estate. But now it’s mine.” His eyes settle on Alexa. “Ours, if you agree.” His thumb strokes over her knuckles as he takes her hand again, and it feels like we’re asking her so much more than her opinion on a house.

  It feels like we’re solidifying everything we started the other night.

  “I do.” She bounces up to her toes and plants a soft kiss on Tylin’s lips, which he quickly deepens. The low groan escapes and that’s my cue to look away.

  Curiously, I don’t feel a lick of jealousy that she’s kissing him. It feels… right. None of us ever thought we’d settle into any kind of relationship. Not with our lifestyle. Not being assassins, now ex-assassins. Sex was all we took, but each one of us wants Alexa. And the fact that she lives our life? It’s like she was made for us. Fuck everything that Derek said. This right here? With us? It’s where she belongs.

  And the Anti-League? It’s our redemption. A chance to right some of the wrongs we’ve committed.

  I’m not a believing man, but if anyone has taught me that redemption is possible, it’s Alexa. She’s this ray of light in my otherwise dark world.

  The warmth of her small palm presses into my back and she slips around me, trailing her fingertips over the fabric of my black tee-shirt. Her fingertips follow the lines of my stomach with a gentle touch.

  “You ok?” Her blue eyes hold a smile that’s been permanently gleaming since last night, and my mouth waters at the idea of tasting her sweet pussy again.

  I haven’t even kissed her yet, and I want every part of her.

  “I’d be better if I could get you somewhere more comfortable.” Those same blue eyes darken as her pupils expand, and her sweet little tongue slips out to lick along her lips in an unconscious way that makes me hard in two seconds flat.

  And then her hand slips down my chest and my breath catches as her fingertips trace the denim waistband of my jeans. Until her fingers slip under my shirt and start stroking back up my chest.

  It’s a distracting touch.

  And then I realize that was her intent.

  I know it the moment she starts pulling at my energy, and I let out a ragged gasp as she siphons the reckless power that’s been tearing at my insides. I’m about to pull her hand off the hard plane of my stomach when Tylin slips in behind her, sliding her hair off her shoulder as he begins kissing her neck. The weight of him against her back presses her more fully into my front, and I feel the hard points of her nipples graze over my chest.

  “What are you doing?” It’s nearly a growl. Doesn’t Tylin realize what she’s doing? She’s going to fucking kill herself if she takes too much. Everything in me rebels as I start to shove at them both. Until I hear the one line that changes everything.

  “You’re more than she can handle on her own.” Tylin’s eyes shoot over her shoulder, the hardness in them pinning me to my spot and daring me to move again. “So let me help.” His attention stays locked on me as he dips back down and licks a trail up the lithe line of her neck. And then she shudders.

  “Rory.” I can feel my energy pour into her, and her hooded eyes meet mine as she keeps pulling. One by one my muscles begin to relax, but her eyes? They’re still begging me.

  I lean down and she rises up. Then her lips are on mine, and I’ve never felt anything so goddamn good in my entire life. Everything inside of me shatters. My fingers drift up the sides of her jaw before pushing through her silky hair as I capture what’s mine. Our lips slide together in a timeless rhythm, and I suck on her full lower lip before diving back in for more.

  Her whimper tugs at something deep inside me as the tip of her tongue lashes out to lick enticingly at my top lip. I open for her, and her tongue darts inside my mouth to tangle with mine. She makes me lose a
ll sense of myself and time as we become one. And when I pull back and stare down into her starry eyes, I’m more relaxed than I’ve ever been… maybe ever.

  For that one froze moment in time, everything in my life is finally perfect. Or as close to perfect as an imperfect person can get.

  For that one perfect moment, I don’t worry about the future threats against us that I know are brewing or how we’re going to convert a shit ton of assassins to turn from the dark and join the light. I push down my rising uneasiness over what happened to Derek’s body, knowing that Alexa has been more than anxious about it as well. For now, I just hold Alexa and feel, and I leave all those problems for another day.

  Tylin groans behind her, snapping me back to reality as the haze of our embrace clears. There’s so much raw energy zapping around us that I know she’s all right. She was able to release it instead of holding it all in. Thanks to Tylin. Thanks to our kiss.

  And it’s in that moment that I realize she’s so much more than just a girl I like. A girl I’m falling for fast. She's an angel. My own avenging redemption.

  “Let’s go home.” It comes out of my mouth rougher than I intend, but I didn’t get a turn inside of her last night, and it’s suddenly all I can think of as I roll my shoulder to work out the last bit of tightness that’s always plaguing me.

  With bright eyes and a smile that could rival the fucking Mona Lisa, she says the one thing that we all need to hear.

  “I think I already am.”

  The End.

  Author’s Note

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  About A.K. Koonce

  A.K. Koonce is a USA Today bestselling author. She’s mom by day and a fantasy and paranormal romance writer by night. She keeps her fantastical stories in her mind on an endless loop while she tries her best to focus on her actual life and not that of the spectacular, but demanding, fictional characters who always fill her thoughts.

  About Harper Wylde

  Harper Wylde is a paranormal and urban fantasy author who lives in the countryside of Pennsylvania. As a wife and a mother of two young children, she spends her days chasing after little people and making crazy notes about story ideas all over her home. As a serial entrepreneur, Harper also dabbles in photography and graphic design…but has found that her favorite occupation is the one she’s doing now—writing fantasy and paranormal romance. She loves coffee, cooking, chocolate covered pretzels, and characters with hidden strength and endearing flaws! To connect with Harper, follow the link below to Facebook where you can join her author group and stay up to date on sneak previews, teasers, and new releases!