Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 80660 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 403(@200wpm)___ 323(@250wpm)___ 269(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80660 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 403(@200wpm)___ 323(@250wpm)___ 269(@300wpm)
Now they had to figure out how to get out of the mess they were in. Running and dunking agents wasn’t going to cut it.
Chapter 16
Alexei checked the security system the second they reached the house. There were a few lookie loos who’d gotten close and one asshole who’d poked around the hidden garden area in the back, but no one got inside. If his life was going to be invaded like this, he was going to take a page out of Justin’s book and start installing booby traps. Fuckers.
Everything about their afternoon out had him rattled and on edge. It wasn’t just the encounter with that CIA witch—though she certainly wasn’t helping things. When Soren had said that he preferred to work as a solo, something in him had run cold. It was so stupid.
Of course he liked working as a solo. Alexei had pointed out numerous times that assassins tended to be solo acts. His uncles were a weird exception to the rule.
But they also painted this amazing picture of a loving, functional relationship. They showed Alexei what it was like to be able to depend on another person. No matter what, someone always had their backs.
And then there was the cuddly, adorable joy that radiated from Justin and Gabriel, even when Justin was being annoying.
Maybe he wanted that.
Alexei mentally snorted at himself. Maybe? God, he wanted that more than he wanted air, chocolate, and a good facial scrub. An assassin who also happened to be a hopeless romantic. That was disturbing.
It was simply that he and Soren meshed so well together. Soren encouraged him rather than trying to rein him in. They didn’t have to explain a lot of things to each other when they worked together. It was as if they could read each other’s minds, and it was nice.
So, maybe he’d gotten ahead of himself and started to think that Soren might want to keep working together. He’d dreamed that they could keep working together and fucking as they had been. Why change things up? Why stop a good thing?
Obviously Soren hadn’t been thinking the same thing, which really sucked.
He’d needed some retail therapy to get his head together. And yes, maybe he was a bit of a diva when it came to his cleansers, lotions, and other health care products. He liked having soft, clear skin. Soren certainly wasn’t complaining about how he felt or smelled.
The half hour spent in the store smelling every damn thing had helped to wrangle his thoughts and put some emotional distance between them.
Only to have everything fucked up again with the CIA chick.
“Did you know her?” Alexei demanded when they were sure the house was completely secure. He marched to the kitchen up on the top floor—yes, it was completely backward with the bedrooms on the lower floors and the kitchen and living room on the top floor, but that was part of the reason Alexei loved it.
“Not personally,” Soren replied, his voice echoing up the winding wooden staircase as he trailed behind.
“Gonna need a little more than that.”
He pressed his fingers to the hidden fingerprint reader and the secret panel unlocked, revealing the laptop hidden away with a stash of weapons and ammunition. More than enough to rob a bank or raid a museum, and this wasn’t even the biggest stockpile in the house. His uncles believed in being overprepared when it came to weapons.
“As far as I know, she is or was a director of sorts, worked out of an office in the US. She’s the person who would call and bitch me out when I did something that wasn’t entirely by the book or didn’t fit into the CIA’s plans for proper operations. I preferred to shoot from the hip and kind of wing it on missions. She hated that shit.” His voice lost most of its echo as he reached the top of the stairs and strolled into the kitchen as Alexei was closing the panel, the laptop and hard drive tucked under his arm.
Soren frowned. He’d not wanted to see the hiding spot, but Alexei trusted him with it. If something happened to him, Soren needed to be able to get to the laptop. He might not be able to unlock the panel, but he could break inside with a crowbar or sledgehammer.
“Today was the first time I’d seen her in person,” he continued.
Alexei entered the password to get into the computer and nearly growled at the display. The software was still working, showing no signs yet of getting past the decryption.
“It’s too soon,” Soren murmured in his ear. He placed his hand on Alexei’s shoulder and started to squeeze, but Alexei immediately paced away from him. It was better if Soren didn’t touch him. If the man touched him, Alexei might be tempted to simply crawl into his lap and burrow his head into his neck.