Assassin Territory [Assassins Book 1] (21 page)

Lando unobtrusively watched her as she watched Wolf. He knew she was terrified of him. When she woke in the morning, it was to find Wolf talking to Lando at the kitchen table. Lando introduced her, pulling her hesitant form forward, wanting Wolf to see the extent of her injuries.

Christy started shaking the moment Wolf looked at her. The black jeans, t-shirt, hard soled boots and leather jacket added to his dark appearance. His gun was in plain view. She had only been wearing a small, revealing t-shirt and tiny panties. Wolf studied her bruising critically, much to her embarrassment. Lando whispered soothing words into her ear as he turned her and exposed the bruising high up on her back. Lando said he wanted Wolf to be aware of how much care and attention she would require.

After she changed, with great relief, Lando handed her a steaming mug of hot chocolate. After one sip she realized he’d dropped a healthy dollop of Kahlua into her mug. She thought perhaps that wasn’t such a bad idea. She went through three hot chocolates until Lando cut her off. When Lando rose, the conversation obviously about to take on a different subject, he ventured closer to her side; Christy went to him. She buried her face into his chest, pulling him close.

“You need to eat something, honey,” Lando said with concern.

“Please don’t leave me. Can’t I come with you? I won’t be any trouble, I promise,” Christy whimpered, clasping at his clothing.

“We’ve been through this, sweetheart; it’s not safe for you to come with me. I’ll be back before you know it. Wolf will keep you safe. He won’t hurt you, I promise.”

Christy ventured a glance at Wolf, peeking from around Lando’s secure frame. He was sitting lazily in his chair, his head cocked to the side, watching her with an assessing gaze. Christy couldn’t help but be reminded of the way Lando was always watching her. He said it was a habit from his line of work. Perhaps it was part of their job description. Maybe a prerequisite, Christy mused. Powerful killers must be required to be able to unnerve people with one glance. She almost thought she detected a hint of amusement from Wolf. Lando said he couldn’t hear her thoughts, but maybe Wolf could.

Lando steered Christy back to the couch. She felt the blood drain from her face and she looked up at Lando in panic.

“I think maybe one more spiked hot chocolate might not be such a bad idea after all,” Lando declared as she sat on the edge of the couch shaking.

He ventured to the kitchen. Christy watched as he put the kettle on. It wasn’t long before he had bacon sizzling. With practiced ease, Lando whipped eggs together with a dollop of heavy cream, and soon had them cooked and settled on pumpernickel bread, topping it with caviar. He took a plate to Christy with hot chocolate.

“I don’t think I can eat anything,” Christy mumbled, knowing she wouldn’t be able to eat a bite while sitting anywhere near Wolf and his unnerving, impassive looks.

Lando looked at her with concern. “I don’t want you starving yourself to death when I leave. I can’t ask Wolf to follow you around demanding you eat. He’s an assassin, not a babysitter,” Lando said. He was standing before her with a worried look. She could almost see his mind turning the situation over. She then heard him mumble as he walked away; “I guess it wouldn’t hurt to ask. I can point out, no Christy, no money.”

Christy ate with no appetite. Lando was going to leave her with a merciless killer; how could he do that? But Lando had promised Wolf wouldn’t hurt her. Lando kept his promises. Perhaps Wolf felt the same way Lando did. Perhaps he never harmed women, she thought hopefully. Then Christy’s shoulders slumped inwards. She remembered Lando avoided that question when she asked him. He hinted vaguely in Wolf’s defense, not only men were skilled with weapons, not all assassins were male. Christy shuddered at that then had an evil thought. Maybe Lando could hook Chad up with one of these women. No doubt it would be Chad left cowering in terror.

Sighing, Christy put her plate down and tucked her knees up under her chin. She was going to have to trust Lando. She sipped from her mug and concentrated on the view from the window. She watched the sunlight dance on the gentle, rippling water. Sighing gloomily, she realized she was trying to keep her mind from shutting down.

Christy was loath to fall back into her world of loneliness. She didn’t have to be Wolf’s friend, but she would eventually have to converse with him. Lando and she found things to talk about even in the beginning.

Christy had a frightening thought; she made Lando angry on occasion, but he promised not to leave her. What if she ticked off Wolf and he left her unprotected? What would she do? With Lando gone as well, she would be defenseless.

She was so involved in her frightening thoughts she jumped, spilling her hot chocolate, when Lando sat down beside her. Lando took her mug and made sure she hadn’t burned herself. He pulled her into his arms.

“Lando?” Christy whispered.

“Yes, sweetheart.”

“Will you please tell Wolf I don’t try to be annoying?” She accepted that he needed to go away and she was trying to deal with her fears.

Lando was smiling at her. “I’ll tell him,” Lando promised. “Don’t be afraid, he won’t leave you all alone.”

“Please come back to me soon. I need you. I love you. You’re important to me. Please be safe. Don’t take any risks. You are a man worth loving. It’s not only your protection I need, I want you. Forever. There would be no forever without you.”

He held her to him, giving her a gentle squeeze, running a hand down her back, trying to ease her fears. “You know I don’t want to leave you. But I have no choice. Hopefully, I can return soon. But, honey, because of the delay of the plane crash, I was unable to appear in court. With no witness, there was no case. The charges against my ex-boss were withdrawn and now he’s free. I have to get him off the street before word of you reaches his ears. If he were to discover you existed, I might lose you. You would be hunted mercilessly.” Christy shuddered, realizing how much danger she was in and understood why he was so worried.

“When do you have to go?”

“Tomorrow. I’ll come back as soon as I can. Christy, Wolf may move you around a lot. I need for you to listen to him. I need you to listen to everything he says, do you understand?”

“Yes, I understand,” Christy said on a soft sigh. Her eyes fled to the window, resigned.

She suddenly found her chin gripped tightly in Lando’s hand. He forced her to look into his gaze. Christy felt a moment of apprehension when she was faced up close with Lando’s fierce, direct stare.

“You’ll do as he says,” Lando demanded.

Christy’s chin trembled; she understood how important this was to him. Through his intimidating glare, she could see the worry etched around tired eyes. If Christy didn’t know better, she would have thought him afraid. Then she realized he was. He feared for her. The thought was sobering from such a powerful man. She felt ashamed of herself.

“I’ll listen to him. I’ll do whatever he asks, I promise,” Christy said. She wasn’t the only one who was making sacrifices for them.

Lando loosened his grip on her face and pulled her close. When he rose to his feet, he took Christy with him. Though fearful, she followed him to the table. Lando sat her down beside him.

“Christy, ask Wolf your questions,” Lando encouraged her.

Christy shot a glance at Lando then bowed her head. Lando was important to her.

“Ask me, Christy,” she heard Wolf say. His voice was smooth and not intimidating, and with the slightest hint of an accent. Christy gazed over at him. He wore absolutely no expression on his face. His entire body sat completely motionless. He didn’t fidget, he didn’t cross or uncross his legs, not a muscle moved, not even an eye twitched.

“Will you hurt me?” she asked.

“No.”

“Will you keep me safe?”

“Yes.”

“You won’t leave me all alone?”

“No.”

Christy looked directly into Wolf’s emotionless eyes, battling her great fear of him. “Promise?” she whispered, her gaze searching his.

“Promise.”

* * * *

Lando and Wolf conversed for the rest of the day and well into the night. It was very late when Lando finally climbed wearily into bed beside Christy and pulled her to him, wanting to feel her close. She hadn’t been asleep, but waiting for him. She clung to him, sobbing. When they lay tucked together, Christy clutched his arms around her. Her face buried into his chest, and he felt her quiver. With tenderness, he captured her face with his hand and pressed her to his chest.

“Come back to me, please. I need to be with you,” Christy begged.

“Sweetheart, if something happens to me…” Lando held her closer, feeling her body tremble in great trepidation from his words. She needed to know. “If I don’t make it back I’ve given instructions to Wolf. He’ll make sure you arrive at a safe place. He’ll make sure no one knows you ever knew me or that you even exist, if he has to.”

“I don’t want to live without you, I love you so much.”

“I love you, too,” Lando declared.

Lando bowed his face against Christy’s; he pressed his cheek onto hers, noses touching. He knew he loved her. He knew the foreign feeling in his gut was love. He had never known love before, which was why he was having trouble understanding the emotion. Lando never in his entire life had another being love him, not a human, not a dog, nor a cat, not even a goldfish or gerbil to care for. He never in his life thought there would be anyone he would die for, until now. Lando knew in his heart he would come back to her or die trying. He also knew with deep resolve he would take anyone out who got in his way, promises be damned.

Gently he cupped her chin; her saddened, but soft, yearning, hopeful gaze filled his heart. He loved her. She loved him. Christy’s eyes closed as his mouth descended on hers, their tongues entwining in a passionate dance. He kissed her shoulders, her neck, roaming lower, until his tongue licked at her hardened nipples, drawing one deeply within his mouth, taking as much of her in as he could.

“Lando?’

His name was a soft question, or plea. “Are you too tired, sweetheart?”

If she was it wouldn’t matter. Holding her through the night was more than enough. He trailed the back of his fingers down a sweet cheek. She looked at him shyly for a moment and his curiosity grew.

“I want to…”

“What, Christy?”

“No matter how brutal Chad was there was something he couldn’t make me do. I want to with you.”

“What?”

To his surprise Christy lowered, her long hair trailing across his chest, belly, hips to settle near his thighs. Lando gripped the sheets in a death grip as she explored his hard erection with soft fingertips. She was definitely unskilled, it was her first time and Lando swelled with gratitude his frightened blossom wanted him to be the first.

Her gentle actions were fumbling when she cupped his balls and traced his hard cock. It took everything he possessed not to help her. She needed to do this on her own. A hand in her hair would scare her to death—even with him.

Growing bolder, she licked at his shaft and quickly glanced up at him.

“You can stop if you’re too scared,” he said but the squeak in his tone was audible.

“I don’t want to stop,” she mumbled right before those ruby red lips of hers eased their way over the tip of his cock.

She drew him in as far as she felt comfortable, he could tell. But what she took, she worked. He grimaced as her little teeth grazed him but he held still. Her rosebud mouth was small, it would take practice. Lando planned on being home soon for lessons. Christy licked the underside of him, her fingers and hands squeezed his balls. She was killing him with her innocent discoveries.

“You’re amazing,” Lando said and he meant it.

Christy smiled at him, pure joy shone from her doe eyes. His words meant everything to her and what she did meant everything to him. The act itself was clumsy, and the best he ever had. Lando couldn’t wait for her any longer. When she looked at a loss as what to do next he acted for her. He lifted her under her arms and drew her up, pulling her over him. Christy’s head fell back as she helped guide him into her heat. He hardened further, feeling engorged. She felt so fiery hot, so velvety soft and slick with moisture. He burned for her to take him inside.

Lando groaned deep in his throat. She was so wet, so incredibly tight, but she accepted his entire length. He encircled her tiny waist with his arm, drawing her down, down, as he moved within deeper. He raised up, then lowered, raised, then lowered, her body following, allowing him the control he demanded. He was on a wild ride, the most amazing, exhilarating ride of his life, and he would be her safety net. His hands closed to almost span her tiny waist as his thrusting continued.

“Tell me, Christy,” he demanded.

She didn’t hesitate. “I love you, Lando;
I love you.”

He locked his arm around her middle, his other grasped high on her back, and in one gentle fluid motion he turned them both effortlessly, tucking her beneath him. She tightened her legs around him, capturing him. His body encompassed hers, becoming her security blanket of warmth and love. He realized then she wasn’t just his, he was hers. The hard thrusts ceased as they both found release. Their hearts beat as one as they closed heavy eyes. Both drifted happily with joined thoughts.

So, this is love…

* * * *

Christy sobbed while standing at the bay window. A cold patter of rain hit the glass to reflect and run with her tears. Lando left early. It was a tearful goodbye while Christy clung to him, not wanting to let go. Both were feeling a deep pain, and Lando had to disengage her arms from him. She was trying not to plead with him to stay. But knew her gaze spoke volumes. For one brief moment she knew Lando almost relented and taken her with him. But then realization triumphed, and he insisted to her she would be safer here. No one knew of her existence out here. Staying away from her would keep her alive. Lando wanted more than anything for her to live.

Christy could sense Wolf’s close proximity; she knew he was watching her. She understood the moment of truth was on them. She was completely vulnerable; he could do what he wished with her and she was too defenseless to stop an assault. It would soon be clear if he had been lying to both her and Lando. With resolve, she turned and faced him. Hopefully, if he meant to cause her demise he wouldn’t end her life the way she imagined Rick had wanted to.