Invincible (13 page)

19.

(Rose)

My hands made their way to his hips. My thumbs felt his rock hard stomach as he breathed. I was supposed to be pushing him away. I was supposed to want him out of me since we were both done. But that didn
’
t happen. I didn
’
t want him out of me. I wanted him to stay. To get hard again. To do it all over again.

Because
…

Fuck.

It was just that good.

If Wes fought half as good as he fucked, it was no wonder he was one of the best around.

When he did pull out of me, my body gushed and tingled to the point where I grabbed the sheets and just stayed there. I felt like I was floating, warmth all around. My toes curled and I bit my lip, trying to resist the urge to moan again. It had been such a long time since anyone touched me.
Or tasted me.

That alone was worth the risk of stealing a car to come to the cabin.

That
’
s when all the reality came crashing back down.

Luke. Macie. Murder. Aside from being inside, there was too much about Wes I didn
’
t know that I could even trust.

Wes put his jeans on but left his shirt off. That was completely unfair to have to stare at muscle like that. Chiseled through years of fighting. Taking punches. Handing out punches. The toughness of a life that I couldn
’
t possibly imagine living.

He stood there with his back to me. There were hints of sweat.

It kept turning me on more and more.

“
You can get dressed,
”
he whispered.

“
Yeah, right,
”
I said.

I grabbed my clothes from the floor and slowly put myself back together. As I clipped my bra, I watched Wes. He looked like he did the night of the fight. Standing there with his hands balled into fists. His long hair sweaty. His shoulders a mile wide like he was ready to turn and strike.

I put my shirt on and then just stood there.

My heart was still racing from the amazing sex. My body was still on fire as I looked at Wes. My mind was somewhere else. Wondering what else was going to come bursting through the thin seams of my life and fuck everything up.

“
Wes
…”

“
I
’
m sorry about your friend,
”
he whispered.

He glanced over his shoulder for a second and then walked to the bedroom door. He left the room and I stood there, listening to the sound of the back door opening and shutting.

Everything felt wrong. Yet everything felt damn good.

I went after Wes though. I couldn
’
t mess around anymore. Either I was going to crack Wes a little or I was going to take Macie
’
s car and make another run for it. Luckily for me Macie didn
’
t have any real family or anything. She had come from a rough life and lucked out by sleeping with men with money to boost her own image. Even still - it was a murder and I was going to be tied to it.

That
’
s how Luke wanted it. So I would go running to him for help, again.

Just like the last time.

Wes stood outside and looked like the hottest dream ever. The white moonlight shined down on the back deck. His dark hair came down to his shoulders and the perfect muscles of his back were like the ripples of lake if there was a wind storm.

I took my chances and went outside.

“
Wes
…”

“
Aton was shot,
”
he said.
“
He
’
s barely hanging on right now.
”

“
What?
”

“
You fucking heard me, sweetie.
”

“
I
’
m so sorry.
”

“
Me too,
”
Wes said.
“
Me too.
”

“
Do you know who did it?
”

“
I have an idea.
”

Luke. The assassin. My goddamn brother.

“
Wes, I know nothing about it all,
”
I said.
“
I need you to believe that. If I knew anything, I
’
d tell you.
”

Wes finally turned around. His eyes seemed to glow in the moonlight.
“
Why? Why would you tell me?
”

“
Because
…”

Why? Why, Rose?

“
Exactly,
”
he said.
“
Why the fuck did you come here?
”

“
To catch my breath,
”
I said.
“
I have a dead woman
’
s car out there. And the cops are going to find her body. They
’
re going to look for her car. And I
’
m going to end up in fucking jail.
”

“
Can your brother kill you from there?
”
Wes asked, curling his lip.

“
Fuck you, asshole.
”

“
I already fucked you, sweetie. Nice and tight, the way I like it. Now I can figure out how to save my ass.
”

The anger crushed me in a heartbeat. I spit at Wes. I literally hocked and spit at him. It was not as dramatic as it looked in the movies. I barely had any spit and I could barely see it on his chest.

So I slapped him. Right across the face.

Then I turned and ran back into the cabin. I scrambled to find the keys to Macie
’
s car. They weren
’
t in my pocket where I shoved them. I was back in the bedroom. On my hands and knees, looking under the bed.

“
You ready for it again?
”

I looked over my shoulder, realizing my ass was stuck up in the air.
“
I hate you.
”

Wes stepped into the room and slammed the door.
“
You have no reason to trust me, Rose. And I have no reason to trust you. Let
’
s talk about what we know. Your brother killed my brother. You brother killed someone you know. Someone shot Aton.
”

“
You think Luke did it,
”
I said.

“
I don
’
t know what to think. I am
…
I
’
m kind of happy that you
’
re here. I hope you
’
re not fucking with me on all this.
”

I found Macie
’
s keys under the bed and then stood up. I opened my arms.
“
Look at me. I have nowhere else to go, Wes. He
’
s ruined my life. He
’
s controlled me. He
’
s hit me. I should have never gone with you to see Aton. I should have never gone along with the marriage thing. I should have never come to this cabin the first time with you. It cost my friend her life. That was  a clear message from Luke.
”

“
And I took a bullet for you,
”
Wes said. He touched his still wounded shoulder.
“
Don
’
t forget that.
”

“
You were going to kill me,
”
I said. I stepped toward Wes.

He stepped toward me, hands balled into fists again.
“
I was not going to fucking kill you. I came to check on you. To help you.
”

“
After you were part of trying to kill me.
”

“
I didn
’
t touch a thing. Other than your picture. Which kept you alive.
”

“
Your boss put a bomb in my car.
”

We kept stepping toward each other. We were an inch apart. Oh God, I wanted to hit him again. So badly.

“
My boss did not put a bomb in your car,
”
Wes said.
“
Tommy did.
”

“
You asshole.
”

“
Going to hit me again, sweetie?
”

I grabbed at his face. A second later our lips were touching.

Fuck
…
no
…

Another second later, a bullet came through the window.

~ ~ ~

I heard a
ping
and something shatter. Then Wes was on top of me. He swept his leg to mine and had me pinned on the floor. We were just an inch apart.

“
Fuck,
”
he whispered.
“
Thought you didn
’
t have a tail?
”

“
I thought
…”

“
Doesn
’
t matter. Are you hurt?
”

“
No,
”
I said.

But I kind of was. I was hurt that we weren
’
t kissing again. I wanted to keep kissing Wes. I liked the explosion of tension. Fuck, it turned me on so much.

Wes pushed from me and stood up. I sat up and looked to the window above the bed. There was a small hole and cracks all around. The bullet had hit the wall.

Someone was out back, trying to attack us.

“
Fuck!
”
Wes yelled.
“
You
’
re fucking bleeding everywhere!
”
I looked at him and he put a finger to his mouth.
“
Please! Hold on for me, Rose! Don
’
t let go!
”

Wes backed up to the open bedroom door.

He then motioned to me to watch the door.

He mouthed,
From the back door!

Then he made a fist.

Christ, it was just like watching him in my apartment.

We waited.

Second after second.

They clung like minutes.

There wasn
’
t a damn sound.

Wes then came forward and dropped to his knees.
“
Listen to me. You go into the closet and stay there. I
’
ll come get you.
”

“
What are you doing?
”
I whispered.

“
I have to find out who it is.
”

“
What if it
’
s Luke?
”

“
I
’
ll kill him.
”

“
You can
’
t
…”

Wes gritted his teeth.
“
Just stay fucking here.
”

“
Okay,
”
I whispered.
“
Okay, fine. Go. Good luck.
”

“
Good luck? Yeah, thanks.
”

Wes crept out of the bedroom.

I slowly kicked myself back to the closet door. I opened it and took a shaky breath. I just wanted to kiss Wes a little. Was that so bad?

I moved to the closet and started to pull it shut.

That
’
s when the gun went off again.

20.

(Wes)

I had no fucking clue what I was trying to do or prove. Christ. I was a fighter. I was used to going toe to toe with people. I didn
’
t do sneak attacks. But here I was, opening and shutting the back door without making a sound. Crouching down and walking across the deck as slow as I could.

I made it to the steps and then saw something glow.

The tip of a cigarette.

The fucking guy was out here smoking.

How stupid could he be?

I watched the glow of the cigarette and worked my way toward it. I should have put a damn shirt on because the low hanging branches grabbed at my skin, slicing at me. It was like nature was warning me to get the fuck out of there. To maybe just leave Rose in the closet and go find another way.

But I couldn
’
t do that to her. It made no goddamn sense. Her family was the reason I lost Shane. Yet she was the innocent one in it all. If she was telling the truth.

When I got close enough I could see the guy standing there. A rifle in his hand. He must have been watching us in the bedroom. Maybe even listening to us. Arguing, stepping closer to one another, lining up his kill shot
…
but luckily missing me and Rose.

I paused and thought about what to do. I wasn
’
t sure if this guy was alone or what the hell was going on. Or who he was. Or who he was with. One thing was for sure - he tried to kill Rose. That wasn
’
t going to stand with me.

I lunged forward and put my shoulder into the middle of his back. My arms wrapped around his body and I had him. As we went down to the ground, the gun went off but fell out of his hands. I grabbed the weapon and tossed it away, just to make sure he couldn
’
t get it.

The guy yelled and tried to thrash. I was bigger, stronger, and he had no idea what to do. I brought a fist down to the back of his head. Then another, and another. That
’
s when he started to calm down. I moved from him and dragged him out of the trees to the moonlight.

“
Do you have any other guns on you?
”
I asked.

“
Fuck you,
”
he spat.

I sat him against a tree and punched him in the mouth. He fell to the side, holding his mouth, groaning. His hands shot out and he tried to get away. What the hell did he think? That he was going to just crawl away?

I found the gun and lifted it. I pointed it at the guy and whistled. When he looked at me and saw the gun, his eyes went wide and he froze for good.

“
Hands up and stand the fuck up,
”
I said.

“
Okay, okay, man. Don
’
t shoot.
”

The guy climbed to his feet. I definitely didn
’
t know who he was. I thought about getting Rose, but she didn
’
t need to see what I planned on doing with this asshole.

He put his hands up.
“
Look. I
’
m listening.
”

“
Who are you?
”

“
I can
’
t tell you that.
”

“
Do you have any other weapons?
”

“
No.
”

“
I don
’
t believe you.
”

“
I don
’
t care,
”
he said.

“
Strip then.
”

“
Fuck yourself.
”

I raised the rifle and pulled the trigger. Its shot thundered all around. I pointed the gun at the guy.
“
Next one goes through your skull.
”

“
Okay, fuck,
”
the guy said.
“
Fuck.
”

He stripped down to a white pair of boxers. The front was stained with what I assumed to be piss. He probably pissed himself when I tackled.

“
Look, I was hired,
”
he said.
“
I don
’
t know who you are
…”

“
Yes you do. Who fucking hired you?
”

“
I don
’
t know.
”

“
Don
’
t lie to me.
”

“
I
’
m not, man.
”

“
Was it Luke?
”

“
I don
’
t know who Luke is,
”
he said.
“
He was a thick guy. Tan skin. Clean cut. He looked stressed and tired. Said you were a bad guy and needed to go. I didn
’
t know you were with someone in the room. Thought I could get a quick shot.
”

“
You suck at this,
”
I said and smiled.
“
Now you
’
re in your panties.
”

“
Fuck off.
”

I tossed the rifle aside, knowing how risky it was. I stepped forward and threw a punch. I hit him in the mouth, once, twice, and then once in the gut. He bent over, crying. Literally crying his eyes out. I grabbed him by the throat and then walked him back to the edge of the lake. One perfect uppercut sent him off his feet and into the water. He hit the water, thrashed his arms, and then fought to get back out. He scrambled after his clothes and I grabbed the rifle again.

“
Who the fuck said you could leave here alive?
”
I asked.

The guy slowly stood, holding his clothes.
“
What do you want from me?
”

“
How much did he pay you?
”

“
A thousand. For you.
”

“
Nothing to do with the woman?
”

“
Nothing, I swear.
”

“
You going to see him again?
”

“
I don
’
t know, am I?
”

I thought about it.
“
Go to your fucking guy. Tell him exactly what happened here. Someone comes here again
…”
I pointed the rifle at his legs and I pulled the trigger.

The guy toppled to the ground, screaming.

I stepped toward him and pointed the rifle again.
“
Next one is in your skull. Get the fuck out of here.
”

The guy gritted his teeth as he cried.

I pointed the rifle into the air and shot again.

“
Go!
”
I screamed.

The guy kicked to his feet and dragged his shot leg into the trees as he made his great escape.

I hoped he got attacked by an animal.

“
Shit,
”
I whispered.

Maybe I should have killed him. But who the fuck was I? I wasn
’
t a killer. I was a fighter. I fought until the fight was over and that was it.

I turned and looked at the back of the cabin.

To keep Rose safe
…
I
’
d have to learn to kill.

~ ~ ~

I opened the closet and Rose winced and whimpered.

“
It
’
s just me, sweetie,
”
I said.
“
Just me.
”

I crouched down and she attacked me. I
’
d never seen a woman move that fast before in my life. She flew at me, hit me, and then I was on my back, Rose right on top of me.

“
Did you get shot?
”
she asked.

“
No. I didn
’
t.
”

“
Did you
…
kill
…”

“
No. I sent him with a warning.
”

“
Wes, who was it?
”

I reached up and touched her face.
“
It wasn
’
t for you. It was for me.
”

“
Oh, shit.
”

“
Yeah. We
’
re both in some really hot water here. We can
’
t stay here forever. They
’
re going to keep coming.
”

“
I don
’
t know what to do or say right now.
”

I felt Rose
’
s belly rumble against mine.

Christ, just having her this close was making me hard again. She was like beautiful voodoo to my cock and I was helpless to fight it off.

“
You
’
re hungry,
”
I said.
“
I am too. Let me make us something. I
’
ll build a fire and we can relax.
”

“
How can we relax when people are coming to hurt us?
”

I gently touched Rose
’
s face.
“
Hey. Nobody is going to hurt you. Ever. I swear on my life. Okay? Now, if you want to relax
…
grab a bite
…
have a stiff drink. Crash on the couch, sweetie. I
’
ll take care of everything. I promise.
”

Rose had the biggest doe eyes I ever saw.

And here I was
…
making promises that I damn sure knew I couldn
’
t keep.