Unravelling The Hitman: A BWWM Romance Page 6

  She’s leaving tomorrow.

  I brushed the thought aside and turned swiftly on my heels, ignoring the dark look Humphries shot my way.

  Miguel helped Angel dismount while I hovered behind, steadying her steps. She made it without any assistance and shot me a proud smile when her feet landed on the pier without shaking.

  My grin widened.

  Her eyes sparkled.

  No, my Angel could never leave.

  I leaped to the pier, my boots landing with a thud against the wood.

  “Hello,” Angel said in a friendly voice.

  I signed her greeting to Miguel.

  He smiled, revealing crooked, yellow teeth and waved at her, mouthing his own hello.

  Angel whipped around, confused eyes landing on me. “Is he…?”

  “Yes. He’s hearing impaired.” I lifted my hands and signed to Miguel. “Did anything happen while I was gone?”

  He shook his head.

  “You know American Sign Language?” Angel smirked. “I’m impressed.”

  I leaned in. “If you’re so easily impressed, I can’t wait to show you what else I can do.” My voice was thick with suggestion.

  “If you can cook too, I’m protesting.”

  I laughed softly. She was teasing me. I liked that. “Come. The dew is heavy tonight. We’ll be warmer inside.”

  Miguel trotted off while I led Humphries and Angel toward the house.

  “Is he coming back?” Angel asked, watching Miguel trot down a path littered with squatting palm trees and sand.

  “He has his own place behind the villa. He lives there.”

  “Oh.” She stepped back while I opened the door. “How did you two meet?”

  “He worked for the previous owners. He acts as ground keeper and watchman in exchange for rent and food.”

  “Wait a minute.” Angel paused on the bottom stair. “You bought this island.”

  “Yes.”

  She exchanged a look with Humphries. I glanced between them. “Is something wrong?”

  “I just… didn’t even know our islands were for sale.”

  “For the right price, anything can be bought, Angel.”

  She pulled her lips in. Thin eyebrows slanted together, forming a pointed V.

  I’d upset her.

  I wanted to get to the bottom of that troubled expression, but Reid needed to be put to bed. I’d have to sift out the reason behind her sudden mood shift later.

  With a sigh, I continued up the stairs and showed them to the living room. Angel acted reserved and barely looked at anything, but Humphries gawked unabashedly.

  “So this is how the other half lives.”

  “Make yourself at home,” I said, ignoring his statement.

  “Here.” Angel handed Reid to me, her gaze glued to the ground.

  “Sh, sh.” I soothed him as he stirred and waited for him to settle down. When he’d returned to sleep, I shot Angel a look. “Come with me.”

  “I’d rather stay out here,” she said quietly but firmly.

  Humphries shot me a triumphant look.

  I accepted her choice and walked away.

  Alone.

  Reid’s baby powder scent wafted over me. Usually, I would give him a bath before bedtime, but I couldn’t find the energy to do so tonight.

  My hold on Reid tightened.

  This hollow feeling… was all because of Angel.

  I set Reid in his crib and rubbed his head, sweeping his soft, brown hair away from his face. His thin eyelashes, his pug nose, his round chin. He was perfection. I never thought I’d care about anyone the way I cared about my son.

  But Angel had unlocked that side of me. One I thought was hidden away. Like a man who couldn’t swim flailing in the deep end, I had no clue how to navigate the treacherous, unfamiliar waters.

  Drowning was not a luxury at my disposal. Not when I had to keep myself and a two-year-old afloat.

  A buzzing sound jerked me out of my thoughts.

  I fished in my pocket for my phone and swiped my thumb against the screen. No new calls or messages. Stiffening, I reached for the burner I’d stored in my bag.

  I unzipped the backpack, grabbed the phone and opened the lid. There were only three messages stored in the logs.

  The first was the location of the hit, dated three days ago.

  The second was confirmation that the target was dead. Yesterday.

  And the third came in three seconds ago.

  New Target Acquired. Interested?

  My fingers tightened on the cell phone. Conflicting emotions rushed through me. Unlike the whirlwind of chaos that afflicted me when Angel was near, I felt no fear, no trepidation during a hit.

  Killing was what I was good at. What gave me purpose.

  Angel was… a momentary distraction. A beautiful, sexy distraction.

  But distractions rarely stuck around. And something told me she’d be the first to run if I ever showed her who I really was.

  No, it was too risky. Reid and my gun were the only things I could count on in this world, the only things that would remain by my side when it all came crashing down.

  As it had before.

  As it would again.

  It was time to put foolish thoughts away. Angel was mine for the night, but she would never be mine forever.

  11

  Angel

  Deacon’s house was massive. If I wasn’t so exhausted and on-edge, I’d run from corner to corner, admiring the wide kitchen or the paintings on the walls or the balcony outside that overlooked a floral haven.

  Humphries had no problems living that dream for me.

  “Can you believe this guy?” he murmured, returning to the sofa. When he plopped in, the cushions dipped. Gravity slid me over to his side.

  I scrambled up and returned to my original position on the opposite end of the couch. “What about him?”

  “This house. This island. That boat. And that cigar shop? I mean”—Humphries leaned over, eyebrows arched and head tilted—“who opens a cigar shop in Belize? Belizeans don’t smoke cigars. We’re cigarette people.”

  “What are you saying?”

  “It’s got to be a front for something.” A worried line wrinkled his forehead. “What if it’s drugs?” He clamped my hand, his pudgy fingers squeezing my wrist tight. “Angel, what if we accepted the invitation of a drug dealer?”

  Denial burst to my lips, but I kept quiet and thought about it. Humphries had a point. The circumstances were too shady for me to play naïve.

  And I couldn’t forget the way Deacon had punched Peter earlier…

  Did regular guys throw punches like that? So calmly and succinctly?

  Humphries dotted at the sweat on his forehead. “Let’s get out of here.”

  “And go where?” I whispered. “We’re on a private island. Do you know how to steer a boat?”

  His voice climbed to a worried squeak. “How hard can it be?”

  The easiest option would be to run, from these feelings, from that intense, brooding man with the calloused fingers and big hands that were way too gentle for their size.

  Humphries’ suspicions magnified my own niggling doubts about Deacon and his character.

  Who was this guy?

  I’d let my own little fascination with him cloud my judgment, and that was how I’d landed here, in the house of a stranger I’d met only a handful of hours ago.

  A Lifetime movie in the making.

  But what were my options? I could sneak out with Humphries, steal Deacon’s boat and pray to God that we didn’t get lost at sea while trying to sail it.

  Or I could trust my gut and the quiet whisper that told me Deacon wouldn’t hurt me.

  ‘For the right price, anything can be bought.’

  Shaken, I leaned my head back against the chair. That statement was a glimpse into Deacon’s mind, and I didn’t like what I was seeing. Some things couldn’t—no, shouldn’t be bought.

  What other values did he hold that
I’d disagree on?

  You’re overthinking things.

  Right. Deacon wasn’t a potential boyfriend. After tonight, I’d never see him again. I straightened and raked my fingers through my hair to clear my head of the funk.

  “I’m going to the bathroom,” I announced, grabbing my duffel and jumping to my feet.

  Humphries clamored after me. “I’ll come with you.”

  “To the bathroom?”

  “It’s not safe. We should stick together.”

  “Humphries,” I pressed my hand on his shoulder and pushed him back down, “I’ll be fine.”

  “Lock the door.”

  “I will.” I moved tentatively down the hall and spotted the bathroom on the other end. My feet padded softly against the wooden floors as I slipped inside and locked the door behind me.

  Setting my bag on the counter near the sink, I poured water into my hands and washed my face. The cold liquid shocked my skin and I felt a little more like myself and less like the airhead that Deacon had met in his office today.

  Glad for a moment of quiet, I found my cell phone and leaned against the sink while turning it on. As soon as it came to life, notifications flooded in like crazy.

  I cringed when I saw all the texts from Paulina.

  LINA: Where the heck are you?

  LINA: Are you alive?

  LINA: Answer me, Angel, or I swear I’ll tear you limb from limb when I see you.

  LINA: That was just a joke. Please answer. We’re really worried.

  So much had happened today that the teachers’ retreat felt like a distant memory. I didn’t know everyone had been freaking out that much.

  Sucking in a deep breath, I texted Paulina back.

  ME: I’m fine. With Humphries. We’re staying the night.

  The message was delivered.

  I quickly rang up my mom before Paulina read it and called me back. Hopefully, no one had told my mom about this. If my friends and colleagues were this worried, I couldn’t imagine how she’d react.

  The line rang.

  A click sounded.

  “Hello?”

  “Hi, Mom.” I turned and watched my reflection in the mirror. Brown skin. Brown eyes. Nose a little too wide. Lips a little too big. I looked more like my father than my mother, who was a gentle, feminine woman with small proportions.

  I used to hate that I didn’t look like my mom growing up. Now, with everything that had happened to Dad, I was glad that I resembled him. It made me feel closer to him, somehow.

  “Hi, baby. How was your trip? Are you back yet?”

  “No.” I played with a lock of my hair, glad that her voice was calm. That meant Paulina had my back and hadn’t told them. “I’m staying over an extra day. How’s Daddy?”

  “Same as yesterday. I talked to the bank again. They said we can’t borrow anymore money.”

  The pressures of the past few months tumbled down like tiles from the ceiling and crushed me. Pain brewed in my temple, a headache building to a migraine.

  Mom had sent me away on the teachers’ retreat for this very reason. She’d wanted me away from the bleak situation with my dad and our empty bank account.

  It had worked.

  Maybe a little too well.

  The reminder of all that we faced crashed anew, as if I was facing it all for the first time. I’d climbed this hill and fought this battle for weeks, so starting from the beginning again made me want to cry.

  “I’m so worried, Angel.” Mom sobbed. “I don’t know what to do.”

  “I’ll think of something.”

  “No, it’s too much to put on your shoulders. Maybe we should just… take him home. He’s okay with that.”

  “We’re not giving up,” I snapped. “I’ll find the money.”

  How? I had no idea. My salary could barely pay for one night of Dad’s hospital stay. Mom and I had put the house up to pay for the first round of chemo. We couldn’t afford the second round.

  My phone beeped.

  I pulled it away and glanced at the name on the screen. “Mom, Paulina’s calling. I need to go.”

  “Wait, Angel.”

  I paused.

  She sighed. “When you get back, let’s talk about this seriously.”

  “Dad’s getting treatment, okay? No amount of talking will change that. I’ll see you tomorrow.” I hung up and swiped the screen to answer Paulina’s call. “Hey, girl.”

  “Angel, thank you Jesus! You’re alive! You’re alive!”

  I cringed as her screeching nearly busted an eardrum. If Paulina was good for one thing, it was being loud.

  “I’m here.”

  “Girl, you shaved ten years off my life. Everyone was looking all over for you. We even went swimming thinking you might have caught a cramp in the water.”

  “Sounds like a solid plan.” I chuckled softly. The conversation with my mom still weighed heavily on my mind, but now that I was focused on Paulina, it didn’t feel as depressing. “Humphries found me.”

  “I’m so glad. Give that man a kiss, would you?”

  “No thanks.”

  “What’s wrong? I thought he fit that perfect churchman you’ve been looking for. Now’s the best time to get to know him a little better. See him in a setting outside of school. Maybe he might grow on you.”

  “Don’t you start this too.”

  “I’m just saying. We went on this trip to get your mind off everything that’s happening with your family. If you don’t want Humphries, at least go out for a drink and talk to someone. It’s been too long since you’ve dated. Not every guy you’re interested in needs to be your future husband. Just have some fun.”

  I was stuck on a private island and the only prospect around was way too intense to stop at ‘fun’.

  Unless I went and hung out with Miguel.

  “You’re thinking about it, right?” Paulina prodded.

  “Goodbye, Paulina.”

  “Don’t hang up!”

  “I just called to let you know I’m alright. I’ll send a text in the group chat too so everyone stops worrying.”

  “’Kay. See you later.”

  I ended the call and shot a quick message to the group chat as I’d promised. After I pressed ‘SEND’, I bundled my cell phone back into my bag and raised a fist at my reflection.

  “You can do this.” I dipped my chin and firmed my upper lip. “It’s just for one night. I’ll avoid him for one night.”

  My fingers wrapped around the knob and I yanked the bathroom door open, barreling forward.

  My head smacked against something hard.

  I stumbled back, my neck craning as I looked up into Deacon’s stormy green eyes.

  So much for that plan.

  12

  Deacon

  Angel’s eyes widened in shock.

  I stepped back, giving her space. “I was just about to knock,” I explained before she mistakenly thought I was a weirdo who waited for women outside the bathroom.

  “Yeah.” She slid a thumb into the pockets of her jeans. “Did you put Reid to sleep?”

  “Yes.”

  “That’s good. I was worried that napping on the boat ride would have messed with his routine.”

  “He sleeps well regardless of where he is.”

  “That’s nice. Sleep is,” she rocked back on her heels, “important.”

  “Right.”

  Awkwardness seeped into the air.

  “I’ll show you to the guestroom,” I said finally.

  “It’s that way, right?” She pointed in the correct direction.

  My eyebrows popped up. “You went snooping?”

  “No, I happened to see it when I was looking for the bathroom.” She moved an inch nearer, a determined expression on her beautiful face. “Why are you on edge? Is there something you’re hiding?”

  Target acquired. Rhia’s text wafted through my mind.

  I pushed it back and focused on Angel. Whatever mood she’d been in a moment ago had vanished, re
placed with the usual, crackling charisma that I’d come to know.

  Edging forward, I teased. “I’m not giving away any more secrets.”

  “What secrets? And the things you told me back at the office don’t count.”

  “They don’t?”

  “If it’s easy to share, then it’s not a true secret.” She frowned thoughtfully. “Your deepest, darkest secrets are the kind that take too much courage to voice.”

  Target acquired. Interested?

  The thought kept popping into my mind.

  I moved closer to Angel, struggling to erase my disquiet, struggling to keep my hands to myself.

  She stood so near, brown eyes glinting. Fire and strength were in their hue, but her curved cheeks gave her a soft allure.

  The blue T-shirt failed to hide her curvy figure and the shorts rode high, revealing the delicate line of her scar on the thighs I’d handled this morning.

  My eyes fastened on her mouth—plump and unintentionally seductive. I could quiet the chaos inside with one taste of her lips.

  I sensed that instinctively.

  Drowning in Angel would be a beautiful end.

  My vow to leave her alone wavered. Now that she was here. In front of me. I wanted her.

  Angel moved back. Fear flickered in her eyes. I could imagine that my expression, in this moment of confusion and craving, scared her. Softening my face with a smile, I nudged her a little farther until her back hit the wall. Planting my palm just above her head, I pinned her in with my hips.

  She gasped and I knew that she’d felt my desire.

  “What are you doing?” she demanded hoarsely.

  “You intrigue me.”

  Her nostrils flared.

  I leaned down, chuckling when she flashed me a warning look. Stopping just before touching her lips, I confessed, “That’s my secret.”

  Footsteps clattered toward us.

  Angel pressed her palm against my chest and shoved.

  I moved away, not because her puny little push had done anything, but because she wanted me to. Invading her personal space had been a risk I’d taken in the moment, but it would not be repeated.

  The ball was now in her court.

  Humphries rounded the bend and skidded to a stop. “There you are.” He pushed out his chest and stomped down the hall in a false show of bravado. “Where is my room?”