Charming Asshole (Killer of Kings 3)

“What’s that?”

“Why the fuck are they after you? Why so personal?”

He knew Boss was questioning his methods. Killer of Kings demanded clean hits, no witnesses, no loose ends. Killian had fucked up that day long ago, but wasn’t ready to admit it. As soon as Bain mentioned the Dead Angels president was the son of the man he’d killed ten years ago, he knew the past was coming back to bite him in the ass. His weakness could now cost him everything.

“Guess they’re just assholes,” said Killian.

There was silence on the line, and he knew Boss was smarter than that. “I want them gone. Every fucking one. No more mistakes.” Then the line went cold.

Killian vaguely remembered that hit from a decade ago. The Dead Angels MC had been dealing in a new kind of drug, allegedly more addictive than crack. It was worse than anything on the streets, and the side effects were extreme. The bodies were piling up, and Boss wanted to end everyone responsible for the designer drug. Boss could have involved himself, demanding a cut of what could have been a lucrative venture, but apparently the old bastard had a heart.

Killian’s job had been to get intel on the MC and then take them out so that addictive shit would die along with them. Only he hadn’t done his job. Not by Killer of Kings standards.

Now June’s family was involved. He shouldn’t care because he believed it was karma hard at work, but he knew it would still break June’s heart to know her parents were killed—because of him.

Why couldn’t he catch a fucking break in life?

He returned inside the condo. June was dressed back in her clothes from the night before, her hair brushed out smooth.

“You look worried. Is everything okay with Killian?” she asked.

He took both her hands. “Of course. Our son’s safe, I promised you that.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Then what is it?”

“Nothing. Everything’s fine, baby.”

She tugged her hands away. “You’re lying. Again!”

“What?”

“You can’t look me in the eyes when you lie. I don’t get you, Killian. I promised never to leave, and you still don’t trust me enough to be honest.”

“It’s complicated.”

“Do I look fragile? Because if you think I can’t handle ‘complicated’, you’ve got a lot to learn about me.”

He didn’t know how to tell her the truth without hurting her. Maybe a white lie would suffice. He’d get his ass back to the town, annihilate every member of the fucking Dead Angels MC, save her parents, and still be back for dinner. Only he couldn’t tell her more lies. Her parents would end up filling her in on their ordeal, and she’d hold it against him.

And he’d promised to change his ways.

“I have to go back to town to clean up a few things.”

“Why?” she asked, her voice higher.

“I created a problem years ago, and I have to deal with it. Make it go away,” he said.

She began to pace in front of him. “Who were you talking to exactly? Was it your boss again?”

He nodded.

“Did you forget all the men with guns, Killian? Did you forget I was shot? I’m not going to lose you! Just forget that town and everyone in it. We’ll start fresh, a different place, a new beginning.”

June was adorable. She had no idea who she was talking to. Killian was one of Boss’s go-to men. He killed without remorse, turning off his humanity to get shit done. And he did his job well. Now that he thought about it, he’d never gone on a hit worried that he might not come out alive. No one was immortal, but Killian trusted his own skill set, from guns and knives to hand-to-hand combat.

“If I don’t do this, things will get worse, June. Just let me handle it.”

“You said you wanted to talk about our future, right? Well, how can we have a future when there are so many secrets between us?”