Charming Asshole (Killer of Kings 3)
He sat down on the sofa, pulling her onto his lap. “I love you, June. More than anything.” He held her tight, terrified to lose her. “In my line of work, the number one rule is never to fall in love. My boss always warns us about weaknesses. Love and family are the ultimate Achilles’ heel for a hitman.”
“What are you saying? You don’t want me and Killian? You need to leave us again?”
“Fuck no,” he snapped. “I’m saying my enemies look for weaknesses, and when I took you away they went after the next best thing.”
She stared at him, waiting for more.
He swallowed hard. “Your parents. They have your parents, but I swear I’ll get them back.”
“My parents? Why would someone kidnap my parents? I haven’t talked to them in years. What does that even mean?”
“It means you need to trust me and let me do my job,” he said.
Tears filled her eyes. “I won’t put them above you, Killian! Call the police. Tell them what happened.”
“This is beyond the police, babe.”
“Well, I need you. Killian needs you. There has to be a better way to end all this madness.”
He brushed back the hair falling in her face and then wiped her tears with the backs of his fingers. “I started this by shooting those men in the bar. They want payback, and they won’t go away until I finish the job.”
“You mean kill them?”
Killian stared at her, mesmerized by her natural beauty. Even without a stitch of make-up, she was the most breathtaking thing in the world to him. Her lips were swollen, her eyes glistening with tears. He wanted her happy. He wanted to dream about the future with her, but harsh reality had been thrown in his face.
“You said you accepted me, no matter what,” he reminded her.
“What if you get hurt … or killed?”
>
He smiled and tweaked her nose. “Promise I’ll come back.”
****
June couldn’t believe this was happening to her. She’d just gotten Killian back in her life, ready to plan a future for their little family, and now she could lose him forever.
He’d said to stay in his condo until he came back. She wasn’t even sure where his home was located because they’d come in the middle of the night. June did some exploring, trying to keep her mind off the impossibility of the situation. One day she was working nights, a single mom struggling to survive in her simple life. Now she was forced to believe there were hitmen out there living above the law. She’d seen Killian shoot those assholes in the bar without a second thought. He promised her everything she’d dreamed of, but she still couldn’t believe a happily ever after was possible for her.
She took a nice hot shower, enjoying the view from the balcony as she dried her hair. After the hours rolled on, she was losing her mind with worry. June stared at the cordless phone sitting on a base in the kitchen. She took a deep breath, then snatched it up and dialed her mother. It was weird calling the number now, after all these years. June almost expected her to answer, but she couldn’t. If anything happened to her parents, how would she feel? She’d cut them out of her life once they discarded her. It had been so hard getting started on her own, pregnant and alone in the world. It pissed her off even more that her son didn’t have loving grandparents that he deserved. The only good thing out of their cruelty was the fact it made her strong. June could survive, and didn’t need a man or a family to rely on.
If she had to choose, she knew she’d choose Killian, but he seemed convinced that he’d always come last in her books.
“Hello?”
June froze. She’d only called out of morbid curiosity, not expecting her mother’s voice.
“Mom?”
“June? Is that you?”
She envisioned her mother tied to a chair, a gun at her head. Was the conversation being recorded? Why was she allowed to answer the phone if she’d been kidnapped?
“Are you okay?”
Her mother chuckled. “I’m fine. You’d know that if you ever called.”
June’s nerves settled. Her mother sounded smug and accusatory, not a woman held against her will. She regretted calling her childhood home. “Where’s Dad?”