by Kimball Lee
As Charlotte stepped onto the boat, Bly rushed to her and pressed her tightly to him, “Christ, Charlotte, where were you? I sent West to look for you and he hasn’t checked in. I was afraid something terrible happened, the police are at the psychiatrist’s office questioning him now.”
At that moment shock registered on Bly’s handsome face, his usual look of complete control vanished when he saw Finn, and his mouth fell open when he realized he had West’s limp body thrown across his shoulder.
*
They sat in the main salon, as Bly called it. Charlotte couldn’t keep the names of all the parts of the yacht straight, she called it the living room, and she didn’t know why she cared when Finn and Bly were yelling and ranting and practically at each other’s throats. Her mind was reeling, Finn was alive and she loved him, she’d never told Bly she would marry him, but he’d slipped an embarrassingly huge diamond on her finger. She loved Bly, but it was different, wasn’t it? Could she be in love with two men at the same time? No, she decided, she did love them both, but she was only in love with one.
“Why didn’t you come looking for me?” she asked, suddenly, and both men stopped arguing and looked at her.
“I did, my love, what are you talking about?” Finn asked.
“Bly, why were you here on the boat when you sent West and the police out to find me? Why didn’t you look for me?”
“Charlotte, what are you getting at? Someone had to wait on the boat in case you came back.” He said, walking toward her.
“No,” she said, holding her hands up to stop him, “you said it yourself, this boat has a crew of thirteen people, I’m sure one of them would’ve let you know if I was here.”
She told him not to try and talk her out of leaving; she was the lawyer who never lost a case, after all. Still he tried, and honestly, the look on his face when she pressed the engagement ring into his hand made her question her choice for a moment. When she drove away with Finn, she asked him to drop her off at the airport so she could catch a flight to anywhere and sort out her feelings, but he just smiled and traced her lips with his thumb as he kept driving.
The Jeep pulled up to the gates of the Naval Base Coronado, she could see grey war ships in the distance. The soldier standing guard turned his face away from Finn and the gate opened. She’d only packed one small bag with jeans, a few shirts and zippered hoodies, running shoes and toiletries. She didn’t know where her life was headed, so she let go of her tightly clutched need for control and decided to just go with it. She felt a deep buzz of anticipation at the unknown, she was with Finn, and life and adventure stretched out before her like the hand of a beckoning lover.
*
When they stepped out of the Jeep, Finn grabbed her small bag and her hand and led her toward a long concrete building. In the air was the sound of engines; ships, and helicopters, and jets. Soldiers marched by in formation, staring straight ahead, never wavering, their weapons held steadily against their shoulders.
As they entered the building soldiers and officers passed by, never looking Finn in the face. He ushered her into a set of rooms and as soon as the door closed he pressed her back against it and his mouth was on hers. It was a kiss not unlike that which must have launched a thousand ships in search of Helen of Troy. A searing, life altering message of love, lust, and need, older than time.
His lips caressed hers, their tongues twining softly on and on until; finally, they stopped for breath and leaned their foreheads together. They began undressing each other and laughed that the thought occurred to each of them at just the same moment. He lifted his arms as she peeled off his t-shirt and she caught her breath at his wide, hard muscled chest. It was covered with tattoos, which had never been her thing, but on him they were sexy beyond comprehension. She traced her fingers lightly over battle scars, some old and many new and tears formed in her eyes as she brushed the newly healing wounds with her lips. She knew he’d taken a terrible beating in Hong Kong, the bruises and stitched up cuts were still fresh on his body. He lifted her chin, brushed her tears with the tips of his fingers and said quietly, “the wounds don’t matter, you’re here now, that’s what matters.”
He fumbled with the buttons on her linen blouse then simply ripped it open, his smoky gaze burning into her until her knees went weak. He lifted her long, dark hair and kissed her neck while she unfastened her bra and let it fall. His fingers stroked her breasts, then his mouth covered a hard, pink nipple, and she cried out as a stab of pleasure shot through her. They began urgently shedding their clothes and kicked off their shoes before he carried her to the small bedroom. He lowered her to the bed and lay with her, she wrapped her arms and legs around him and her hands moved over his finely carved muscles, reveling in the feel.
He watched her face as his delicious mouth moved between her parted legs. She begged him not to, she wanted him in her right that moment but he simply trapped her hands on the bed and said, “not yet, my love.” He licked and taunted the silky folds as she writhed beneath him, he released her hands and moved his fingers to the tight, wet slit and worked a finger inside her. He was always astonished at how incredibly tight she was and even when she was burning with need, he had to go slowly and work to open her.
His mouth and fingers worked their magic and she cried out then, as an orgasm tore through her and he pressed two fingers into her quickly and with force. Her sweet, little pussy clinched and held his fingers as she shuddered and moaned as he moved above her.
Her face was wet with tears and as he kissed them away, then drew his fingers out slowly, stopping so they held her open for his cock to enter. She raised her knees to open herself fully, but still, he was so engorged and aching for her, he didn’t want to plunge forward and hurt her. She began to struggle and thrust her hips against him, her hands on his beautiful, hard ass, forcing his cock into her. He concentrated, trying not to rush as his body wanted; to let her get used to his size, and it was torture to hold back and not take what he’d craved for so long. He pulled out a bit and she was so wet his cock was slick and moved back in more easily. Her hands gripped his hair as he nipped first one erect nipple then the other. The feel of his mouth sent shock after shock to her pussy and as she drenched his massive cock they began to move together. He felt her begin to quake as he went deeper and deeper, she arched against him crying, “Finn, Finn, Finn!” and they exploded together.
Much later, after they had wedged themselves in the tiny shower and nearly flooded the entire bathroom washing each other and laughing like fools, they lay naked, curled as close as humanly possible. There was a single knock at the door and Finn opened it and collected a tray of food and placed it on the bed between them.
Charlotte sat up and lifted the metal cover and was shocked to see plates with filets and fresh steamed vegetables, yeast rolls with herbed butter and chocolate soufflés. “Wow, no wonder the government is going broke, what’s up with the gourmet food? I didn’t think they fed soldiers this well, although they certainly should.”
“I’m not a soldier, my love, I’m a ghost, no one is to acknowledge me, I don’t exist. This food is from the Commanding officer’s private dining room, and these rooms are covert officer’s quarters, there are certain perks to my former job.” He opened a small refrigerator next to the bed and she felt a blast of cold air as he removed a bottle of Grey Goose from the freezer compartment. “To perks!” he said, raising the bottle then pouring two glasses half full.
They toasted and drank, she coughed as it burned its way down her throat, “did you say former job?” she asked, cutting and taking a bite of the tender steak.
“You always said we could be together when I was finished doing… my job, so I quit and I’m done with that life now. Truly, my love, you can’t imagine the things I’ve seen and I wouldn’t want you to. I’ve looked into men’s eyes as they died, they were always so horribly surprised, that’s not something you ever get used to. I was the best at what I did, I’m not bragging, it’s simply a fact.
It came as naturally to me as being brilliant and brave and beautiful is for you. The men I killed were murders on a global scale and they deserved to die, their deaths meant countless innocents would live, that’s how I justified it. When I saw that Jamey Huang had beaten you I was determined to survive so I could destroy every insane, corrupt, power-mad, war monger I could get my hands on. The need was so strong I wanted to use my bare hands, guns and knives wouldn’t get me close enough to a kill any longer. I knew then I’d crossed a line in my head and if I gave in to it I’d be nothing more than a monster. But always, your face was a constant image in my mind and you were the only piece left of my heart, you were my humanity, the need for you was stronger than the beast that threatened to consume me.”
When they left for the airport the next morning she was sore from Finn’s love of her body, and certain of her love for Finn, and she never wanted to be without him again.
CHAPTER TWO
England was like a gift to them, they’d suffered silently as they kept their love hidden; now they could let it shine. First they’d hidden their passion from JP, then from the world as they made love in secret for almost four years, until Charlotte ended it. It nearly ruined them both, the constant need for each other, but Charlotte refused to continue as long as he came home bruised and stitched up and covered with battle scars. If he were a soldier called to duty she could accept it, but he chose to put himself in harm’s way, and only the most dangerous missions satisfied him. So she closed that door in her heart and because he wasn’t able to, he suffered and longed for her, but still he hunted and killed.
Once they landed in London the last thing they wanted was to be closed up in a hotel room. So they piled supplies in a rented Land Rover, drove to the county of Surrey an hour south west of the city and for the first time in her life, Charlotte experienced tent camping.
“You’re so good at this!” Charlotte said as she watched Finn competently erect a large tent.
“Easy as pie, I’m a man of many skills,” he said, taking off his t-shirt and wiping his sweaty face with it.
“Well then, hurry up with the bedroom!” she said and he threw the wet t-shirt at her. She could look at him forever, she thought, his body was such a finely tuned machine. He was six feet two inches of solid muscle and she had the inadvertent bruises to prove it. He didn’t mean to get rough, but he was strong, and God help her, she loved it. He avoided conflict and rarely argued, he was the consummate British gentleman, except in bed. Sex with Finn was intense, and she was digging it more every day.
She watched him as he worked, shirtless, in baggy cargo shorts and work boots. His tattoos were mesmerizing, and combined with the ghosts of knife and bullet wounds, he looked dangerous. His hair was growing out from his former short military cut and it wasn’t as dark as she’d imagined. It was naturally streaked, chestnut brown and it had grown just long enough that he pulled it back into a short ponytail when he worked. His face was simply a miracle, large grey-blue eyes, straight, classic nose and high cheek bones. Of course, his mouth made him impossible to resist, it was so full and red and so fucking sexy. She imagined those incredibly succulent lips on her body and she could feel herself blush.
“For fuck’s sake, my love, are you trying to drive me out of mind?” He said, he was next to her in a flash and covered her mouth with his and pushed her back so she was lying on the picnic table where she’d been sitting. “What were you thinking that made you squirm and blush and completely distract me?” he asked, unbuttoning her shorts and jerking them down roughly as she ran her hands over his steel muscled arms and moaned. “Tell me what you were thinking, my insatiable beauty,” he whispered against her ear, then pressed his lips to her neck as his hands moved under her blouse.
“I was watching you, your mesmerizing chest and back and arms… your hard, rippled stomach… and I was looking at the trail of hair from your stomach down to… ohhhhh God!” she cried in ecstasy as he roughly opened her with his fingers and pushed his cock into her, plunging so deeply it shocked and thrilled her.
Later, when they lay panting and he rested with his head on her chest, he said, “Don’t distract me anymore, my love, or I’ll never finish the damned tent and we’ll have to sleep out in the open with all the wild things.” He stood and buttoned his shorts and bent to kiss her pretty bare pussy before helping her adjust her clothes. “I like our little experiment,” he said and smiled his crooked smile. “I have no idea how we managed it in that tiny bathroom and I suspect it was the half bottle of vodka we drank, but I think I’ll shave you again, out here in the wilds, in the morning.”
“You know Finnegan, you’re as wild as all those filthy little sluts you were always dragging through the loft and using multiple condoms on.” She said, teasing him as he started to turn and go back to his tent building.
He laughed and took her chin in his hand and raised her mouth to his, “you’re the most erotic woman I’ve ever fucked, my love, and the only woman I’ve ever made love to. And it hurt like hell when those nasty little tarts slapped the shit out of me for yelling your name at the strategic moment!” He kissed her with his heartbreakingly beautiful mouth and left her breathless as he went back to work.
Charlotte began to unload the bags from the Land Rover and spilled the contents of her purse on the ground. She cursed as she gathered her things and glanced at her cell phone. It’s battery was nearly dead and she couldn’t remember the last time she used it. Some ‘hell cat’ in the courtroom she’d become, ‘hell cat’ in the bedroom was more like it. Before it went dead she tried to check messages but there was no reception at all in the primeval forests of Surrey.
“Damn,” she muttered, throwing the useless phone back in her purse.
Finn squatted beside her and helped refill her purse, then leaned toward her moving his fingers along her cheek. “What’s wrong, my love, what do you need? The tents up and I’ll unload all this, it’ll only take a minute.”
“My damn phone’s dead and I swear the ridiculous thing wouldn’t get reception if I were strapped to the highest cell tower at the highest point on the planet!” she said, tossing her purse back in the car.
He stood and pulled her up and against him, his eyes were happy, blue-grey and worry free. “Here,” he said, handing her a small cell phone from his pocket, “I guarantee this one can reach the president if you need it to.”
She called her office in San Diego and told Billy Sheridan she was sorry but she would need more time away. He said they all missed her, especially her elegant, lethal style of bloodletting in the courtroom. They all wished her well and were anxiously awaiting the invitations to her wedding. She told him the wedding was off, there’d been a big change of plans and she’d fill him in later. He was speechless and she really couldn’t blame him, what kind of idiot would break off her engagement to Alexander Bly?
The next morning she woke to the smell of tea brewing and as she crawled out of the tent Finn pulled her against him. “Morning, my love, care for a cup of the national beverage of the U.K.?” he said, handing her the cup with a glint in his eye.
She sipped the tea and looked up at him, his hair was tosseled and there was dark stubble on his normally smooth chin. He was the kindest man she’d ever known, strong and gentle and her heart actually fluttered when she looked at him.
“What the hell is that look in your eye, soldier?” she asked, tilting her head to study him.
He urged her to finish her tea as he rubbed his chin and his eyes traveled down her body, she was wearing one of his soft, white under shirts and nothing more.
“We both need a shave,” he said, and he leaned close to kiss her and bury his face in her neck, “I can’t believe the wicked urges you stir in me, my love. I never understood the ‘bare down there’ craze but fuck, Charlotte, shaving your tender little pussy is fucking mind blowing!”
*
They drove through the English countryside and Charlotte was in heaven, the villages with cobbled streets
and little, spired churches at the end of the lane were the definition of enchanting. They stopped in shops with hundreds of brands of tea and tins of biscuits and handmade woolen sweaters and scarves and charming oddities. Charlotte’s meager childhood in Mississippi made England, especially with her British boyfriend, a dream come true.
At the Lion and Lamb Pub, Finn drank dark beer and Charlotte sipped wine. They ate roasted pork with root vegetables and Charlotte said English food was much better than she expected. Finn wanted her to try the lamb chops or rabbit but she said she most certainly would not eat a furry creature whose likeness belonged on a baby blanket.
“We need to make a plan, my love,” Finn said, “as you know from my new passport I’m Phineas Hunter now. So Finn still works as a nickname, but a new identity’s not much camouflage really, if someone wants to kill me they’ll track you and there I’ll be”
“That’s horrible, why would anyone want to kill you, you’re done with all that, you have you’re law degree, isn’t that that what you’ll do now, work as an attorney?”
“Yes, it’s already in the works, I’m getting my license to practice in the U.K., the American Embassy has the process under way, it’s not a big deal. But, there could always be the danger of retribution against me. My identity was highly classified, but Jamey Huang discovered who I was, mainly because I lost my edge at the end, I gave myself away because I wasn’t focused enough.”
“How can that be, Finn, you never make mistakes, I know how you were about your work, you were so fucking focused there was no room for us.”
“Yeah, well that’s ironic, because there not being room for us is what ruined me as a perfect assassin. When you asked me to end my work as an operative and I wouldn’t, even though I was already so fucking in love with you I couldn’t see straight, I just became a machine. You warned me even, you said you couldn’t love me if you were always afraid I’d come back from the other side of the world in a body bag. You asked me to choose you or the job and I thought you would be there when I eventually gave it up. Then you were with Bly and it all went so fast, he consumed you and I began to lose my edge. All I could do was picture you with him and it killed me inside and I started making mistakes, stupid, deadly mistakes.”
