Justin pressed a kiss to the tender flesh behind Gabriel’s ear before he carefully withdrew from his body and climbed off the bed. “Come on, G Love. Quick shower.”
Gabriel groaned, immediately missing Justin’s warmth and the weight of his body pushing him down into the mattress. He was tired and his body was finally relaxed. He didn’t want to move.
Justin flicked on one of the small lamps on his way to the bathroom. Gabriel blinked and lazily smiled to see the delicious curve of Justin’s ass before he disappeared into the next room. A quick, hot shower and then he’d be back, wrapped around Justin.
With a grunt, Gabriel climbed out of bed, stepped around the dogs sprawled across the floor, and into the bathroom, where Justin was already heating up the water. Justin glanced over his shoulder and grinned at him.
“What?”
“You.” His voice had that warm and husky tone that was as intoxicating as a shot of aged whiskey. “You’ve got that ‘I was just fucked within an inch of my life’ look.”
“Funny how that’s exactly what happened.” Gabriel glanced in the mirror to find his dark hair standing up in every direction, and there was a rosy glow to his face. His lips even looked a little puffy from kissing, though they hadn’t done nearly enough of that yet.
Justin’s hand wrapped around his wrist, pulling him toward the open shower door. “Get in here.”
Gabriel let Justin manhandle him into the small stall so that he was facing the spray. The temperature of the water was just right. Justin had gotten so damn good at knowing all the little things Gabriel liked. The bigger shower in the other bathroom was going to be nice, but it would mean Justin didn’t have to be pressed right up against him.
A soft sigh slipped from Gabriel and he stood under the pounding spray, soaking in the heat. Moments later, Justin’s soapy hands started wandering over his body, massaging muscles and cleaning away sweat and cum.
“There’s no Boogie Man,” Justin said. Gabriel tensed and straightened from where he’d been leaning forward with his hands braced on the tile wall in front of him. Justin wrapped his arms around him from behind, his lips pressed against his spine. “I don’t mean it to sound teasing or condescending. I’m serious. There’s no one out there waiting to get us because of who I am or what I do.”
“But what about when you were with the CIA? Or the military?”
Gabriel could feel Justin give a little shrug. “As long as I keep my distance from Russia and Eastern Europe, the CIA doesn’t care about me. Military cares even less.”
“What about your family?”
“They don’t care.”
It didn’t make sense to him. Pieces weren’t fitting together.
Gently taking Justin’s hands in his, Gabriel pulled them away from his chest and carefully turned in the shower so that he was facing Justin. He was stunned that Justin was purposefully avoiding his eyes. But he didn’t think the man was lying. If he wanted to lie, he could do it and meet Gabriel’s gaze. They were both expert liars. Occupational hazard. This was more like…he was embarrassed or ashamed.
“Then why won’t you tell me about your childhood or your family?” Gabriel reached up and cupped the side of Justin’s face. He placed his thumb under his jaw, forcing him to meet his eyes. “I’ve tried to be patient, but I’m scared of some unknown destroying what we have just as we’re getting started.”
Justin’s expression softened and Gabriel was sure he was going to drown in the love he could see in those beautiful eyes.
“I’m not hiding a threat from you, I swear, G Love.” Justin dropped his eyes and took a deep breath. He slowly released it, keeping his eyes on a point somewhere over Gabriel’s shoulder. “Maybe I haven’t told you about my past because there really is nothing to tell. I’m no one.”
“I don’t believe that. You’re everything to me,” Gabriel said fiercely.
Justin’s eyes jumped up to Gabriel’s face again for a second, filled with gratitude. “And you’re my everything. But I’m not Viktor Krestyanov, the boy born and bred to be the crown prince of the Russian KGB. Nor was I the man destined to take down the KGB.”
Gabriel fought not to wince at Justin’s mention of his birth name and past. It was another life. This one he chose to make with Justin.
“Maybe not, but I recall you taking a pretty big part in that.”
“Just glad to help.” Justin brushed his thumb across Gabriel’s lower lip and smiled. “I’m a nobody farm boy from Idaho who has done some interesting things with his life.”
“I don’t believe you’re a nobody, but I believe you when you say your past isn’t going to come for us,” Gabriel murmured, loving the feel of Justin’s thumb against his lips as he spoke. He wanted him to never stop touching him.
“Thank you. I’ll try to tell you more but really, there isn’t anything to tell.”
Gabriel kissed him slowly, again and again, until the last of the tension slipped from Justin’s body, and they were leaning heavily against each other. They stayed in the shower, washing and caressing until the water started to run cold. Gabriel worried that Justin felt like he was somehow less important when he compared his past to Gabriel’s dark but privileged upbringing, so he showed with every kiss and touch that the man in his arms was the only one he’d ever want.
When they finally fell into bed that night, Gabriel slipped into a deep, dreamless sleep, finally at peace that they had their life together ahead of them.
Chapter 3
Justin groaned and tried to turn away from the hand persistently shaking his shoulder. It was early. It had to be so damn early. Too early to be awake. Where the hell was Gabriel? Wasn’t his body supposed to be pressed up against his, keeping him deliciously warm and cozy?
“Justin, wake up.” Gabriel’s voice sounded groggy and rough as if he’d just woken as well.
“No. Tell the dogs to pee on the floor,” he groaned. He reached out and grabbed for the covers, trying to pull them up and over his head. The dogs shouldn’t need to go out, but he didn’t want to get up yet. It had to be four in the morning.
“It’s Marilyn.”
“Then tell her to pee on the floor. I don’t care,” he said, but it was too late. Just the mention of her name had his brain flipping on. Marilyn had been his contract handler for several years and despite both he and Gabriel saying that they didn’t want to be mercenaries anymore, the damn woman still managed to convince them to take jobs.
Of course, now the jobs were a little more particular than they used to be. There had even been a few where they took the other side of the contract and protected the target from a wrongful death. Those were definitely among the non-paying sort and didn’t come along too often.
Justin rolled toward Gabriel and opened his eyes to find a cell phone thrust into his face. He blinked and was surprised by the light trickling into the room. Not four a.m., then.
“What time is it?” he asked as he accepted Gabriel’s cell phone.
“Six,” Gabriel mumbled. He pushed to his feet and made a little clicking sound with his tongue that immediately got the dogs to their feet. “I’ll let the pups out and start the coffee.”
“Why does it feel so early?”
Gabriel paused and gave him a sleepy grin. “Because you woke up horny at three this morning and decided we had to do something about it.”
“Oh yeah,” Justin said on a happy sigh. Sex that time had been slower, a languid exploration of their bodies until they were both panting and trembling with the need to come.
A disgusted female groan assaulted Justin’s ear. “I’ll be happy when you are both out of this honeymoon, newlywed phase.”
“You’re in for a very long wait, I think,” Justin said with a smile. “We’re just getting settled in.”
He stretched in bed, sliding his toes along the soft sheets. They were Gabriel’s, and he had to admit that he was glad his lover appreciated the finer things in life. These damn sheets were sinfully soft and silky. T
hey left him feeling like he should linger in bed.
“Speaking of settling in,” he continued before Marilyn could speak. “You realize that we’re not living on the East Coast any longer. There’s a two-hour time difference between us.”
“Yes, and I waited as long as I dared, which was probably too damn long.”
“Sure, but I thought we said that we were going to take some time off. We’re about to destroy one of the bathrooms, and that’s going to take days to get right again. And that’s assuming Gabriel has a clue about how to use a hammer. The landscaping outside is starting to look a little wild and untamed too. I thought we’d take a weed whacker to that as well. You know, normal, homeowner-type shit.”
“Yes, yes,” Marilyn replied irritably. “I get that you want to try your hand at being Suzie Homemaker, but Devlin Relic isn’t going to make it on his own much longer if you and Gabriel don’t step in. Particularly since Kai is on his tail.”
Justin shoved back the covers and swung his legs over the side of the bed. Marilyn had his full attention now. He had no clue as to who Devlin Relic was, but he was well aware of Kai and his reputation. Gabriel had been called the Reaper for several years as he boasted an impressive record of getting his targets and never being seen. Kai was often referred to as Ghost in their circles. Like Gabriel, he always got his target, but he seemed to manage to get them when they were in highly secure locations, as if he passed through the walls.
Justin had never knowingly met the man, but then mercenaries and assassins didn’t meet up once a year at a seaside resort for cocktails and conference panels on the latest techniques and marketing. Justin knew Kai only by reputation. The man was good. And from what he’d heard, Kai never seemed to take a contract that Justin would pass on for moral reasons; he had his own lines in the sand and stuck to them.
“Fuck,” Justin grumbled. Placing the phone in the crook of his neck, he quickly jerked on some sleep pants before trudging to the kitchen.
“Oh, so now I have your attention? Is it Relic or Kai?”
“It’s that you’ve got this insane idea that I lie awake at night dreaming of ways to come between Kai and his target. That shit is suicidal. Particularly at six in the freaking morning.”
“What’s suicidal?” Gabriel asked as Justin reached the kitchen. His lover was pouring water into the coffeemaker, and both cats were weaving in and out of his legs.
“You heard of Kai?” Justin asked.
Gabriel quickly looked away, busying himself with finishing the coffee prep, but not before Justin caught a small widening of his eyes and a slight blush staining his cheeks. “I’m aware of him.”
Exactly how well acquainted were the two assassins? Oh, he was following up on this tidbit later. Gabriel’s words said one thing, but his body language hinted at something entirely different.
Justin lowered the phone and thumbed it over to the speaker so both he and Gabriel could hear Marilyn. “All right, Marilyn. You’ve got us up and somewhat conscious. Tell us about this Devlin Relic and why someone wants him dead.”
“Devlin Relic is an accomplished materials engineer. Without going into heavy detail on his research, it is believed that he is close to developing the key to removing the world’s dependence on all fossil fuels within the next few years.”
“And I’m guessing someone wants him dead,” Gabriel murmured. He reached over his head and pulled down a couple of mugs.
“The oil industry alone was valued between seventy-five trillion and eighty-seven trillion dollars last year,” Marilyn countered, sounding as if she wanted to smack Gabriel on the back of the head. “That’s a lot of reasons to want someone dead.”
“And Relic’s research will likely prove to be more efficient and healthier for the environment in general,” Justin added.
He placed the phone on the counter and walked to the fridge. He pulled out the french vanilla creamer and handed it over to Gabriel, who paused long enough for a kiss. Yeah, Justin was enjoying their morning routine, even if Marilyn did drag them out of bed much earlier than he would have preferred.
“Nearly everything is at this point.”
“So, evil Kai has accepted a contract on this poor scientist who is just trying to save the world, and we need to intercede. Tell Kai to back off while the scientist finishes his work. Maybe even take down the giant evil corporation that is trying to have him killed,” Justin said in a list that left him feeling exhausted before he even finished. He looked up to see Gabriel scrub a hand over his face and mutter something under his breath in Russian that wasn’t in the least complimentary for Marilyn. “Darlin’,” Justin said in his best southern drawl, “I don’t know if you’ve forgotten, but we’re just a two-man team. Not the Justice League. We’re also retired for the most part and—”
“Relic is also on the run with his six-year-old son.”
“Son of a bitch!” Justin shouted and Gabriel chuckled.
They both knew they were on the hook now. It was one thing to go after an innocent man trying to do something good for the world, but to put his kid in danger too? That was just crossing too many damn lines.
“The contract doesn’t include the boy, correct?” Gabriel asked.
“No, there’s no mention of the kid,” Marilyn replied.
“Does Kai know about the boy?”
Justin automatically shook his head to Gabriel’s question. He didn’t really know a damn thing about the man, but there had been some other shitty contracts out there that Kai never touched. He wanted to believe that this accomplished mercenary wouldn’t put a kid in danger like that.
“I don’t believe so. But this contract doesn’t look like it’s some corporate hit.” Marilyn paused and sighed heavily. “Relic’s husband was killed about a year ago. It initially looked like a car accident, but it was later revealed that someone tampered with the car. Because of Relic’s highly mechanical background, he was the first suspect. The police cleared him quickly, but the killer was never found.”
“The contract was made to look like it’s someone from his husband’s family wanting justice,” Gabriel concluded.
“Okay, so we’ve got a grieving widower framed for murder and now on the run with his kid. From Kai’s perspective, he’s getting the family some justice and maybe saving a kid if he does know about him.” Justin leaned against the counter closest to the phone and folded his arms over his chest. “How do you know this is bullshit and Kai doesn’t?”
“You mean other than the fact that his handler is potentially an idiot?” Marilyn sniped.
Gabriel rolled his eyes and Justin snorted. “Yes, other than that,” Gabriel said.
“I traced the money involved.”
“Naturally,” Justin said on a chuckle. Marilyn had no problem helping people out and protecting the little guy, but for her, the money always came first.
“Shove it, Justin,” Marilyn snapped. She cleared her throat and continued. “Devlin’s husband, Adam Schiller, came from an upper-middle-class family. They are comfortable, but even if they sold everything they had and borrowed from their friends, I don’t think they could come up with the money behind this contract.”
“How much?”
“Twenty-seven million.”
“Holy shit,” Justin swore.
“Either Kai or his handler took the contract at face value and pushed it through because of the payday,” Gabriel said.
“There’s a good chance of that.”
“You got any useful details like their potential direction or how long Relic has been on the run?” Justin asked. His plans for spending some quality time with Gabriel working on their house and building their life together were obviously going to be pushed aside for a while. It wasn’t Marilyn’s fault. This was exactly the kind of situation he wanted Marilyn to bring to their attention. It was just that the timing was less than ideal.
“It looks like Relic and his son disappeared off the grid about seven weeks ago. Kai officially accepted the contract
three days ago. He’s got a head start on you. Relic was last spotted in Montana. That’s not too far from your current location.”
Even with their somewhat close proximity, Kai had a dangerous lead on them. It didn’t bode well for Devlin Relic.
“Send us everything you’ve got and keep us updated. We should be on the road before noon today,” Gabriel instructed, and Justin simply smiled at him. He couldn’t have said it better himself.
“The first packet of information is already in your emails. I’ll have more sent over before you reach Montana.” Marilyn hung up, likely to jump on additional research that would hopefully get Justin and Gabriel ahead of Kai.
“You know Kai,” Justin said confidently.
Gabriel huffed and turned to the coffeemaker where he poured coffee into both mugs. “That’s what you focus on from that entire conversation? We have tons of prep to do. I’m not sure what we’ve still got packed from the last job. We need to contact Jess and see if she can keep the dogs again on such short notice.”
Justin walked over and wrapped his arms around Gabriel’s waist, pulling him so that he was pressed to Justin’s chest. He pressed his lips against his bare shoulder, kissing up to his neck. “You’re embarrassed. I think I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve seen you embarrassed.”
“Ashamed actually,” Gabriel corrected in a low voice. He replaced the carafe on the warming plate and put both hands flat on the counter in front of him. “It was in London several years ago. I was in a dark place between jobs. It was the anniversary of Ivan’s murder. I was out and spotted this guy. Something about the way he moved. Glided through the crowd. Had a way of just disappearing. I followed him. Figured I’d flip a coin. Heads, I’d kill him. Tails, I’d fuck him.”
Justin pressed his mouth against Gabriel’s shoulder, letting him feel the smile on his lips before he spoke. “I’m guessing it came up tails.”
“After a long night of cat and mouse, I found myself pinned face first against the wall behind some shops, getting thoroughly fucked. I was sure he was going to kill me when he was done. I wanted him to,” he finished at a whisper.
The Exit Strategy Bundle Page 49
