Page 38 of Killer Kiss

That’s exactly how a marriage to Riddick would be.

But working with him was entirely different. I understood my mother’s need for our families to merge. But he and I weren’t about to become some sort of duo.

I was a solo act.

I always would be.

“Then what’s the holdup?” Mom asked with an exasperated sigh. “This is a nothing job that should have taken twenty-four hours at most. I think Riddick is right about you. Maybe you’ve passed your peak.”

My mouth dropped open. “Are you fucking serious? I’m thirty-three! Not eighty!”

She sniffed. “Well, prove us wrong. Get the job done.”

“Not until you tell me who ordered it.”

I could practically hear her rolling her eyes and I almost didn’t blame her. This wasn’t done. The only things I ever knew about a target were what was in the job bag. Anything more was a liability.

She clucked her tongue impatiently. “You know I can’t tell you that. What if you were caught, Ophelia?”

“I wouldn’t talk.”

“You think that, but everyone has a tipping point where self-preservation kicks in. We can’t have you just running your mouth because someone stuck pins beneath your fingernails. We promise our clients that level of security.”

But I was desperate enough to beg. I just needed her to tell me Augie wasn’t a good guy. That the way he cared about Fawn was irrelevant because he stole from charities or flashed families in parks. Just one thing that would make it easier to put a knife in his back. “Break the rules, Mom. Just this once. Please.”

She paused, and for the tiniest of seconds, I thought she was going to do it. But then a deep voice came from her end, muffled but gruff, and Mom’s breathing quickened.

“Mom?” I asked again.

“I have to go, Ophelia. Riddick is here. I’m giving him the other job bag. If you haven’t finished yours by the time he finishes this one, he’s coming to help you.”

“Mom!” I snapped.

Her voice lowered. “No, don’t ‘Mom’ me. You’re embarrassing me. You’re being as useless as Fawn right now.”

She hung up.

“Fuck!” I slammed my fist down on the steering wheel. I needed to work out what was going on with Augie, and it needed to happen tonight.

His door opened, and he walked out onto the porch, another set of flyers in his arms. Early winter sun filtered through the handful of leaves still desperately clinging to their branches. It lit him up in golden hues, glinting in the highlights of his hair and kissing the chiseled slopes of his too-handsome face. His usual scowl was firmly in place, like he hated the world and everything in it, but it somehow only made him more attractive.

My insides clenched when he looked this way, but if he noticed my car, he didn’t give any indication. I breathed a sigh of relief as he disappeared down the road in the opposite direction.

There was no time for messing around anymore. I didn’t even have the luxury of waiting for darkness. I reached across and pulled a couple of small electronic devices from the glove box, then got out of the car, locking it behind me because I’d learned enough about this neighborhood in the last few days to know it probably wouldn’t be here when I got back if I didn’t.

I didn’t like the sunlight. I ached for the cover of darkness, but I had days at best before Riddick would be hovering over my shoulder again, and if he knew Augie was the target, then I might as well just put a bullet between Augie’s eyes now.

It would be kinder than what Riddick would do if he caught Augie alone.

I strode down the street like I owned it, heels clicking over the cracked pavement. If I’d known I’d be doing this today, I might have opted for jeans and sneakers rather than heels I could break my ankle in. But I’d put on smart pants and a blazer this morning, with a top that cut low, showing off a healthy amount of cleavage.

I’d spent all morning trying to ignore the thought that I’d dressed this way for him. In case he noticed me sitting there, watching.

That was ridiculous. I didn’t dress for men. Ever. These clothes made me feel like a boss bitch. That was more than enough reason to put them on in the morning.

My brain whispered that I was full of shit, but I refused to listen.

I raised a hand in greeting when the two old ladies playing cards stopped to stare at me. “Afternoon, ladies. Who’s winning?”

---