Page 7 of Deadly Holiday Kiss

"This is none of your business," she snaps.

"It is when my target is involved."

"Wait, you’re here to kill him?" she asks, raising her brows and lowering her hands.

"Yes. I would greatly appreciate it if you would leave the room now so that I can do my job."

"No."

"What?"

"I'm the one who's going to kill him and you're not going to stop me."

"Too bad, because that's not going to happen."

"I don't care. I need it for the colo— hey!" she bursts out as something leaps out of the corner of my eye and dashes past me toward the door, grabs the handle, flings it open, and takes off running.

"Fuck." I grit my teeth and spin on my heels, chasing after the man. The clicking of heels follows as Harlee takes after us as well.

All his pleas to the passersby to help him fall on deaf ears as they avoid him. No one will help him no matter how much he begs. This is the fun part of the night. You get to kill in the open, in front of everyone's eyes. The exception is the main event hall. But only the killers know that. Not the regular attendees. Each job was previously approved by the Bratva themselves, and like every year, we get a rule book so they can keep track of how many deaths are happening tonight and regulate what happens to some degree. And a little hunting? Is not prohibited. If anything, welcome, as it serves as entertainment for the unhinged.

My soles thunder against the marble as I climb the stairs when I'm suddenly stopped by a weight crashing into my back, arms flying around my neck, causing me to topple forward, barely catching myself on my hands to keep myself from falling.

"Got you, bastard!" she snarls, hissing the S in my ear as her forearm crushes my Adam's apple, forcing it back into my throat. I choke and gasp for air, my vision quickly blurring as I try to shake her off, but she’s already letting go, sliding off me and continuing to run, leaving me behind.

Goddamn it, she is fast, and that is on heels. Pushing forward, I trail behind her as she takes another flight of stairs that, instead of leading to the event hall, lead to the balconies overlooking it. At the top of the stairs, I throw my arms around her waist. "Stay out of my way," I growl in her ear. "Or I'll kill you too." I shove her aside.

"In your dreams," she cries.

"Baby, in my dreams you are on your knees sucking my cock like a good slut."

"Great," she replies with a smirk, "let me turn that dream into a nightmare and bite it off," she exclaims, pushing herself back to her feet and continuing to chase after our target. I immediately go after her, shoving her out of the way, but come to a halt at a corner leading into a hallway with no other exits. The sound of hurried footsteps catches up with me and I grit my teeth. I don't even have to turn around to know who it is when I suddenly stagger forward as a weight slams into my back again.

"Where the hell is he?" she asks, stepping beside me.

"I have no fucking idea," I pant, my eyes darting around the hallway as I continue down it with slow steps.

"You lost him," she points out, her fist slamming into my shoulder.

"You lost sight of him too, not just me." I roll my eyes.

"You were right behind him." She shoves past me, and on instinct, I grab her arm, squeezing the slender limb between my fingers as I whip her around and slam her against the wall, caging her.

"You should have stayed out of my way, then none of this would have happened," I warn her, to which she snorts, tearing at her arm.

"He is mine! Perhaps you should have stayed out of my way, then he would be dead already and not running like a spooked deer."

My lips quirk and I tilt my head. "You think you're faster than me, Harlee?"

"I know I am," she purrs. "After all, I’m the one that already had him." Her lips part in a teasing grin, her head tilting back to meet my eyes.

"Careful," I warn, but my voice has lost its edge, softening as I meet her gaze. "You make it sound like a competition."

"Isn't it?" she croons, shifting a little closer, the warmth of her body brushing against mine. "And I thought you might like a little competition."

"Maybe you need to learn your place," I say, my voice dropping as I take another step, close enough now to feel the heat increasing between us. "You're playing with fire, Harlee. And I don't like being challenged."

She doesn’t back down, her lips remaining stretched into a smirk. "I love a man with a big ego— makes it so much more fun to put him inhis place."

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