Page 9 of Hitman's Prize

“Where will you be going?” I shouldn’t care, but I’m assuming I won’t see him again by tomorrow morning unless we continue to drag this trip out.

“Texas,” he admits without even trying to keep it secret.

“Yeah, I bet they have nice weather all year round. I wouldn’t mind Texas.” Throwing in a pack of toothbrushes, I move on to find a hairbrush. It’s going to take a good hour to brush out all of the knots in my hair. The pack of hair ties I grabbed next will help avoid any tangling in the future.

Javier doesn’t say anything after that, not until I have moved all the way across the store to pick out a package of underwear. At that point, he looks away, distracting himself with anything else. Well, I’m going to need a bra too. He’ll have to look away for a while.

“You’d really want to be stuck with me for the entire trip? I can cut our time together by half easily if you’d want to stay anywhere else.”

I take a look at a lacy bra and my cheeks burn. “I mean, why would I want to go somewhere alone when I can stick with a guy who knows how to protect himself?”

One look at Javier and any threat would make a run for it. He might think I’d be satisfied with his protection through only the duration of the trip.

Honestly, with the kind of treatment I’ve already received, I’m not sure I’d mind if we extended our time together even longer.

Turns out, I’m greedier than I originally thought.

Javier

The longer this angel stays at my side, the more I want to keep her. She’s not making it any easier to fight the urge.

She’s wearing my clothes like they’re her own. My eyes drift over in her direction every few seconds. Keeping only a foot between us, I’m hovering over the poor woman. She probably thinks I’m trying to stop her from running.

Honestly, I don’t think Sammy has any intentions to run. From the way she’s talking, I’m not sure if I’m going to be able to unstick her from my side. Going through my belongings, I know she found my other gun. She could’ve used it against me for fucks sake.

Am I really going to take her home? I want to. Fuck, Ireallywant to.

I need sleep. A clear mind can help me think. Maybe I’ll realize how terrible of an idea it is to take her to the one spot where someone can find me. It’s a weakness that I’m unable to see at the moment.

“Let’s wrap this up,” I encourage her when we make it to a section of shoes. Refusing to take off my thick socks, she shoves her feet in a few to see if they fit.

Once more, I’m looking at her. From her hair down to her legs. I’m not someone who has a type, not that I’m aware of anyway. But Sammy is changing that every minute I’m stuck with her. Blond hair and big brown eyes are all it takes for me to go crazy.

“These will do,” she mumbles to herself as she kicks the pair off. Into the cart they go and we’re finally off. Checking out upfront, we use the self-checkout to avoid any unwanted conversations.

“Do you want to get dressed?” I ask when we reach the sliding door. There’s a bathroom not too far away and I’m sure she’d feel comfortable in more fitting clothes.

Sammy looks down at herself before giving me a lifted brow.

“I’m alright, thank you. Let’s get back on the road.” Not even batting an eye, she carries some of the bags toward the truck.

Cursing under my breath, I follow after her.

I don’t care that she’s stolen my clothes. Looking at her as much as I have,that’sthe problem.

I’m a grown man. I should be able to keep my eyes to myself.

We throw mostly everything in the back. Sammy’s quick to tear through the packaging of the hairbrush and hair ties. Once we’re back on the road, she works on brushing through her hair. Her cheeks are flushed as she cradles a thick strand.

“So what’s in Texas?” she asks before grunting.

“Nothing I’m interested in. It’s just warm and the place I’m going is quiet.” Getting back on the highway, I keep my eyes forward. Her hair is going to be all over my truck.

I’m a bastard for automatically wondering how much of her DNA is all over already.

“Paint me a picture. Give me an idea of where we’re going.”

I hate the way my chest stirs at the way she sayswe’re.It’s like I don’t even have a choice in the matter anymore. She’s coming with me whether I like it or not.