Page 37 of The Hitman
“Feeling better?”
I groan when she nips at my lower lip. My dick aches with the heat radiating from the pussy I filled just this morning.
“I might… if it weren’t for the little ninja sneaking up behind you.”
She twists just in time for Leo to shower us in darts, Al Pacino style.
“Stop being gross!” he hollers.
Our laughter comes easily as we break apart. I grab one of the guns scattered across the yard, working with Callie to hunt the little shit down, and for once, the weapon in my hand doesn’t feel all that heavy.
I’m not fighting an enemy.
I’m not numbing myself from the world around me.
For the first time in my life… I’m letting myselflive.
Chapter Eleven
Callie
Leo’s in rare form today, weaving between fruit stands at the farmer’s market like a sugar-fueled pinball. He’s wearing a Spider Man hoodie that’s two sizes too big, trying to convince us to buy ‘mystery meat’ from a vendor who definitely doesn’t have a permit.
Jaxon’s chuckling under his breath beside me, hood up and his sunglasses on. He still clocks every exit whenever we venture out, still scans every stranger’s face. But in our time together since the incident with Volkov, the edges that kept him in survival mode are gradually softening.
A quiet devotion lingers in the way he watches Leo build Lego towers without correcting him, or when his hand skims my shoulder while we cook together.
That same tenderness shows up at night, when it’s just the two of us, and in those moments, I don’t mind that some of his edges are still there. Especially when he touches me like I’m sacred, then ruins me like I asked him to.
Best of all, Jaxon sleeps hard, without twitching or mumbling to himself. Like he’s finally accepting that we’re safe. And when he slips his fingers through mine, exactly as he’s doing now, then brushes his lips against my temple, it helps me accept it, too.
We gather the rest of the food we need before pausing to watch Leo chat with a woman who has a pen full of puppies.
“Think he’s gonna try to convince us to take one home?” Jaxon asks, amused.
“Without a doubt.” I take the bags from his right hand and arch a brow. “And I’m going to put these in the car while you break the poor kid’s heart.”
His flat expression makes me laugh, but I kiss him, anyway.
“Wait,” he says when I move for the parking lot. His eyes shift from me to the puppy pen. “Let me get Leo, and we’ll go together.”
“It’s okay, warden. I’m not going far.” I place a hand on his shoulder, then nod to the gun at my hip, hidden beneath my shirt. “Besides, you taught me how to use this thing, remember?”
“And you’ve yet to hit a target.” He cocks a brow. “Not exactly reassuring.”
“Uncle Jax! Come check this out!” Leo’s got two pups in his arms, grinning from ear to ear as they wiggle and whine while licking his cheeks.
Jaxon appears torn between normal life and his covert operative programming.
“I’ll be fine,” I assure him.
“Come right back,” he says before giving me a swift kiss.
“You know I like it when you use that tough guy tone on me.”
“I do.” He spins me toward the parking lot, his smirk brushing my ear. “Now do me a favor and follow it for once.”
My heart practically glows all the way to the car, and there’s no sense in denying it any longer…
