Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Two

Sloan stepped out of the truck and looked around. The ferry had deposited them onto Orcas Island, and they’d left the quaint little town around the dock behind, driving into the thick trees. It had almost been possible to forget they were on an island at all, but Jude had taken a turn and suddenly the Sound was there, the water dark and fathomless, and similar enough to the ocean at Callaway Rock to make her heart ache.

She forced her gaze away from the water to take in the house. It wasn’t extravagant by any means, but there was something charming about it all the same. The thick wooden timbers created a worn look that could have been built five years ago or a hundred, and the front door was oversized with a giant iron knocker. She shot a look at Jude, only to find him watching her. “What?”

“I’ve never brought anyone here before.” He led the way to the front door and unlocked it, holding it open for her. “Stay here.”

She started to ask why, but then it hit her that he was likely going to sweep the house. Sloan nodded and wrapped her arms around herself. She knew how to shoot—in theory. Teague had dragged her and their other sisters out to a range a few times, but the gun he’d tried to convince Sloan was a good fit for her had felt cold and alien in her hands. She didn’t like guns. They were part of the world—of her world—but she didn’t want anything to do with them.

She wished she’d paid more attention now.

Standing there while she listened for Jude’s footsteps, she felt worse than useless. She took a step further into the hallway, looking around. The place didn’t seem like a house that had been abandoned for months on end. There was no dust, and the whole room smelled faintly of evergreen. She inhaled deeply, taking in the big leather couches arranged around a massive river rock fireplace. The mantel looked like driftwood and sturdy enough for her to use it to scale the wall if she was so inclined.

Large windows took up the walls at the front and back of the house, giving a plain view of Jude’s truck and of the water. There wasn’t a beach, the ground dropping off sharply, though she wouldn’t know what kind of drop it would be without going outside to investigate.

“Sloan.”

She turned to find him at the bottom of the stairs. “It’s clear?”

“No one’s been here but the local woman I have come in every couple of weeks to clean. Her family has lived on the island for a couple generations and she’s got no ties to any of my enemies, though I monitor the situation.”

He would. Even without taking his family into account, being a hit man would generate enemies. It had to. “How does it work?” She motioned in a general direction. “The killing people thing.”

Jude raised an eyebrow. “‘The killing people thing’?”

“Don’t do that. Don’t patronize me. It’s a perfectly legitimate question.”

“I didn’t say it wasn’t.” He rubbed a hand over his face. “It’s a business transaction. I have an in-between man who accepts the jobs, and then I double-check the target and the information—no innocents under any circumstances. If I’m satisfied, I accept payment—seventy-five percent up front, the remainder after the kill is confirmed.”

It seemed so cold, but then she supposed it’d have to be. A hit man was the very definition of distanced and icy—to be any other way was to invite mistakes and an inevitably short lifespan as a result. “How many?”

“Do you really want to know?”

She started to say yes, and then stopped and thought about it. Would it make a difference? The facts of their meeting and the gray area that represented their future weren’t affected in the least by how many people he’d killed. It felt almost like asking a lover how many partners they’d had—something she most certainly would not ask Jude. The past mattered only in reference to the present. “I suppose it doesn’t matter.”

“I’ve killed enough people to get good at it. I’m one of the best.”

“Do you like it?”

“I won’t spin some bullshit fairy tale about how they all deserved killing. Some did, some didn’t, but they all did something to earn the contract on their lives. I don’t love it, but I don’t lose sleep at night, either. I’m not a good man, sunshine. I’m one of the worst the world has to offer. Don’t try to make me some hero.”

Was that what he really thought?

She lifted her chin. “Well, I’m not exactly a blushing innocent, either. If I were the precious good girl you seem to think I am, I would have done something to stop all the hurt my family caused, even if it meant turning them over to the authorities. I know where the books are kept. I know where some of the bodies are buried. I could have. I didn’t. Sitting passively by might not make me a full-fledged monster, but I’m not a saint, either. So stop expecting me to flinch away from you or faint into a dainty puddle at your feet.”

“Strip.”

She blinked. “I’m sorry, what?”

“You’ve convinced me.” He didn’t grin; his expression didn’t so much as give a flicker of warmth. “Take off that tease of a sundress or I’m going to rip it off like I did the last one.”

Her body went warm and then hot, her legs shaking a little, her nipples pebbling against the thin fabric of her dress. One sentence was all it took and her body readied itself for him. She pressed her lips together, considering. “How much property around the house do you own?”

“I own half the island.” He narrowed his eyes. “Why?”

Maybe it was the darkness making her bold, or the fact that he was here and sharing bits of himself in a way he never had before. Or maybe she was just a little wilder than she could have dreamed. She took a step back, and then another, shrugging her dress off one shoulder.

He tracked her movement, his whole body going still like a predator about to pounce. “You’re playing games.”

“Yes.” She inched her dress off her other shoulder and it fell to her hips. A slight shimmy and she was left in only her panties. She reached the door, hooking her thumbs in the band and pushing them down. “I am.”

And then she ran.

*  *  *

Jude gave Sloan a five-second head start—not because he was being generous, but because he couldn’t believe she’d just stripped and then run away. He made it to the door in time to catch sight of her pale skin disappearing into the trees surrounding the house. His cock went so hard, it was a wonder he didn’t pass the fuck out.

He’d never stuck with a woman long enough for her to figure out what made him tick. He’d never wanted to. He was more than capable of getting off whomever he was with and getting himself off in the bargain. Doing more—wanting more—had never entered into the equation.

Fuck, if someone had asked him if he got off on the idea of chasing a naked woman through the woods, he would have said no—said hell no. But then, he’d never put much thought into that sort of thing.

Now he was.

Jude stalked after Sloan, purposefully letting her get a little distance on him. He knew these woods. This was one of the places he came after a job to unwind and center himself before he was fit for polite society again. He had a house in Florida and another in Maine, but this was the one he preferred. It was quiet. Peaceful.

He didn’t feel the least bit peaceful right now.

Sloan let loose a breathless laugh and he started to jog, loping after her. He half expected her to pause and taunt him, but she caught sight of him over her shoulder and picked up her pace. She’s going to make me work for it.

Good.

He raced after her, closing the distance easily despite the fact she was moving at a good clip. “Little tease, aren’t you?”

She dove sideways, his fingertips barely brushing her long hair as she changed directions. He grabbed a tree trunk, using it to slingshot his way after her, not losing any momentum in the process. Jude snagged her around the waist, rolling as they fell so she landed on top of him.

Sloan wiggled and fought, getting half out of his grasp before he rolled again, pinning her against the forest floor. Her dark eyes were alight with mischief and she let loose a laugh that made his heart actually skip a beat.

“Submit, sunshine.”

“Never.” She bit his shoulder.

He wrenched her arms over her head and shifted his hips until he was between her thighs. “You’re not going anywhere, you little hellion.” He thrust against her, liking the way her eyes slid half-closed. “But you don’t want to, do you? You want me to fuck you right here in the dirt like an animal.”

She thrashed and a little moan slipped free. “That’s not what I want.”

“You sure about that?” He shifted her wrists to a single hand and reached between them with the other to stroke her. “You’re awfully fucking wet for something you don’t want.” Jude dragged his mouth up her throat. “I like this game. So unless you tell me to stop right this fucking second, I’m going to take you here.”

He lifted his head to find her lips pressed together, her expression daring him to put his money where his mouth was. She knew he’d do it. He’d bet she was counting on it.

“That’s what I thought.” He kissed her, thrusting his tongue into her mouth and groaning when she met him every step of the way, kissing him so hard, their teeth clinked together. It didn’t matter. Nothing mattered but how hot and sweet she was in his arms and the fact she was his.

He stopped fucking her with his fingers to unbutton his jeans and work them off his hips enough to free his cock. He dragged the head through her wetness and up over her clit, watching her face the entire time. “You like that. Fuck, you love it. You love that I chased you, that anyone could be walking in these woods and see that hot little body of yours, to see me about to fuck you until you scream for me.” He circled her clit with his cock.

“Yes.” She arched her back, shoving her breasts against him. “I love everything you do to me.”

He liked that she didn’t even try to deny it. In fact, he fucking loved that Sloan had no qualms about meeting him every step of the way from their very first time. Jude notched his cock at her entrance and shoved into her, sheathing himself to the hilt. He took her hard, thrusting until her breasts bounced and she moaned every time he slammed into her cervix. Nothing else mattered but the woman beneath him and the pursuit of their mutual pleasure.

Can’t get enough of her.

Don’t even want to try.

He let go of her wrists and put his hand on the ground to get better leverage and cursed when a rock damn near sliced the shit out of his palm. Jude froze. What the hell was I thinking? He sat back, taking her with him, already touching her back before he got settled, feeling for any cuts. “Are you okay?”

“Don’t you dare. I’m fine.” She lifted herself almost completely off his cock and slammed down. “I’m about to come, Jude. Don’t stop.”

Holy fuck, this woman is something else.

“Leave you wanting? Never.” He looped an arm around her waist and captured her left nipple in his mouth, flicking it with his tongue in the way he knew she liked. She shuddered and picked up her pace.

“Harder.” She yanked on his hair, pulling him closer.

He lifted his head and looked at her. Her eyes were wild, her pale skin streaked with dirt, her dark hair tangled with leaves. She was like a forest nymph, more at one with the nature around them than with the civilization they’d left behind. He tightened his grip, preventing her from moving over him. “Harder.”

“That’s what I said.” She tried to roll her hips and hissed out a breath when he wouldn’t let her. “If you’re not going to do it, at least have the decency to hold still and let me do it.”

He pinched her nipple, just enough to hurt. “You’re not in charge here, sunshine.”

“Then act like it.”

Enough. He lifted her off him, took a quick glance around, and stood. He didn’t give her a chance to snarl at him again, pulling her half-off her feet and slamming her hands onto a nearby tree. “You want me to fuck you. Hard.”

“Yes.”

He pulled off his shirt, needing to feel her skin against his, and covered her from behind, his chest against her back. There were scratches there, just like he suspected. He ignored them. “You want me to fuck you hard.”

“Stop saying it and do it.”

He grabbed the back of her neck and bent her forward. “To make it hurt. To make you feel alive.” He slammed into her, hard enough that she had to catch herself on the tree, her fingers digging into the bark. She moaned, so he did it again. “I love the sound you make when my cock is buried deep inside you. It’s helpless and needy for something only I can give you.” He slammed into her again, reaching around to stroke her clit, alternating the little circles with a pinch that made her entire body go tight. “Your tight little pussy makes me crazy. You make me crazy.” He thrust deep, timing it with another light pinch of her clit, and she went wild around him. “That’s right, sunshine. Come for me.”

“Jude.”

He lost it, releasing her clit to grab her hips and fuck her until his balls drew up almost painfully and he came long and hard. And still he moved behind her, unable to stop. “Fuck, I could take you again right now.”

Sloan moaned, clenching around him. “You make me as crazy as I make you.”

“Good.” He forced himself to withdraw from her, to do up his jeans, and hand her his shirt, even though a dark part of him wanted nothing more than to keep her naked and wanting until they were too exhausted to move.

Sloan pulled his shirt on, wincing a little. “You may have been right about the change of positions.” He scooped her up, ignoring her squeal of surprise. Sloan smacked his chest. “What are you doing?”

“I’m wearing shoes. You aren’t. I’m making sure the bottoms of your feet don’t take any more damage.” And hell if he didn’t want to just hold her for a few minutes.

That was new, too.