The Littlest

by Sandrine Gasq-Dion

  ~The Littlest Assassin-Shifters~

  Sandrine Gasq-Dion

  ~*Dedication*~

  To my Family

  Jennifer Jacobson

  Kim Webb- Balan

  Jen Fornes

  My LRO readers and the newest ones.

  Kenneth Carter for the cover.

  ©Copyright 2013

  This is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or business establishments, events or locales is coincidental. All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission. WARNING: This book contains material that maybe offensive to some: Violence, graphic language, homosexual relations and adult situations.

  Table of Contents

  ~Prologue~

  ~Chapter One~

  ~*Chapter Two*~

  ~*Chapter Three*~

  ~*Chapter Four*~

  ~*Chapter Five*~

  ~*Chapter Six*~

  ~*Chapter Seven*~

  ~*Chapter Eight*~

  ~*Chapter Nine*~

  ~*Chapter Ten*~

  ~Chapter Eleven~

  ~*Epilogue*~

  ~Prologue~

  Mateo rolled over and felt the empty space where Riley should be. He lifted one lid and looked into purple fur and rounded white eyes with huge black pupils. The purple hippo. Sunlight gleamed off of something on the hippo’s ear and a note was sticking out of its mouth. Mateo pulled the hippo over and noticed a platinum band hanging from its ear. He sat up quickly and snatched the note.

  Mateo,

  I know you said you would ask me, but I’m not the most patient person. I love you and I want to marry you right away. Please say yes.

  Love, Riley.

  PS. Merry Christmas Eve and Happy Birthday!

  Mateo smiled and picked up the hippo. Riley and his purple hippo. He shook his head. It had been a fixture in their bed since the day Mateo had won it for him at the state fair.

  That was the day they’d gone to meet Mateo’s boss, James Pruitt, to discuss moving Riley to a safe house because someone was trying to kill him. The fair in Arizona came around once a year, and Mateo had taken Riley with him. It was the same day they’d met the fortune teller – the one who had said Riley was Mateo’s love.

  Mateo rolled over and grabbed his sweatpants. Christmas music flowed from the kitchen and Mateo smiled at the sound of Riley humming along. He quickly splashed his face and brushed his teeth, then made his way to the kitchen.

  Six months he’d been living with Riley, and those six months had been the best of his life. He loved the man like no other. He’d spent most of his life avoiding commitment; now he couldn’t see living without it. Riley was shaking his ass as he kneaded dough on the kitchen island. He looked so damned adorable.

  Mateo coughed, getting his attention.

  “Good morning, handsome,” Mateo grinned, twirling the ring around his index finger.

  Riley swallowed hard, and stopped kneading the dough. He turned to face Mateo and wiped his hands off on a towel.

  “I know you said you would ask when you were ready, but I just can’t wait anymore. I want to be Riley Esposito.”

  Mateo shook his head and walked toward Riley.

  “No.”

  “No?” Riley’s shoulders slumped.

  “You will not be Riley Esposito. You’ll be Riley Flynn-Esposito.” Mateo waited for the information to sink in. He wasn’t disappointed. Riley’s face lit up like the Fourth of July. Lord, the man was beautiful.

  “Really?” Riley whispered, wiping at his eyes.

  “Of course!” Mateo crossed the kitchen to Riley and took him into his arms. “I know I’ve been an ass about marriage; I just didn’t want to lose what we have.”

  “We won’t.” Riley wrapped his arms around Mateo’s neck. “That will never happen, and do you know why?”

  Mateo grinned and kissed Riley’s nose. “I’m sure you’ll tell me.”

  “Because we were destined to meet and fall in love. You heard the fortune teller: I’m your love. And that day on the roof, when you were supposed to kill me – you knew I was innocent. You couldn’t pull the trigger; then you saved my life.”

  Mateo smiled at the memory. Weird, but true. That day, he’d known something was off. He had been sent on a mission to kill Riley Flynn. It turned out to be a set-up, but he quickly put that out of his mind.

  While Mateo awaited the specific instructions for his mission, he blew off some steam at an area gay club. When the mission was aborted and he and Riley went on the run to protect the Flynn Electronics CEO, he discovered that Riley had been the anonymous man he had become obsessed with in the club’s curtain room. That was a double bonus.

  Mateo pulled Riley into a kiss and slid the band into his hand. “Put it on for me, and get down on one knee,” he whispered.

  “Seriously?” Riley breathed against Mateo’s lips.

  “Nope,” Mateo smiled and slid the ring on. “You have one for yourself?”

  “Yes, I bought them as a set.”

  “Where’s yours?”

  Riley’s cheeks heated and he pulled a neck chain from under his shirt. An identical band slid down the gold chain. Mateo took the chain off and removed the ring. He got down on one knee in front of Riley and held his left hand. Riley’s shocked gasp made him smile.

  “Riley, please do me the honor of becoming my husband.”

  Riley sniffled and wiped at his eyes.

  “Yes, I’ll marry you, Mateo.”

  “Right now?” Mateo grinned.

  “Like…now?” Riley stammered.

  “It’s my birthday; I want to be married by midnight.”

  “I’ll get on the phone.”

  ~*~

  Mateo stood on the deck of the Staten Island Ferry and gazed into the eyes of the man he loved. He had no idea how he’d gotten here, but thank God he had. Riley looked absolutely breathtaking in a tux, his soft hair blowing in the breeze. His cheeks were slightly red from the cold and his blue eyes sparkled. The ferry sat in the middle of the water with a view of the Statue of Liberty in the background. Another landmark Riley had never seen.

  God he loved this man.

  “Do you, Riley Patrick Flynn, take Mateo Romeo Esposito to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

  Mateo glared at his best friends and fellow assassins, Josh Montgomery, Troy Bishop and Sam Waters. The three of them had started snickering. Their immediate boss, General Derek Jacobs, was being shushed by James Pruitt. Riley was biting his lip.

  “I do.” Riley managed to hide his chuckle.

  “And do you—”

  “Yes, I do.” Mateo raised his brows at the official.

  “By the powers vested in me by the state of New York, I now pronounce you married. You may kiss.”

  Mateo hauled Riley into his chest and crushed their lips together. Riley moaned softly as their tongues met. Mateo broke the kiss and looked into his husband’s eyes.

  “Not one word,” he warned playfully.

  Riley chuckled.

  Mateo turned to his friends, eyebrows raised.

  “Anyone have anything to say?”

  Josh raised his hand.

  “No.” Mateo glared at the tall, buzz-cut blond.

  “Well,” James smiled at the group. “Let’s get back on dry land.”

  “Yeah, so Mateo can get Riley into a bed.” Troy waggled his eyebrows.

  Mateo threw his hands in the air. “I have no idea why I put up with you guys.”

  “Because we are so awesome,” Josh winked.

  Mateo eyed Sam. “What? Nothing to add?”

  “I’ll wait until we get on shore. This boat isn’t big enough to outrun you.”

  Mateo smirked a
nd turned his attention back to Riley. “Mr. Flynn-Esposito.”

  “I love the sound of that.”

  ~*~

  Mateo took in the impressive size of the royal suite at the Waldorf Astoria. Yet another place Riley had never been and wanted to stay. Looking at the marble bathroom, Mateo couldn’t argue. They had sex on every damn surface of the room. His balls were aching and his ass hurt. Mateo chuckled. Riley had come a long way from the meek and mild man behind the curtain of the Diabolique club.

  “Oh Romeo...where – ”

  “Don’t finish that sentence,” Mateo growled playfully. “I thought you said you asked Derek personal questions about me?”

  “I asked him about your birthday,” Riley said, coming up behind Mateo in the bathroom.

  “That’s it?”

  “That’s all I wanted to know.” Riley kissed Mateo’s shoulder.

  Mateo turned and gathered his husband into his arms. “Do you know what day it is?”

  “Our wedding day?” Riley grinned.

  “It’s now Christmas day.”

  Riley wrapped his arms around Mateo. “Merry Christmas, Mateo.”

  “Best one I’ve ever had.”

  ~Chapter One~

  “You can run, but you’ll only die tired,” Mateo whispered, zooming in on his target. A man was running away from the building they had just infiltrated – a building that was used for kiddie porn. This had to go down perfectly.

  “Sam, tell me what I need to know.”

  Sam gave him all the info he needed and Mateo squeezed the trigger slowly. A muffled pop went off and the man flew forward into the ground. A few seconds later, the ground team was surrounding him. Mateo’s mic crackled and then Josh’s whistled signature “Another One Bites the Dust” met his ears.

  Mateo grinned and set his sniper rifle down. Grabbing his canteen, he shot a grin at Sam. He, Sam, Josh and Troy had been together for over twenty years. They made a great team because they knew how the others thought. Now they made an even better one since Troy and Sam had become werewolves within the extremely powerful Maccon line.

  Mateo ran a hand through his short hair and thought about his husband. They’d been apart for a week but it felt like a year. In all the years before Riley came into his life, the one thing he had never wanted was a relationship.

  Now he had a husband, and twins on the way.

  His life had drastically changed from the moment he walked into the curtain room at Diabolique. That night, he’d met Riley – although he hadn’t known then it was Riley. His mission to assassinate Riley had gone down the shitter the second he figured out Riley was innocent, and he was being played. They had gone on the run to protect Riley, spent some serious one-on-one time together, and Mateo had fallen hard and fast.

  His mic crackled again and Josh’s voice flooded his ear.

  “Yo, Esposito.”

  Mateo chugged his water and smiled.

  “What’s up, Grant?”

  “Stop calling me that,” Josh chuckled. “Although it’s way better than your middle name.”

  “How can I help you today?” Mateo packed his sniper rifle back in its case as Sam put their equipment away.

  “Vince and Dimitri are still inside. And I think I hear whistling.”

  “Is it ‘One of These Things Is Not Like the Other’?”

  Josh tilted his head, listening. “I think so. Isn’t that a ‘Sesame Street’ song?”

  “Well, Vince and Dimitri do have children,” Sam snickered. “They may be grown now, but I think all this baby talk has their dads regressing.”

  “You should have heard Dimitri at the last human trafficking mission. He was singing the other ‘Sesame Street’ song, you know, the one with all the numbers? I think it’s called ‘Twelve?’ He had his automatic rifle,” Troy laughed.

  “You mean the one, two, three, four – ” Mateo started.

  “Yeah, that one. How’d you know?” Troy chuckled.

  “Wyatt. He’s been telling me and Riley some of the stuff he watched as a kid.”

  “Knowing your kid, he’ll be watching the military channel all day,” Josh cracked up.

  “Well he can’t watch Lifetime constantly like you do,” Mateo shot back.

  There was a collective laugh over the mic and Mateo smiled over at Sam. “Let’s pack it in, guys.”

  Two hours later, they were in a restaurant booth, drinking beer. Sam and Troy sat across from him and Josh. Mateo sat back and looked at his partners. Sam and Troy were in their forties, but still looked thirty because of the werewolf gene. Mateo sighed. He was getting up there in age, and with twins on the way…

  “Where’d you go, Mat?” Sam kicked him under the table.

  “I’m just thinking.”

  “Whoa, watch out guys; earthquake coming.” Josh covered his head. He got a jab in the ribs from Mateo. “Ow.”

  “It’s just that… well – I look at you two and I have to wonder, you know? I mean, by the time the twins are ten, I’ll be well into my fifties.”

  “Yes, but think of the senior citizen discount.” Troy pointed at Mateo with a grin.

  “Fuck off, Bishop.” Mateo cracked a grin.

  “You thinking about making the change?” Sam sat forward, a serious look on his face.

  “I don’t know,” Mateo sighed. “I can’t handle the thought of Riley going before me. Now we’re having twins.”

  “And one of them could be born with the gene,” Troy nodded. “Since the surrogates are werewolves.”

  “Mark said if our child with Fiona is a werewolf, he wants to be changed.” Josh sat back, crossing his arms.

  Mateo twisted to look at Josh. “Really?”

  “Yep,” Josh nodded.

  “What do you think?” Mateo asked.

  “I’m not allowed to think,” Josh cracked up.

  “I see Mark’s point,” Sam agreed.

  Troy yawned and looked at his wrist. “Shit, I forgot my watch. What time is it?”

  “It’s “Adventure Time”!” Josh, Mateo and Sam said together.

  Troy sighed in frustration. “I swear, you get caught watching that show one time and you never live it down.”

  The whole table laughed.

  “What about you and Sawyer, Troy?” Mateo sipped his beer.

  “We’ve got Ryanne as our surrogate. The hardest part is waiting to see how everything goes down when your kids are born. Sawyer wants a child, like, yesterday. He is not good at waiting.”

  Mateo looked over his team. They’d fought side by side for as long as he could remember and now they were all going to be parents. Never in a million years did he see them all getting married, much less himself.

  “You’ve gone to that place again,” Josh grinned, elbowing Mateo.

  “I’m just thinking how much shit has changed. When we first started out, it was just the four of us, with Derek and James calling the shots. Now we’ve got all the werewolves, plus the Santorno team. It’s freed up a lot of time for all of us. We’ve got half the guys in Washington, a lot of them in Texas and more sprinkled throughout.”

  Josh nodded. “Wayne won’t leave Alaska, but I think I’m ready to make a move. I know Mark is.” He eyed all the men staring at him. “What?”

  “You’re leaving Fairbanks?” Sam asked with raised brows.

  “I just feel that Mark needs to be closer to his friends. He’s never complained, but he’s good friends with Riley and Dakota. Even though we have the jet that takes us back and forth, I know he wants to be closer.”

  “How’s it going with him coming along on some of your missions?” Troy asked with a grin.

  “He’s been great! He hangs with Reece and Brett a lot; makes sense since they’re all doctors. I can’t believe how tough Reece Costa is. The mission before last, he was actually shot at. I thought Lorenzo was going to tear the guy apart,” Josh snickered.

  Mateo nodded. “That guy is huge. I mean I’m six foot two, but isn’t he, like, seven feet tall?�
�

  Sam laughed. “Nah, he’s my height, but he’s intimidating, and that’s saying a lot coming from me.”

  “Makes you wonder, doesn’t it?” Mateo played with his pint glass. “How fate decides who gets whom. I look back at shit now and I wonder how I held out as long as I did with Riley in the beginning. From the moment I set eyes on him I was attracted, and then everything about him made him even sexier. He makes me feel young.”

  “Because he’s younger than you,” Josh pointed out.

  “Not what I meant, but thanks,” Mateo snarked, shoving him.

  “So.” Sam sat back, smiling. “No more missions for us for a while. We’re going to be fathers.”

  Mateo smiled wide. “I can’t wait.”

  Troy sat back in the booth. “God, I love this job.”

  “What’s not to love?” Sam popped a pretzel in his mouth. “No rules of engagement – ”

  “No rules period,” Josh cut in. “We have free reign to do what we have to do. A very big difference from the Army.”

  “Yes, and with James in charge, the other higher ranking officials can claim plausible deniability. James takes all the heat for everything and he likes it that way.”

  “No one ever called James a pussy,” Josh chuckled.

  “No one who actually lived,” Mateo laughed.

  “Can’t wait to see your kids, Mat.” Sam threw a pretzel at Mateo.

  “Back atcha, Sam,” Mateo winked.

  ~*~

  The sound of metal slamming behind him made Riley jump. He walked through a door and waited as the light above him turned from red to green. Another door opened in front of him and two armed guards stood on either side. Riley nodded to them and they escorted him into a visiting room. Once he was seated, both guards took their place on either side of the door and faced straight ahead.

  Riley looked around the visitors’ room. It seemed cold. Bare white walls and grey tile didn’t scream comfort or welcome. When he’d gotten the call from James, it had taken him a minute to process the words.

  His father wanted to see him.

  Incarcerated for treason, Edgar Flynn would be spending his remaining years behind bars. He was lucky they hadn’t killed him, although Riley couldn’t remember the last time someone had been killed for an act of treason in the United States. The fifties? The door buzzed and Riley sat up straight. His father walked in and, suddenly, Riley felt twelve again. Grey hair covered most of his father’s head now. Worry and stress lines weaved through his face. Riley stood up as his father neared the table.