“What’s he doing here?” The feeling of Gabriel’s body losing some of its tension relaxes mine also.
“We’re about to find out.” With that, I turn the knob, ready to deal with my friend, Brent.
Brent scowls at us as we reenter and near the glass table he’s sitting at. “Does Jackson know about him?” He nods his head toward Gabriel.
“Jackson?” Gabriel asks slowly. A heartbeat later, I see the comprehension on his face. “The other kid in the picture, Jackson Blanc, I hadn’t really thought about that name since I found Anna.” He seems to be talking more to himself than to us.
“Yeah, her brother,” Brent explains. At the surprise on Gabriel’s face, Brent smiles triumphantly. “You didn’t know she has a brother? After knowing her for over eight months? She must not be too serious about you.” Then Brent’s gaze falls on me. “Did you know that Jackson’s in Sydney, Annabelle?”
“Holy shit!” Gabriel shouts. “The fake Russian is your brother!” I can tell Gabriel is struggling to hide his hurt when he asks me, “Why didn’t you tell me he was your brother? That he isn’t dead like your parents?”
I’m feeling that rare guilt. “Because he doesn’t trust you, Gabriel. Because it wasn’t my place to tell you who he is.”
“Are you two breaking up?” Brent cuts in gleefully.
“Not a chance,” Gabriel growls out.
“When you need a shoulder to cry on, Annabelle love, you know who to call.” Brent winks at me, trying to upset Gabriel more.
“Enough!” I point down at the papers and pictures strewn across the table. “What’s this all about, Brent?”
“You’re next assignment,” Brent calmly informs me.
“Why are you delivering the information to me, Brent? Have you been demoted to messenger boy?” I ask insultingly, still pissed at him.
“Nope, I like to think of it as more of a promotion. You and I are partners on this one, love.” Brent leans back in his chair with his arms crossed over his blue thermal shirt and a smug look on his face.
Gabriel
I’m thinking it’s a good thing I’m with Anna on this assignment. This Brent guy wants my girlfriend, has for a long time. He was probably planning on using this assignment to work in his favor. He probably had all sorts of situations planned out that ended in intimate encounters with my girlfriend.
Yes, it’s definitely a very good thing that I’m here.
An hour after his arrival, I’m rubbing my eyes from both exhaustion and horror. The instinct to grab Anna and load her onto my family’s plane out of Australia is strong. The thought of her going anywhere near the targets is frightening.
“So anyways,” Brent continues with his current spiel, “I think it would be best if your boyfriend were to fly back to wherever he came from. We don’t need an amateur tagging along.”
“I’m staying,” I say determinedly.
Now that the assignment has been thoroughly discussed, douche-wad Brent seems to want to revert back to pissing me off. He increases my annoyance by saying, “What are you doing with this kid, Annabelle?”
“I’m the same age as Anna,” I reply. “How old are you anyways?”
Brent gives me his best I’m-a-deadly-assassin look. I really don’t give a flying fuck. “If I told you, kid, then I’d have to kill you.”
“He’s twenty-two,” Anna tells me.
I look him over again. He’s about my size in height and build, light brown hair, blue eyes. His clothes are expensive but made to copy an inexpensive style. I don’t like the way he looks at Anna. It’s also a good thing I have a gun of my own, I may need to use it on him.
“Well,” Anna sighs, “May as well invite Jackson to the party, since you let the brother out of the bag, Brent.”
Brent gives me an evil grin. “Sounds like a good idea to me. He’ll be an accomplice to help me bury your boyfriend’s body.”
Anna groans.
I glare at Brent. “I have a gun.”
Brent has the nerve to pat me on the back and say condescendingly, “Good for you. You’re a big boy now.” Then he whips out a cell phone, dialing eagerly. “I’ll call Jackson.”
That’s it. That is fucking it. I stand up, grab Anna by the waist and, while dragging her to the bedroom, say over my shoulder to Brent, “If you can answer the door when her brother gets here, we’d appreciate it. Don’t bother us for the next hour, two if Anna’s as insatiable as usual. You may want to turn on the television to drown out the noise!” I push a laughing Anna into the bedroom and slam the door behind us.
Chapter 28
Gabriel
So, Anna wasn’t completely feeling my rowdy sex idea, but the time spent in the bedroom wasn’t a total waste of my time. I’m able to truthfully sport a satisfied smirk on my face when we leave the bedroom and join Brent back in the living room area of the suite. And maybe I oh-so-accidentally put my white t-shirt back on inside out.
Some guys would probably be pissing their pants at the thought of mouthing off to guys like Brent and Jackson. After all, they wouldn’t hesitate to kill me if it weren’t for Annabelle. Me, though? Hell no. I’ve never been a bitch and I’m not about to start being one now.
I’m realistic enough to know that my skills, while excellent compared to the average man, are sadly lacking in comparison to experienced assassins. While I was searching, but mostly waiting, for information on Annabelle for all those months, I did manage to put in quite a bit of time training in all the areas that she has a professional’s skills. Fighting, shooting and just plain being a badass motherfucker.
I still don’t know what to think about Jackson. The dude is a total pain in the ass from what I know of him so far. I should have guessed a sibling relationship with the way they annoy the crap out of each other, but I was too blinded by jealousy. All I saw was another male encroaching on what was mine. Thank god I don’t have any siblings. My cousin, Max, is as close as I get and usually I’m the one annoying the crap out of him.
I feel like an idiot now for not putting the pieces together, but to be honest, Jackson and Annabelle don’t look that much alike. He’s over half a foot taller than her at a couple inches over six feet. Since I first met him in Miami, he’s had blonde, red and black hair, but never the brown color it was in that picture of them as children. Besides, weren’t his eyes brown in that picture? I remember from Paris that they were gray. It must have been colored contacts.
Actually, knowing that Jackson is her older brother, I’m surprised that I’m still alive. I guess I can’t be too upset about Annabelle hiding the truth from me, since I would have done the same thing in her situation. Family is important.
Family . . . I shake off the thought before it can fully form.
Constantly, the past is always in the back of my mind. I love Anna, really I do. However, when the past is no longer in the back of my mind, but instead blaring through the forefront, things get bad. I’m trying to hide it from her, not ruin what we’re trying to build. But damn, it’s hard. I know now that it was a mistake on her part, on the part of whoever she gets her orders from. If I twist it just the right way, maybe it wasn’t really her fault at all. She thought she was doing the right thing, saving lives in the end.
For now, I can give her my love. Maybe someday I can give her my complete forgiveness. Now the question is . . . how to get rid of that douchebag Brent?
Not ten minutes after we leave the bedroom, there’s a knock on the suite door. Family reunion time. As Brent stands while glaring at me and goes to answer the suite door, I pull Anna down beside me on the tan suede couch. I’m not going to back down to these two males. They’ll punk me in a heartbeat if I let them. Anna’s mine and the big brother and wannabe boyfriend will just have to deal with it.
While Brent and Jackson are doing the dude greetings, I absentmindedly rub Anna’s hand where it rests in mine, thinking that life sucks. Both her parents are dead along with my dad. Glancing up at her face, I revise that, life just suck
s some of the time. She isn’t looking at me, but instead at the two men who are now glaring our way. I let go of her hand to wrap an arm around her shoulders, giving my best smartass grin to Jackson. “What’s up my favorite brother-in-law?”
For a split second, he looks surprised, but like his sister he quickly masks the emotion. I know he’s giving me his meanest scowl, but I’m not in the least bit intimidated. If he was going to kill me, he would have done it months ago. I’m assuming that Jackson’s job title is the same as Annabelle’s. He’s dressed more casually now in gray cargo pants and a black V-neck shirt. Without the contacts, I see brown eyes almost identical in color to Anna’s.
“Quit touching my sister,” he practically growls. That’s when I realize that I’ve been rubbing her shoulder during this stare down. Brent laughs and Jackson elbows him in the stomach. “And you, Brent, quit thinking about touching my sister.”
“Why don’t you quit being a retard, Jacks?” Anna says with obvious exasperation.
“I dropped you on your head once when you were a baby,” Jackson unexpectedly tells Anna.
Anna scoffs at the confession. “We’re too close in age for you to have dropped me on my head.”
Jackson arches his eyebrows. “I know. They really shouldn’t have let me hold you.”
Thank god I don’t have any siblings.
Anna’s scowl turns into a devious grin. “One time when I was mad at you, I burned that autographed picture of that girl you have the hots for.”
Jackson has an astonished expression on his face. “So that’s what happened to my Britney autograph.” He starts to look pissed. “You know, Annie, it was not easy getting that. I had to break into her concert backstage. That girl has more security than the President.”
“Which one?” Brent asks in all seriousness.
“South Africa,” Jackson answers in the same serious manner. Someone missed out on a childhood. Maybe three someones did.
Anna looks guilty. “I know, I know. I’m sorry, Jacks.” With a wave of her hand in the air, she says, “I’ll break into her house and get you a new one.”
“Just don’t hurt her,” Jackson says. “She’s too hot to die.”
“Word,” Brent puts in. “Way too hot.”
They’re all insane.
Jackson grins evilly. His teeth are as white as a Crest commercial. “I cut the ears off your favorite Care Bear when we were little.”
“No duh, Jacks. I knew you were the only one sadistic enough to do that.”
Jackson places a palm on his chest and in fake innocence says, “I was merely practicing my torturing skills.”
Yep. No childhood at all.
I glance over at Anna’s face. My poor Anna suffered through mutilated toys.
“I’ve hidden your favorite semiautomatic from you!” Anna tells him with evil glee.
Jackson points a finger at her. “I knew it! I freaking knew it!” He crosses his arms over his chest and looks menacingly at her, demanding, “Which country is he in? Where’s Bert?”
“Bert?” I ask, dumbfounded.
Anna is practically bouncing on the couch cushion in her excitement, while explaining to me, “Bert is his favorite semiautomatic. And I’m not telling!” The last part is for Jackson’s benefit, in a taunting sing-song voice.
Jackson lunges towards her but she jumps off the couch and sidesteps him. He crashes into the couch next to me, where Anna just was a flash ago. Anna laughs and runs behind Brent, using him as a shield between her and Jackson. This doesn’t make me happy at all. I’m all the protection Anna needs.
Before I even know what he’s about, I feel the cold steel against my temple. Asshole has a gun to my head. So not cool. Jackson says his next words slowly, “Again, I ask. Where is Bert?”
Anna peeks around Brent and glares at Jackson. “You wouldn’t.”
“Wouldn’t I?” Jackson taunts. “I’m already not happy with your little boy toy.”
I’m not about to wait around to be saved by my girlfriend. In a self-defense move that one of my trainers taught me, my hand shoots up and I backhand the gun away from where it’s pressed against my head. While I have the chance, I then knee him on the outside of his thigh. Hard, just like my instructor showed me.
He grunts while rubbing his thigh, grudgingly muttering, “Good one, boy toy.”
Anna gives up her human shield and stalks over to Jackson, looking just a tad angry. Her foot shoots up in the air towards his head, but at the last minute Jackson catches it in his right hand. He twists it to the side so that she’s forced to change the angle of her body, with her torso now facing away from Jackson. I’m wondering if I should step in or let them work out their sibling squabble by themselves. Brent’s obviously of a mind to leave them be, if his loud laughter is any indication.
“Give up, baby sis?” Jackson taunts.
I can see Anna’s face and don’t miss the gleam in her eyes right before she drops her upper body weight to the floor, landing on her hands and kicking out her free leg backwards, right into her brother’s stomach. As he doubles over, gripping his stomach and trying to catch his breath, he loses his grip on her other foot. Anna twists her body around as her feet hit the floor with a thud. She’s grinning from ear to ear. “Jacks, what’s the matter? Need an inhaler?”
Finally catching his breath, Jackson smiles as if he wasn’t just kicked in the gut. “Annie, where’s Bert?”
She rolls her eyes and lets out a short laugh. Getting to her feet, she mutters, “Such a baby. Bert is safe and sound, under my bed at the condo in Seattle.”
Now recovered, Jackson holds up his hands in defense. “For the record, Annie, I did send the Care Bear’s ears to you in the mail.” Then he shrugs. “But, we had to the leave the city in a hurry the next day, so you never got them.”
“I spray painted Bert pink!” Anna shouts, running behind Brent again with a squeal as Jackson lunges toward her. “Jackson, don’t!” she screams, while continuing to maneuver Brent’s body in between her and Jackson. I don’t think Brent minds one bit, the bastard winks at me. “Hit Brent! Hit Brent! He’s my whipping boy, Jacks!”
I’ve had enough, as amusing as the show is. Getting up off the couch, I circle around the roughhousing and wrap an arm around Anna’s waist from behind. I then whirl her around and, moving away from where Brent and Jackson are now wrestling on the floor, set her down on a chair at the dining table.
Placing another chair right next to hers, I sit down and bring her face to mine for a kiss, a very long kiss. She giggles as it ends and says softly, “I love you.”
“Love you too, baby.”
“I’m happy, Gabriel.”
“I know, baby.” Then I kiss her again.
Chapter 29
Annabelle
“We’re going to need more weapons,” I mention to Brent as we all four make our way down to the hotel parking garage. “Who do we have in Australia right now?” We step into the elevator and Gabriel hits the button for the level we’re parked on.
Brent answers with a mischievous smile, “Porky’s here.”
“No way! Really? I’m surprised. Porky rarely leaves the Middle East.” I know my face reflects my genuine shock because Brent just grins mysteriously at me.
Jackson decides to soothe my curiosity, “I guess he had to get out of Syria in a hurry. Something about a love affair gone wrong. That’s why I don’t date female assassins. They’ll be the death of you.”
Brent winks at me flirtatiously. “I think they make life more exciting.”
From behind me, Gabriel possessively places a hand on my waist. “Find your own.”
Brent winks at me again. “I found her first.” Jesus, what’s with the winking? Does the man have Tourette’s syndrome?
Gabriel’s grip on my waist tightens. Oh man, this is getting to the stupid-ridiculous level. Before Gabriel can answer, the elevator dings open. Brent makes a sweeping gesture. “Ladies first.”
I glance over at Jack
son. “You heard him Jacks, we get to go first.”
“Ha, ha, so funny. I still haven’t forgiven you yet for giving Bert a sex change.” A pouting Jackson always brightens my day.
Leaving the elevator, I spin around to pat him on the cheek in an annoying gesture. “Poor baby. By the way, he goes by Bertha now.”
“Not for long,” he mumbles. “On the way to my next job, I’ll be making a little detour in Seattle.”
“So anyways,” Gabriel begins, getting our attention as we walk through the parking garage. “Who the hell is Porky?”
“Weapons specialist,” I tell him.
“Nerdy player,” Jackson adds.
“Mad genius,” Brent supplies, then adds, “Computer geek extraordinaire.”
Gabriel smiles at our description of Porky. “Like him already. Besides, anyone would be an improvement over you two douches.”
Jackson makes a playful move, pretending he’s going to kick Gabriel, but Gabriel lets go of his grip around my waist and dodges him, laughing provokingly. I get this warm feeling inside, seeing my brother and my boyfriend interacting like this.
I can’t believe how happy I am. This euphoric feeling is so amazing. There’s a little skip in my step, but I glance at Jackson and see that he’s looking at me funny, so I moderate my steps and play it cool. Going into the next kill acting love-drunk would probably be worse than all the jobs this year that I’ve gone into being alcohol-drunk.
We all pile into the small green rental car. Jackson insists on driving since he knows the way to the city Porky is holed up in. I pull the girl-card and get to sit passenger, making Gabriel and Brent squeeze into the back. After we drive out of the hotel parking garage, I can’t resist turning around to point and laugh at them. The backseat is so small that they’re practically on top of each other.
“Brat,” Gabriel grumbles, trying to hide a reluctant smile.
Brent just grins. “I think she’s cute.”
At the gagging sound coming from the right of me, I turn my head to glare at Jackson. “I am cute.” He ignores me and pretends to concentrate on the road. I feel an arm sneak around my seat to cross over my chest from behind. I tilt my head down to kiss Gabriel’s forearm.
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