by Hope Ford
I can tell Knox is on edge. “Anything we need to help with?”
“Uh, no, at least I don’t think so. I got a call from an old buddy of mine I was stationed in Texas with. His sister-in-law is here, and he needs me to check on her.” He waves his hand. “It’s not a big deal.”
I nod just as Riggs comes in. He has an anxious look on his face.
Nash looks at him. “What did you find out? Is it what I thought it was?”
I look over at the commander of our group. He’s in charge of every operation we take out of here. And even though my mission in California was more personal, I know he was here the whole time monitoring it all.
Riggs nods his head, and Commander Nash cusses. “Sorry,” he says, looking at Kinsley.
She waves him off but doesn’t say a word. It’s as if she can tell the climate has changed since Riggs came in.
“Do you want me...” Riggs asks.
“Yeah, might as well tell him,” Nash says.
“Tell me what?” I ask, staring between the two men.
Riggs clears his throat. “Well, I’ll start with the good news.”
“Good news?” I ask skeptically.
“Yeah, Kinsley is no longer in danger.”
“Rogue said there were four hitmen...”
Riggs shakes his head. “Yes, there were. Four men accepted the hit. One was Dick Gallo, the one you killed in Kinsley’s classroom. The second was Harry Malone, who was killed in the university parking lot. The third hitman was Tiny Gallo. He wasn’t supposed to accept the hit since his brother did, but I guess they had some kind of competition or something. Now they’re both dead.”
“Okay, who’s the fourth?” I demand.
Riggs sits down and opens the file in his hands. He opens his mouth and closes it before sliding the folder and all its contents toward me. “You are.”
I’m shaking my head as Kinsley gasps. “You were hired to kill me?”
I’m looking at the folder, but I can’t make sense of any of it. I see the paperwork that looks like the hit for Kinsley, and I don’t know how Riggs got it, but he did. I start shuffling the paper until I find my name. “What the actual fuck? I took the hit – I told him I wouldn’t kill her. Rogue knows that. He said there was four.”
“What is it? What’s going on?” she asks.
“Stone, you were hired to kill Kinsley even though Rogue knew you would never do it. He set this whole thing up. He was losing his stance in the underground world. People were going to his rivals for hits instead of calling on him. He put the hit on Kinsley knowing you’d do whatever you could to protect her. He gave the hits to the Gallos and the Malones knowing you would kill them. He wanted them out of the picture.”
I jump up from my seat and start to pace the room. Rage is crowding my chest. There’s a roaring in my ears as I try to process it all. “She could have been killed. He’s the one that did this?”
Nash stands up. “But she wasn’t. Give him the rest, he needs to know it all.”
“Fuck, there’s more?” I ask.
The rest of the guys are all just as surprised as I am. How does this even happen?
Riggs tosses three folders to me, titled with the names of the men I killed. “I know you, Stone, and the fact you thought you killed innocent men will eat you alive. I ran reports on the three so you know what you were dealing with. The two Gallos are known for torturing and sodomizing women. The Malone character is primarily drugs, but he gets off on giving drugs to school-age children and watching them OD. That’s his thing. All three of them deserved to die.”
I toss the folders back at him. “They were going to kill Kinsley. That’s all the reason I need. Are we done here?”
Nash stands up. “Stone, any of us would have done exactly what you did in your place. There was no way to know what he had planned.”
“I know. I’m going to take the rest of the day. I’ll be back in tomorrow.” He nods, and I wait because it’s obvious he wants to say something else. When he doesn’t, I say to Kinsley, “Come on, let’s go. Knox, call if you need help with that situation.”
“Yeah, will do, brother.”
I don’t reach for Kinsley when she gets close. I barely wait on her until I get to the front door and hold it open for her. She’s staring at me with her big blue eyes, and it’s eating a hole in me. How did I get her into this? I’m the reason that she was almost killed. It was my fault. No one was after her or the pictures she took, they were after her because of me.
As soon as I get her in my truck, I open my phone and call Rogue. I rip out of the parking lot, squealing tires. “I’ve been waiting on your call. It took your friend Riggs a little longer to figure it out, but I’m glad he finally did. I was beginning to worry about the intelligence of your elite team.”
“You son of a bitch. How could you? She could have been killed.”
“But she wasn’t.”
“No thanks to you. All that bullshit you said about owing me and doing me a favor...”
“I did. And now we’re even.”
I grip the steering wheel even tighter. “Yeah, until you decide you need another hitman killed. You come near me or Kinsley again and I’ll...”
“I’m not going to let you finish that sentence, Stone. It’s done. We’re even. The hit has been cancelled. Kinsley is safe, and quite frankly, I think you should be thanking me.”
I pull back into my driveway and get out of the truck. I should have waited for this conversation. I hate for Kinsley to see me unhinged like this. “Thanking you.... are you kidding me right now?”
Rogue is silent. “Well, yeah. If it wasn’t for me, your dumb ass would still be pining away for her two thousand miles away. Now she’s there. She’s right there with you. What are you going to do about it?”
I’m seething. “Don’t ever come for us again, Rogue. Lose my number.”
“Done,” he answers without hesitation. “And Colt?”
“What?”
“You’re welcome,” he says before hanging up the phone.
I’m pacing back and forth in the driveway and pocket my phone. Kinsley is standing beside my truck, unsure what to do. I still haven’t been able to look at her. I leave her and walk inside. She follows me, and when she gets inside she walks to the couch in the living room and sits down.
11
Kinsley
He’s standing in the doorway, no doubt wanting an easy escape. He never knows what to do with feelings, and right now he’s all messed up.
I jut my chin at him. “Now what?”
He wraps his arms tighter around his chest. He won’t look at me, but at least he answers me. “Now you go back to Los Angeles... to your job... to your life.”
I stand up and I can feel my chin quiver. Don’t cry, Kinsley. “Is that what you want?”
He doesn’t answer my question; he turns it around to something else. “It’s how it should be.”
I nod and walk toward him. He moves, no doubt expecting me to walk down the hallway to grab my things, but I surprise him when I stop next to him. “You’re a coward, Colt Stone.”
He laughs, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “Really, a coward? Is that the best you got?”
“Yes. Because it’s the truth. I’m here. I followed you here to be with you. We made love last night. I told you I loved you. And you’re afraid. Shit gets a little dicey, and you push me away. I thought you were different. I thought you realized what it was like without me and would do anything to keep me. But you didn’t. You’re a coward.”
He doesn’t answer me, and I swat my hand on his chest. “Look at me. The least you can do is look at me before you break my heart again.”
He lowers his head, and I’m about to tell him off when I see the unshed tears welling in his eyes. And then it hits me. “You don’t want me to leave,” I breathe soft and low to him.
He shakes his head. “It doesn’t matter what I want.”
I put my hand on his waist, and he jerks at my touch. “Well, t
ell me what does matter.”
“You safe. That’s what matters.”
I shake my head. “And don’t you realize when I’m with you, I am safe.”
He clenches his eyes tight, and when he opens them, a lone tear trails down his cheek. “You were almost killed because of me, Kins. My job is dangerous. Look at the last few days. I can’t have you in danger... I won’t.”
I take a deep breath, and finally I start to calm. He’s not trying to get rid of me because he doesn’t want me; he’s trying to get rid of me because he doesn’t want me hurt. “Okay.”
I walk past him and into the bedroom. I avoid looking at the bed where he took me over and over last night. I tune out the fact that there’s a possibility I could be pregnant right now because we didn’t use protection. I work things out in my head, trying to find a way to stay here because I can’t lose him again.
I set my suitcase on the dresser and start folding items and putting them in. I see Colt’s shadow before I see him, and he comes and stands in the doorway. “I guess since I’m going back to California, I should go ahead and tell you my plans.”
He doesn’t ask, but at least he’s looking at me now.
“I’m twenty-eight now, Colt. I’ve spent the majority of my life loving you, waiting on you, and you keep pushing me away. I don’t want to be alone. So the next guy that asks me out, I’m going to go. It’s going to kill me, but I’m going to go. And if I find a nice guy that I like – not love, because I’ll never love anyone but you – but if I like him, I’m going to explain to him that I’ll never love him and I’ll explain to him why I can’t, but if he still wants to marry me then I’m going to marry him.” I walk over to where he’s standing. I know I’m hurting him, but I need him to wake up. “Are you going to be okay with that? Me married to another man? My kids calling another man Daddy? Is that what you want?”
He’s staring at me with a haunted look. His knees buckle, and he falls at my feet. His hands are gripping my waist roughly, and I lean down to cradle his face to my chest.
His voice is thick and gravely with emotion. “I can’t lose you, Kinsley. I’m sorry for everything I’ve put you through. I should put you on a plane and try to forget you, but God help me, I can’t. You deserve better than me, but I promise no one will love you like I do. No one will protect you like I do.”
I shake my head. “I know all that, and I don’t want anyone but you. I love you. I always have and I always will.”
I drop down to my knees in front of him, and he wraps me in his arms. “I’m a fool. I’m such a fool.”
I put my hand on his cheek and look into his eyes. “You’re a fool in love.”
He nods and leans in to press his lips to mine. “I’m so sorry,” he tells me between kisses.
I pull away and lead him to the bed. “That’s okay, you can make it up to me.”
“How? I’ll do anything.”
I kiss his jaw and whisper in his ear. “Take me to bed and love me forever.”
And he does just that.
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Men of Ruthless Corp. Series
This June meet 22 heroes who are downright dangerous. These alphas do nothing half-way. They may have blood on their hands, but they have love in their hearts. Some romances were written in the stars — but these hitmen must fight heaven and earth for the women they love.
Get the series here: Men of Ruthless Corp.
June 1- Belonging to the Hitman by Frankie Love
June 2- Tempting the Hitman by Hope Ford
June 3- Sold to the Hitman by Logan Chance
June 4- Falling for the Hitman by Heather Dahlgren
June 7- Loved by the Hitman by Fiona Davenport
June 8- Taken by the Hitman by Nichole Rose
June 9- Protected by the Hitman by Lana Love
June 10- The Hitman & The Crown by Jade Bay
June 11- Healing the Hitman by Jane Fox
June 14- Redeeming the Hitman by Kat Baxter
June 15- Claimed by the Hitman by Aria Cole
June 16- Wanted by the Hitman by Tarin Lex
June 17- The Hitman & The Heiress by Autumn Summers
June 18- Stolen by the Hitman by Jagger Cole
June 21- Hunted by the Hitman by C.L. Cruz
June 22- The Hitman’s Forbidden Princess by L. Nicole
June 23- Kidnapped by the Hitman by Liz Fox
June 24- Teasing the Hitman by Alice May Ball
June 25- Pleasing the Hitman by Beatrice Brae
June 28- Married to the Hitman by Fern Fraser
June 29- The Hitman’s Obsession by Elisa Leigh
June 30- Saving the Hitman by Mila Crawford
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About the Author
USA Today Bestselling Author Hope Ford writes short, steamy, sweet romances. She loves tattooed, alpha men, instant love stories, and ALWAYS happily ever afters. She has over 100 books and they are all available on Amazon.
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