HARD WIRED: He's an assassin, she's his target... (HARD Series Book 3) Read online

  “Je m’excuse!”

  He jutted his tongue out one last time, his lips capturing her tongue once more before pulling his head back to stare at the furious conductor.

  “Yes?” Xander asked innocently, as Ashtyn lowered her head, shocked at her response to the imposter.

  “This is a public car,” the conductor growled, staring at them with reproving eyes. “Have respect for your fellow patrons.”

  Xander eyed Ashtyn, whose face had turned scarlet, but she refused to look him in the eye.

  “Of course,” he replied, a lazy smile forming on his face.

  The conductor scowled, spinning to saunter away but Xander’s voice shot out.

  “Where would one go if, say, they didn’t want to offend the eyes of the other passengers?”

  The engineer paused and gaped at the bold question but before another word was exchanged, Ashtyn bolted toward the doorway, drugs in tow.

  Xander hesitated, knowing she couldn’t get off the train, and he really wanted an answer to his question. His mind might be thinking that killing Ashtyn was a priority, but his body was taking over hard and insisting on finding some privacy so he could get back into her mouth. “Dammit, hold that thought,” Xander said to the conductor. He hurried after Ashtyn, knowing he shouldn’t let her out of his sight for long. But when he entered the next compartment, she had already vanished. He checked in their previous seats, and in every small corner, but he didn’t see her.

  Where the hell did she go? He wondered, a slight nervousness tickling him as he continued through, his eyes scanning the seats for a glimpse of her long blonde hair.

  He made his way further through the train, his heart quickening as each car showed no sign of her.

  I didn’t lose her, he thought worriedly. She can’t have gone far, for fuck’s sake. We’re on a train. She’s here somewhere.

  As he continued to search, he wondered if she was running from fear or as part of her game. Admittedly, both were enticing, he realized, and the semi he felt in his pants only grew harder.

  Finally, he found her out on the platform, staring out into the darkness as the world flew past.

  “Where are you going to in such a rush?” he growled, pinning her against the rail, his breath on her neck. He planted his hands on either side of her, effectively trapping her. On both sides of them, the scenery flashed by, the ground unsteady beneath their feet.

  She didn’t seem surprised to see him, her body relaxed now, as if the few minutes they had spent apart had done something to her.

  Harder, he stepped into her as she tried to turn but he kept her steady, his shaft firmly pressed to the cleft between her perfectly sculpted ass.

  “Why did you run away?” he rasped, a hand snaking up her blouse to squeeze at her breast roughly, his mouth licking at the back of her neck. She didn’t answer him, just tilted her head slightly to the side to give his hot mouth better access to her sensitive neck.

  “Hmm?” he asked, inhaling the scent of her succulent skin, his fingers slipping down the front of the silk to explore her swelling nipples.

  She still did not answer but he felt her hips arch back and he pressed his cock more firmly against her.

  “Do you feel that?” he whispered, pausing to nibble on her earlobe as he manipulated soft skin between his fingers.

  His right hand was on her crotch, rubbing at her. He smiled as her moistness reached his palm.

  With one hand, he unhooked the buttons of her pants and finally, he heard Ashtyn sigh.

  Her panties stuck to her center and he peeled them aside, mouth falling lower over her shoulder.

  Ashtyn yelped as he sank his teeth into her flesh and she tried to spin, her body tensing again but he had her under his control and while he removed one hand from her chest, his fingers glided effortlessly down her body and then along her pulsating clit.

  One finger probed deeply inside her and she moaned loudly, again trying to turn but Xander pushed her forward, her ass jutting toward him.

  He leaned over her, his strokes becoming long and deep, his lips exploring her heated skin around the base of her neck.

  “Fuck,” she murmured as his naked member brushed across her ass cheeks. She hadn’t even noticed him taking his cock out.

  He added another finger inside her, slow and deep, until Ashtyn’s hips were joining his rhythm.

  “Oh fuck,” she sighed again and Xander knew he was going to make her cum before he had even plunged his cock into her.

  She quivered suddenly, her body tensing and he increased his speed, his own member throbbing and ready to go.

  Not yet, he told his raging hard-on as it strained against her ass. He wanted to take her so badly it almost pained him, but not until she had exploded.

  He ground against her, his unit wedged between her ass cheeks, the tip of his head prodding for an entrance. He did not have to wait long as Ashtyn cried out in seconds, a heated splash of moisture soaking his hand.

  “Oh, baby,” he purred. “You came so fucking hard.”

  He willed himself to hold on, thrusting himself against her as his fingers continued to work at her core.

  She seemed ready to fall until he staked himself inside her, groaning at the feel of her tight, wet pussy clasping his cock so hard.

  She whimpered as he jabbed deeply, her svelte frame falling forward, forcing her to splay her palms against the glass.

  It was almost surreal as the trees whipped by in the night, the moon catching through the thickness to illuminate her profile as he gained momentum.

  His hand firmed against the railing for support.

  “You’re so fucking tight,” he gasped, his rod growing harder as her core closed around him.

  Again, Ashtyn mewled like a kitten, her ass bucking up toward him as she braced herself for another orgasm.

  He was sliding in and out of her like a lubed piston, his hardness throbbing.

  I’m going to cum, he thought but he was not ready and he fought off the overwhelming urge to explode, pulling himself completely away to re-enter her slowly in another entrance.

  As he did, she screamed out, whether in protest or excitement he wasn’t sure, his actions obviously stopping her from an impending climax of her own, but he continued forward, feeling her body yielding to his.

  He was fully inside her again before she knew what was happening, her shrill cries bringing him to the brink, her body winding up again as he thrust slowly forward. Her cries became whimpers of need as she pleaded with him to put her over the edge. “Please, don’t stop…faster!” But he needed to savor the feeling of her strained orifice, this feral desire within him growing more potent than any he had ever felt before.

  His groan rose to meet the pitch of her cries, his sack and fingers coaxing her trembling button simultaneously until neither could take any more.

  He fired into her, throwing his head back and clenching his teeth hard to keep from shouting.

  She almost seemed to pass out, her orgasm hit her so hard. Her body trembled and quaked, her muscles clenching around him hard, drawing out both of their orgasms even longer.

  “Fuck,” Xander muttered, falling back against the wall at his back, his own knees weak as he fought to gather his breath.

  She was finally able to spin and look at him, myriad emotions crossing her face as her sated body slumped down on the bench.

  “Is that what you had in mind?” Xander asked, a half-smile on his face as he tried to read her expression. “Joan?”

  To his bemusement, she matched his smirk, arching a dark blonde eyebrow.

  “Something like that,” she agreed, adjusting her clothing. “Jean.”

  She slid her jeans up over her long legs and Xander found himself watching her deliberate moves with interest.

  She’s so damn sexy, he thought, his cock wanting to respond, but he was depleted, beads of sweat dripping from the sides of his face.

  Sexy or not, you have a job to do, he reminded himself bluntly.
/>
  Slowly, Ashtyn approached him, buttoning her pants as she did.

  “So is that all you’re good for?” she taunted him seductively. “Round two coming up?” she asked as she neared him.

  His grin widened.

  “I can take you all night, baby.”

  She smiled sweetly, slipping her arms around his neck.

  “So, do you think you’ll feel bad?” she whispered, gently kissing his lips.

  His mouth parted to taste her tongue, still holding her gaze.

  “Feel bad about what?” he murmured.

  Obviously she knows why I’m here, he thought a little sadly.

  The singe in his neck caused his eyes to bug out and he gaped at her uncomprehendingly as she quickly jumped out of his embrace.

  “Feel bad when you tell Khan you lost me?” she chirped, her eyes alight with fire. “But I guess you’ll have to be alive to break that news, won’t you?”

  The world began to lose its shape and suddenly Xander realized that the canvas bag was nowhere to be seen.

  That’s where she disappeared to. She made a hotshot. The bitch just pumped me full of fucking heroin.

  As he sank to his knees, Ashtyn sidestepped him and disappeared into the train, leaving him alone in the encased platform at the end of the train.

  But as the spots danced before his eyes and the sickening feeling of euphoria seized him, Xander realized that if he survived, he was going to have a hard time killing Ashtyn; for more than one reason.

  Chapter Eight

  Washington, DC

  Catriona was sprawled on the bed, naked and smoking a cigarette.

  “Where is he?” she asked, yawning slightly. It was almost four a.m. but Solis was feeling anything but sleepy, even though Cat had exercised every muscle in his body for several hours.

  One muscle in particular was feeling unusually worn and Sol idly wondered what had gotten into her.

  She’s been a fucking horny maniac since we got back from Maryland, he thought, but his sex life was the least of his pressing issues at the moment and he reached for a pack of smokes on the desk.

  “He’s in Paris,” Sol replied, peering into the screen as he lit a Marlborough, the smoke dangling between his lips as he scanned the map. “Downtown.”

  “What did he say this morning?” Cat demanded. “Has he found her?”

  “Nothing. I told you he said nothing.”

  He tried to stifle his annoyance but she didn’t make it easy.

  She sighed and sat up, stretching like a cat as she crawled toward the foot of the bed, straining to see the GPS locator.

  “I still think this is a big mistake,” she sighed.

  Solis had had enough of her endless doubts.

  “What the hell do you have to be worried about? He’s got a tracker, he’s in Paris. It’s been three days. He’ll do what we want or we’ll take care of his sister.”

  “About that,” Catriona sighed. “Where is Sarah Van Hoyt?”

  Sol’s scowl deepened.

  “What do we need her for?” he retorted. “He’s doing what we want. Why are you being so negative? It’s becoming irritating, Cat.”

  It was irritating a long time ago. Now it’s just homicide inducing.

  “I am wondering why we can’t find the girl,” she snapped back. “It’s a legit question. If he decides to AWOL or – “

  “We will deal with that IF we come to that.”

  Solis eyed her and wished his dick wasn’t so sensitive. He would give her another good plowing just to shut her up.

  “You’re not looking at the big picture here,” she muttered, her curvy frame leaning over the wood footboard. “Zoom in on his location.”

  “What big picture? Van Hoyt is doing exactly what we asked of him. In the next few days, we’ll get word that the bitch is dead.”

  And I’ll get my payout from Jacques Renault.

  Catriona had no idea about the side deal he had concocted with Jacques. All she knew was that he had been contacted by the French to find Ashtyn Deveaux.

  The Unione Corse had known about the elusive blonde for half a decade, and while her reputation had been that of a sell-sword, the French knew better.

  She was a master of deception and employed only by the Turkish mobster, Khan Cerci. Francois LaPointe, leader of the notorious French gang had made it very clear that he wanted the woman captured and unharmed.

  “I want her on our side,” he said coldly. “She is devious and highly skilled. We could use a civilian like her in our fold. Bring her to me before we lose any more business to the Turks.”

  That had been the original plan and the only one which Catriona knew about.

  It was two weeks later when Jacques Renault contacted him, explaining that he had a very different idea in mind.

  “I understand you are looking for one of my people,” Khan Cerci’s right-hand man said.

  “How did you get this number?” Solis growled and Jacques laughed.

  “From the same person who told me that you are looking for one of my people,” he replied flatly.

  “I don’t know where you got this information – “

  “I want her dead. She is becoming a thorn in my side,” he told Solis without emotion and Sol stopped talking.

  “Who?” he asked dumbly, suddenly wondering if they were talking about the same person.

  “You know who!” Jacques snapped. “Ashtyn Deveaux.”

  “So kill her. She belongs to you anyway,” Sol replied, uncomprehendingly.

  Jacques snorted.

  “If only it were that simple,” he sighed. “I cannot have my fingerprints on this.”

  “You – you could have anyone do it – “

  “You already have a contract to find her. If you kill her, no one will think I have anything to do with it…least of all my boss. For some reason, he is very fond of her ways but I think she is growing into more of a hassle than she’s worth. It will only be a matter of time before he learns the French are trying to poach her anyway. If she was to turn up dead…”

  A sensation of dread washed over Sol.

  “I will make it worth your while, of course,” Jacques explained. “Thirty-five million euros.”

  Solis had almost dropped the phone.

  “What?” he gasped. “To kill one stupid girl?”

  Jacques chuckled.

  “As I said, she is becoming a royal pain in my ass, as you Americans say. The money is no issue.”

  Solis was quiet for a long moment, contemplating the dangers of what was being dangled before him.

  The payout was so high because if Khan Cerci ever learned the truth, he would be a dead man.

  Jacques took his silence for acceptance.

  “Then we have a deal,” he purred. “Payment on receipt.”

  Sol then told his lover that the plan had changed and that Ashtyn suddenly needed to die. He did not explain that they were working for a new boss.

  But there was the matter of double crossing the Unione Corse.

  If I kill the girl, I will be signing my own death warrant. But if someone else does it, I can collect and be gone before Francois ever finds me.

  Xander Van Hoyt was a name which had often tickled Solis’ ears over the years and with his connections in various law enforcement groups, he was able to secure identification and smuggle the man out from under the noses of guards without sounding any major alarms.

  “Where is he?”

  Catriona’s voice brought him back and he realized she was standing at his side, her eyes fixated on the screen.

  He patted her bare rump affectionately.

  “He is in Paris – are you purposely being difficult?” he asked, exasperated. “Look.”

  “No, where in Paris is he, Sol? Look!”

  She had zoomed in on the GPS and Sol felt his heart begin to speed up slightly as he realized what she was seeing.

  “That’s a hospital. What is he doing in a hospital?”

  He swallowed
quickly.

  “Don’t jump to conclusions,” he warned. “There could be a million reasons he’s in a hospital.”

  “Such as?” she snapped. “He’s hurt? Or dead? Or – “

  “Maybe he has tracked Deveaux there. Maybe she’s hurt or dead.”

  “Call him!” she ordered. “Call him and find out what the hell he’s doing there!”

  There was a panic in her voice which Sol was sure he had never heard before.

  He stared at her strangely, his lips parting to ask her why she had been acting like a different person since the day they had met Xander Van Hoyt.

  “What the fuck are you waiting for?” she screamed. “Call him!”

  “Cat, you need to calm down,” he snapped. “Nothing has happened to Xander. Why are you acting like this?”

  She stared at him with wild eyes, shaking her head as if she was trying to make sense of her own thoughts.

  “He comes to me sometimes,” she whispered and Sol gaped at her.

  “What the fuck does that mean?” he demanded, a pang of jealously striking him. “You dream about him?”

  She shook her head and stared at him, grappling for the right words.

  “No,” she replied slowly. “It’s not a dream. It’s real and he’s…inside me.”

  Sol pushed himself out of the chair, butting out his cigarette filter before snatching up another.

  “I don’t need to hear about your sick fantasies,” he snapped. “Get yourself together.”

  “You don’t understand,” she said mournfully. “Something has happened to him. I can tell!”

  “How can you tell?” Sol retorted, flicking the lighter and inhaling sharply. “Did he whisper something in your ear while he came on your tits?”

  “No,” she whispered. “He didn’t come last night. It’s the first time since we met him that he didn’t appear to me while I slept.”

  Sol did not know how to respond to her words, his mind whirling with memories.

  The chatter that he could come and go without ever moving…the inmates who killed themselves…and Catriona acting like a weirdo. Is this connected?

  Again, he was seized with uncertainty, wondering if Cat’s instinct was warning them to back away while they were still unknown.