Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 88487 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88487 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
Jin reluctantly released his hand and watched West disappear into the bedroom. He wanted to know why West’s eyes always looked so sad. He wanted the man to say the things that were on his mind. Too many times already, West would start to speak and then stop himself. He wanted to kiss him and make him laugh, chase the sadness from his eyes and replace it with joy.
But Jin had more than enough problems of his own. West didn’t need to be dragged into this fiasco. Yet it was clear the man had no intention of walking away until he was sure Gaoxing and Jin were safe.
Jin shoved to his feet and crossed the massive marble bathroom to the shower on shaky knees. He did as West instructed and took a hot shower, which helped to chase the chill away from his skin.
After he stepped out and dried off, he found a set of folded clothes waiting on the counter as West had said. A lump grew in his throat when he discovered West had selected the same cream-colored cashmere sweater he’d wished he’d worn to their meeting. It was so soft and cozy, leaving him feeling safe and warm. He’d chosen it as if he’d known he’d need a hug after he left.
But the tears turned to a bark of laughter as he saw West had also grabbed one of the few pairs of bright-red briefs he owned. He’d been given the stupid things as a joke. He’d been in a bored mood, complaining to Qin that his wardrobe was so bland and predictable. His heart had longed for something interesting, bright, and adventurous. So, Qin bought him three pairs of bright-red briefs.
Sadly, Jin rarely felt brave enough to wear them.
Not only had West located his underwear drawer, but he’d had to go through stacks of black, navy, gray, and white pairs to find those red briefs. He’d chosen those for Jin.
And Jin was going to wear them just for West.
7
WESTIN ST. JAMES
This time when West called Alexei, he didn’t even attempt to do the time-difference math. The situation was already fucked six ways to Sunday. There was no time for being considerate of anyone else’s schedule.
“Hey, West! I wasn’t expecting to hear from you so soon. How’s—”
“Things are fucked. Everything is fucked,” he barked while keeping his eyes locked on the road. He’d connected his phone to a single earbud so he could talk while driving. “I’ve got a body in the trunk. I’m on my way to take care of and a prince who’s telling me he put the contract on his own head. There’s possibly a mix-up on the assassin intel you sent me. Oh, and I conferenced Marilyn in.”
It was also tempting to mention that he was insanely attracted to the prince with the enormous eyes, amazing hair, and tender heart, but what the fuck was he supposed to do about that? He was a goddamn prince. At least the other things were fixable.
“This is not how I was expecting to spend my evening, Alexei,” Marilyn drawled in a dry-as-dust tone.
“Whoa, Mare! I wasn’t expecting that. Good to hear your voice,” Alexei greeted.
“Are your uncles handy?”
“Shit,” West swore, and they both ignored him. He didn’t want to drag them into this mess.
“I think so.”
“We should confer with them. International disasters are their bread and butter,” Marilyn continued. Sadly, West couldn’t argue.
“Got it!” There was the sound of pounding feet across the floor and shouting echoing through the house in a mix of Russian and English. The cursing and name-calling was the English part.
“Westin, Marilyn,” Gabriel’s smooth voice came across the line. “Alexei informs us there’s a problem with a contract.”
Something inside of West relaxed at the sudden presence of Gabriel. He’d met the assassin briefly while they were in Greece, but the man had given the impression of being calm, collected, and always in control, despite being married to a certifiable lunatic.
That being said, Justin was also knowledgeable, deadly, and more than a bit skilled. It was just easy to forget the moment he opened his mouth.
Marilyn was kind enough to provide a concise recap of the contract that had sent West to Gaoxing. Or rather, she provided the recap, hoping to get off the phone more quickly.
“Oh, shit! I looked at that contract!” Justin cackled. “That thing looked hinky as hell.”
“What do you mean, you looked at it?” Gabriel demanded, sounding as if he were speaking through his teeth. “We agreed we were on a break. We’re spending time with Alexei and that boyfriend.”
“I looked! Just looked! No plans to take anything. Marilyn knows we’re on vacation,” Justin backpedaled. “It was that or scrolling on social media, and you said those videos were rotting my brain.”
“Don’t drag me into your nonsense,” Marilyn muttered.
West glanced in the rearview mirror one last time to make sure no one was behind him before he took the exit off the highway. It had taken some searching, but there was a stretch of thick woods about half an hour down this road that made for a good body dump. It wasn’t ideal. He would have preferred to burn the corpse and then bury it, but he was on a tight schedule. Being away from Jin felt like a terrible idea.