Those eyes feral on me, unlike anything I’d ever seen before, I didn’t look away. “Goodbye, Sofia.”
Then I pulled the trigger, the bullet finding its target between her eyes.
Blood splattered across my dress and a tormented scream left my throat as I fell down onto my knees. Not for her. Not for me. For him, my Kingston, who’d saved me so many times.
Big arms came around my waist, pulling me up to my feet and offering me their strength. The familiar masculine scent of musky cologne cut through the fog, the feeling of safety seeping into me.
I buried my face into his chest and started to sob.
Our story began with blood; it was only fitting that it ended with blood too.
Chapter 65Kingston
Sofia’s death delayed our date by a few days.
We had her buried in an unmarked grave. Lou’s hand in mine and our fingers interlocked, we watched the coffin disappear into the dirt, and I couldn’t help but wish that bitch made it all the way down to the last layer of Dante’s hell. We didn’t linger, our hearts filled with relief rather than sorrow.
Sofia was past and all I wanted to do was enjoy the here and now.
My attention on Lou, I couldn’t take my eyes off the first and only girl I’d ever loved. It was our date night. Finally.
Our first date was at an outside Moroccan restaurant on Praia da Figueirinha beach outside Lisbon. It was fitting, considering our dream was always to escape to the beach.
We ate, and then we walked the beach hand in hand until we got to our final destination.
“What’s that?” she asked, pointing ahead of us.
“Let’s go check it out,” I suggested. I didn’t have to tell her twice. She was already tugging me along, her small steps eagerly rushing forward.
“Oh… my… Is that a concert?” Lou’s eyes lit up like the stars above us, excited flush coloring her cheeks. “I’ve never heard of a concert on a beach.”
I watched her as she ran circles around me, bubbling with excitement.
“I figured we could combine all our favorites,” I mused. “Beach, date, and concert.”
She looked at me with that rare happy smile and my hollow chest soaked it up. I was going to keep her this way, happy and safe, so I could see that smile on her face every day of my life.
I followed her, taking her hand back in mine. Her touch, however small, always grounded me. It assured me I wasn’t dreaming, that she was really right here with me.
“How about our first concert, sunshine?” She nodded, those eyes shining with so much love it brought me to my knees. “I wasn’t sure of the choice of music—”
She silenced me by raising on her toes and pressing a kiss to my lips. “It could be first graders playing a violin and I’d still love it.”
She tugged me gently until we both took a seat in the sand, uncaring of our clothes. The first notes drifted through the air, mixing with the sounds of the waves in the background.
I had never felt more alive, and it had everything to do with Louisa—my own ray of sunshine. She was my kindred spirit whose darkness rivaled my own. She’d never looked at me with disdain at the deeds I’d done and had to endure to survive, because she’d been through them too.
Louisa didn’t just live, she thrived. She got close with Lara and my sister. She talked more. She smiled more despite the recent events. We hadn’t been able to locate her twin. But none of that mattered right now. This was our first date, and I refused to let anything ruin it.
This life was exactly what we’d envisioned. The two of us with our families, never experiencing cold weather or cruel people again. Although we knew there’d always be more of them—humans with no morals or dignity—and we made a vow to fight them together.
My heart thundered harder as she leaned her head against my shoulder, her small but lethal hand in mine, memorizing this moment so it lasted us the rest of our lives.
We’d always hold on to each other.
Our pasts were drenched with blood. Our future probably would be too, but as long as we had each other, we’d conquer the world.
Tomorrow we’d resume the search for her sister, but tonight… Tonight was ours.
Lou kicked off her heels with a sigh as we entered our bedroom after checking on our sound-asleep ward.
“Thank you for the amazing first date, Kingston.” She glanced at me over her shoulder, a familiar mischievous glint in her eyes stirring my cock to life. It was all it took with this woman. Just a simple look and I was ready to bend her over the bed and fuck her into oblivion. “How about we end it on an even higher note with another first?”
“Let’s hear it,” I said, leaning against the wall and crossing my ankles.
Lou always found ways to surprise me, and fuck, if she said let’s jump into a volcano together, I’d probably do it.
There was a beat of silence before she erected her spine, her golden locks sweeping over her back. She padded over to me, closing the space between us.
Her body flush against mine, she wrapped her hands around my neck, bringing her lips so close to mine that when she spoke her next words, they brushed against mine. “Want to have another first?”
“With you, always,” I answered without an ounce of hesitation as her scent invaded my nostrils. She was my personal vice.
My hand slid to her lower back, and I pressed her body against mine. A shiver rolled down her body, her breathing ragged. She tilted her head up, her lips tempting me, but I waited for her to tell me what she had in mind.
“We could try exhibitionist sex.”
“You want me to let someone else see what’s mine?” I growled, reeling with surprise. “I’m up for anything with you, sunshine, but after you orgasm, I’m killing anyone who saw you.”
She let out a husky laugh, her lips parting for me. “Our bedroom windows are tinted. We’ll see them, but they won’t see us.”
“In that case…”
I took her mouth in mine, her body rubbing against me and causing friction. A moan fell from her mouth and I swallowed it greedily as our tongues danced in perfect harmony. In one go, I unzipped her dress, letting it pool at her feet.
I trailed my mouth down her neck, licking her racing pulse as my fingers fumbled with her bra and panties until they too lay discarded on the ground.
My fingers found her pussy, wet and ready for me.
“Fuck, we need to make it to the window,” she panted, bucking her hips against my hand.
Her fingernails dug into my nape, her lithe body shuddering and moaning. She was already close to climaxing. It was always like this with her—electric and consuming. My mouth continued its journey south, over her collarbone, down to her breast before slipping her pink, erect nipple into my mouth and sucking it. I moved to her other nipple, lapping, pulling, and biting.
Her sigh filled the space between us, her head lolling back as she murmured incoherent words in Russian and English. Or maybe I was so far gone I couldn’t comprehend them.
“Every inch of you belongs to me,” I claimed, teasing her with my mouth.
“I do, but for the love of God, Kingston, you have to fuck me now,” she said, working my zipper fervently. I did the same with my shirt, and before long, I was as naked as her.
My fingers dipped inside her wet folds and she kissed me with the same desperation I felt, both our chests rising and falling to the rhythm of our frantic heartbeats. I took my finger out and brought it to her lips.
She sucked it clean and my control snapped.
Grabbing her hair from behind, I guided her to the French window that overlooked old Lisbon. Even though it was late in the evening, the city was still busy, passersby rushing home or to the next party.
Lou’s palms splayed against the window, she was butt naked, breasts and pussy smashed against the glass and on full display.
“If someone stops and even has a glimpse of you,” I murmured against her ear, “I’m going to track them down and kill them. Take their teeth for a trophy.”