Her Assassin's Heart - Book 2

Chapter 35

    Nickolas stared into Cassandra's silhouette in the darkness. He could barely make out the look of determination she was wearing. He couldn't believe what he was hearing.

    "Keep watch." He growled at Julian.

    Before a response could be formed, he grabbed Cassandra's arm and pulled her up he alleyway. She followed him stumblingly, and he thought he heard her ask something, but he didn't care. He needed to see her face when they had this conversation.

    "You're not doing it." He pulled her into a corner dimly lit by a street lamp. She opened her mouth to respond. "No." He said before she could speak.

    "I beg your pardon?" She raised her brows.

    "You heard me." He growled.

    "You seem to be forgetting that I'm not a child, Nickolas, and you are not my parent." She snapped.

    "Yeah, well that doesn't change the fact that I have to look after you in this whole mess." His grip tightened on her arm. "It's up to me to make sure you get back home safely, and I'm not about to let you get yourself into trouble now."

    She winced, and he realized his grip must be hurting her. He flung her arm out of his grasp, pulling back as if he'd been bit.

    "Look, Cassandra, you have no idea what this is. You're getting mixed up in something that doesn't involve you." Well, that wasn't true, but maybe it would convince her to change her mind. "It's too dangerous, and I'm not going to let you do it. You can't—w-what are you doing?"

    In the dim light, he could easily make out Cassandra's delicate fingers undoing the front laces of her bodice. The pale, creamy flesh that she exposed with careful precision drew his attention, and he struggled to look away. Clearing his throat, he averted his eyes with some difficulty.

    "I have to look the part." She said, combing her fingers through her hair. "Maybe I'm not the best person for this, and maybe you don't want me to get involved, but Nickolas, I'm in this whether you like it or not. We both know I'm going to be better at this than Julian, and we can't afford to fail. Any chance at being on upper ground—even level ground—is something we have to grab."

    She tugged at the neck of her gown, exposing her shoulders. She was going to do this. It didn't matter what he said: he wasn't going to change her mind.

    The thought of another man touching her, caressing her, entered Nickolas's mind. Uncontrollable rage threatened to boil over within him, and he ground his teeth together. Cassandra looked up at him, finished with her ministrations, and seeing her bright eyes almost made him explode. There was nothing he could do to stop her, he knew.

    "Look here," he took hold of her shoulders. "Don't you give him any more than you need to." He ground out. "I'm going to be waiting right outside, and if you sense anything that's even the slightest bit off, you call for me. I don't care how close you are to getting something from him—you call for me; are we clear? None of us are worth risking your life, Cassandra, not a single one."

    She looked up at him, her eyes wide, her lips parted. His grip relaxed slightly, and one of her hands closed over his upper arm, her fingers brushing against a patch of bare skin. He leaned a fraction of an inch closer, and his thumb rubbed over her collar bone.

    He hadn't realized before how close they actually were, but now, every sense was aware of her. She seemed to be calling him, and he didn't care what was going on outside of their little circle anymore. England could have crumbled to her knees, and he wouldn't have noticed. All he could think about was her lips and how much he wanted to kiss her.