I was stunned. On top of my frayed emotions, this left me speechless.
“Just something I needed to get off my chest,” he said, “on the off chance that something does happen to me and I don’t return. Tomorrow’s never promised, but I need you to know that my love for you is.”
Niles kissed me tenderly. As he pivoted, I locked my grip on the single blade, mad at myself for enjoying the kiss. When we finished, neither of us spoke. I drove away from the side of the road and let him direct me back to the private airstrip. I pulled my car up to the plane and let him out. God, I didn’t want to. I wanted him to stay here with me. He unloaded his bags and then turned to face me.
“I need to know something before I leave. Are you all in, Paris?”
“Yeah. I am,” I said solemnly.
“Good. Because I know you know who my next assignment is,” he stated, startling me. “Just wanted to show that I trust you with my business . . . no matter who says I shouldn’t. No secrets. I love you, ma,” he said, oblivious to who I really was: the daughter of the man he was hired to kill.
“I love you too,” I replied. “Always.”
“Then we’re on the same page.” He gave me a quick kiss on the lips, holding me around the waist. As his hands fell away and he began to move, I grabbed his arm, holding it firmly. At first he looked confused, because my grip had intensity, but when his eyes met mine they were soft, smiling.
“Do you trust me?” I fought back tears.
“Yes, and that’s not something that comes naturally to me,” he said, holding my gaze.
“Then believe me when I say you can’t go. You have to walk away from this job.” I heard my voice catch from the emotional hell swirling deep down at the core of my heart.
“Babe, it’s gonna be all right. I’m not leaving you. Plus, I need to finish this job so that I can walk away from Nadja.”
“I don’t care. Do another job for her. I need you to stay with me.” I knew the begging wasn’t sexy, but I couldn’t just let him go. He reached out and swooped me up in his arms and held me close, but by the time he put me down, I knew he’d made his decision and nothing I said would deter him.
I watched as he walked toward the plane and stepped up the ladder, disappearing into the G5. Just like that, he was gone.
I climbed back into my car, and with trembling hands, I donned a pair of gloves that I’d hastily stowed in my pocket in anticipation of this moment. From the opposite pocket, I produced a wireless transmitter and removed the safety with a flick of my thumb. I waited until the plane had taken off, imagining him there in the cockpit, thinking about me the same way that I was here thinking about him.
Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes and counted to three as I fought back tears. In the end, the outcome was predetermined from the moment I had looked in that file back in a cheap motel in Valencia.
Niles had once taught me a valuable lesson about having to make hard choices when he wanted me to prove I was “about this life.” Well, I am, I thought as I opened my eyes and pressed the trigger.
“I love you, Niles,” I spoke out loud, although he was miles in the air by now.
Only when I saw the flames of the airplane lighting the sky and falling into pieces over the hill was I convinced of my success. However, success was synonymous with misery as the transmitter fell from my open hand and I closed my eyes again.
“Niles!” My chest heaving, I screamed at the top of my lungs, but there was no one there to hear it. I opened my eyes, and suddenly it was all gone. No smoke, no fire, no plane, nothing. Just Rio and Sasha sitting across from me, looking at me like I was a fool.
“You all right?” Rio asked, leaning as far as his seat belt would allow.
It took me a second, but I finally got it together and realized it was all a dream, and that we were on the ground, buckled up in the company G5. I glanced out the window as we made our way to the hangar.