Fionn (6 page)

Fionn felt like he’d just emptied his soul inside LeeAnn along with his cum. When she whimpered, reaching for him weakly, he knew she felt the same connection he did. With the last strength he possessed, he scooped LeeAnn up and made his way to the steps out of the pool. Taking them to the hot tub he settled her over him chest to chest, her legs straddling his hips. She laid her head on his shoulder, her breath still coming in little gasps against his neck.

Hot water bubbled and fizzed around them, soothing aching muscles. Fionn stroked LeeAnn’s back gently, his fingers trailing lazily up and down her spine. When she shifted a little, Fionn growled before he could stop himself, wrapping both his arms tightly around her to hold her in place.

“I’m not letting you go, LeeAnn. Get used to being here.”

“I have school,” she said weakly, sleepily. “I’ve worked my whole life to get my Ph.D. and I
will
finish it.”

“We’ll work something out where you can do your work here. I’ll build you whatever you need. I don’t care if it’s a fucking air base. You’re not leaving me. And I can’t let you run around unprotected on the MIT campus.”

He thought she’d protest, but she simply sighed, giggling a little. “OK, Daddy Warbucks. But I think you’re biting off more than you can chew.” Then she sighed, and didn’t move.

Fionn could have happily closed his eyes and passed out as well, but he wanted to be comfortable when he rested with her. In this case, “comfortable” equaled “dry and lying down.”

Somehow, he managed to get them back to his bedroom, dried, and spooned together with the covers securely over them. With one final kiss to her hair, Fionn wrapped her securely in his arms and slept like the dead.

They weren’t alone in the house. Some innate sense Fionn had always possessed snagged him, raising an alarm he was well familiar with. LeeAnn lay sprawled over his chest, her body half on top of him; her slight weight seemed to pin him to the bed. Fionn didn’t even try to be subtle when he rolled from underneath her to the nightstand where his gun lay on the alarm clock where he could reach it easily. A quick check of his weapon showed him it was fully loaded with a round in the chamber. Whatever motherfucker had invaded his home was about to die. Slowly. If the bastard was lucky.

Weapon ready, Fionn snagged a pair of jeans from the nearby dresser, slinging them on quickly before grabbing a T-shirt for LeeAnn. She sat up, not saying a word but as the moonlight bathed her face, he could see her eyes wide with fear. He didn’t say anything to her, merely pulled her across the bed, urging her to crouch beside it on the floor. Surprisingly, she didn’t fight him, merely took her cues from him. Fionn quickly got the shirt over her head before placing his mouth right at her ear.

“Someone’s in the house. Lock yourself in the bathroom until I come back for you.”

“What are you going to do?” Fionn could see her eyes sparkling up at him. There was fear, of course, but there was also a hard resolve. Which was why he got the sinking feeling she wasn’t going to do what he told her.

“Kill them.”

“I just knew you’d say that,” she muttered under her breath, but, surprisingly, thankfully, crept silently to the bathroom. “Fionn?” She said his name softly, almost like a caress. When he looked at her, she said, “Try not to get yourself killed. I’d be very put out if you did.” Then she shut and locked the door as he’d instructed.

Fionn couldn’t help his smile. He no longer cared why he felt this way, only that it continued. With that thought, he checked his weapon one more time. Woe be unto whomever was in his house because, in his mind, an invader put LeeAnn in danger. Any danger to her, Fionn would annihilate.

Silently, he made his way through the house, checking everything as he went. Fionn knew his place. When he’d come home from killing Magda, he’d noted every place LeeAnn had been just by her footfalls on the carpet, the odd handprint on the immaculate wood furnishings, or an object slightly out of place. As he made his way to the kitchen, he knew whoever was here hadn’t yet ventured into the main part of the house.

When he approached the kitchen, however, he saw them. Three shadowy figures conversing quietly. Outside the kitchen entry, he saw his guard sprawled out on the patio, his neck at an odd angle. With all the electronic security he had, the guard seemed like an overkill, but at the time, he’d been more concerned about LeeAnn trying to escape than he’d been about anyone breaking in to get her. She wouldn’t care if she tripped an alarm. All of this told him two things. First, whoever these guys were, they were good. He wouldn’t underestimate them. Second, he was going to kill every last motherfucking one of them.

Without further thought, Fionn took aim and squeezed the trigger. Two went down immediately—brain and bone would be splattered all over his kitchen wall if his aim was true. The third ducked into the shadows. His footsteps were faint, but Fionn could make them out, headed deeper into his home.

That familiar cold washed over Fionn. In that state, he felt nothing but the ice inside him that allowed him to kill repeatedly without losing his sanity. Stalking the intruder in his house felt right this time. As if by attacking in Fionn’s lair, the bastard had signed his own death warrant and Fionn’s hands were clean for once. Above all things, he had to keep the man from LeeAnn. That in itself gave Fionn any justification he might have needed.
If
he’d had a conscience.

As he made his way after the third man, Fionn noticed signs that others had been in the area before he’d driven the intruder this way. Were there more? How many?

Fionn crouched down, staying in the shadows to evaluate the situation. While he had no doubt he could kill anyone he needed to, this time he had LeeAnn to think about. If they found her, not only could they use her against him, but they could very well hide behind her, making killing his prey more difficult. And, even though his aim was as deadly accurate as any sniper’s, he would never risk hitting LeeAnn.

Decision made, Fionn hurried back to his bedroom and the woman who held his sanity in the palm of her hand.

***

Hiding in the bathroom was so not LeeAnn’s idea of what she should be doing. If her father had sent someone to retrieve her—and it was very likely he had—then she needed to be out there defending Fionn. Not that her father would have anyone he hired to bring her home hurt Fionn. Her father wasn’t like that. He was…

What exactly was he? Benita had hinted that she was delusional to think he was the kind gentle man she’d always thought him to be. He’d raised her after her mother had died. Had sent her to the best schools growing up. He supported her work at MIT, asked about it daily. But in all that time, he’d never shown her affection. But why would he do all that if he didn’t care for her?

It seemed everyone thought the worst of her stepfather except her. So did that make them right, or her? Maybe he was a bastard. Fionn hadn’t said what he’d done to earn the displeasure of the O’Shea family, but maybe they could both be right. After all, just because he was involved in some shady businesses didn’t mean he didn’t truly care for her.

Sitting in the corner, she was pondering all this when the door to the bathroom burst open. LeeAnn recognized one of her father’s bodyguards, but not the vicious mien he presented now. The man looked like he was going to kill her the second he got a hold of her.

Lunging for her, the man—Vick—snarled at her. “Get over here, bitch. Your father wants you back to work.”

“No! Wait!” She pulled against his rough grip. “Vick, you’re hurting me!”

“Not half as bad as I will if you don’t do what the fuck I tell you!” His voice was a harsh growl, as if he were biting out each word through clenched teeth. When he put the gun to her head, LeeAnn knew the cold kiss of fear.

“What are you doing? My father wouldn’t want you to do this!”

“Your daddy said to bring you out. Dead or alive. Apparently, if he can’t have your little planes and rockets, he doesn’t want anyone else to have them either.”

LeeAnn gasped as he dragged her along with him, his gun still firmly at her head. Vick looked around wild eyed as if thinking someone would jump him from the shadows any second.

“Let me go!”

“I said shut the fuck up!” Vick snaked his other arm around her neck, holding her so tight it was hard to breathe.

In a panic now, LeeAnn fought. Kicking out with her bare feet against his fully clad legs did nothing. He held her head so tightly, she couldn’t use the back of her head to connect with his face in any way. She was able to dig her nails into his forearm, clawing for all she was worth. Still, he didn’t let her go, or even acknowledge her efforts in any way.

Three shots rang out from another part of the house. LeeAnn tried to scream, but couldn’t get enough air. Had Fionn just died? Had he killed? Either prospect left her heart racing in fear for him. The man had seen too much death. He didn’t need any more.

“Sounds like my boys got your boyfriend,” Vick said, his voice a sneer. “Let’s just go make sure they did the job right.”

Never letting LeeAnn go, Vick dragged her out of the bedroom down the hall and into the kitchen. Before they got there, they met one of Vick’s men. LeeAnn recognized him but didn’t know his name.

“Back the other way!” the man hissed in a whisper, but his urgency was clear. “Bastard knew we were here. Got Charlie and Anderson.”

Vick dragged LeeAnn back to the bedroom, his hold on her never loosening. She could barely breathe his arm was so tight around her neck, but she didn’t stop fighting. Instead of telling her to hold still or any other number of things she’d seen on TV, Vick simply knocked her in the temple with the butt of his gun. Stars swam over her vision as her head seemed to explode in pain. Still, the barrel of his weapon was firmly back at her head. Did he truly mean to kill her, then?

“Do you honestly think that will work?” The new guy didn’t sound convinced. “The old man wants her back at work. Boss said so. If she gets killed in the crossfire, who do you think they’ll take it out on?”

“He doesn’t care as long as she’s not on O’Shea hands,” Vick growled back. “Just keep her in between us and him and we can take this bastard.”

The men weren’t exactly quiet but LeeAnn could barely hear them over the roaring in her ears as the blood refused to flow from her head the way it should. She was starting to get really dizzy and her eyes were swelling shut, bright dots of light sparkling in her vision.

A noise at the door had both men firing their weapons like mad. LeeAnn jerked, thinking one was likely to take her head off, but there was nothing but the loud explosion of gunfire.

Which was when something inside LeeAnn snapped.

She wiggled and squirmed, knowing Vick was likely too busy looking or Fionn to really pay her much attention. He’d probably think she was just trying to maneuver so she could suck in a breath of air. The second he let up, LeeAnn dropped her chin under his arm and found his flesh with her teeth. The warm, coppery taste hit her like a vindication. So did his sharp cry of surprise and pain.

Dropping to her knees, LeeAnn crawled away from the pair as fast as she could in the dark, rolling under the bed. Thankfully, the moonlight provided her enough light to make out the shadow of the massive piece of furniture. If she were lucky, the men wouldn’t see her.

Two
pops
of gunfire later and two heavy
thuds
sounded as bodies hit the floor. LeeAnn wanted to cry out to Fionn, to make sure he was OK. Then she remembered she was supposed to be glad they were trying to rescue her. Only they really weren’t. At least, if they were, it was worse than being held prisoner by Fionn O’Shea.

A hand grasped her ankle, dragging her from under the bed. LeeAnn kicked out with all her might, giving a battle yell as she did. She connected with something solid, but the man kept pulling her until she was out from under the bed. Not stopping her attack, LeeAnn kicked and kicked until she dimly heard Fionn’s voice over the roaring in her ears.

“Relax, baby.” Then, “Ouch! Cut it the fuck out!”

Finally, she stopped, still wary until Fionn pulled her into his arms, holding her so tight she thought she might break. His familiar scent enveloped her, letting her know she was safe.

Which was when she realized she was supposed to want to be free of him. Only she really didn’t. So, with a mental shrug, she clung to him just as tightly as he did her.

“I thought I’d lost you,” he choked out, his voice tight.

They sat there for several minutes. Fionn with his back to the wall next to the bed, LeeAnn in his arms. Both of them were breathing hard and LeeAnn thought Fionn trembled just as much as she did. Then she sat up straight, one thought whirling through her mind.

“Are you hurt? They shot at you! Did you get hit? I’ll call an ambulance!”

When she tried to get up, he held her firm. “I’m fine, baby. They didn’t touch me.”

“You’re sure?”

“I think I’d know.” His amused tone made her want to throat punch him but she settled for smacking him. None too gently.

“That’s for scaring me half to death!” She did it again. “That’s for killing people right next to me!” Once more for good measure. “And that’s for kidnapping me in the first place, you prick!” Then she took his face in her hands and kissed him soundly, filling all the anger, confusion, and relief into her kiss she couldn’t adequately express otherwise.

After several moments she pulled back, resting her forehead against his. “What was that for?” Fionn asked.

“For making me fall for you, dumbass.”

His chuckle warmed her, filled LeeAnn with a sense of anticipation. Her life was about to begin and it would be with this man. Did they have issues to work on? Sure. Did she want forever with him? Maybe. Time would tell, as would his attitude and actions.