Page 17 of Stolen Moments with a Bad Boy

“That can’t be right,” her pops added. “If it’s true, how the hell do you know?”

“I know because he hired me to kill Erie.”

She gasped and covered her mouth. Her tears immediately trickled down her face. I shook my head. I was so fed up with hurting Erie. In no way did I intend to hurt her. It was not my intention in the slightest, but I had to be honest with her.

“I’m sorry that I keep hurting you, Erie. I swear I am. The truth is, my businesses are just a cover for my part-time gig. I’m an assassin or a contract killer for a lack of better words.

“That’s why I’m always traveling out of town. It was the main reason for my Paris trip I took a while ago. Troy took out a contract on you a month ago. How he got my info? I don’t know.

“The moment your name and information came up, I couldn’t do it. I had observed you for a few years, and I knew you were a good person. I wanted to meet you for myself. After our first sit down, I cancelled the contract with Troy, but I knew that wouldn’t stop him from finding somebody else. I’ve been trying to stay close to you to prevent any more bullshit from happening. It’s clear I failed.”

“Boy, you get the fuck away from my daughter, and don’t you ever come near her again. You ain’t the only one who got connections. I do too. Now, get the fuck out of her store!” Her father shouted.

I heard what he said, but the shit didn’t faze me. “Erie, baby, please listen to me.”

She shook her head. Her teeth sank into her lower lip. Erie was pissed off. Nothing I said even mattered at the moment. She looked into my eyes.

“You been playing me this whole time. You’re a killer, and you were contracted to kill me!” she voiced loudly, slamming her hand on the table. “I want you out of my store and out of my life now! We’ll deal with Troy, but you need to go.” She stood and pointed at the door.

“Bella, it wasn’t like that. Please listen to me. It’s not me that wants you dead. It’s your own fuckin’ brother. If you guys don’t deal with this . . .” I let my sentence trail off because I didn't want to speak her death into existence. I cared for Erie too much. I’d kill Troy without hesitation.

“Leave, Janeiro,” she expressed softly then sniffled. My poor baby was hurt, and I was the last person she wanted to be around.

“As you wish.”

I stood from my seat and walked toward the door, but I stopped in my tracks.

“You got every right to be pissed off, Erie. Take a couple of days, but if I haven’t heard from you by then, I’m coming to get you.”

I walked out the door and into the warm evening air. Erie could best believe I was coming back to get her. She belonged to me and only me. I had invested too much into her mentally, emotionally, and physically. She had me open like a can of pop, and there was no way in hell she could get rid of me that easily.

Two days had gone by, and I still hadn’t heard from Erie. She thought shit was sweet, but it wasn’t. Her café was still closed and being exterminated and professionally cleaned. I paid for all the damages, like I said I would.

It was only right that I did. If only I’d come cleaner sooner. The glass was replaced the day before yesterday. I stopped by this morning since Londen oversaw the renovations of the café. She told me that Erie was a few minutes away at the local cemetery. It was where she went to clear her head. Visiting and talking to her Gigi helped give her clarity.

I pulled into the large cemetery and drove around the path until I spotted Erie kneeling in front of a fancy headstone. Hurriedly, I parked then hiked to her. There was no time to waste. I needed my woman back.

My heavy footsteps prompted her to turn and look at me. The sadness in Erie’s red and puffy eyes pulled at my heartstrings. I felt like a piece of shit again, but I wasn't leaving here without her. Erie turned away from me.

“What do you want? Are you here to kill me or just looking for another way to fake care about me?”

Ouch. Her question stung like a bitch. I understood, though. Her anger was placed on the right person. I took a seat next to her on the grass. She stared at the headstone. Erie’s tears ran down her face. She appeared to be more hurt than I suspected.

“Baby, you got every right to be mad at me. I withheld a lot of shit from you. Had I been open and forthcoming, then we wouldn’t even be in this situation. I am a killer. That is what I do for a living partially.”

Erie looked at me again. “What do you mean bypartially?”

I released a deep sigh before I pulled her onto my lap. “I was seventeen years old when I became an assassin. After what I endured as a boy, I wanted to rid the world of as many monsters as I could. I wanted to help children that were preyed upon.

“No kid deserves to experience what I did. I had been caught up in this life so long that I forgot what it was like to show emotions and love. I didn’t remember how to do any of that until I met you. You made me feel and love again.

“It was never my intention to hurt you, but in the process of trying to keep you safe, I withheld a lot of key information. Confessing that I’m an assassin on the first day we met would’ve had you running for the hills.

“On top of that, telling you that it’s your own brother that’s trying to kill you is wild in itself. Those are not conversation starters, my love. Erie, I’m so sorry. This is all my fault.

“I promise never to lie to you again or withhold any information unless I absolutely have to. The less you know about my assassin lifestyle, the better. What you know now is that I willnever hurt you. Never. I care about you way too fuckin’ much. You have my heart, and I need you back in my life. Please, can you find it in your heart to forgive me, again?”

Erie sniffled, then turned and faced me. “You’re a bad boy, Janeiro.”

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