Page 25 of The Wolf

Vega

“The sun will be coming up soon,” I said as I held Poppy's hand and guided her up a short ridge.

“How can you tell? It's dark as fuck out here.” Poppy grunted as she stabilized on the loose debris. “I can't even see my feet.”

I climbed beside her and pointed to a wedge-shaped clearing between the trees. “See the red hue?” She squinted to look. “That's the sun coming up over the horizon. Won't be long now.”

Poppy wiped her hands over each other as she exhaled. “This whole thing is fucked up.”

“It doesn't matter what it is. All that matters is we get out of it.”

“So what's your big plan, huh? We have no car. No food or water. We have nothing. How exactly do we get out of it?”

“I'm a resourceful man, Poppy. You haven't seen anything yet.”

“I've seen enough,” she said as her arms flopped to her side. “I take it we're heading towards the horizon.” Poppy walked past me, her shoulder brushing mine in the process.

I followed her. She needed some space to sort through the shit in her head. It was a lot to deal with. To know someone wanted you dead and that that person was supposed to be family was hard enough, but to also know that same person killed your mother was too much for her to decipher right then.

Her entire life, every memory, every conversation, every moment was tainted now.

She had to reevaluate everything with a fresh pair of eyes.

Were there signs? Should she have seen this coming?

She couldn't, and no one would have expected her to.

Poppy was just a child when her father killed her mother.

And he manipulated her into adulthood. How could she ever see his true colors when he hid behind a mask?

“Stop,” I said as we approached the clearing. “Just wait a second.”

“What?” she asked. “Why are we—”

“Shh.” I hushed her as I turned my head to listen.

Poppy was quiet as she looked around nervously.

Her fingers anxiously pulled at her lips.

I could see her so easily in the dim sunlight.

Her eyes were wide, the skin puffy underneath with dark circles from lack of sleep and crying.

Her hair was frizzled with sticks and leaves poking out.

Her clothing and skin were splotched with dirt, and fuck knows what else.

I listened more intently, but the soft cracking of the sticks stopped. “Alright, I think we're good.”

“Did you hear something?”

“I thought I did, but I don't anymore.” I started to walk forward.

“Wait. What if there is someone out there? How do you know it's safe?”

I looked over my shoulder at her and said, “I don't. But we have to keep moving. There's a place not far from here we can go.”

“You have another place?”

“I have a lot of places, Poppy. In my line of work, you can never be too careful.”

“Your line of work. You mean killing people.”

“You can call it that if it makes you feel better.”

“It doesn't make me feel better.”

“Then why split hairs over it?”

Poppy walked by my side, her eyes on the ground. “Because the truth matters, Vega,” she said.

“I remember the name of every single person I've been hired to deal with. Did you know that?” I asked.

“Is that supposed to mean something to me? What do you want me to say? You want me to tell you how proud I am of you?” She let out a condescending chuckle. “Give me a fucking break. As if knowing their names lessens your guilt.”

“I'm not ignoring my guilt, Poppy. I know what I've done. What I'm telling you is I haven't forgotten them. They live inside me in some sick way I can't explain or understand.”

“The lives you stole. And you're right, it is sick.”

I cocked a brow as I reached out and grabbed her wrist. I swiveled her around so she was facing me. “Poppy, I know you don't understand it, but this was my life. It's all I've ever known. It's who I was.”

“Was?” she asked, her tone full of disbelief.

“Yes. I'm not that person anymore. I can't be. Something changed inside me.”

“You had an epiphany? Was there some sort of miracle that woke you up? Was it killing Dylan in a bathroom at a very prominent function? Or was it being able to shoot a guy from hundreds of feet away? Hm? Was it something else?” Poppy's hand fell to her hip as she tilted her head, waiting for an answer.

“I see what you're doing here, and you need to stop. I know this has been a lot on you, but don't talk to me like that,” I snapped.

“Like what?”

“Like I'm some stupid piece of shit. Like you're better than me. Because you're not. If it wasn't for me, you'd be dead right now.”

“If it wasn't for you?” she asked as her jaw cocked to one side. “So, I need to thank you now?”

“Yeah, you should be thanking me.” I was getting angry. Poppy kept going from warm to cold. She'd seem to appreciate what I'd done one moment, then hate me the next. She wasn't listening to me at all.

I put my life on the line for her. I destroyed my reputation and everything my father built to save her. I don't know what else I can do to prove to her that I'm not who she thinks I am.

“Fuck you,” she barked. “I can take care of myself. You should know that by now.”

“I know that if your father hadn't come to me first, you would absolutely be dead right now.”

“I thought you said something changed you? You sound like you could still kill me if you got mad enough.”

“Yeah. You. You changed me, Poppy.” I grabbed my hair and yanked as I said, “I tried. I tried so fucking hard to do what I was hired for. I tried to kill you, I really did, but I just couldn't pull the trigger.”

Poppy tilted her head as her lips tightened. “I don't think it works that way. You can't spend your entire life being trained for something, do it for years, and then suddenly just wake up thinking it's wrong because you met a girl.”

“I never said I didn't know it was wrong. But I never felt anything before you. You woke up something inside me, whether you want to believe it or not. Things are different now. If I kill anyone, it's only going to be to protect you.”

Poppy blinked a few times. She was thinking cautiously about what to say, what to believe, what to do. There was nothing I could do to make her see that I wasn't the same man anymore. She knew me as a killer, and she might always see me that way.

But I would die for her. I would gladly take my last breath so long as she was safe and no one was left to harm her. That was my goal. I wanted to ensure that she never had to fear for her life again.

She licked her lips and said, “And when this is over, what then? What will you do?”

“I don't know. Maybe I'll go start a security company or something.” I chuckled and smiled. Poppy didn't smile back. “Too soon for a joke?”

“Vega, I'm having a really hard time with this. My father killed my mother. He hired people to kill me. What the hell am I supposed to do with that?”

I ran my fingers around the curve of her face, pushing loose hair behind her ear. “You'll find your way through it. You're strong. You'll come out the other side even stronger.”

Her lips twitched with a soft smile. She gripped my wrist and pressed her face into my palm. “I don't know how.” Poppy closed her eyes as she took a deep breath. “My life is ruined.”

“Look at me.” I cupped her face with both hands, forcing her to look into my eyes. “Your life is just beginning. You've been living someone else's up to now. This is where you take yours back.”

“I wish I could believe that.” Poppy's eyes flicked between mine, teary and red. “How do I do that?”

“You start right now,” I said as I leaned in and kissed her forehead. I pulled away and whispered. “Let me help you. I can give you your life back.” I lowered my lips slowly towards hers, wanting to kiss her so badly.

I needed this woman like I needed air. I wanted to breathe her in. I wanted to touch her and taste and devour her. I wanted to fill her body with mine. I wanted her to scream my name as she dug her nails into the muscles of my back. But what did she want?

Poppy was quiet. Our eyes searched each other for words that neither of us would speak.

And then she spoke with action. She pushed up on the tips of her toes and wrapped her arms around my neck.

Poppy accepted my kiss. Her head angled to the side, mouth softly opening.

She exhaled as I kissed her deeper. Her skin was chilled.

The tips of her fingers were like ice against my neck.

“You're so cold,” I said against her lips.

“Then warm me up,” Poppy spoke low, her voice as delicate as the thin blades of grass reaching up between dead leaves for a taste of sunlight. “I want you to make me sweat.”

“Are you sure about that?” I asked. “I don't want you doing something you might regret.”

“I won't regret it.” Poppy's words came off a lucid tongue.

I cupped her jaw softly. “Your head isn't in the right space right now. There's no telling how you'll feel tomorrow or the next day. I want you whole.”

“And I want to feel whole. Help me feel whole, Vega.”

That was all I needed to hear. I needed to hear Poppy say my name. I needed her to want me. I growled and lifted her off the ground in one swoop. She curled her legs around my waist as I walked her to the nearest tree. I pushed her back against the rough surface to help hold her up.

Poppy let out a coo as my hard cock pressed her clit.

She clenched her thighs tight and rocked her hips as her tongue slid into my mouth.

She tasted like pure ecstasy. Sweet and innocent but with a hint of danger.

Maybe she tasted so good because wanting her was wrong.

Maybe she tasted so good because having her could get us killed.

It was always a thrill to do something you knew you shouldn't.