This is going to be a hilarious thrill ride.

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Conversation had lulled between them as they ate in silence. Tempeste debating on whether or not to tell him about the contract Dary had put on him and how she knew of it. If Cain made the connection between Storm and Tempeste Banning, she’d have no choice but to kill him.
Cain’s eyes move over the woman across from him. She was twirling a piece of that copper hair around her finger as she ate. She was a beautiful woman and if he had more free time, he might pursue her. Her green eyes lifted flashing him an easy smile. “Are you sure you don’t want to take me up on my offer?”
Cain’s lips transformed into a half smile. “That would be a bonny idea, however, I’m on call and don’t need the complication.”
“Well, what if we just spend a few hours together and see how the night goes?” Tempeste offers arching a copper brow at him.
“I can do that, but when MacNair calls…” Cain began.
“You leave, no questions asked.” Tempeste shrugs.
Cain nods. “Then we have an accord.”
A saucy smile transforms her lips as she leans forward placing her chin in her hand. “I’m willing to up this accord we have.”
Cain leans forward now folding his hands on the table intently staring into those amazing emerald eyes. “Aye?”
“If you’re lonely or in the neighborhood, you can drop in to see me.”
Cain rakes his fingers through his dark hair. A smile on his face. “You just don’t bloody give up, do you?”
Tempeste grins as she reaches across the table lacing her fingers with his. “And why would I give up an Irishman that knows the inner workings and customs of my home country? That would just be stupid on my part.”
Cain looks at the fingers laced with his then to her face. The perfect flawless skin with a very light dusting of freckles across the bridge of her nose. Attesting that she avoided prolonged exposure to the sun. “I might.”
“Thanks for lunch, I think I’m ready for a nap,” she slides to the end of the seat grabbing her purse as Cain pushes to his feet throwing some money on the table.
“I’ll walk you back.”
“How sweet,” Tempeste smiles wrapping her hand around his arm. Cain chuckles as they head for the door. Tempeste discretely looks over her shoulder watching three men from the other side of the bistro push to their feet. The same men that had come in just after they’d come in. One had been reading the paper in the lobby of her hotel. “Do you know any secluded walkways back to the hotel? I just love the cobblestone streets.”
Cain shakes his head. “I know a way.”
Tempeste flashes him a brilliant smile as they reach the street. Her arm still around Cain’s as he walks her in the opposite direction of the hotel and wonders exactly where he is leading her. Raking her free hand through her hair in an attempt to lock the curls in place and notices the men still following. “Give me the guidebook description, Cain.”
He shakes his head shoving his hands into his pockets. “Most of Dublin is older than it seems time itself. There’s beautiful architecture. The cathedral might be more your fancy.”
“Hmm, me in a church? The roof might cave in on me,” Tempeste chuckles as she reaches into her purse as they head down the alley. Her fingers wrap around the handle of her knife. It’s more like an assassin blade that she had custom made back in Japan. Preferring a silent kill over a noisy one.
“What are you doing?” Cain asks stopping. Her fingers release the blade as she digs around.
“Looking for my camera,” she smiles as she continues to rifle around the purse looking for the fictitious camera she’d mentioned having. Something she’d have to remedy later if she planned on staying within close quarters to Cain.
Cain shakes his head as he looks up noticing the three men. His hand wraps around her arm. Tugging her closer. “We should go.” He starts dragging her farther down the alley.
She turns looking over her shoulder. “Those men are following.”
“They’re Adair’s men. They’re not after you, they’re after me,” says Cain quickly as he starts checking doors off the alley, all the while still maintaining his grip on her arm. Her green eyes widen watching the men break into a run trying to keep up with Cain’s pace. Were they going to off her too simply for being with him? She had to stop this. Jerking her arm loose, she grabs the hair band from the pocket of her jeans pulling her hair back into a makeshift bun. Cain shoots her a curious look as he moves to the next door. Tempeste follows.
Cain gets a door open. He grabs Tempeste’s hand dragging her into the building with him. He quickly locks the door pulling her through what appears to be a bakery. Her heart pounding in her ears, their footsteps sounding hollow to her ears as Cain ushers her through the bakery missing several of the workers. They’re receiving odd looks from some of the staff. Her heart jolts hearing pounding on the door, her head turning in the direction of the door. Cain’s arm wraps around her as they pass the bar startling several customers. Cain glances over his shoulder as they clear the bakery. They disappear into a group of tourists hastily boarding a tour bus.
Cain stands shielding her with his body. His arm still around her waist as she looks up at him. She looks over the people on the bus as it pulls away. Her eyes move to the three men running out of the bakery as Cain’s eyes move in the same direction. Oh, the man was good, but she was better if he’d allow her to prove it.
“How long are we staying on this bus?” Tempeste whispers with a smile.
Cain looks down at her. A smile gracing his lips as well. His hand tightens on the handle. “Until the next stop.” A jostle of the old double-decker tour bus sends her body flush with his. Her hand becoming trapped between them. Her fingers flex slightly feeling the hard wall of his chest through the thin material of his dress shirt. His gray eyes search her face as she stares up at him.
The sexual tension sizzling between them even on a crowded tour bus. Tempeste catches her bottom lip between her teeth. She swallows nervously. “Cain?”
“Aye?” Her arm wraps around his waist as the bus comes to a stop. She frowns as the tour group gets to their feet around them. Cain ushers her towards the door. The moment gone though it definitely deserved a repeat to see what would come of it. They step off as Cain looks over the street. His hand wraps around hers. “This way.”
Tempeste lets him drag her away from the tour group. She looks over her shoulder seeing a man push off the wall and follow them. “I think we’re still being followed.”
“Bloody hell,” mutters Cain as his pace increases.
They duck down another alley. Tempeste frowns, she’s tired of running. She jerks her hand loose. Cain turns and she stares as a man hits him over the head. He hits the ground hard. Her hand immediately goes to the blade in her purse as she looks over the three men. She takes a step towards Cain’s unconscious body.
“Who are you?” Tempeste asks. One man merely smirks at her.
“I think the boss will want her if she’s Cain’s.”
A copper brow arches at the man. “Try.” Tossing the purse aside, the knife in her hand as she prepares to make her stand. “Your boss is going to loose three men.”
The three men look at one another then to the slip of the woman making the threat. The one man takes a step closer. A slow smile spreads on Tempeste’s lips. Widening her stance, the blade of the knife resting along her forearm. The blade almost reaches her elbow.
The man moves to grab her, she jumps back slicing his arm with a flick of her wrist. He howls jerking back. “You boys just don’t know who you are dealing with.”
“Get the bloody yank,” the man growls.
Tempeste smiles. Stepping forward, she hits the first man in the throat. He hits the ground. He’s unconscious and unmoving. She moves away from Cain and the unconscious man, her footsteps slow. She’d kill him when she rendered the other two useless. “Next?” Motioning them forward.
The blade of the knife glinting in the afternoon light. They were far enough away from the street that she didn’t have to worry about witnesses. The next man charges her. Her hand snags his hair and her cold green eyes lift to the third man as the knife glides across his throat. His hands immediately go to the gushing wound. A slow smile spreads on her lips. Her hand releases the man and he falls listlessly to the alley.
“Who the hell are you?” The man asks keeping his distance. The unconscious man groans. The knife left her hand ending up in his chest.
“Who do you want me to be?”
His eyes narrow on her as her hands end up on her hips. The copper tendrils framing her face. “Yank, your name.”
“With your last breath I’ll give it,” Tempeste smiles, her eyes move to Cain now as he groans. Oh, he can’t wake up, not now. “Too late,” she charges him. Hitting the man in the sternum, he staggers. The next blow lands against his throat. Another to his temple. Jumping up her foot snaps his head back as she lands crouched. He’s gurgling on his own blood. She walks towards him extracting the blade from the first man to hit the ground. She crouches over the man as he struggles to breathe. “Storm.”
His eyes now staring blankly across the alley towards Cain considering he’d drowned on his own blood. Her green eyes move to Cain. He’s still unconscious but she can’t guess for how much longer. Crossing to him, she crouches placing two fingers against his throat. “I’m so sorry, Cain.” She pushes to her feet, grabbing the purse. Wiping the blood from the knife, she then walks away.
Better to be discrete and disappear before he puts two and two together. But then the man wasn’t stupid and liable to do it anyway. Walking to the end of the alley versus running. The execution of those three men flawless. Her green eyes move over the busy street. She disappears into a group of tourists heading in the same direction as her hotel. A slow breath claims her as her hand wraps around the strap of her bag.
This job was going to be trickier than she thought. She’d just given up the perfect opportunity to off her mark. But that would lead Adair right back to her and he’d want her to pay for offing his men. And the thought of being in that man’s presence just wasn’t appealing.
Her green eyes lift one final time to see if Cain or any other man moved to follow her.



A groan left Cain as his eyes open. His head turns slightly as his hand goes to the back of his head. Face to face now with a man staring blankly at him. Cain pushes to sit up. “Tempeste?” His eyes move over all three men. All three of them dead. A huge blood pool surrounding one man, his bloody hand still at his throat. What the hell had happened when he’d been rendered unconscious?
Getting to his feet, his eyes move over the men. Cautiously moving around them, one had blood trickling from his nose and mouth looked at if he’d been beaten to death. Another with a blood spot gracing the front of his jacket pooling beneath him and a nasty gash on his arm. Cain crouches next to the last man. His gray eyes moving over all the blood. Whoever had killed this man had been lethally precise. Looking over the alleyway, he spots a gold chain. Pushing to his feet, he crosses to it lifting it. It is the necklace Tempeste had been wearing. Praying that she’d made it safely back to her hotel, he had to call Gallagher first then he’d go check on her.
Pulling the cell phone from his pocket, he dialed Gallagher’s number. “Aye, boss?”
Cain frowns a little more. “There’s a bloody mess here that I need you to come clean up.”
“What kind of mess?”
“The literally bloody kind.”
“What happened?”
Cain lifts the necklace then closes it in his hand. “I don’t know. I’m in the alleyway behind Reggie’s Store. They’re all Adair’s men.”
“Maybe someone is making our job easier.”
“Well, hurry yourself up, I was with someone and I have to make sure that they are alright,” Cain says turning as he looks over the mess. Tempeste couldn’t have done this, could she? She didn’t have a weapon and at least two of these men had been killed with a sharp instrument of some kind. Nothing lying in the alleyway could have done this.
“I’ll be there in a moment, boss.”
Cain rolls his eyes and snaps the phone shut. His hands on his hips as he looks over the alleyway. No one from the street would have seen what happened. Hoping that Tempeste was alright wherever she was. His eyes moving in both directions. Shaking his head as his hand went to the lump on his head again. Pulling his hand away, there was just a smidgeon of blood gracing his fingertips. Closing his eyes, he was starting to feel nauseous which meant he probably had a concussion or worse.
The annoying sickly sound of a siren reaches his ears. His gray eyes lift. Funny, Tempeste Banning comes into town and four of Adair’s men end up dead. The woman was right, trouble seemed to follow her. His eyes move to the little car that stops as the siren does. A sigh leaves his lips as Gallagher unfolds his plump form from the car.
“Oh, good lord, O’Sullivan, what the bloody hell happened?” Gallagher asks keeping his distance from the mess.
Cain shrugs. “One of them got me from behind. I woke up to this. I wasn’t out long.”
“Who was with you?”
Cain shakes his head. “A woman, I hope she’s alright. I’m going to go to her hotel then go by the office. Get this cleaned up.”
“Aye, boss.”
Cain rolls his eyes walking away. “I’m nobody’s bloody boss,” he mutters under his breath heading for the street to get his bearings.