Chapter Twenty Two

Chapter Twenty Two
Zen’s POV
I’m not going to lie, I felt pretty damn relieved when we passed the state line. We weren’t necessarily safe over here, but I knew that Danny would have one helluva time obtaining data on this side of the river. He didn’t have nearly as many connections and neither did I. It was exhausting trying to think several moves ahead of him. It was like playing a game of chess, except all of his pawns were invisible. Added to that was the fact that I was running on next to no sleep.
Fortunately, the cabbie didn’t ask any questions about the small red mark that had formed on Elizabeth’s face. I wished I had bought her some makeup to cover it up, but I didn’t think I’d need it. I felt like absolute shit knowing that I had caused a blemish on her body. I had to keep myself from vomiting when I hit her in the first place. The sting on my hand nearly made me abandon my plan and let Tom fucking shoot me. I just kept reminding myself that I was protecting her. A slap took less physical effort than pushing her by the shoulder, and there was a chance she wouldn’t have moved if I had only done that. Half of her falling off the bed was her body going into shock and trying to get away from me.
I couldn’t fathom why the fuck Tom didn’t use his brain before aiming a weapon at me when Princess was sitting directly behind me. Yea, I partially blamed him for what I had to do. Mostly because my conscience couldn’t handle any more blows. I would have to find some way to make it up to her.
And I would never lay my hands on her beautiful face again, that’s for damn sure.
It took us a little over two hours to arrive at our safe house. This place was a cookie cutter suburban neighborhood. Kids bikes littered front lawns and old women chatted over their fences. This was a whole new ballgame for me. As an assassin, I stayed away from these types of areas. The likelihood of collateral damage was too high, and the neighborhood gossip was atrocious. No matter who you were, everyone was up your ass about everything.
Elizabeth must’ve noticed my unease because she immediately entwined her hand in mine, giving me a reassuring smile. I had already told her that I would be getting her door from now on, for safety purposes, so she stayed put even after we arrived.
The house in question was roughly 2000 sq ft with two external entrances, three bedrooms, two bathrooms, an unfinished basement, a fenced yard, an in ground pool, and surrounding outdoor security cameras that Tom had installed himself for his stepmother when she bought the house. They were a little old, but they would do the trick. He had said that she didn’t let him put any indoors, since she thought it was creepy or some shit. Overall, with its white shudders and manicured lawn, it was the definition of a good ol’ American home. The cab pulled into the driveway, causing a group of three nearby women to stop and stare.
I got out of the car, making sure my gun was hidden beneath my shirt. Once I determined it safe, I retrieved my backpack from the trunk and walked around to Elizabeth’s door. I opened it with the brightest smile I could manage, holding my hand out to assist her. Once she was out, I kissed her hand, then her forehead, before grasping hold of her hand and going to the cabbies window to pay them. I gave them a large tip for crossing state lines and they were on their way.
As expected, it took less than thirty seconds for the apparent leader of the three women to approach us. Elizabeth looked nervous, so I put my arm around her, rubbing gentle circles on her back. This seemed to calm her immediately.
The woman was about 55 years old, but it was obvious she tried to hide her age behind makeup and tight dresses. Her platinum blonde hair was as fake as her tits, and her nearly black eyes gave me the creeps. She gave us a forced smile, which I returned.
“Hello there, newcomers. My name is Janice. We’ve never seen you around here. Did someone finally buy Isabella’s old house?” As if seeing me for the first time, she widened her eyes, shamelessly running them down my body and batting her lashes.
“Hello, ma’am. My name is Justin and this is my new wife Abigail. We are actually new to the area and our friend, Tom Eldridge, is allowing us to stay here for the time being. I hope we won’t be too much trouble for you. We don’t get out and socialize much, so no rowdy house parties for us. Don’t worry.” I flashed her a toothy smile, which she immediately blushed at.
“Oh, I’m glad to hear Tom is doing well. I see you two are good kids, so I’ll let you get settled and stop bothering you. I’m in the yellow house just down the street if you ever need anything. Welcome to the neighborhood.” She gave me a flirty wink before sashaying her way back to her whispering friends. The hidden meaning in all of her words made me want to gag. These fucking horny housewives.
I kept my arm around Princess until we got to the front door. Using the key Tom gave us, I quickly unlocked it before slipping us both inside and dead bolting it behind us. As soon as I turned around, Elizabeth poked me hard in the ribs, making me flinch.
“What?” I asked, genuinely confused. She raised a brow at me and crossed her arms. The dress I got her revealed plenty of cleavage, giving me quite the show when she did that. I licked my lips.
“You know what. You sure were flirty for telling her I was your new wife.” She huffed rolling her eyes. My god, she was jealous. I’d dealt with jealous women before, but I had never given a fuck about any of their feelings. I felt the urge to comfort and reassure Elizabeth. I gave her my best puppy dog look, trying to avoid looking at her tits that were nearly spilling out of her dress.
“Princess, I’m sorry. I was trying to pander to her obvious desires because I want her to trust us. It lowered her guards and suspicions. Trust me, I would never want that woman.” I said honestly, cringing at the mere thought of that whore even touching me. Elizabeth softened, allowing her arms to fall back to her sides.
“Okay, fine. Where’s my room?” She turned around, ready to explore the house until I grabbed onto her shoulder.
“Nu-uh. First, I need to sweep it, make sure it’s safe. Second, we will both be sleeping in the master bedroom. I’m sure as hell not sleeping away from you. I want to make sure you’re safe.” I explained, deepening my voice to let her know I meant business. She smirked.
“Right, to make sure I’m safe. Are you sure there are no other reasons for our sleeping arrangements?” I tried my best to hide my smile. She was a smart one. I stepped towards her, sliding my hands from her shoulders, down her arms, and finally resting them on her hips. Her blush was my fuel. I pulled her hips up against my erection that was curtesy of her boob display and leaned down to whisper in her ear.
“Okay, fine. You caught me. I want to have you in my bed for other reasons too. I want us to be able to touch, kiss, and fuck as much as we want. I want to shower with you, bathe with you, and watch you get dressed every day. I look forward to watching you when you wake up and hearing you breathe on my chest when you fall asleep. In other words, my dear Elizabeth, I need to be near you. Is that alright with you?” I leaned my head back to look in her sparkling blue eyes, but found them darkened with lust.
Her hands slowly climbed my chest and neck, resting on the sides of my face. “No problems here. Sounds like a good plan to me.” She breathed, making my cock throb. Fuck, I still had to sweep the house. I tried to calm my ragged breathing and gave her a quick peck on the lips.
“I’ll be right back to get you.”