Chapter 33
I press my gun into his temple. Knowing it hurts.“Who the fuck do you work for?”I demand.
He raises his hands, showing me that he has no weapon.“Ava, please, love, can you put the gun down so we can talk?”
“Who, Jake? Who the fuck do you work for?”I pause for a second, realizing what I heard. I move in front of him and take a step back so I can see him better.
“Is that a fucking Irish accent?”
“Ava. Ava, please let me explain.”
“No. You need to shush for a moment.”I cock my head and really look at him, searching for what I had missed for months. I study him for a moment, running scenarios through my head and only one makes any sense. Pain shoots through my heart as I realize who he is.
“Fuck, I’m stupid. You played me for months. You and your fucking brother. Was fucking me a part of the plan for both of you? Liam couldn’t complete the task, so it was your turn?”Confusion crosses his face, but I ignore it because I am ignoring his face.
“You’re a fucking Campbell! Liam has a brother. What the hell is his name?”
“It’s…”he starts to say, but my gun is back against his skull, pressing harder as I contemplate.
“No, Jake. You. Do. Not. Speak. What the fuck was his name… Declan. You're Declan Campbell. Liam is your older brother.”He nods.
I take a few steps back and sit in the chair in front of him, my gun on my thigh as I stare at him. The man I never thought I would see again. The man I would have given anything to see again. And here he is. And my heart is breaking all over again.
“You have two minutes, Jake–I mean, Declan. Explain yourself with as few words as possible.” I see him flinch at the hurt in my voice, but I can’t seem to care at the moment. I want him to hurt.
“Ava, I’m so sorry.”
I cut him off.“No, Jake, keep your fucking apologies. You will either explain the how and the what and all that, or I will put a bullet in your head and bury you in the jungle. Those are the only two options for you, so explain well and explain quickly.”
He’s looking right at me, but he’s unsure, he has never seen this side of me. He's never been face to face with this Ava. So he is trying to gauge how serious my threat is.“I will shoot you, Jake. I won’t risk what I have here, and I won’t risk the guys' lives. Not for anyone, not for any reason.”I say with a resigned sigh. I see him nod slightly and then take a calming breath. A twitch in his eye tells me he is close to losing his temper. He isn’t enjoying the gun pointed at him or the fact that I am not doing what he wants.
“The night we met; I didn’t know who you were. You were just a beautiful woman on the side of the road who had a flat tire. When I got close to you, I recognized you pretty quickly.”He pauses to take a breath.“You smiled at me, and I made a choice in that moment. I gave you my cover name and story.”
“Jake–ah Declan–I met you in the hospital. For lunch.”
“My backstory is true. I was a smart kid; I went to university on a wrestling scholarship and became a doctor. The family needed a doctor, and I had always wanted to be one. My father was shot when I was 15. I was with him, and he bled out while I sat there, unable to do anything.”He closes his eyes and breathes out.“I was working in LA. I had a one-year contract to cover for a friend while they did research when I met you. You were not part of a plan. You were a fluke meeting, Ava. I didn’t even know you had met with Liam when I met you. I told Liam nothing about you. I knew he would have an issue with us dating because of who you are. I didn’t know you and Liam had a history. Apparently, neither Liam nor I wanted to share you with the other,”he says with a clenched jaw. I see his hand flex at the mention of my history with his brother.
“Our meeting was purely by chance. Starting a relationship with you was risky. I knew that, but I also didn’t care. I wanted you. I have never wanted someone as much as I wanted you from the moment I met you.”
The front door opens, and Matt walks in.“Honey, I’m home.”he bellows.
“In the living room, sweet cheeks,”I yell back. Matt looks over at me.“We have company.”
“So, no movie night then?”He deadpans.
“I mean, this one's time is up, so I’d be open to a movie.”
“Need help with anything, Ava?”Matt asks me.
“No, I got this. Jake, or should I say, Declan Campbell, was just leaving.”I catch Matt's look of surprise at the name .
“I’m not done talking to you, Ava,”Jake says with gritted teeth as he starts to get to his feet.
“You’re done here, Jake. I mean Declan. We’re done.”I click the safety back on and stand.“Just go. There’s nothing here for you.”I feel exhausted.
“Matt, can you start the BBQ? I made some burgers earlier.”I turn my back on Declan and head towards the kitchen. He grabs my wrist to pull me back, but I’m on edge, so I’m ready for it. I get an elbow up as he pulls me back and nail him in the cheek. He sucks in a breath at the impact. I get my hands on his arm, twist it behind his back, place my other hand on the back of his head, grab his hair, and push his head forward, forcing him to bend.
“Need any help there, Boss?”Matt asks, concern in his voice.
“Nah, I’m good; the younger Campbell is leaving anyway.”
“I’m not done talking to you, Ava,”Declan hisses at me.
“You are, though.”I start moving us towards the door. I let go of his head to open it, but Declan twists in my grasp, forcing himself into my body and breaking the hold on his arm. He shoves me against the door.
“Ava,” I hear Matt say tensely.
“It’s fine, Matt. He isn’t going to hurt me. It turns out the doc has a few moves I didn't know about.”
“Ava lass, please, I need you to listen to me.”That Irish lilt in his voice is sexier than I want to admit. It’s also distracting because I find myself staring at his lips and remembering how good they feel.
“And I need you to let me go and get out of my house.”
He pushes me into the door harder.“Little Fury, please listen to me.”
I freeze at that name and hear Matt stop doing whatever he is doing in the kitchen.“How the fuck do you know that name?”
“Because Liam went to see Harry. He’s how I found you. “
“Harry would never have given me up. What the fuck did you do to him.”I seethe, but I’m done with this shit now.“Matt, call him right fucking now.” Declan has me pinned between his body and the door; my arms are between us, his hands on my wrists. I only have two options here: headbutt him or option number two. I go with number two, and I crash my mouth to his.
Declan is startled by my kiss and freezes for a moment. I hear him growl and return my kiss. I open my mouth and allow his tongue to invade. His hands let go of my wrists and instantly go to my ass, and that’s all I needed. Once my hands are free, I place them on his chest, sinking my nails into his muscles, and he rocks his body against me in response. I bend one knee, getting my foot flat on the door, and push off as hard as possible.
The force and surprise are enough to make Declan step back, allowing me to clock him. He grunts at the contact, but I don’t stop. I kick him in the chest, sending him sprawling to the floor. He has no time to catch his breath before I’m straddling him. I get my knees on his fingers beside his hips and rise, putting as much force as I can on them.“Matt! Give me my fucking gun.” Matt is already in the room, phone to his ear, passing my gun to me.
Looking down at Declan, I cock my head to the side. He’s watching me intently, trying to figure out a way to make me listen to him. None of this was going the way he hoped it would. His eyes go wide as he watches me. He sees the change, whether he knows what it is, is a different question. But it’s not fear. I see it in his eyes; it's wonder and awe.
“Mr. Campbell, you and I are going to have a chat now,”I say. Matt stiffens in my peripheral vision when he hears that tone. He turns and starts walking toward me.
“Ava, maybe you need to take a step back. You don’t want to do something you’ll regret when you are more, ah... you again.”I turn my head to look at him, letting“her”look at him. Matt puts his hands up in surrender. He glances down at Declan.“Sorry, man. It's your bed, apparently.”
“I know it is, and I’ll take it.”Matt nods and takes a few steps back.
I turn back to Declan.“Did you speak to Harry, Matt?”
“I spoke to Beth. Liam went to see Harry two weeks ago. She isn’t sure how they found you, but Liam was there. Harry is out fixing a fence. Buck got out. Parker and Wes are figuring out how Liam found you, and she will call me back.”
“I’m having a hard time reasoning out why I don’t just put a bullet in your head,”I tell him, exasperated with myself.
“You can put a bullet in me, Ava; I’ll understand. Liam may be annoyed, but I’ll understand.”
Still looking at him, I roll my eyes.“Mr. Campbell, do you know who I am? Do you know what I do?”
“Yes.”
“Do you think your brother scares me?”
“I don’t know Ava. There are things about you and him that I was not privy to, apparently.”
“Guess if you leave here, you’ll have to have a few words with the older Campbell brother. I should have known, though. Thinking back, you both kiss the same, and you both are ass men.” Declan growls under me, not enjoying my words. I snap my fingers, my brain clicking.
“Matt! Tell Parker to sweep for bugs. That’s what Liam did. When I spoke to Harry four days ago, he greeted me with, “Little Fury, have you learned to make any good Costa Rican foods yet?”I don’t need him to confirm it for me. I know I’m right.
“Ava, I’m not going to put up a fight, but I really do need my hands for work. If you let me up, I’ll go.”
I nod then get off him. I turn, dismissing him, and walk into the kitchen. I grab the burgers and head outside to cook them. Declan tells Matt he is staying at the Casa Flora in town. But I keep walking. Matt joins me outside a few minutes later, handing me a beer and taking the flipper from me to take over cooking the burgers.“I’m going to make a salad.”I start to go back inside.
“Just sit, Ava. We can throw a salad together when I take the burgers off the grill.”
“How am I not dead, Matt?”he looks at me, trying to figure out my thought process.
“Look at the last year of my life. How did I survive as a fucking paid killer for years when in the last year, two of the biggest parts of my life lied to me. One tried to have me killed, and the other one played me for six months. Matt, I wanted to walk away for Jake. I wanted to sign everything over to Marcus. I wanted a white picket fence life with Jake. And it turns out that Jake doesn't even exist.”
“Ava, you’re very good at your job. You’re one of the best in the world. The jobs you did over the last few years and the amount people paid you prove that. But you loved Marcus since you were seven. No one with a history like yours would have seen what Marcus had planned. You trusted him. You guys had each other's backs for a long time. We all missed it, Ava. I’ve known Marcus a while. I never liked him, but I also never questioned his love for you.”
“I think maybe you knew. You did set Costa Rica up without any question.”
“No, that’s more of a‘we follow Ava’s orders kind of thing,’and I wanted to be here. We didn’t see you and Marcus grow up together. We came in in what turned out to be closer to the end than the middle. And as for Jake Ben ran him multiple times. Nothing was ever even remotely off.. There was no way you would have known unless he slipped up, which he never did.”
“Ben is going to be so mad when you tell him he missed that Jake's whole life was a fake.”
“I’m telling him?”Matt asks me as he flips the burgers.
“You’re telling me you aren’t going to enjoy his little meltdown when you tell him he fucked up?”
He doesn’t say anything, just smirks and sips his beer.“What are you going to do about the Irishman?”
“I have no fucking clue, Matt.”