King almost laughed, but didn’t.
Donati said, ‘What?’
‘That’s the last thing on my mind. You don’t have to worry about me.’
He had bigger things on his mind.
Like whether or not Will Slater would come back from Mexico a changed man.
10
They had an extra hour of time difference after flying from New York to Cancun, so they ended up completing the two hour drive to Tulum right as the sun melted below the horizon.
Alexis pulled off the road running parallel to the Tulum Sea, turning onto a giant slab of asphalt resting in front of the entrance to a seaside resort. Past the parking lot, Slater eyed luxurious huts spaced evenly across the white sand. She killed the engine, and he rolled down the window to soak in the atmosphere. It was quieter than the first time he’d been here. Back then the lot had been drenched in sun, beating down on the back of his neck as he sat in an open-topped jeep. He’d driven straight from the Tulum Naval Air Base, having caught a chartered flight on the government’s dime.
He’d been here to collect Ruby, then threatened by Chinese ying pai.
Last time, he’d pulled into the lot with adrenaline flowing through his system. Now, he was calmer than he’d ever been.
Not on call.
Off the clock.
Free.
He didn’t want to admit how good it felt.
Alexis’ eyed the huts, and the waves gently lapping at the shore, and the golden sun melting into the horizon, and soaked in the calmness of it all. She turned to him and said, ‘What do you think?’
He thought about telling her. About his past here, about he and Ruby’s war with cartel sicarios through the streets and cenotes of Tulum.
But what good would come from that?
What would it achieve?
He let memories of the past fall away. He focused on what was in front of him. What he could control.
Which was all that mattered in the end.
He said, ‘I love it.’
She leant across the centre console and kissed him. They didn’t rush. They had all the time in the world. There’d be no frantic call from Violetta. It didn’t matter if the world was ending. It could all come crashing down around them, and he’d refuse to answer that phone. It had been his only condition for the vacation. Back in Manhattan, he could theoretically take breaks, but there’d always be the tension of impending doom hanging over his head. The constant, permeating threat of the call that said, We need you. Everything’s gone to hell.
When they parted, she pushed her door open. ‘Come on. Let’s get inside or we’ll be here all night.’
The giddiness of a new relationship usually doesn’t take long to fade, but Slater realised it still hadn’t. There was an underlying happiness in his chest as he circled round to the trunk and lifted out their bags. He placed them on the ground between his feet, the asphalt still warm to the touch from the day’s heat. Now, it was balmy, and he took the time to truly take in the view.
He wasn’t here for work. He wasn’t here to kill anyone. He was here to stop, and breathe.
It still didn’t feel natural.
He wasn’t sure if it ever would.
Alexis checked them in and they found their hut right as night fell over the beach, turning the white sand dark. Inside, it was practically a villa, with an enormous four-poster bed and authentic wood-panelled walls and broad windows looking out over the shoreline.
Alexis swung the door shut behind them.
Slater turned and dropped the bags. Looked at her.
She was as stunning as the first time he’d met her.
She noticed him staring, and raised an eyebrow. ‘That’s the look of someone who doesn’t want to unpack first.’
He smiled.
Hours later, deep into the night, they fell apart in a state of mutual bliss. Slater realised he’d never had time disappear like that before. His one-night-stands of the past had been more about the conquest than the actual act itself. Sure, he was good at it, and his partners always showed their gratitude for his talents by returning the favour, but it was always a physical sensation. This was something else. He had a genuine connection with her, something that transcended the simple act of sex, and as they lay there naked, panting, he realised he was thinking about living in a hut like this for the rest of his life.
She ran a hand along his chest and said, ‘You seem right at home.’
‘I feel it.’
‘Is it strange for you?’
He nodded.
There were no lights on in the villa, but outside the moon was silver and full against a cloudless backdrop, and it allowed them to make out the outlines of each others’ faces in the semi-darkness. Slater touched a finger to her cheek and stroked it down. Feeling her body against his.
It felt right.
He said, ‘Can I ask you something?’
‘Of course.’
‘This isn’t set in stone, but how would you react if, hypothetically, I told you I did want out?’
‘I’d ask you if it was an impulsive decision or not. What you do is all you’ve ever known. I don’t want you to throw it away for me.’
‘It wouldn’t be for you,’ Slater said. ‘It would be for me.’
‘That’s what it needs to be.’
He said, ‘My whole career I’d never even considered it. Because of my skillset, and how many people would die if I stopped using it. But it’s strange now. I still understand that theory. But I don’t feel compelled to obey it anymore.’
‘You still see the point of doing what you do?’
‘Yes,’ he said. ‘But now, when I think about stopping, I don’t beat myself up about it. I’m drawn to it, actually.’
‘Maybe you’ve done enough.’
He didn’t answer.
In the darkness, he nodded.
She said, ‘I’m not from your world. So take everything I say with a grain of salt. But the way I see it, it comes down to how much of yourself you’re willing to sacrifice.’
He lay there, waiting for her to continue.
He needed to hear
