Chapter 34

-James-

**2007**

I relished the time I spent with Jianna today. We walked around the small village and again ended up in a cafe that Mrs. Johnson had suggested the other night. I sat across from Jianna, watching as she sipped her cappuccino and nibbled on a croissant. I couldn't help but admire her beauty, from the way her thick, long hair cascaded down her shoulders to the way her green eyes sparkled in the sunlight filtering through the window.

Though I wanted to leave yesterday, Jianna was able to convince me to stay for another day. There wasn't a lot of convincing involved if we're being honest since I am willing to do just about anything for this woman. I caught myself grinning at that.

But I know we can't stay here for long. We have to keep moving. Jianna already had a close call yesterday morning. I can't keep on getting close calls like those. I know she can hold her own, I've seen her kill someone without having to get up from her chair. She is a trained assassin, after all. But that doesn't mean I can let my guard down. We both need to be careful, especially since we're being pursued by some of the most dangerous people in the world.

We were finishing our coffee when I noticed a group of men walking into the cafe. They were dressed in black and carried themselves with an air of authority. My instincts kicked in and I immediately tensed up.

"James, what's wrong?" Jianna asked, noticing the change in my demeanor.

"Nothing," I replied to her as I stood up from my seat.

She saw me stand up and she looked around. Her eyes quickly scanned the cafe and she immediately saw the men in black and quickly looked back at me.

The men approached our table, their eyes fixated on Jianna. I could tell they were dangerous, and I wasn't sure if they were from mine or her organization, but one thing I know for damn sure is that I wasn't going to back down without a fight, and from the look of it, Jianna wasn't either.

"J, we have to go," I said, grabbing her hand and pulling her towards the back exit.

Suddenly, one of the men made a move towards Jianna, but I was quick to react. I threw a punch at his face, sending him stumbling backward. Jianna took out her gun and fired at the other men, who were now coming towards us. The shots rang out in the small cafe, causing people to scream and scramble out of their seats. I used that as camouflage.

We made it out the back exit, into a narrow alleyway, but we didn't stop running. We didn't stop until we were back in our room, the door locked behind us.

"They're catching up to us, J." I declared. "We have to go. We have to go NOW."

Jianna looked at me and nodded. I grabbed my bag and she grabbed the bag that she put together while we were here. I tried to peer out the window of our room and I saw that there were already men walking around, looking for us I assume. It's a small town, I thought, I'm sure there wouldn't be a lot of inns or places to stay that they can search. I decided since it was starting to get late, to leave when it got dark so we could have some cover from the darkness.

While we waited for the sun to set, I paced back and forth in our room while Jianna sat on the edge of the bed. I couldn't help but feel guilty for dragging her into all of this, but I knew we had to keep moving if we wanted to stay alive.

"James," Jianna said, breaking me out of my thoughts. "I'm not going to let them catch us. I won't let anything happen to you or me."

I stopped pacing and looked at her. "I know you won't. But we have to keep each other safe. We can't let our guard down, even for a second."

She motioned for me to join her on the bed. I looked at her and I felt so guilty that I'm sure my eyes had betrayed me already.

"Oh, James. Come here, baby." she held out her hand for me to take.

The term of endearment caught me off guard. I hadn't heard it from anyone except the women for whom I had paid for their services.

I took her hand and sat beside her. She placed her hand on my thigh, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"We'll make it out of here, James," she said, her voice low and soothing. "I trust you to have my back and you can trust and believe that I have yours."

I looked at her and felt a sense of calm wash over me. She was right, we need to keep our heads and make sure that we have each other's back.

I leaned in and kissed her, feeling her soft lips against mine. It was a kiss filled with urgency and passion, knowing that we might not have many more moments like this.

"Together," she whispered when we pulled away.

"Together," I repeated. But I couldn't let her see my fear, I had to be strong for her.

As the sun began to set, we quietly slipped out of our room and made our way towards the outskirts of the village. We didn't speak, but the tension between us was palpable. We both knew that we weren't out of danger yet. We didn't take the car we had because it was too flashy.

We walked through the woods, I could feel the adrenaline pumping through my veins. My senses were heightened, and I was acutely aware of every sound and movement around us. We walked for about an hour, trying to put as much distance between us and our pursuers as possible. But eventually, I glanced at Jianna and she looked exhausted so I knew we had to stop and rest.

"Hey." I looked back at Jianna and she looked up at me trying to not show that she was exhausted. "Let's set up camp here. I think we're pretty deep in the woods and it's dark enough that they wouldn't be able to spot us. If we keep our fire to just embers we should be ok."

She nodded in agreement, and I took the lead to scout out the area. We found a spot that was secluded and hidden from view. I started gathering twigs and branches to make a fire while Jianna set up our tent.

When I was starting the fire, Jianna came up behind me and wrapped her arms around me. I felt her breath on my neck and the warmth of her body against mine. It felt like home like being wrapped in my favorite blanket on a cold winter night.

"Thank you for being here with me, James," she whispered. "I know this isn't the most ideal situation and you probably regret everything now, but thank you for still being here." I heard her heave and I felt the back of my shirt starting to get damp.

I turned around to face her and I could see the tears in her eyes. I took her face in my hands and wiped away the tears with my thumbs and pulled her into a hug.

"I could never regret being here with you, J," I whispered into her hair.

She looked at me lifted herself with her toes and kissed me. I returned the kiss with vehemence. We pulled away and just looked at each other for a second and then we kissed again, this time slower and more tender. It was a moment of respite and refuge in the midst of chaos.

After a few moments, Jianna pulled away from me and wiped her eyes then rested her head on my chest. We stayed like that for a while, just holding each other. It was a moment of vulnerability, but it was also a moment of strength. We were in this together, and we were going to make it out together.

"OK, let's get some food and rest. We have a long journey ahead of us." Jianna finally said like she wasn't just crying 30 seconds ago.

Her resilience always amazed me.

I chuckled. "Ok. Bring on the jerky!"