Xander was no fool. It was obvious that Ashtyn was up to something and highly suspicious of him. He had recognized her unease even before he had projected into her thoughts.
 But that didn’t stop him from following the seductress into the bar car, his eyes fixated on her swaying hips as she walked.
 He knew he needed to stop these thoughts he kept having about her – like bending her over the row of seats and taking her from behind in from of all the passengers. But there was something about her that drew him. It was more than the admiration he had for what she did for a living. Very few women could survive in this world. You needed to be quick, cunning, confident, and smarter than everyone else you went up against. Obviously, having a stunning body didn’t hurt either, he thought mockingly, as his own mind kept wandering from killing her to seducing her. A beautiful woman was a beautiful woman, after all, target or not.
 He couldn’t justify simply ending her life without at least sampling the sweetness that her full mouth seemed to promise.
 And he knew, even before he had entered her mind, that she had the same plan for him.
 What he hadn’t been able to determine even after probing her thoughts, was whether or not she had recognized him. 
 She appeared to at least sense the danger he presented, yet Ashtyn didn’t seem to know who he was. 
 But Ashtyn Deveaux wanted him. He paused though, as he thought about how he had found her. It hadn’t been as hard as it should have been. 
 It had only required three phone calls and a GPS tracker to locate the shipment of heroin that she was going to be meeting.
 Getting on the boat had been no issue either. Marius owed him half a dozen favors and had asked no questions, simply telling his partner that he had replaced him for this job. The only time Marius had hesitated, was when Xander had jumped from the boat to follow Ashtyn.
 “Be careful, mon ami,” he warned. “She is very valuable to a very important man.”
 Xander had shrugged nonchalantly. “She is very important to a couple of important men, mon ami.” 
 In fact, the entire hunt had been so easy, that Xander was apprehensive about why he had been recruited to find her.
 Any asshole could have located this girl, he thought, as he walked up to her leaning against the bar, the burlap sack still at her back but not hiding the incredible figure beneath.
 He had to stop himself from running his hand over the curve of her inviting ass.
 A spark of appreciation for her brazenness lit through him.
 She doesn’t care that there’s seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars worth of heroin on her back right now. Is she a crazy or just confident beyond belief?
 As he joined her, Xander realized that she was more beautiful than he had even remembered from all those years ago. 
 Her hair was a flaxen, shiny blonde, her eyes like the water hiding the coral reefs in Tahiti.
 It seemed impossible that with such a face she would also have a stunning figure and quick mind, yet Xander knew she was the entire package.
 “You seemed to be a bourbon drinker,” she commented, handing him a glass as he approached and he laughed.
 “That will do nicely,” he replied in his fake accent, accepting the tumbler. It wasn’t necessary, just fun to pretend while he was on a job. It gave him a good idea of how acute his target might be, although he suspected that Ashtyn was on to him.
 He raised the glass and she did the same with her white wine.
 “To new adventures,” he toasted and she nodded, taking a sip.
 The taste became a full swig and Xander watched in awe as she downed the entire glass, placing it on the counter before signaling for another.
 “You’re thirsty,” he remarked, watching as the bartender refilled her glass. She took the cold liquid this time, swirling it lazily in her glass and turned to him.
 “Should we do this then?” she asked, raising one sculpted eyebrow, and Xander felt a twinge of apprehension flash through him.
 What is it she’s after? He wondered with admiration. Nothing seemed to faze her. If he wasn’t so good at hunting people, he would think she was completely relaxed and in control. He had to admire the steel in her character. Suddenly the idea of killing her was less appealing than it had been when he had made the deal with the Smiths in North Branch.
 Maybe she doesn’t need to die? She could just disappear…
 He was stunned by his thoughts.
 You’re an assassin. This is what you get paid to do. If they want her dead, kill her. She’s only another pretty face.
 “I don’t know what you mean,” he said flatly but his voice was strangely hoarse.
 “Do you want to fuck or don’t you?”
 Xander’s jaw dropped open and he gaped at her.
 “What?”
 “Oh? Did I have it wrong?” she asked. “I could have sworn you were checking out my ass earlier.”
 He was speechless as he tried to think of something clever to say.
 “My bad,” she sighed, signalling the bartender for another drink. “I thought you – “
 She didn’t have a chance to finish her thought as Xander reached forward, grasping her shirt just above her breasts and pulled her forward into his chest. 
 His mouth crushed into hers, his other fist tangling in her hair. He used his tongue to trace the seam of her lips, then push its way into her mouth, tasting the unique flavor of her mixed with the clean white wine. He watched as her turquoise eyes widened in shock. She was tense but he did not release his grip on her body, a strong arm snaking about her slender waist to thrust his growing hardness against her.
 He turned her body, leaning it slightly over the bar, his eyes still boring into her face as he deepened the kiss further.
 Ashtyn gasped, her arms instinctively moving up to push him away but he had her wedged between his lean frame and the wood of the bar, his hand reaching around to cup her round ass.
 Her breaths came out quicker, the groan she emitted caught by his probing tongue.
 Her response caused a slow rush of blood to his groin, and not even the not-so-subtle throat clearing from the barkeep was enough to make Xander release his hold on her sweet tongue. 
 Ashtyn’s back arched, half-attempting to throw him off when she heard the barkeep clear his throat, but Xander could feel the intense heat radiating from between her legs.
 He wanted to slip his hand down the front of her pants and slide his fingertips against her wetness.
 “Je m’excuse!”
 He jutted his tongue out one last time, his lips capturing her tongue once more before pulling his head back to stare at the furious conductor.
 “Yes?” Xander asked innocently, as Ashtyn lowered her head, shocked at her response to the imposter.
 “This is a public car,” the conductor growled, staring at them with reproving eyes. “Have respect for your fellow patrons.”
 Xander eyed Ashtyn, whose face had turned scarlet, but she refused to look him in the eye.
 “Of course,” he replied, a lazy smile forming on his face.
 The conductor scowled, spinning to saunter away but Xander’s voice shot out.
 “Where would one go if, say, they didn’t want to offend the eyes of the other passengers?”
 The engineer paused and gaped at the bold question but before another word was exchanged, Ashtyn bolted toward the doorway, drugs in tow.
 Xander hesitated, knowing she couldn’t get off the train, and he really wanted an answer to his question. His mind might be thinking that killing Ashtyn was a priority, but his body was taking over hard and insisting on finding some privacy so he could get back into her mouth. “Dammit, hold that thought,” Xander said to the conductor. He hurried after Ashtyn, knowing he shouldn’t let her out of his sight for long. But when he entered the next compartment, she had already vanished. He checked in their previous seats, and in every small corner, but he didn’t see her.
 Where the hell did she go? He wondered, a slight nervousness tickling him as he continued through, his eyes scanning the seats for a glimpse of her long blonde hair.
 He made his way further through the train, his heart quickening as each car showed no sign of her.
 I didn’t lose her, he thought worriedly. She can’t have gone far, for fuck’s sake. We’re on a train. She’s here somewhere.
 As he continued to search, he wondered if she was running from fear or as part of her game. Admittedly, both were enticing, he realized, and the semi he felt in his pants only grew harder.
 Finally, he found her out on the platform, staring out into the darkness as the world flew past. 
 “Where are you going to in such a rush?” he growled, pinning her against the rail, his breath on her neck. He planted his hands on either side of her, effectively trapping her. On both sides of them, the scenery flashed by, the ground unsteady beneath their feet.
 She didn’t seem surprised to see him, her body relaxed now, as if the few minutes they had spent apart had done something to her.
 Harder, he stepped into her as she tried to turn but he kept her steady, his shaft firmly pressed to the cleft between her perfectly sculpted ass.
 “Why did you run away?” he rasped, a hand snaking up her blouse to squeeze at her breast roughly, his mouth licking at the back of her neck. She didn’t answer him, just tilted her head slightly to the side to give his hot mouth better access to her sensitive neck.
 “Hmm?” he asked, inhaling the scent of her succulent skin, his fingers slipping down the front of the silk to explore her swelling nipples.
 She still did not answer but he felt her hips arch back and he pressed his cock more firmly against her.
 “Do you feel that?” he whispered, pausing to nibble on her earlobe as he manipulated soft skin between his fingers.
 His right hand was on her crotch, rubbing at her. He smiled as her moistness reached his palm.
 With one hand, he unhooked the buttons of her pants and finally, he heard Ashtyn sigh.
 Her panties stuck to her center and he peeled them aside, mouth falling lower over her shoulder.
 Ashtyn yelped as he sank his teeth into her flesh and she tried to spin, her body tensing again but he had her under his control and while he removed one hand from her chest, his fingers glided effortlessly down her body and then along her pulsating clit.
 One finger probed deeply inside her and she moaned loudly, again trying to turn but Xander pushed her forward, her ass jutting toward him.
 He leaned over her, his strokes becoming long and deep, his lips exploring her heated skin around the base of her neck.
 “Fuck,” she murmured as his naked member brushed across her ass cheeks. She hadn’t even noticed him taking his cock out.
 He added another finger inside her, slow and deep, until Ashtyn’s hips were joining his rhythm.
 “Oh fuck,” she sighed again and Xander knew he was going to make her cum before he had even plunged his cock into her.
 She quivered suddenly, her body tensing and he increased his speed, his own member throbbing and ready to go.
 Not yet, he told his raging hard-on as it strained against her ass. He wanted to take her so badly it almost pained him, but not until she had exploded.
 He ground against her, his unit wedged between her ass cheeks, the tip of his head prodding for an entrance. He did not have to wait long as Ashtyn cried out in seconds, a heated splash of moisture soaking his hand.
 “Oh, baby,” he purred. “You came so fucking hard.”
 He willed himself to hold on, thrusting himself against her as his fingers continued to work at her core.
 She seemed ready to fall until he staked himself inside her, groaning at the feel of her tight, wet pussy clasping his cock so hard.
 She whimpered as he jabbed deeply, her svelte frame falling forward, forcing her to splay her palms against the glass.
 It was almost surreal as the trees whipped by in the night, the moon catching through the thickness to illuminate her profile as he gained momentum.
 His hand firmed against the railing for support.
 “You’re so fucking tight,” he gasped, his rod growing harder as her core closed around him.
 Again, Ashtyn mewled like a kitten, her ass bucking up toward him as she braced herself for another orgasm.
 He was sliding in and out of her like a lubed piston, his hardness throbbing.
 I’m going to cum, he thought but he was not ready and he fought off the overwhelming urge to explode, pulling himself completely away to re-enter her slowly in another entrance.
 As he did, she screamed out, whether in protest or excitement he wasn’t sure, his actions obviously stopping her from an impending climax of her own, but he continued forward, feeling her body yielding to his.
 He was fully inside her again before she knew what was happening, her shrill cries bringing him to the brink, her body winding up again as he thrust slowly forward. Her cries became whimpers of need as she pleaded with him to put her over the edge. “Please, don’t stop…faster!” But he needed to savor the feeling of her strained orifice, this feral desire within him growing more potent than any he had ever felt before. 
 His groan rose to meet the pitch of her cries, his sack and fingers coaxing her trembling button simultaneously until neither could take any more.
 He fired into her, throwing his head back and clenching his teeth hard to keep from shouting.
 She almost seemed to pass out, her orgasm hit her so hard. Her body trembled and quaked, her muscles clenching around him hard, drawing out both of their orgasms even longer.
 “Fuck,” Xander muttered, falling back against the wall at his back, his own knees weak as he fought to gather his breath.
   She was finally able to spin and look at him, myriad emotions crossing her face as her sated body slumped down on the bench.
 “Is that what you had in mind?” Xander asked, a half-smile on his face as he tried to read her expression. “Joan?”
 To his bemusement, she matched his smirk, arching a dark blonde eyebrow.
 “Something like that,” she agreed, adjusting her clothing. “Jean.”
 She slid her jeans up over her long legs and Xander found himself watching her deliberate moves with interest.
 She’s so damn sexy, he thought, his cock wanting to respond, but he was depleted, beads of sweat dripping from the sides of his face.
 Sexy or not, you have a job to do, he reminded himself bluntly. 
 Slowly, Ashtyn approached him, buttoning her pants as she did.
 “So is that all you’re good for?” she taunted him seductively. “Round two coming up?” she asked as she neared him.
 His grin widened.
 “I can take you all night, baby.”
 She smiled sweetly, slipping her arms around his neck.
 “So, do you think you’ll feel bad?” she whispered, gently kissing his lips.
 His mouth parted to taste her tongue, still holding her gaze.
 “Feel bad about what?” he murmured.
 Obviously she knows why I’m here, he thought a little sadly.
 The singe in his neck caused his eyes to bug out and he gaped at her uncomprehendingly as she quickly jumped out of his embrace.
 “Feel bad when you tell Khan you lost me?” she chirped, her eyes alight with fire. “But I guess you’ll have to be alive to break that news, won’t you?”
 The world began to lose its shape and suddenly Xander realized that the canvas bag was nowhere to be seen.
 That’s where she disappeared to. She made a hotshot. The bitch just pumped me full of fucking heroin.
 As he sank to his knees, Ashtyn sidestepped him and disappeared into the train, leaving him alone in the encased platform at the end of the train.
 But as the spots danced before his eyes and the sickening feeling of euphoria seized him, Xander realized that if he survived, he was going to have a hard time killing Ashtyn; for more than one reason.