The car ride to the food bank was quiet. Nika wisely had Madison and Mai ride with Elaine and Robert to save them from the cold silence between her and Agent 47. She hated how things had turned out but refused to give in; she knew that he was wrong even though she wasn't exactly innocent.
They both got out of the car when they arrived at the food bank.
"Hey you two," Karissa greeted them with a warm smile, "Penelope told me you were helping out today. Karina, you'll be packing and handing out the Christmas dinners with me. And Frank," she put her hands on the young handsome Latino man next to her, "you will be unloading the trucks with my husband Jason."
"Hi Frank, it's nice to finally meet you," Jason smiled brightly and shook Agent 47's hand.
"Likewise," he dryly stated.
"So, are you two having a good holiday?" Karissa asked them and noticed Agent 47 avoiding eye contact.
"Just lovely," Nika sarcastically said then shot an icy look at Agent 47.
Karissa and Jason shared a knowing glance before parting ways.
As Nika packed a dinner she felt Karissa's eyes on her, "What? Am I doing something wrong?"
"No..it's just I got the feeling that things weren't going swimmingly between you and Frank but it's none of my business so.."
"No…I want to talk about it. I mean, he trusts you for a reason," Nika admitted.
"He does. What happened?" She fixed her stare on Nika.
"I beat him at rock climbing at the gym and he was a sore loser about it."
She bobbed her head, "Did you gloat?"
Nika didn't want to admit to it but knew that she had to, "A little..ok a lot."
"Ooh," she winced. "That's like pouring acid on the wound."
"Don't you mean rubbing salt?"
"When it comes to the fragile male ego, acid is more fitting," she explained.
"I see.."
Karissa pushed a packed Christmas dinner aside, "My mom told me the first time she beat my father at running, he was really angry about it. But she gave him some time to settle down and they worked it out.
Up until they met, he was a loner, him against the whole world. But she explained to him that as a couple they were a team. They had push and challenge one another but also be supportive. If one fell the other would pick up the slack and carry them both. In the long run, what they did together mattered because they weren't competitors, they were partners going through life together not against one another."
Nodding Nika stated, "That makes a lot of sense."
"Look, Frank seems reasonable give him some time to come to you. But not too much, because this little issue could go ignored then it will resurface into something bigger later on," she gave Nika an understanding gaze.
Nika realized why Agent 47 became friends with Karissa, "Thanks and I will take your advice," she touched her arm.
"You're welcome," she grinned. "Besides, it sucks to fight on a holiday especially today being Christmas Eve."
"I know..I'm taking my foster daughter and her friend to the carnival tonight; maybe things will get better before then."
"Jason and I are going too!"
"Maybe we could meet up?"
"We'd like that. How's seven?"
"We're going after dinner, at 7:30."
"Ok, we'll see you then."
"I look forward to it," Nika smiled.
"Me too," Karissa agreed.
Meanwhile, Agent 47 roughly unloaded crates of food from the truck. Jason noticed his behavior and stepped closer to him.
"Hey Frank, this food isn't going to be eaten by anyone if it's damaged," he told Agent 47.
He realized what he was doing and then gently placed down the crate he was holding.
"That's more like it, thanks." Jason grinned. "So, how bad was the fight between you and Karina?"
Agent 47 looked at him with questioning eyes.
Jason explained himself, "I've been married for three years, I know when a couple is pissed off at each other. Just don't let it interfere with what we're doing ok?"
"I won't," he told him then waited a beat. "It was her fault anyway."
From what his wife told him, he was surprised to see Agent 47 opening up to him so soon, "What did she do?"
He didn't want to say it but he did, "She beat me at rock climbing."
"Did she cheat?"
"No."
"She obnoxiously rubbed your face in it?"
"Definitely."
He scoffed, "That can be annoying. Karissa is more ..athletic than I am and isn't afraid to let me know it but she's learned when not to cross the line. Anyway, what upsets you more, her winning or her gloating?"
After a few seconds he told him, "I found both to be equally irritating."
"I hear ya," he nodded. "Karissa kicked my ass the first time we played one-on-one," he grinned.
"How did you take it?"
"Not well..we had a fight. Although I doubt Nika called you her 'bitch' afterwards. Anyway, she let me cool off then we talked. We both apologized and she explained herself.
She wanted to impress me like I did on our first date. I brought her to a couples cooking class, she was..not polished. My mother is a chef so I was comfortable," he shrugged. "She's gotten better since then."
He stared at him, "How did you move past it?"
"I-I don't want her to hold back because of me and I know she feels the same way. We want each other to do our best and be supportive when we're at our worst. If you can't be yourself with all your strengths and weaknesses, with the person you love…it's not going to work," his voice was adamant.
He let Jason's words sink into his mind, "That sounds reasonable."
"I think so," he nodded then smiled, "and it was a big fight so the makeup sex was phenomenal."
Agent 47 gave him an uncomfortable look.
"I said too much didn't I?"
"A little."
"Sorry," he laughed. "I'm just saying that's the best part after having a big blowout with your woman."
He didn't know what it was like but nodded anyway.
After they finished unloading the trucks, Jason and Agent 47 joined their women in front of the food bank where they handed out Christmas dinners to waiting families. Seeing all the children in the line stunned and saddened Agent 47.
Nika saw a hint of lament on her hitman's face as he handed out the dinners, "Are you ok?"
"Yeah..," he lowered his voice. "There are a lot of children."
The sympathy in his usually emotionless eyes moved her, "I know, it's sad. Most of these people work very hard but can't get everything their children deserve. I see them every week; I've hired three of them as my employees."
He blinked, "You did?"
"Yes, I can afford it."
Her kindness made him want her more than he already did. He cupped the side of her face and grinned when she leaned into his palm.
"Excuse me?" a mother wearing a cast on her right arm asked them, "I can't bring this to my car, can someone help me?"
"I will," he took his hand away from Nika's face, picked up the dinner for the woman and followed her.
Karissa leaned towards her husband, "That is so sweet…and you spoke to him right?"
"Yes Baby, I did." Jason kissed her cheek. "We're taking the Wrightmans, Madison and Mai out to lunch while he and Karina talk."
"Good..someone's getting a special Christmas Eve gift tonight," she linked her arms around his neck.
"Really?" He arched an eyebrow and pulled her close to him.
"Yes, our pool guy Jacob will be very happy," she teased.
"Lucky bastard," he joked before kissing her and raised his eyebrows when he felt her tongue trace the inside of his upper lip. He leaned in and whispered, "Tongue, in public?"
"It's Christmas, I'm feeling very amorous."
"I guess I'm the lucky bastard tonight."
She laughed and playfully tapped his chest.
Nika watched the couple and wondered if she and Agent 47 would ever become that openly affectionate.
Agent 47 pulled out Nika's chair when she returned to the table with their food.
"Thank you," she appreciated how gentlemanly he was towards her.
"You're welcome," he sat down and picked up his sandwich before setting it down on the plate. "Nika?"
She gave him her full attention.
"I-I shouldn't have acted that way at the gym. I'm sorry," he told her and realized that apologizing wasn't as difficult as he imagined.
Her lips formed into a half smile, "It's all right. I shouldn't have gloated…it's just. The first week I was here, I tried to climbing the wall but I couldn't make it up half way without coughing. But I didn't give up so I worked at it until I finally made it all the way to top," she remembered how nice it felt to accomplish that feat. "But it was strange..there was no one to share it with. Today, you were with me..I just wanted you to be proud of me," she shook her head and scoffed.
"I am Nika," his voice was filled with sincerity.
"You are?" she felt her voice crack.
"Yes, not just today but with what you've done with your life," he reached across the table and held her hand.
"That means so much to me.." she felt her eyes getting wet.
He took a breath, "I'm sorry that I made you believe otherwise. You were right though. I know no one is perfect."
She felt comfortable to ask him about his past, "The place where you were raised in…They told you to be perfect, why?"
He remembered his very first fighting lesson as he answered, "Because if we weren't or didn't even try to be, we were beaten. Then we were told that we would die if we didn't have that belief whenever we were on assignment." He absently touched his ribcage where his instructor had kicked him.
Her heart went out to him, she didn't know how broken he actually was, "That's so awful."
"It was ingrained in my mind for so long, it's hard to forget."
She knew exactly how he felt, "That's how it was like for me..All the men I was with told me that I was worthless…nothing. It's not easy but you can forget all the lies people have told you and replace it with your truth. It takes time and strength but it is possible," she assured him.
He was amazed by how much her physical transformation matched her emotional one. She had gone from being a wounded lost soul to an empowered woman with a purpose.
When he didn't speak she took it upon herself to continue the conversation.
"You can be the best. You can plan and do everything exactly right and still not get the result that you wanted. That is a part of life that we must accept."
"How?" He asked while eagerly listening to her.
"With hope and support from people you love, you can survive anything."
His gaze briefly fell to the table then returned to her, "I've never had anyone support me before."
She squeezed his hand, "You do now."
A welcomed silence fell between them. They absorbed what was happening. Their attraction was becoming more than physical. It was turning into an emotional bond that they slowly built and were willingly embracing.
Multicolored lights were strung around the fairgrounds illuminating the night sky. The pleasing aroma of baked goods, hot beverages and fried foods surrounded the crowds. Joyous screams from those who rode the various rides and played the games almost drowned out the Christmas music that filled the cool crisp air.
Disappointment briefly passed through Nika when she felt Agent 47 let go of her hand. Then she became filled with joy when he put his arm around her shoulders. In response, she hugged his torso and smiled at him.
A feeling of pure contentment overcame him when he placed his arm around her and felt her embrace him as they walked behind Madison and Mai. He grinned down at Nika before noticing a shooting game past her head.
She turned to see what he was staring at, "A shooting game, let's play it."
"If you insist," he knew he wasn't going to lose and wanted to redeem himself after what happened at the gym.
"I wanna go after you two!" Mai happily yelled out.
"Me too! I'll go against Mai," Madison told them.
Agent 47 paid the man who ran the booth and picked up the fake rifle.
Nika picked up the rifle next to him, "I've been practicing."
"You have?"
"Yes..with a paintball gun. Ramon helped me. He used to be a sniper," she almost bragged.
"Ok pretty ladies," the booth operator tipped his hat at Nika and the girls, "and gentleman," he nodded at Agent 47.
"What do have to do?" Nika asked him.
He pointed at the bottom row where the largest row of fake metal ducks slowly moved, "We have the slow pokes, hit three of these babies in ten seconds flat you get to take home one of the baby animals," he held up a box of miniature stuffed animals. "If you get three of the so-so swimmers," he gestured to the second row where the ducks were a little bit smaller and faster, "the bigger the stuffed animals. But if you want the granddaddy of prizes," he pointed to enormous stuffed animals that hung inside the booth, "You gotta take out five of the super swimmers in ten seconds." The top row had the smallest and fastest ducks.
She boldly pointed to the top row with her rifle, "Top row."
"Good luck," Agent 47 told her as he readied himself.
"Start shootin' when I press the buzzer, now!" The booth operator said to them.
As expected Agent 47 was flawless and hit five ducks before time ran out. Nika shot three out of five.
"That was good," he congratulated Nika by touching her shoulder.
"Thanks," she liked making him proud. "You were perfect."
The booth operator picked up a huge stuffed panda, "For the lady?" He asked Agent 47 and winked.
"Of course." Agent 47 told him.
Nika gladly accepted the panda, "Thank you."
"You're welcome."
"Our turn!" Mai quickly dropped the rifle but picked it up.
Madison picked up the rifle with obvious uncertainty.
Agent 47 felt embarrassed to see how unfamiliar the girls were when it came to handling the fake rifles and helped them. He almost kneeled as he showed Mai how to hold the rifle and aim. Then he moved onto Madison.
"Plant your feet. You have to aim, focus and remember that you are in control, not the weapon," he told her.
"Ok," Madison nodded.
When the booth operator pressed the buzzer, Mai hit one of the so-so swimmers while Madison shot two.
"Good job girls," Agent 47 proudly said to them and patted their shoulders.
Smiling, both girls graciously thanked him for the lesson.
"Well," the booth operator picked up the box of medium sized stuffed animals and offered it to the girls. "Since you girls didn't do too bad, pick whatever you want."
"Thanks!" They said in unison before reaching into the box.
For the first time, Nika saw a paternal side to her hitman and loved it.
He saw Nika giving him a gentle gaze, "What?"
"You're a good teacher," she told him.
"I just taught them the way I was told," he told her.
"Karina, Mai and I have to use the bathroom," Madison told her.
"Ok, I do too. I'll go with you girls," Nika said.
"Hey guys," Karissa said when she and Jason walked up to them.
"Karissa, Jason, you're here, great," Nika hugged Karissa. "I was about to go to the restroom with the girls. Do you need to go?"
"No, I'm good," Karissa answered with a grin.
"Ok, we'll be right back," Nika told Agent 47 before walking away with the girls.
Jason's mobile phone rang, "Baby, it's one of my patients."
"It's all right. Take it," she told her husband.
When he stepped away from them, Karissa got closer to Agent 47, "So Frank, how's your holiday been so far?"
"It's been going well. Yours?"
"Really great," she nodded then exhaled and lowered her voice, "I don't mean to pry but..I have to know.."
The change in her demeanor concerned him, "What?"
"I have eyes and ears all around this town so I know that Karina is single..but are you? I-I don't judge but I can't be a part of breaking a marriage up. It's just, I've been thinking about this for some time now," she had to know the truth.
He was offended and a little hurt by her question, "No. Karina and I…that's not our situation."
The honesty in his voice and eyes convinced her, "Ok. Good..I'm sorry if I hurt you but with the gifts and all. I had to know for sure."
"It's all right," he shook his head.
A smirk came to her lips, "Nika's coming back with the girls. She'll be a witness."
"To what?" He was confused by her statement.
"To me kicking your ass in this game," she gave the booth operator a dollar.
He was getting annoyed by the arrogance the women in his life were showing him, "What makes you think that?" he paid the booth operator.
"I'm a perfect shot," she bragged.
"Hey," Nika said, "you two are gonna play?"
"Hell yes." Karissa retorted.
"Oh here we go," Jason said with a roll of his eyes when he joined them.
The moment the booth operator pressed the buzzer Agent 47 and Karissa were in sync and each shot down five ducks in the top row. Their loved ones clapped.
"We got ourselves a couple of sharp shooters here," the booth operator said as he began to reach for the largest stuffed animals.
Agent 47 and Karissa slowly placed down the rifles while giving each other curious looks.
"Who taught you how to shoot?" He asked her sounding a little bit shocked.
"My father, he hunts," she searched his face. "You?"
"My job," he said.
"Of course," she said staring at him like she was about ask him another question. She then accepted the large stuffed tiger from the booth operator.
"My baby has met her match," Jason put his arms around her.
"It looks like," Nika said. "Come on, there's so much more to do."
Mai giddily accepted the large teddy bear the booth operator gave her after Agent 47 turned it down.
After placing the panda to her left, Nika sat next to Agent 47 in the passenger car of the Ferris wheel. He put his arm around her as the Ferris wheel slowly moved.
"You were really good with Madison and Mai tonight," she told him
"I only told them what I knew," he simply stated.
She embraced his torso and stared up at him, "I think I understand why you are so protective of me."
He gave her an inquiring expression.
"A few weeks ago..Madison's pimp came to the house and tried to take her back. She agreed only because he had threatened to kill me," she saw his eyes narrow in concern and fury. "It's ok, I had Ramon and his security team take care of him." A dark yet prideful look formed on her face, "He will spend the rest of his life drinking his food from a straw. I've never cared for someone so much that I'd hurt or even kill for them but with Madison there is no doubt that I would."
He hadn't seen this side of her before it was lethal and yet maternal. It made her even more alluring to him because she was beginning to understand him.
After a moment of silence he said, "This is the first time I'll celebrate Christmas."
"Me too. Well, since my parents died," she shared.
"What were they like?"
Resting her chin on his shoulder she spoke to him, "My father worked hard on his boss's vineyard but he loved me. Made time when he could for me and my mother. She cleaned people's houses; she was very beautiful and kind. We didn't have much but they made sure to treat me like a princess on Christmas and my birthday," a wistful smile touched her lips.
He always wondered what it was like to be loved and cared for as a child. Hearing about it from Nika, gave him some consolation.
Her eyes went downward when their passenger car stopped at the very top of the Ferris wheel, "It's very beautiful."
With his gaze on her he said, "It is."
When she saw his eyes on her, she let a wide smile spread across her face. She then rested her head on his shoulder.
He bent his head down and breathed in her sweet scent. A thrill traveled through his once cold-blooded veins.
"Night girls," Nika said before she closed Madison's bedroom door and strolled to Agent 47's room.
"Yes," he replied after she asked him if she could enter. He was pleased to see her dressed in the nightgown he had bought her.
"It's only ten o'clock..We don't have to go to sleep yet," she gave him a suggestive stare.
From the look in her eyes, he thought he was about to find what "makeup sex" felt like.
"We should watch a movie," she happily suggested.
Relieved, he eased the tension in his shoulders, "Sure."
She held his hand and led the way, "Come on, I think you will like what I have in mind."
After she put the DVD in the player, she joined him on the couch and pulled the cashmere blanket over them.
"Equilibrium. I haven't seen it," he told her.
"Good because I think you will like it. There is Christian Bale for me. Christian Bale shooting people for you. Christian Bale shirtlessness for me. Christian Bale beating up and killing people for you. And.." she felt her voice crack with emotion, "A puppy."
He thought it was odd how her voice changed when she spoke of the puppy.
"I thought we'd both like it," she shrugged as she cuddled up to him.
As they watched the movie, he realized why she had him in mind when she had chosen it. Everything she had mentioned was in the film. Seeing the citizens of Libria reminded him of his fellow agents, absolutely emotionless. Then he knew her main motivation for choosing the film. The protagonist was him, an emotionally suppressed man who by chance, chose to become open. Despite life's pains and pleasures, he rediscovered his humanity, his soul.
When the end credits began to roll, she turned off the player and television with the remote, "What did you think?"
"The gun kata was unrealistic," he critiqued.
She softly chuckled, "It's a movie, it's not supposed to be true to life. Did you like it?"
He took a moment to answer, "I did."
"What about it?"
"The action was well done and the story was compelling."
She grinned, "I'm happy that you enjoyed it," then gasped at what he did next.
Without saying a word he picked her off the couch, "It's late. You should get some sleep." He felt her hands link loosely around his neck.
"I am tired," she nuzzled her face into his neck.
He carried her to the bedroom and gently placed her on the bed. She reluctantly let go of her hitman and went underneath the comforter.
"Goodnight Nika," he almost whispered as he loomed over her.
She wanted to pull him onto the bed with her but didn't. The day had been full for them and as much as she wanted him, she knew it would be wrong to rush things.
"Goodnight," she touched his face and watched him leave the room.