A.N: Hi everyone! It's been a while. I haven't stopped writing... I've just kind of put Severed Ties on a bit of a hiatus for now trying to figure out what direction to go in after that finale. There's a couple chapters written but I'm not confident enough to release them just yet. So instead I've been living in an AU world. This is an idea I had for an AU story. There's smut. Oh yeah... I just started writing smut for Skyeward. So I hope you enjoy it. Severed Ties will be finished, I promise. It's going to be what I focus on next after I finish this. But don't worry, this one is short. Like 5 chapters at most. Maybe 6 but I'm going to try to keep it at 5. Anyways, as always don't forget to review! You know that gives me life. =]

"One more hit… and you're out…"

Those six words are what had him walking into the bar confidently. He had one more target to take out and he'd be free of his organization. That's what John Garrett promised him anyway. He knew better than to trust the man fully but he really wanted to believe the man. He'd been doing this for too long already. There was enough blood in his ledger that it was gushing with red.

Just one more.

John said his target would be sitting at the bar. He'd recognized the target when he saw them. He expected a surly business man slumped over the bar with a lot of empty glasses around him or a dirty old man surrounded by younger women.

He did not expect her.

She was small. Petite. She sat on the bar stool with her legs crossed. His target looked almost innocent but he knew better than to underestimate her. He couldn't underestimate any of his targets. Mistakes like that got you killed in the field.

He walked up to the bar and leaned against it. He was standing next to her but he didn't want to draw too much attention to himself yet. Glancing at her quickly, his breath quickened. She was beautiful. It was a shame that he'd have to kill her.

She turned her head toward him and smiled softly. "Hi…"

"Hey." He nodded swiftly.

"If you're trying to get the bartender's attention, he's kind of a jackass."

"I know." He muttered before turning toward her with a broad smile.

"Oh…" she smirked. "You come here often? I've never seen you before."

"I try to avoid this place if I can."

"But not tonight…"

"No… not tonight…"

She leaned toward him. "What's your name?"

"Grant…" he told her.

"I'm Skye." She greeted with an extension of her hand. "It's nice to meet you, Grant."

He smiled and took her hand, shaking it. "Likewise."

"So what are you doing in this dump?" she asked.

"I'm trying to get a drink…" he mumbled with a smile. "But it's not working…"

"I have a place nearby…" she said slowly. "It's stocked… if you want to… you know… go get a drink…"

"Do you always pick up random strangers in shady bars?" he asked.

"Isn't that what you're supposed to do?"

"Aren't I supposed to be picking you up?"

"You're being too slow with it…"

He laughed. It was genuine and loud. She smiled realizing that she liked it. He nodded after a moment and took a step back from the bar. "Alright… your place then?"

She nodded.

"Lead the way…"

She hopped off the stool and walked ahead of him. She opened her small purse and stuck her hand inside with a knowing smirk before leading him out of the bar.

"This is my target?"

Phil Coulson nodded with a sigh as he sat on the edge of his desk. "Don't underestimate him. He's very dangerous. Practically John Garrett's right hand."

"For Hydra…" Skye nodded. "I got it."

"Are you going to be okay to handle this one on your own?"

She nodded. "Of course! Last one and then…. Freedom!"

He grinned. "Have you figured out what you're going to do with early retirement?"

"I was thinking about moving to the coast of France… or Paris… or just you know… living as normal a life as I could as an ex assassin."

He laughed. "Yeah well…. Cross off Grant Ward and you'll know exactly what that life is like."

"Make yourself at home…" she was saying as she walked into the small apartment and led him inside.

"This is not at all what I pictured your place to look like…" he muttered looking around the room.

"What exactly did you picture?" she asked taking off her heels by the door.

"A roommate for starter's…" he shrugged.

She laughed. "I don't really trust people so no…"

"And yet… I'm here…" he said. "You just met me and you've invited me into your home…"

She looked over her shoulder with a smile as she walked into her kitchen. "You're not going to hurt me…"

Ward watched her as she bent over to look at the contents of her fridge.

"I have beer." She called out. "That okay?"

He nodded before he realized that she was not looking at him. "Yeah that's fine…"

She walked back into the living room holding two beer bottles in her hand before sitting on the couch. "Sit?"

He glanced at her couch and then at her before sitting down next to her. She handed him the bottle.

He chuckled looking at the label.

"What?" she asked.

"This is my favorite beer."

"Is it?"

He nodded before taking a swig.

She watched him intently trying to come up with ways to kill him. Choking… maybe slitting his throat… it was going to be her last kill… she should make it count.

He looked at her wondering how he could kill her and make it look like an accident in her own apartment. Maybe an accident in the shower… Falling down the stairs… if he was going to get away with killing a big time SHIELD operative without implicating Hydra, he had to be smart about it.

He smiled to which she smiled in return.

But just because he had to kill her didn't mean they couldn't have fun first. And she really was beautiful. He'd never been this close to a target. He usually killed them from 500 yards away with a shotgun rifle. But he'd never had a target inside SHIELD before either.

Leaning in, he closed the gap between them a little.

"I have a confession to make…" he told her.

"Oh?"

"There's something I've wanted to do all night."

"Really?"

He nodded. "Yeah…"

"What is it then?"

"This." He closed the gap completely and touched his lips to hers. She sighed into his mouth. It had been a long time since she'd been kissed like that. He took the beer bottle out of her hand and placed them on a table behind her couch without breaking contact.

He nipped on her bottom lip and leaned her back against the couch. He leaned over her and kissed her from her lips to her jaw and down to her neck. She moaned as his lips brushed over a spot behind her ear that made her shudder. She could feel him smirk against her skin before he licked that spot causing her to groan.

"I don't… usually… do this…" she was gasping for breath as he kissed lower and started to leave wet kisses along the top of her breasts.

"Me neither…" he mumbled against her skin.

Skye grabbed his face in her hands and pulled him back up to her lips. She rolled him over making him fall off the couch and land on the floor with her on top of him.

"Oof!" he groaned.

"Sorry…" she giggled. "Are you okay?"

He gave her the goofiest grin. "Yeah… I'm fine…"

She leaned down and kissed his jaw. "Do you…" kiss. "Want to…" kiss. "Take this…" kiss. "Into my bedroom?"

He sat up and kissed her hungrily holding her face in his hand and entangling his fingers into her thick and wavy hair. "God… yes…"

Skye laughed and stood up. He watched her as she lifted the blouse she was wearing from her torso. She threw the blouse at his face before turning around and unbuttoning her skirt. She let it slide down her hips revealing the black lace thong underneath.

She walked toward the bedroom while unhooking her bra and pulling it off. Looking over her shoulder she let the flimsy material fall to the ground and walked inside her room. Seconds later the thong she'd been wearing was thrown out of the room.

Ward scrambled to his feet, removing his shirt and jeans. He struggled with getting his shoes off. But soon enough he was naked and walking into her bedroom. She lay sprawled out on her bed, with one leg bent at the knee and the other dangling from the edge of the bed.

He felt his erection touching his stomach now. He wanted her. It didn't matter that she was a high priority target. He wanted her. The mission could wait.

Skye sat up on her elbows and looked at him as he stood at the edge of the bed. "You look nervous, Grant…"

He stepped closer to her and she sat up.

"I'm not nervous…"

Her hands traced his thighs. "Is there something you'd like for me to do first?"

He gasped when she placed a kiss on the tip of his cock.

"Maybe give this guy some attention…" she looked up at him through her eyelashes. "He looks like he's dying for it…"

Ward swallowed thickly before nodding.

Skye smiled before trailing the tip of her tongue from the base of his cock to the tip. She swirled her tongue, making sure to play with the slit. She could already taste his pre-cum and took him into her mouth. Ward groaned above her as he let his hands fall to her head. She started pumping him into her mouth and could feel when he'd hit the back of her throat. He was larger than she'd initially thought and she could feel it most when he filled her mouth. She groaned with him inside of her mouth and felt a sense of pride when he twitched. Looking up at him through her eyelashes she watched the pleasure etched on his face. That was turning her on a lot more than she'd thought it would.

She used her hand to pump him into her mouth. She wanted to make him cum. She wanted to taste him. He was shuddering so she knew it wouldn't be long. She hollowed her mouth and used her tongue to tease the more sensitive parts of his shaft. A few seconds later, he was leaning over her and his hot seed was shooting into her mouth. She swallowed him greedily as she drank every last drop.

She let him fall out of her mouth and wiped her lips with the back of her hand. Hid head was leaning forward, with his chin touching his chest, and he was taking deep breaths. She sat back on her elbows and watched him as he gathered his strength.

"You're really good at that…" he muttered before leaning over her. She smiled as he kissed her again.

He groaned. He could taste himself on her. He started to trail kisses down her naked torso. She climbed further up on the bed allowing more room for him to join her. She watched as he kissed down in between her breasts before turning his head to the right to swirl his tongue around her nipple. He bit down gently making her gasp before moving on to the other side and giving that one the same attention.

Then he was traveling lower. She watched as he reached the apex between her thighs and opened her legs wider to him.

At first he just licked her clit. But that was enough to let her head drop back on the pillows. His tongue against her clit was driving her over the edge. He used his tongue to fuck her before inserting a finger.

His tongue circled her clit while his middle finger pumped in and out of her. Then he added a second finger. She was swiveling her hips toward his mouth making his fingers go deeper. Gasping out his name, she ran her fingers through his thick hair.

A third finger inside, and she was going over the edge with his name on her lips.

He drank up all her juices before looking up at her. She grinned as he crawled up her body and kissed her lips.

"I want you…" he muttered against her lips.

She could feel him hardened against her thigh and smiled before adjusting him at her entrance.

"Then take me…" she said before feeling him push into her.

At first it was slow. Then he was moving faster. She wrapped her legs around his waist pushing him in deeper. He groaned as he filled her to the hilt but got the idea and began to move faster inside of her.

Skye rolled them over and she rode out her orgasm on top. She felt him twitch inside of her before he let go completely. She was spent by the time he finished pumping himself into her.

Landing comfortably on his chest, she sighed. "I need a nap…"

He treaded his fingers through her hair. "Me to…"

He yawned making her smile against his chest. She could still feel him inside of her so she crawled off of him and cuddled into his side.

"Sleep…"

He nodded before closing his eyes.

Now would be the perfect time to complete her mission. He was vulnerable. But she was too damn tired. She closed her eyes.

His eyes opened when the glare of the sun hit them. He groaned softly and looked down to find a head of hair sleeping on his chest. His eyes widened before quietly and strategically trying to get out of bed. He gathered his clothes from all over her apartment and quickly dressed in the living room. He found his phone in his pants and groaned again when he saw all the missed calls he had from John Garrett.

He peeked into the bedroom and watched her as she slept with her naked back almost mocking him. He didn't know why she was a target but he didn't want to be the one to pull the trigger. He quietly stepped out of the apartment and walked toward the elevator. He pulled out his phone to dial John as the elevator took him away from her.

Skye opened her eyes, feeling around the bed. When her arm only touched more of her mattress, her head snapped up. She groaned. She'd fallen asleep and he was gone. She flipped onto her back and stretched. She could still feel him between her legs and that made her smile, even though she should probably know better.

Her cell phone ringing caught her attention. She wrapped the blanket around her and leaned over to pick it up.

Coulson.

Shit.

She was in trouble.

"How the hell did she get away?"

Ward shook his head with a shrug.

"Not sure… sir…" he choked when flashes of the night before hit him like a freight train. He couldn't admit he'd fallen asleep.

"It's fine…" John eyed him suspiciously. "It's fine… we'll set up another meet. We'll track her and you can go in and finish this…"

"I don't think that'll be necessary…" Ward interrupted.

"Why's that?"

"Well, she did get away but we met and I may have slipped her my phone number…" Ward smiled proudly.

"You're joking…" John deadpanned making Ward frown. "She's not going to call you, son… She probably doesn't even remember you this morning…" John rolled his eyes. "I should just send Kaminsky… he's a bit overzealous but he'll probably be able to finish-"

"No!" Ward said a little louder than might have been necessary. John turned toward him with an arched eyebrow. "You promised me this last hit. You said I'd be out. You promised it would be over."

John smirked. "I did… and is it my failure that let the target get away?"

Ward swallowed thickly. "I can do this. Just let me."

"Fine…" John answered. "You have one more chance. Get it done."

"What happened?"

She walked toward her boss with a shrug.

"He was a lot smarter than I gave him credit for…" Skye frowned. "Sorry, boss…"

"No, it's okay…" Coulson shook his head. "I'm just glad you're alright. I got worried when you didn't check in."

"Sorry…" she apologized again. "I was so upset at blowing this I just went to bed early."

"It's okay, Skye…" Coulson crossed his arms in front of him. "We'll get that Hydra son of a bitch."

She nodded before pulling out a slip of paper. "Sooner than later… he gave me his phone number."

Coulson laughed. "Guess he's not that smart after all."

Skye gave him a half smile.

"Call him." Coulson ordered. "Set up a date. We'll send back up this time."

"What?" Skye asked.

"We underestimated him." Coulson shook his head. "We won't do that again."

"I can handle it." Skye countered. "I can do this."

"I don't want you to get hurt."

"I get that but I also need to do this alone in order for it to count…" she frowned. "You know that."

"Oh Skye…" Coulson frowned. "There'll be others."

"No!" she glared. "This one is mine."

"You sure?"

"Yes."

"Okay." Coulson shrugged. "I'll call off the Calvary. It's all yours."

She sat at her desk and booted her computer. After typing a few keystrokes, she pulled up the file she'd been studying and frowned at the picture. It didn't capture him at all. Not accurately at least. The black and white surveillance photo didn't show the warmth in his eyes, or the crinkle in them when he laughed. She shuddered when she remembered the night before. She remembered his fingers trailing up her heated skin while his lips kissed every bit of exposed skin that he could touch.

Skye settled in her chair and closed her eyes. She really needed to stop thinking of him like that. He was a mark. Nothing more.

She looked down at the paper with his phone number scrawled out in a hurry and picked up her phone. It was now or never.

He was going over blue prints with John when is phone rang.

"It's her…" he said looking down at the unrecognizable phone number flashing on the screen.

"Well… pick it up, loverboy!"

Ward rolled his eyes before answering. "Hello?"

"Hey stranger." she breathed on the line.

He sucked in a breath. "I didn't expect to hear from you so soon."

"Really?" she asked.

"I was hoping though."

She felt herself smile. "Are you busy?"

He looked over his shoulder at John who was watching him curiously.

"Not really."

"Want to meet up?"

"Right now?" he asked.

"Sure." She answered. "Unless… you don't want to…"

"I want to." He answered a lot quicker than he would have liked.

"Great!" she smiled. "There's a bistro near the bar. It's just around the corner. Meet you there in an hour?"

"Yeah, I'll be there."

"Good." She smiled. "See you soon."

He waited to hear the click on the line before lowering his phone. He turned back to John who was looking at him expectantly.

"Well?"

"One hour."

"Good." John smiled. "Looks like you'll be a free man in an hour."