“And you don’t get killed or kill anyone before it’s time.”
Blake opened his mouth to reply, but footsteps sounded, forcing Blake’s gaze to the door where Ignacio tromped down the stairs with about as much grace as an elephant on a stepladder. Ignacio stopped in the center of the cabin, glancing between Blake and Kara, a crude glint in his eyes. “Am I interrupting anything?”
“We managed to control ourselves,” Blake assured him dryly, stretching lazily as he sat up, maintaining a facade of boredom. “We know how delicate your sensibilities are and all. Are we done joyriding?”
“Yes, Mr. Wright, you are.”
Blake’s gaze jerked to the man walking down the stairs, and the hair on his nape lifted at the sight of the tall, forty-something Latin man in a fitted gray suit who joined them in the cabin. Adrenaline rushed through Blake’s body and acid spilled over his taste buds. For several beats, Blake could barely process what was happening. Alvarez. Alvarez was fucking here, so close he could smell the evil wafting from him. A flash of Whitney’s lifeless face, the blood pouring from her throat, shook him to the core. Anger burned in his chest and he grappled for control. The ease at which he could jump Alvarez and kill him had him struggling to remember what the downside would be. Hatred bled through his body and he could feel it darkening his mind, reddening his anger. He wanted this man dead, and there was no guilt in him at the idea to hold it back.
Suddenly a hand was on his arm, spreading warmth through him, jerking him back with a familiar, calming quality. Kara. Kara was here. Don’t go get killed or kill anyone before it’s time. Her words replayed in his mind, pulling him back to reality, to a place where more than hate filled his heart, where she did. He couldn’t kill Alvarez. Not yet. He had to protect Kara and find her sister.
Blake blinked himself back into control, and not a moment too soon. Alvarez halted directly in front of him and the game was back on. Blake flicked a look up and down the kingpin. “Am I to assume the expensive monkey suit means you’re the boss?”
Amusement flashed over the arrogant asshole’s finely carved features. “I’m the boss no matter what I’m wearing, Mr. Wright.”
“Right,” Blake said flatly. “Had I known you were dressing up for me, I would have worn my new boots.”
“Seems Ignacio was right about you being a smartass,” Alvarez commented, his gaze shifting to Kara, his eyes drifting over her, and lingering on her hemline. “He also said Kara was quite beautiful.” Blake curled his fingers on his knees and decided Alvarez had three seconds before his eyeballs got ripped out. On the three count, the kingpin shifted his gaze away from Kara and added, “No wonder you keep her close.” He spoke of her, not to her. She, like all women, was subservient to this man. No better than a cold beer to be sold off during happy hour.
“She’s here because you requested she be here,” Blake commented. “What’s this about?”
“Business,” he replied. “What else is there?”
“Money,” Blake said. “That’s what I’m about.” He glanced around. “And comfort. This isn’t what I call comfort.”
“I never invite anyone into my kingdom without my personal assessment—and I must say, I found your performance during the boat ride uneventful, boring, and downright Oscar-worthy.” He lifted his chin at Ignacio. “Leave us.”
Ignacio headed for the doorway, unknowingly leaving Blake alone with the man he hated the most in this world and a woman he was pretty damn sure was becoming his world. Not the most stable of situations for any of them.
“So, Mr. Wright,” Alvarez said the instant the door shut, “back to your Oscar-winning performance. Your complete silence this past hour allowed me little opportunity to assess you or your relationship with Kara. While frustrating, it was also quite brilliant. You have my attention.”
“If that’s supposed to give me a hard-on, it doesn’t.” Killing him was another story.
Surprise and a flash of irritation registered on Alvarez’s face. “You do know who I am, I assume?” There was an arrogant bite to his tone.
“We’ve covered this. I get it. You run the show, but I’m not part of the show. I’m contract. Free as a bird in a blue sky, and I plan to keep it that way.”
“I have no problem with you being ‘as free as a bird in a blue sky’ as long as it’s my blue sky.”
“That’s not happening.”
“You like money. I’ll make you a rich man.”
“Why do you want to make me anything?” Blake asked.
“Because I have a puzzle missing a piece. I think you’re that piece.”
“The only puzzle I fit is my own.”
“Your Oscar-winning performance we just discussed says you fit wherever you want to fit. I need people who know how to stay off the radar. You do. I also need people who know how to problem solve.” His gaze shifted abruptly to Kara, his dark eyes narrowing on her. “I understand you saved us from a potential disaster with the feds.” It wasn’t a question.
“I did what I had to do,” Kara replied, her tone as steady as if she were talking to a grocery store attendant, not the worst, most deadly kingpin.
“Au contraire,” Alvarez disagreed. “You didn’t have to do anything but run.”
“I’m smart enough to know that anything that happens while I’m working for you, and perhaps even after, will come back on me. Protecting you means protecting me.”
“You could have helped the feds,” he observed.
“If you’re on their radar, so am I,” Kara answered coolly. “And besides, the government isn’t paying my bills. You are.”
He studied her, and each second felt like nails on a chalkboard grating on Blake’s nerves before Alvarez replied, “Indeed,” and then looked at Blake. “Find out who is stealing from me in the next two weeks and there’s half a million in it for you. Since Kara seems to work well with you, her compensation is in your hands. If you succeed, then we’ll talk about a bigger paycheck and bigger role in my operation.”
“I’m contract and I plan to stay that way. If you can’t live with that, then you might as well find someone else now.”
“I can be highly persuasive.”
“Aren’t we just two peas in a pod, then? Because so can I. How do I reach you when I have a list of your thieves?”
“Mendez.”
“And if he’s part of the problem?”
Alvarez considered Blake for several lingering moments, before he said, “I’ll contact you.” His eyes moved back to Kara and narrowed slightly, before he announced, “You remind me of someone.” And then he turned away and started to walk.
The air in Blake’s lungs lodged at what had to be a reference to Kara looking like her sister. Warning bells went off in his head. Ignacio had mentioned metal detectors, which they’d never encountered, which meant Ignacio had expected them to go on to Alvarez’s home. Blake had to assume the worst, that Alvarez had recognized Kara, and had ended this night early. In other words, they were as good as dead.
The kingpin headed up the steps and Blake reached for his boot, ready to yank out a blade he’d hidden inside a leather flap. Suddenly, Kara was squatting at his feet, her hand covering his. “No,” she ordered in a hissed whisper. “This isn’t the end game.”
Blake tried to get up but Kara used her body to block him. The door slammed shut and Blake cursed, picking Kara up and moving her out of his way, and then charging for the door. It was locked and he tried to kick it open. He had to get them out of here. For all he knew, they were the only ones left on a boat about to be blown to pieces.
Abruptly, the cabin door burst open and Ignacio shoved a gun in Blake’s face—and for once, Blake was damn glad to see Ignacio. They were not alone and the boat was not about to be blown up. “What the hell are you doing pounding on the door?” Ignacio barked.
“Kara wants a Diet Sprite,” Blake explained dryly. “You didn’t answer when we knocked nicely.”
“A Diet Sprite?” Ignacio asked.
/> “It’s called Sprite Zero,” Kara commented from behind Blake. “But anything diet works. The boat movement is making me sick.”
Ignacio grimaced. “I don’t know what you two are trying to prove, but you aren’t funny, either of you. So either sit down and shut up or I’ll have you tied up.” He backed away and slammed the door shut. Blake turned to Kara and their eyes locked, fury radiating from the depths of hers. Yeah, well, he’d show her fury when they got off this boat. Now that he believed they were going to make it out of this alive, he was downright pissed about her drugging Kyle and showing up here tonight.
Blake moved to the couch and sat down. When Kara just stood there glaring at him, he shackled her wrist and pulled her to stand in front of him. “Save it for later, sweetheart,” he warned.
The glint in her green eyes said she didn’t want to do any such thing. She was furious that he’d wanted to kill Alvarez before they had her sister back. What she didn’t understand was that he’d save her at all costs, even his own life. Regardless of his reasons, of logic that had made sense, seeing the contempt in her eyes didn’t sit well. In fact, it pretty much sucker-punched him right in the face.
His gaze lowered to where his hand circled her wrist, and he realized right then that he didn’t want to let her go. Not now or ever. Just touching her did funny things to his chest, and this left him with a decision to make. He had to put distance between the two of them before things got complicated, or he had to hold her close and never let go. Who was he kidding? The decision was made the day he met her. This woman had woken him up from the dead. He wasn’t letting her go.
Blake pulled her to sit next to him and he could almost feel her wrestling for control. She was downright furious with him and the one thing he knew for certain was that she was only going to get more so. She was out of this mission, end of conversation. She wasn’t risking her life again and he’d make sure of it, no matter what that meant. The boat might be secure, but an explosion between him and Kara was imminent.
Chapter Three
The sickening sway of the boat, mixed with the tension between her and Blake, had stretched nearly an hour according to Kara’s cell phone clock, but it felt like an eternity. Each second passing should have given her the peace of mind they’d survive this trip, but it didn’t, and she had Blake to thank for that. His willingness to kill Alvarez, the only person she could be certain could deliver her sister back to her, cut deeply. She’d opened up to Blake. She’d told him her torment over losing her family and her need to save her only sister, and he’d dismissed it in a blink of an eye. And for what? Vengeance. He’d lost someone and didn’t care if she did, too.
She glanced at his profile, cursing the flutter in her stomach created in her by just looking at him. Once again she wondered why, of all the men she’d encountered in her life, her work, that it had to be a man with a death wish that got to her. But then, maybe she understood. What did she have left without her sister? Him? No. She didn’t have him. Not for more than sex and a spanking if she wanted one. He could hold his breath forever. There would be no spanking. There would be no more anything for them. After what he’d pulled tonight, that should feel like the right choice.
Why didn’t it?
Suddenly, the door to the cabin opened and Kara jumped to her feet, aware of Blake doing the same beside her. Ignacio appeared and didn’t make even one wise remark, which struck her as unusual. Ignacio didn’t seem likely to miss a chance to prove he was “boss” to everyone, especially Blake.
Whatever the reason, Ignacio was quick to tell them they were back in San Francisco. In fact, he seemed like he couldn’t get them off the boat fast enough.
“Ignacio sure was eager to get rid of us,” Blake muttered as they stepped onto the dock, a deep scowl on his face.
“There was something he didn’t want us to see,” Kara agreed, putting her anger at Blake aside and letting the agent in her take over. “Either drugs or girls, I assume.”
“Something was off with him,” he said as they tracked a fast pace down the dock toward the parking lot.
“Like your priorities tonight,” she commented. Okay, so maybe she didn’t put her anger aside.
He didn’t comment. He didn’t even look at her. That only ticked her off more. In order to work with him, she had to know she could trust him—and right now, she didn’t. His betrayal bit so hard that she was only remotely aware of the cold wind crashing over them, lifting her dark hair from her shoulders and piercing the thin layer of her silk dress.
Beside her, Blake shrugged out of his jacket and draped it over her shoulders. The tender protectiveness of the act, so unfamiliar to her, punched at her heart, and for a moment—just a moment—her anger wavered. Coat or no coat, he’d tried to hold her hostage tonight and followed that up by trying to kill the one man certain to have answers about her sister.
“Keep walking,” Blake ordered as they approached his truck in the parking lot. “No way in hell are we getting into a truck that could have been tampered with.”
So much for her assumption that they’d had a surveillance team in place. Apparently the truck hadn’t been a priority—but then, she wouldn’t know. It wasn’t like she’d been included in the plans for tonight, and even if she wanted to ask him what had been, Blake was already punching a button on his cell phone. “Tell me you tracked us and whatever boat met up with ours,” he said into the phone. He cursed. “It was Alvarez. He met us on the boat and pretty much said he was testing us to take us deeper into his operation.” He paused and listened. “No, I didn’t kill him. And don’t ask questions I don’t have time to answer. Yeah. I know. We’ll meet you at the hotel. I left the truck at the dock. I wasn’t taking any chances it was wired. Yeah. Good. Hurry.” He listened again and glanced at her. “It was a drug she got from an FBI lab. He’ll be okay in the morning.”
Kara looked away and scanned the side street they took, lined with residential buildings, looking for trouble. She felt guilty over Kyle, but he’d be fine, she reminded herself. Her sister might not be, though. If it were Kyle’s sister, she was willing to bet he’d have done the same thing she had. And Blake too, damn it.
Blake ended the call. “Luke has eyes on us. He’s got a car coming to pick us up.”
“Did they get a trace on our boat?” she asked anxiously.
He gave a disgusted shake of his head. “We went too far out of range. The tracking device I have on me wasn’t powerful enough.”
The implications stabbed at her heart. “That’s not the answer I wanted.” They were no closer to finding her sister.
“You and me both, sweetheart,” Blake assured her. “They’re working on better technology and some off-the-record Coast Guard support.”
Kara stopped walking. “But—”
“A friend of one of our men. He’ll keep things off the feds’ radar, and we need water support.”
“You’re sure you can trust him?”
“I’m positive.”
He sounded confident. He looked confident. And while she felt uncertain about much about Blake and his brothers, after tonight, she was crystal clear on his mindset. “Since you want Alvarez’s blood too much to risk the feds or the ATF slowing things down, I’ll trust you on this one.” She started to turn away but Blake had other ideas. Before Kara knew his intent, he’d maneuvered her into a small alcove between buildings, out of the wind. Suddenly, she had a concrete wall at her back and his hard body pressed to her front. Heat rushed over her at his nearness, desire burning in her belly.
Frustrated that she wanted a man who’d betrayed her, Kara shoved his chest. “Stop manhandling me, Blake, because I swear to you, I have nothing to hide anymore. I’m going to start fighting back.”
“Do you fucking look like your sister, Kara?” he demanded, a beam of moonlight stroking the angry lines of his face.
“No,” she hissed, and—no longer forced by an audience to fight the hurt and anger he’d created in her—she let it fly. “M
y sister’s taller, prettier, and missing. Obviously you didn’t remember that fact when you tried to kill the man who can give her back to me.” Her lips tightened. “Or maybe you just didn’t care.”
He ignored her accusations and focused on his own. “Alvarez sure as hell thought you looked familiar.”
“Alvarez was just playing a power game. Getting inside his close circle is my way to my sister, and you knew that. You knew and still you were going to kill him.”
“To keep him from finding out who you are and killing you.”
She jabbed her finger in his chest. “Don’t use me as an excuse to carry out your grand plan. I know the risks and it’s my decision to take them.”
“My ‘grand plan’, as you call it, is to keep you alive. I didn’t forget your sister. You have to be alive to welcome her home, Kara.” He leaned in, his hands on the wall beside her head, a familiar pose she’d come to expect from him. His way of caging her, controlling her. “You ask me to stay alive for you, and then you tempt fate with your own life. What the hell am I supposed to do with that?”
He hit a raw nerve. She wanted to be more to him than a temporary escape until he killed Alvarez. She wanted him to feel what she did, but now she knew he didn’t. Not after tonight. “I asked you to stay alive for me and what did you reply? I have to let you spank me.”
“That was my way of saying I was with you in that moment.”
The moment they were having sex. It was all sex and escape to him. “That was you avoiding commitment.” The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them and she instantly felt like a deer in the headlights. Kara tried to duck under his arm. He tightened his legs around hers, holding her in place.
Her fingers curled on his chest. “Let me out of here, Blake. I need out.”
“Not until we’re done talking.”