Dark And Dangerous (16 page)

 
In an easy move he pulled the shirt over his
head, before taking her mouth again. His smoldering anger had quickly been
transformed to hot need. With a savage pleasure he drove her over the edge
again, and reveled in her uncontrollable response. Needing fulfillment more
than he needed his next breath, he quickly drew off the rest of their clothes,
and took her in a swift motion while she was still trembling. Her eyes flew
open on a wave of sensation, then closed again as he began moving.

 
"Look at me, Kayley," he demanded,
his voice harsh with need. Her eyes fluttered open, then nearly closed again as
he continued to move inside her.

 
"Look at me." He waited until she
did, until her eyes focused on his dark and intense.

 
"Say my name."

 
"Nathan," she managed in a bare
whisper.

 
"Again." He held them at the very
edge, wanting and needing her to see him clearly.

 
"Nathan." She thought distantly
that his eyes were like a wizards, deep and intense, holding her transfixed
with a mere look.

Seeing only her and
knowing that she was only seeing him, he catapulted them both over the final
edge and sent them flying.

.....

 
It took a long time before the world finally
settled around them again, and still their hearts thundered. Kayley lay dazed
and satisfied, feeling completely relaxed and spent.

She still felt almost
light-headed and thought it might take years before she would ever muster up
the strength to move again. She enjoyed the sweet intimacy of Nathan's breath
gently stirring her hair and the feel of his heart beating hard against hers.
She had never thought it would bring her such satisfaction to feel the hard
beat of
a
mans
heart and to
know that she had caused it. To know that everything he had made her feel, she
had made him feel as well.

 
Then her happy thoughts were replaced as he
began to stir. She had just remembered why they had ended here and stiffened
involuntarily beneath him. This was probably going to get awkward.

 
He felt her stiffen and shifted so he could
look down at her. The woman never stopped thinking, he thought to himself. It
was all a part of the attraction, he mused, but it certainly made life a lot
harder, especially because her thoughts always appeared to be problematic in
some way.

 
He could see the caution in her eyes as she
watched him. Her cheeks were still rosy, her eyes were still heavy and yet she
was already putting her guards back up again. It annoyed him and at the same
time it pulled at his heart. He would just have to be patient, he told himself.
Her trust would be well worth the work.

 
He lifted his hand and caressed her cheek
gently. Surprise showed clearly in her eyes, then was replaced by insecurity.

 
Oh, yes, he thought. She was definitely worth
it. Like a tender blossom that had been pummeled by hard rain. But he would get
her to open, he promised himself.

 
"Don't run away from me again."

She looked into his
intense blue eyes and felt her heart clench.

 
"You can be angry at me all you want,
but don't run away." He held her face in his hands and bent to kiss her
gently. "Just don't run away."

 
"I will try not to, but it's my first
reaction."

 
"I know. But you should know this. If
you run I'll come after you."

 
"You will?" She couldn't explain
why that made her feel happy.

 
"Yes." He bent and took her mouth
again in a deep kiss.

Chapter 17

 
It was
dark as a figure moved with catlike ease down a boat dock. He was clad
completely in black and blended easily into the night. The boat harbor was
small and empty of people, but still he moved with caution.

 
He found the boat he was looking for easily
and crouched down beside it, becoming one with its shadow.

 
If there had been anyone else moving around
the empty harbor, they wouldn't have spotted the man as he sat hidden in the
darkness, unpacking the backpack he had been carrying.

 
But there was no one to see him as he began
walking around the boat, carefully setting up explosives. He rigged three minor
devices around the hull of the boat, before climbing onto it and strategically
placing three more.

 
He took his time, enjoying his work. He loved
explosives. Had loved explosions from the first time he had seen one on
television as a child. It had drawn him like nothing else ever had. He could
still remember the excitement and awe he had felt. And then the first time he
had made his own. It had only been a small explosion. One his science teacher
had been happy to help him make. His teacher had been so delighted that one of
his pupils had finally seemed to be interested.

 
The thought of that made him smile.

 
His teacher probably hadn't suspected that
the interest he had shown, and the excitement he had felt, had been generated
by the explosion, and not an interest in chemicals and their reactions.

 
If his teacher could only see him now, he
thought to himself and laughed softly.

He rigged each of the
devices and connected them to a timer and a main trigger.

Then he smiled to himself
at his own genius.

When someone stepped on
the top step of the ladder, the trigger would start the timer. Whoever was on
the boat would have exactly five minutes before it blew up.

He smiled to himself at
the thought and packed up his backpack again. His work here was done.

He left quickly the same
way he had come. Silently and unnoticed.
 

.....

 
The night was black, the salty air still warm
from the sun that had set hours before. Water lapped gently against the hulls
of boats that shone palely in the dark, only illuminated by the light from the
moon. The wooden boards of the boat dock squeaked lightly under soft shoes. The
man stopped and listened intently for any signs that he might have been heard.

 
Nothing stirred, but still he stood silently
in the shadow of a boat. He was completely dressed in black and knew how to
move easily and unseen through the night. He could have done it just as easily
in the day, but night suited him best. It was instinct that had him staying in
the shadow, an instinct that had been honed through a rough childhood spent
primarily in the streets.

 
His eyes scanned the night but nothing moved.
Still he waited watching every shadow, straining his eyes. His instinct had
saved him many times, and he trusted it more than he trusted anything else.

 
Cautious, he moved silently from one shadow
to the next, then held still, waiting.

Listening.

 
He was alone, the way he always had been and
the way he preferred it. He only had himself to rely on and the gun he held in
his right hand.

 
Feeling the hair on the back of his neck
stand up in primal warning, he checked his gun again making sure the safety was
off. He already knew the answer. He had checked the gun carefully before he had
left his car. But it was always better to double check, he thought to himself.
Better safe
then
sorry. Of course in his case he
wouldn't be sorry, he would be dead.

 
He moved silently out of the shadow and down
another boat dock. From here, he could watch the speedboat he was headed for.
Nothing moved around it and there was no sign of life or movement on the boat.
Slowly, even more careful now, he inched closer. He would have to come out of
the shadows, he thought, and wished fleetingly that it could have been a cloudy
night. Still he had no choice, and slipped silent as a fox from one shadow to
the next, on his way to the boat. He moved quicker now, closer and closer to
the boat. There was still nothing to see. Nothing out of the ordinary.

 
Getting a better grip on his gun, he snuck up
beside the boat, and waited listening.

Nothing stirred. Moving
slowly and carefully, he climbed lightly up the small ladder on the side of the
boat. His feet landed softly on the deck, and he scanned it quickly.

 
Everything appeared to be normal.
 

The only sound was that of
the water lapping gently against the side. Breathing a small sigh of relief, he
turned to scan the darkness around him. Nothing moved on the docks or out in
the water.

 
Satisfied that he wasn't followed, he walked
silently towards the front of the boat. It wasn't over yet, he thought. He
would still have to crawl down the ladder, below deck.

And he had no way of
knowing if someone might be waiting for him. He stepped forward and felt the
boat shift beneath his feet. Turning quickly, he saw a shadow rush towards him
from one of the other boats and only managed to lift his hands in self-defense
before pain exploded at his temple and stars erupted. He swung wildly with his
gun, trying to aim at the shadow and had the weapon knocked out of his hand.
Then the world went black as he was struck in the back of his head, and
crumbled on the deck.

Chapter 18

 
Kayley
awoke to a ringing sound and pried her eyes open. She blinked, still half
asleep and lifted her head to look confused around the room, trying to
distinguish where the sound came from.

 
Nathan shifted and picked up the phone.
"Yeah."

 
Kayley squinted at the watch. It read 5:00
AM. It was an unholy hour to call someone, she thought, and cuddled back
against Nathan as he pulled her close again. She closed her eyes for just a
moment, enjoying the warm feel of his skin beneath her cheek, and listened to
him talk.

 
"Are you sure? When?"

He sounded so serious, she
thought, and lifted her head to look at him. Her heart skipped a beat and she
felt her stomach turn at the look in his eyes.

 
"And you're sure it's his boat?" He
could see the worry clear in her eyes and wished there was something he could
have done to take it away. "Why haven't you checked it before?"

 
"Yeah, I'll tell her." He hung up
without further ceremony.

 
"What's wrong?" Kayley bit her lip
nervously.

 
Wanting to spare her, but knowing he
couldn't, he reached out and pulled the cover closer around her. "That was
Klein."

 
"What did he say? Have they found
Joe?" she asked hopefully.

 
"I'm sorry, Kayley. They found Joe. He's
dead." He watched disbelief come into her eyes, followed by confusion,
then pain as it dawned on her.

 
"But that can't be. It must be a
mistake," she denied desperately

 
"I'm sorry, baby." He pulled her
close as the first tear began to fall. She didn't resist as he had been afraid
she might. Didn't push him away like he had feared. Instead she simply seemed
to crumble against him.

 
He held her while hot tears and shudders
raked her body. He didn't murmur sweet soothing words, knowing that nothing he
said could take away the pain she felt. Instead he held her close, giving her
the only thing he could at the moment. Comfort and warmth.

She felt so fragile, he
thought. Like the slightest touch would break her. She didn't sob wildly, but
rather trembled in his arms, her breath breaking as she cried.

 
Shifting, Nathan lifted her onto his lap,
gathering her closer and simply held her for a long time, until her tears
finally began to dry.

 
Kayley sniffled against his chest and kept
her eyes tightly closed. She felt empty.

Drained. The tears had
been replaced by a feeling of numbness.

 
Too tired to move, she listened to the strong
beat of Nathan's heart. And realized that he had been holding her for the
entire time. If she had had the energy the thought of that might have scared
and embarrassed her, but at the moment she just didn't have the strength.

 
Lifting his hand, Nathan stroked her hair
gently, still keeping her close. "I'm really sorry, Kayley."

 
She shifted to look up at him out of eyes
swollen and red from crying. She could see that he meant it, and simply nodded.
She didn't trust herself to speak yet. Her throat felt raw and dry.

 
"You want something to drink?"

She nodded, still not
trusting her voice.

 
"Okay." He lifted her aside,
setting her on the bed, and tucked the cover closer around her again.
"I'll be back in a minute." He didn't bother with pulling on any
clothes before he walked out of the bedroom.

 
Alone, Kayley pulled her legs against her
chest and leaned her forehead on her knees.

She had experienced sorrow
and pain before, but she had just discovered that there were many different
kinds of pain. She had thought it had hurt when her mother had left them, but
it was nothing compared to this. At least with her mother she had known she was
still alive, and there had been a chance that she might come back. But with Joe
that wasn't a possibility. And she grieved for the loss of him, and the loss of
what they would never have now.

 
Deep in her heart, she had always hoped that
maybe they could grow closer again. That he would turn his life around and want
her to be a part of it. Now, that was never going to happen.

 
Nathan came back in carrying a big glass of
water. "Here you go." He handed her the glass and pulled on a pair of
jeans while she drank. She was still much too pale, he thought. Her eyes were
dark and huge and still red from crying.

 
He sat down beside her on the edge of the
bed, and took the glass from her when she was finished drinking, setting it on
the bedside table.

 
"Thanks," she managed. Her throat
still felt raw, but the water had soothed it a little.

 
"You okay?" Gently he stroked a
hand over her hair.

She nodded and lowered her
eyes to the bedcover. "I'm sorry I cried all over you."

 
"Kayley." He reached out, taking
her chin and turned her face towards him when she didn't look at him. "If
ever anyone needed a reason to cry, you have it. But I'm not afraid of tears or
emotional displays of any kind."

 
"You're not?"

 
"No. I've grown up in a family where we
express our feelings freely. Whether they are good or bad." He caressed
her cheek gently with his thumb. "You should never hide your feelings,
Kayley. And you should never feel embarrassed about them."

 
"We could never show our feelings in my
family. And if we did it was always used against us."

 
"I know, baby." Nathan leaned
forward and kissed her brow tenderly. "But you don't have to do that
anymore. And I would never use it against you."

She could see in his eyes
that he meant it, but didn't quite know how to respond.

 
"Hungry?" he asked.

 
"I
…
not really."

 
"Well, you still need food." He
stood up. "I'll go down and make us breakfast while you take a
shower."

 
He reached out a hand, helping her to her
feet, then just pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her.

 
Despite her numbness, his gesture made warmth
spread through her. It appeared to be so easy and natural for him to offer
comfort. No one had ever given her that before, not even Miss Kans.

 
Needing just a little sense of normality, she
closed her eyes and concentrated on breathing in Nathan's scent, trying to
empty her mind. She knew it was selfish and probably cold, but she needed to
think of something else, if only for a moment.

 
She nearly succeeded as she listened to the
beat of his heart and felt his breath stir her hair. But then images of her
brother slipped through. Joe, just a child comforting her when their mother had
left and she had been heartbroken. Joe hugging her and telling her to 'give
them hell' when she was going to Paris. And Joe lying bleeding and dead in a
dark alley.

 
"How did he die?" she asked her
voice breaking over the words.

 
"Take that shower first and then we'll talk."
She still looked like she would break at the slightest touch or word. He wanted
her to eat and get some strength back before she had to face anything else.
"I'll go down and get started on breakfast." He kissed her hair and
released her.

 
"Okay." Kayley walked into the
bathroom and stepped inside the big shower. Turning the water on hot, she
stepped under the spray. She needed it, needed the almost scalding hot water to
wash away her numbness and clear her mind. She stood, letting the water run over
her for a long time, until she began to feel nearly human again. Her heart
still ached and her throat was still raw, but at least her mind felt
more clear
.

 
Shutting off the water, she stepped out of
the shower and looked at herself in the mirror while she dried off. She was
pale as a sheet, and her eyes were still red and appeared to be much too large.
There was nothing to do about that, she thought, and turned away from the
mirror.

 
She walked back into the bedroom and pulled
on jeans and a blouse. Without sparing herself another glance in the mirror,
she walked out of the room and down the stairs toward the kitchen.

 
She found Nathan behind the stove, cooking up
a large loaded omelet. He had changed his clothes while she had showered. She
didn't think she had ever seen a man that looked so good in simple jeans and a
T-shirt before.

Hearing her, he turned
around as she walked in.

 
"Hey." His eyes took in everything,
noting every detail. She looked stronger. Still too pale, but stronger.

 
"Hey."

 
"You're just in time. Breakfast's
ready." He set the omelet on the table and handed her a cup of coffee.
"Take a seat."

 
She did, and took her first hungry sip of
coffee while watching him over the rim as he kept setting more food on the
table. There were sausages, potatoes and toast.

 
"You don't expect me to eat half of
that, do you?"

 
"Yeah, I do." He smiled as her
mouth gaped open, and sat down across from her. He poured both of them a glass
of orange juice, before loading their plates with food.

 
"I can't eat all that," Kayley said
exasperated as he kept piling on more. "I don't feel the least bit
hungry."

 
"You need to eat," he said simply.

 
She grimaced but picked up her fork to eat.
At the first bite, she realized that despite everything her body was actually
hungry.

 
Nathan waited until he was sure she had eaten
all she could before mentioning anything about her brother. He wanted to give
her as much time as possible. He could see her nerves, despite her attempt to
hide them.

 
"How did he die?" Kayley asked when
she was unable to suppress the thought of Joe any longer.

 
Nathan waited a beat before answering. He had
hoped to give her more time, but it was clear that she needed the answers now.
"He was on a boat when it exploded."

 
"A boat. What was he doing on a
boat?"

 
"Apparently he owned it, and from what
the police could gather that was where he was hiding out."

 
"Wouldn't Klein have known about it? I
mean, it had to be registered somewhere."

 
"The boat was registered in another
name. And Joe hadn't told anyone about it."
 

 
"Where did they find him?"

 
"In a small harbor in San Diego."

 
"Did he die in the explosion?" she asked,
wishing desperately that he hadn't felt anything.

 
"They couldn't tell me anything except
that his body was so severely injured by the explosion and the flames that it
was impossible to identify his remains."

 
"Then there's a chance that it isn't Joe?"
she said hopefully.

 
"Klein said there was no doubt it was
Joe. They found what remained of his wallet and a special ring that Klein told
me he always wore. I'm sorry, Kayley."

 
"That ring was the only thing our mother
left us. She gave it to him the day before she left, and told him to always
wear it and keep it safe." Her voice broke over the last word and she had
to force herself to only focus on the details at hand. She wasn't going to
break down again. "If he hadn't told anyone about the boat, then how did
they know?" she murmured almost to herself. "He couldn't have thought
Schnyder
knew about it. If he had, he wouldn't have
hid on it."

 
"Wait," Nathan interrupted.
"Didn't Miss
Kans
mention that Joe had bought a
boat?"

 
"You're right." She felt the blood
drain from her face. "You don't think they could have found out about her,
do you?"

 
"I think you should call her to make
sure," Nathan said, not wasting any time and grabbed the phone, handing it
to her immediately.

 
Kayley dialed quickly and waited, her nerves
stretched thinly while the phone rang. And rang.