Lie by Night: An Out of Darkness novel (Entangled Ignite) (2 page)

Chapter Two

The woman crushed beneath him sputtered. Dark brown eyes flashed—and not with the passion he’d imagined in his dreams.

What the hell? Cole Stevens stared into gorgeous, dark mahogany irises ringed with the faintest amber. The subtle golden aura steeped her eyes in mystery. Oh yeah, these eyes he remembered well. These eyes he’d dreamed of…had nightmares about.
Emma
.

After he set the timer on the explosives, he’d retreated to a tree on a small hill a short distance away to watch. He’d anticipated company after the blast.

Not before.

When the lone figure first stepped into view, he’d known she was a woman despite her oversized jacket. She moved with a feminine grace that was hard to miss. He’d slipped from the tree where he perched and busted his butt to get her out of harm’s way before the explosion.

Sure, he’d been concerned about her safety, but he also wanted to know why she was here. What she knew.

Because anyone who ventured near the godforsaken warehouse had information he needed.

He’d put the plan in motion, thought he planned for every contingency. But he’d never imagined Emma, the woman who’d gotten away before she’d ever really been his, would be the one to walk into his trap.

The bundle of fury beneath him shoved hard at his chest. His eyes narrowed.
Emma
.

Cole rested most of his weight on his forearms, his chest and legs pinning her to the ground to keep her from fleeing. Damn it! Her presence could only mean one thing. Despite his wish that it were otherwise, Jacob was smack in the middle of this mess.

“What are you doing here?” He bit the words out, trying to ignore the way light from the flames danced across her hair. An ugly, black jersey cap hung part-way off her head. Specks of dirt and twigs clung to the fabric and invaded the tresses that pulled free from the strands captured at her neck.

“Me?” Brown eyes sparked. “What are
you
doing here?” Her eyes sliced sidewise, peering over his arm at the burning building. She squirmed against him. “Did you do this?” Her voice rose on a note of hysteria.

Ah, damn, were those tears?

Cole loosened his arms, allowing Emma the freedom to place both hands against his chest and shove hard. He rolled off her and stood, then reached down to help her up.

Ignoring his outstretched hand, she struggled to her feet, her gaze focused on the destruction in front of her. “Are you certain there was no one in there?”

He cast watchful eyes around the clearing before returning his attention to her. The color had faded from her angry, red cheeks, leaving only pallor. Her eyes burned dark against her pale face. “I’m certain.”

She nodded, swaying slightly on her feet. When he moved to steady her, she didn’t seem to notice.

Together, they stared at the warehouse. The explosion had decimated the building, imploding it so the damage remained contained in the center of the clearing. Reduced to a pile of molten metal and crackling debris, the remains burned brightly.

The smoke rose through the late morning air, sending a message to anyone who watched. Cole nodded in grim satisfaction. One less place for Alistair Forrester to resurrect his deadly business.

Emma turned her head to stare at him, tears still glinting in her eyes.

“What have you done?” Her voice, childlike in the early morning air, stirred unwelcome guilt in his chest. She stepped toward the burning building.

He thought he heard her whisper, “Jacob.”

He captured her arm again and pulled her back. He hadn’t slept in twenty-four hours. He had no desire to hurt her, no desire to chase her if she ran. And he sure didn’t need to feel guilty about how their fledgling relationship ended six months ago, only hours after their initial meeting sparked a rare and powerful connection between them.

Besides, he had questions of his own. “Why are you here?”

She jerked free and shoved her palm hard against his chest. Her lips set in a firm line. The child departed; the angry woman returned full force.

His hand shot out to capture her forearm in a tighter grip. “How did you find this place? Who else is here?” He pulled her up against his side. He surveyed the area, his focus shifting from the woman to the danger that lurked on this piece of land the residents of nearby James Island referred to only as
Dark Island
.

…

Emma fumed. The implication that she couldn’t have come here alone, that she was…what? Too stupid? Too weak? Somehow incapable of handling things alone? Cole’s insinuation brought welcome anger to chase away her despair at the destruction around her.

Who was he to think she couldn’t take care of herself? Or her brother. She might lack the combat savvy Cole and Jacob possessed, but she was a highly intelligent and resourceful woman.

Aside from the iron grip on her arm, the idiot man now ignored her completely.

“Listen, you Neanderthal…”

Cole clapped his free hand over her mouth and hissed. “Did you bring people with you?” She barely heard the words over the sounds of the fire.

Emma glared and said nothing.

“Shit.”

Warm air blew across Emma’s cheek at Cole’s whispered curse. If his mouth wasn’t so close to her ear, she would have missed the obscenity. His gaze swept the clearing.

A shout sounded from inside the jungle.

Jacob?

No. Unfamiliar voices spoke a language she didn’t recognize. Her heart pounded. She wanted to be glad she wasn’t here alone with Cole.

Instead, she was afraid.

Cole glared at her, eyebrow raised in question. Urgently, she shook her head. The men weren’t with her.

“Come on.” He removed his hand from her mouth, pulling her with him before he’d finished the order.

His long legs devoured the open space as he veered away from both the footpath and the dirt road. Emma half ran, half flew, her feet touching the ground once for every two or three of Cole’s steps. They headed directly for the dense undergrowth on the far side of the clearing.

Cole stopped abruptly. Emma stumbled into his side as he reached down to remove a section of the brush.

“Back in.” He barked the words as he looked over his shoulder.

Emma hesitated. The voices grew louder, the pounding of heavy boots mixing with the shouts. Crap. Better the devil she knew than the devils she didn’t.

Dropping to her hands and knees, she scurried backward through the opening and found herself in a tiny cave created by the surrounding bushes and trees. Her feet hit something that wobbled, and she glanced over her shoulder. A dark green backpack blended with the surroundings in the weak light.

She kicked it hard against the tree trunk that formed the rear of the enclosure, scooting as far back and to the side as she could to make room for Cole. The small space filled to bursting as he entered, his boots and strong legs stretching all the way back to the tree, his muscular body demanding more space. She scooted further into the shrubbery, ignoring the branches that poked her side. He stopped. Despite her best efforts to mash herself into the foliage, his broad shoulders refused to fit beside hers. She swallowed hard.

He lifted one arm over her, pulling her out of the brush and beneath his chest. He rested his elbow on the ground beside her, half covering her body. His other hand cleared the opening and tugged the brush door into place, extinguishing all but a hint of light.

He adjusted the leafy panel and inched backwards, pulling Emma with him. Finally, he settled against her, her body plastered against his.

She felt more than saw him reach toward the barrier protecting them from the intruders. He slipped a small branch from the mass of brush, creating a sliver of window. Emma maneuvered awkwardly until she could peer through the break in the foliage with him. Four armed men burst into the clearing.

They skidded to a stop. The tallest man gestured angrily toward the pyre with a submachine gun. He spoke rapidly in a language that sounded like Spanish but wasn’t. She didn’t understand his words. The gun he waved through the air, however, she understood just fine. Cold sweat pooled between her shoulder blades.

For the first time since Cole threw her to the ground, she was profoundly grateful for his presence.

Even if he was more of a snake than the damn branch that had scared her earlier. A grim smile crossed her features. More of a snake and more susceptible to her Mace.

Mace. She was an idiot. As if a spray can would protect her from the men now jogging into the clearing. They stopped a few yards from the fire. Two slim men with mustaches appeared to be brothers, their features were so similar. The fourth man, stockier than the rest, screeched something and kicked at a pile of debris that had escaped the main fire, spreading hot coals across the clearing. The tall man stood apart from the others and pulled a satellite phone from his side holster.

Next to her, Cole exhaled. Her eyes darted in his direction. Having adjusted to the lighting in their hideout, she could see his stark features in the shadows. She felt the tension in his body ease. Frowning, she looked back out at the men. Her brow cleared. They were standing almost in the same spot where Cole had tackled her. Stocky guy’s temper tantrum had likely obliterated signs of her struggle with Cole.

Tall guy punched a number into the phone and made a quick call. Then he and the others began to canvas the area. Slowly, methodically, they searched. Stocky guy headed in their direction. Cole shot her a look of warning.

Yeah. As though she was going to say something. She narrowed her eyes.

Humor, and not the nice kind, flared in his eyes as his attention focused on a spot just in front of her. She followed his gaze and realized she’d instinctively pulled out her Mace as she backed into the hideout.

Yeah, she was an idiot. She just wasn’t admitting it to him.

Stocky guy neared their hideout and stopped. He slipped a flask from his jacket and took a long swig. With a glance over his shoulder, he returned it to his pocket.

Emma held her breath. Stocky guy arched his back in a slow stretch and, patting his sidearm, turned away to join the others as they completed their searches.

Minutes passed slowly. One after another until Emma’s adrenaline rush subsided, leaving behind a powerful urge to fidget.

But if Cole could stay still, so could she.

Two of the men stood guard. Another kicked through the wreckage as the flames died out. The fourth man, one of the brothers, took off down the path at a jog.

Minutes stretched into hours as the sun peaked overhead and then began its descent. When brother guard returned with sleeping bags, the men set up camp a distance from the building’s now smoldering embers.

Emma stifled a yawn, impressed that Cole maintained keen observation of the men when her mind continued to wander.

She’d been sitting in her university office preparing the next week’s lectures on the Age of Enlightenment when the kid from the mailroom dropped the small package at her desk. Although hurried and sloppy, she’d recognized Jacob’s handwriting. She opened the box and smiled as she removed the hot pink pepper spray. She’d laughed when she realized he’d used the secret code they invented as kids, hoping he was letting her know he’d be home for the holidays. Moments later, her hands trembled as she deciphered the words.
Treason. Be careful and trust no one. I’ll be back by Sunday. Keep this safe
. It was then she realized how rushed his normally neat script appeared.

Keep this safe.
Code words from the games of their youth. She’d opened the base of the spray cautiously, reluctantly, as if she knew it would change her in ways for which she was unprepared. Nestled inside lay the microchip.

When Sunday came and went, she’d been frantic, uncertain what to do, having no idea where to go for help, where to leave the damned chip.
Trust no one.
Ironically, given her current predicament, she’d thought of Cole more than once, yearning to draw on his security knowledge. After all, Jacob himself had bragged about his new friend’s expertise during the dinner he’d arranged as a surprise blind date for them. Even now, she felt the shocking chemistry of that first meeting as if it were yesterday, remembered how the unfathomable depths of Cole’s blue eyes called forth a passion she’d felt with both her body and her heart.

Of course, this was before he slept with her brother’s almost fiancée that same night, making it clear she’d misread the
mutual
part of the attraction. Now, she told herself, the racing of her heart derived from the current danger rather than any lingering, physical attraction.

And if she was lying to herself about that, she’d never admit it.

A tingling began in her forearm, radiating down into her hand and racing up to her elbow. Ah, ah, ah…damn! Her arm was asleep.

She gritted her teeth and attempted to shift her arm, but Cole’s weight pinned it to her side. The jerk was oblivious to her discomfort. She clenched and unclenched her hand in an attempt to get blood flowing. That got his attention. Moving with excruciating slowness, he shifted his arm to relieve hers. The prickles of pain intensified. She bit her lip and attempted to move what felt like a dead weight. When she thought she couldn’t take it any longer, he began to knead her protesting flesh. Strong, capable fingers traveled up and down her arm and hand. She closed her eyes and rested her forehead on the ground as the sensation of pinpricks subsided.

Cole continued the massage, sending fissures of pleasure along her arm. The soothing beat of his heart reverberated inside her head and lulled her into the first calm she’d felt in days. As she relaxed, the pleasure began to radiate toward other regions of her body and…

She tensed as reality intruded.
Hell no.
She twitched her arm in an attempt to still Cole’s magic fingers. He ceased his ministrations. Unfortunately, there was no escaping the heat from his body or the rhythm of his heart.

In the clearing, stocky guy started a campfire in the center of the sleeping bags, and the men cooked dinner. Tall man pulled a bottle of whiskey from the duffel, and they passed it around until it was empty.