Authors: Dixie Lee Brown
Joe glanced at his watch. “Okay. Liftoff in two hours.”
Everyone headed for the door, including Nate, but Joe held up a hand that stopped him until the others had left the room. “I teamed you and Alex because you seem to work well together. The last time we were here, you coached her and she ended up doing a damn good job. The other night when she found you, she did what you asked her to do, right? She listens to you, but more than that—she trusts you. You appear to have a calming effect on her, but if you’ve got another take on it, now would be the time to speak your mind.”
Nate crossed his arms over his chest. He wouldn’t give two bits for any
calming effect
he might have on her, but, hell, he’d backed himself into that corner. It might end up being a mistake, but he wasn’t about to tell Joe the real story now. He heaved a sigh. “The last time you guys were here, Ty told me a little of Alex’s history. He said you pulled her out of a brothel in Hong Kong where she’d been held for years . . . that she was only a kid.” Nate’s body vibrated with rage at the image those words conjured in his mind. “He also told me she killed seven men the night you rescued her. True?”
Joe held his gaze for a moment before he nodded. “My team was pinned down. They would have picked us off one by one. She’s silent and deadly, so don’t underestimate her. In case you feel bad for any of those men she killed, I could tell you what they did to her—the things they made her do.”
Nate’s gaze drifted over Joe’s shoulder to where Alex talked with Rayna just outside the door. Rayna leaned toward her and wrapped an arm around her waist, and the corners of Alex’s heart-shaped mouth lifted in a tender smile. His anger slowly faded as his gaze followed her, replaced by respect and admiration for her hard-won independence. Her gold-flecked eyes, surrounded by long, thick lashes, made her beautifully exotic, but her regal bearing marked her as different . . . special. She was an amazing woman—having survived what likely would have brought most men to their knees. She deserved the freedom she’d earned. Possessiveness overrode his better judgment and pushed aside the balance of his reluctance.
“I don’t see a problem. Me and the Mrs. will be ready to go when you are.” He stepped around Joe and started toward the door, catching Alex’s attention and crooking his finger.
She straightened and braced herself as though expecting his wrath. Nate scowled. If they were going to spend four days in an RV alone together, something was going to have to change between them.
He placed his hand on her back and turned her to walk beside him. “Ever been fishing?”
“No.” Curiosity flickered briefly in her eyes.
Nate continued into the kitchen and out the back door to the deck. “You’re in for a treat. If we have time, I’ll teach you.”
Her pleased smile illuminated her face, tweaking the dimples in her cheeks, and jolting him somewhere deep down inside. When she smiled like that—like she really meant it—it wreaked havoc with his self-control. Still, he couldn’t help wondering what he could do to make it a more regular occurrence.
Nate opened the side door to the garage and led the way between his ancient Suburban and his Mustang until he reached the back wall and swung open the door to the storage room. When he glanced back, she was no longer behind him, and instead was trailing her fingers lightly over the right rear quarter panel of the Mach I.
She flushed when she caught him watching her. “You fixed it.”
“Good as new.”
She wrinkled her nose and cocked her head to one side. “Am I forgiven, then? Please?”
Nate laughed and shook his head, feeling the power of her plea over him . . . knowing he wouldn’t be able to refuse her anything if she asked like that. “Okay, forgiven, but I’m not letting you behind the wheel again. Not until I teach you how to drive, anyway.”
One of her warm, genuine smiles lit up her countenance again, and she stepped in front of him, her chin lifted so her eyes met his. “Thanks, Nate. I appreciate you trusting me enough to let me go with you.”
“The other part of that is you trusting me. Can you do that?”
“Sure.”
“Do everything I say—when I say?”
Although Alex didn’t move, he could almost see her retreat within herself. The idea of him telling her what to do obviously scared her. Knowing the basics of what she’d been through, he couldn’t blame her, but the trust issue wasn’t an option.
“Come here. Let’s get you set up to fish.” He dragged his gaze from her and stepped inside the storage room. Soon she was at his side again, and when he glanced at her, the excitement had returned to her expression.
He chose his two best rod and reel sets, making a mental note to purchase new fishing line. What he had was several years old, and he didn’t want Alex to hook a big fish and have her line break. They weren’t going on vacation, but if they were going to fish, they might as well do it right.
Twenty minutes later he had two small tackle boxes packed with the essentials. He started a pile that included his grate for cooking over a campfire, an old aluminum coffeepot and pan set, an axe, two flashlights, a lantern, and matching sleeping bags. They’d pick up the rest of what they needed once they got there.
Alex tried to help him with the fishing gear, but the first thing she did was lose a fight with one of his barbed fishing hooks and slash her finger. Blood flowed freely from the jagged cut.
Nate grabbed his first aid kit off the wall and knelt in front of her. “Let me take a look.”
“It’s just a scratch.” She held it out toward him anyway. Immediately, blood pooled on her hand, ran down her fingers, and dripped onto the floor.
“Damn. It’s bleeding pretty good. Definitely not a scratch.”
“Well, it’s not life-threatening.”
“That’s the good news.” Nate winked and then grinned when she smiled. “It’ll just take a minute to get you fixed up.” He slid his butt onto the concrete floor of the garage and opened the kit. Selecting a strip of gauze, he wrapped it around her finger, and held it tightly to stop the bleeding.
“I can do that.” Alex tried to push his hand out of the way and take over.
He stared her down. “Just relax. Let me take care of you.” She was about to bolt. He could feel it in the tense way she held herself. He sat beside her, his thigh leaning against hers. His closeness clearly made her nervous, and that was something he’d like to fix if possible.
“We should get going. Joe’s probably waiting for us.” Her gaze darted between Nate and the door.
“We’ve got plenty of time, Alex. What are you afraid of?” He unwrapped the gauze. The bleeding had stopped, and he searched in the kit for some antiseptic spray.
“I’m not afraid of anything.”
“Yeah? You said that the first day we met. I didn’t believe you then either.” He sprayed the wound and wrapped a bandage around it, but continued to hold her hand. “You know, there’s nothing wrong with being afraid now and then.” He was ready for her and held on tightly when she tried to free her hand.
“Fear makes you weak. I won’t be weak again.” She tugged on her hand in earnest. “Stop that.”
“Not so fast. We need to have a little conversation.” He laced their fingers together and tipped her chin up until her eyes met his.
“About what?” Distrust was obvious in her furrowed brows.
“We’re going undercover as husband and wife. If you can’t stand for me to touch you, we’re not going to be very believable.” His thumb traced slow circles on the palm of her hand.
She trembled and tried to jerk out of his grasp again, but his fingers tightened around hers. “Lots of married couples don’t touch.” She snorted rudely. “If you think you’re going to manhandle me because of a pretend marriage, you’re seriously deluded.”
Nate shook his head. “I don’t
manhandle
women, sweetheart, but if I think our pretend marriage needs touching to be more believable, then I’m going to touch you. If it requires kissing to make it appear as though we’re madly in love, then I’ll kiss you—preferably without getting slapped.” He was pushing her on purpose. Maybe she hadn’t thought through what going undercover as a married couple would entail. Maybe she’d decide she wasn’t up for the job. Better she make that decision now than once they arrived in Nogales.
Her entire body leaned away from him, stopped from moving out of his reach only by the wall behind her. Her brown eyes darkened dangerously and went from distrust to trapped-and-ready-to-fight in the space of a heartbeat. She jerked on her hand again, and this time, Nate knew he might be pressing his luck if he didn’t let her go.
He leaned into her, though, and silently demanded she meet his gaze. “Decide, Alex.”
“Decide what?”
“If you can’t handle it, we might as well tell Joe right now that I’m going to need a new partner.”
Anger drew a flush to her cheeks, and he had a feeling the dam was about to burst.
Nate raised his hand to forestall her rant. “You know I’m right. Everything we do from now on is for Marco. We might have to do some things outside our comfort zones to make sure that kid survives. We’re partners, Alex, and you’ll have a say in everything we do, same as me. But, if it comes down to it and we need a quick decision, or we don’t agree on what should be done, then we’ll do things my way.”
Alex rolled her eyes.
“Only because I’ve got experience in these kinds of operations. You know I’d never do anything to hurt you or that kid. But I need your assurance that, if it comes to it, you’ll trust me enough to follow my lead . . . for the sake of the mission. If that’s not possible, say so now.”
Damn, she was beautiful with that blaze of fury in her eyes, but Nate got the message loud and clear. She wasn’t used to being pushed and didn’t like it one bit. It didn’t matter. He would have his way on this issue, and he wasn’t exactly fond of being pushed either. Maybe this partnership wasn’t the best idea Joe ever had.
Alex glared at him for what seemed like several minutes before she dropped her gaze, and the tension in her body lessened. When next she looked at him, a wisp of a smile graced her lips.
“Touching . . . kissing . . . follow your lead. Got it. I can handle it. I wonder if you can.” She raised an eyebrow and studied him doubtfully.
He threw back his head and laughed. She never gave in. He might as well forget about ever getting the last word with her. Amazingly, that was okay. It was one of the many things he’d come to admire about her the last time they’d been forced into each other’s company. In spite of the adversity that marred her life, she had a good head on her shoulders, and she was probably pretty close to right—she wasn’t afraid of anything.
Alex was striving to hide her own smile and not succeeding entirely. The desire to kiss those soft, full lips came over him suddenly and with an urgency that couldn’t be ignored. In spite of the absolute knowledge that it was a boneheaded thing to do, he leaned closer and stroked her cheek lightly with his fingers.
Alex trembled but didn’t pull away as he lowered his mouth toward hers.
“Nate? Alex? You guys need a hand?” Rayna hollered from the front of the garage.
Alex’s hands came up and pushed him back as she scrambled to her feet.
Disappointment and frustration flooded Nate in equal measures. He wrapped his hand around her ankle as she stepped by him. She looked over her shoulder curiously, but he detected none of the need or the regret at being interrupted that he was struggling with. He didn’t stop to analyze why that annoyed him so badly.
“Don’t forget where we were,” he growled.
Her eyes hardened and filled with renewed distrust before darting away from him to the door and then back to skewer him with something very close to scorn. “Is that an order,
boss
?”
“There you are. Everything okay?” Rayna’s cheerful voice filled the silence as she appeared in the open doorway.
Nate released Alex’s ankle and shoved to his feet. “Everything’s fine. Just finishing up.” Nate hung the first aid kit back on the wall and picked up the two tackle boxes and the sleeping bags.
Alex strode by Rayna without a word. Rayna watched her go and then turned back to him, her brows pulled together with concern. “She’s not as strong as she acts, you know. Be careful, Nate.”
Her words were laced with steel and there was no mistaking her intent. Nate didn’t doubt for a second that the warning went for everyone on Joe’s team.
Was he pushing too hard—expecting too much from Alex? Would treating her like a desirable young woman be such a bad thing? He was well aware that she was extraordinarily troubled, but why she mattered so much to him was a mystery. She tugged at something deep inside him that hadn’t been heard from in a very long time. The woman needed someone, whether she knew it or not. Apparently, sometime after she’d reappeared in his life last night, he’d appointed himself her defender. Helping her deal with her past was second only to rescuing Marco. The enormity of the task didn’t sway him.
He grabbed the fishing rods and balanced them on top of his load before starting for the door. “No worries, Rayna. Alex will be just fine.”
He’d make sure she was. Whether
he
escaped in one piece was another matter.
B
Y THE TIME
Nate completed two trips to the chopper and loaded his equipment into the cargo bay, Rayna and Alex had made themselves scarce. He still had an uneasy feeling about whether Alex was the right person to partner with. Still, she’d said she could handle his demands, and for some reason, he wanted to take her at her word.
Dropping off his last load, which included the first aid kit since Alex had already proven so accident-prone, he started for the house to pack a few things. Walker and Ty were in the kitchen making sandwiches.
Ty turned as Nate crossed the threshold. “Can I give you a hand? What do you have left to do?”
“I just need to throw a couple changes of clothes in a duffel and I’ll be ready.” Nate stopped and studied their handiwork. He hadn’t eaten in nearly twenty-four hours, and the display of sliced turkey, ham, and fresh tomatoes did a number on his empty stomach. “You could slam one of those together for me if you have time, buddy.”
“You got it.” Ty swung back to his preparations.
“Either of you seen Alex?” Nate almost hated to admit he didn’t know where she was, figuring that didn’t bode well for their little adventure together.
“She came in with Rayna a few minutes ago. I think they went upstairs.” Walker cocked his head, but didn’t ask what was obviously on his mind.
Nate ignored the silent question and headed for the upper floor. As he topped the stairs at a jog, a groan escaped him. The one person he didn’t care to run into leaned casually against the wall beside his bedroom door. Jim Brady had his ankles crossed and his thumbs hooked in his front pockets like he was settled in for the duration. Great. Just what Nate needed.
Jim straightened and stepped forward as Nate hit the landing and slowed to a walk.
“I owe you an apology.” Jim dipped his head self-consciously. “I’m a little overprotective when it comes to Alex. She gave me hell—said I misjudged you. No hard feelings?” Jim stuck out his hand.
Nate released the breath he’d been holding. “You had every right to be pissed off. I’d never have suggested she sleep in my room, however innocent, if I’d known you two were an item.”
A flush spread across Jim’s cheeks. “You got that all wrong. Alex and I are just friends, but there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for her.”
Nate reached for the man’s hand as an unexpected sense of relief stole over him. “I know the feeling.”
Jim’s gaze appraised him for a moment. A slow grin materialized, and he slapped Nate’s shoulder. “Excellent. She can always use another friend. I can’t be there all the time, and she takes a good deal of looking after.”
Nate turned toward his room as Jim walked away. “I’ll just bet she does.”
Encouraged by Jim’s vote of acceptance and especially by his declaration that he and Alex weren’t involved, Nate’s mood lightened as he threw a few items of clothing and some toiletries in his duffel bag. He had to search for his passport, but figured he better have it since there was a good chance he’d end up crossing the border. His bag in hand, he was making one more pass for anything he might have forgotten when his cell phone rang.
He’d been expecting Gina or Ashley to call ever since he’d given the news to Susie. His little sisters worried about him way too much, but now he’d brought the bad guys to their doors and they likely wouldn’t be very happy with him.
Without checking the caller ID, he answered in his usual fashion. “Sanders.”
“Detective. I understand you’re taking a few days off. Does that mean you’re leaving town?”
He hadn’t been expecting a male voice, and it was a few seconds before he recognized the caller.
Daniels!
How in the hell did Daniels get his number? For that matter, how did the bastard know he was taking time off? He must have someone inside the precinct funneling information to him.
“Daniels, I thought maybe I discouraged you last night.”
“On the contrary. I’m more determined than ever. Oh . . . and it will be so much fun to exact revenge on that pretty little thing who helped you. What’s her name? Alex?”
Rage burned in Nate’s blood, and he took several deep breaths before he could trust his voice. “I don’t know where you’re getting your information, Daniels, but you’ve been misinformed this time.”
Daniels laughed. “You’re a lousy liar, Sanders. I pay well and often for the information I need. I’m never
misinformed
. I am curious, though. Is she special to you?”
“Never saw the girl before last night. Besides, this is between you, me, and Uncle Leo. Involving other people, like you did in the bar, was a big mistake.” Nate would say anything to keep Alex out of this.
“I’m going to pretend you didn’t just lie to me, Detective. We had a chance to settle this between us, and your little girlfriend got in the way. Now we’ll do it my way. Enjoy your time off, Detective.” Daniels laughed and then the line went dead.
Nate’s jaw clenched as he fought for control of his anger. He had to call the captain and tell him of this new threat, and that he suspected someone at the precinct had been bought off. Then he had to choose the right time and place to break the news to Alex. This whole mess was his fault, and he intended to stick to her like glue until Daniels was behind bars.
A
LEX WAS STILL
shaking when she reached the safety of her room. Why did that man insist on irritating her? Did he do it on purpose or did it just come naturally? She grabbed her bag from the floor at the foot of the bed and dropped it on the undisturbed comforter. She hadn’t been in this room long enough to even ruffle the covers. The memory of lying in Nate’s warm embrace in his bed this morning, tucked against his hard body, made her skin flush with heat and her lips twitch with a grin that was wrong in so many ways.
Alex tossed her head to banish the image and stomped to the bathroom for the few personal items she’d bothered to unpack, quickly stuffing them back in her bag. What was it about Nate that turned her into a blithering idiot who wanted to kiss him one minute . . . and slap him the next? She squeezed her eyes closed. If only she couldn’t remember that incident quite so vividly. What a fool she’d made of herself. Yet he hadn’t gotten angry. He’d treated her with kindness and respect . . . right up until he started telling her how their faux marriage was going to work.
She understood the necessity to have one person ultimately in charge of their operation. If they didn’t, they ran the risk of the two of them going in opposite directions and working at cross-purposes. It made total sense that the person should be Nate, but taking orders from him was an entirely different matter.
It wasn’t only Nate. There was a time, not that long ago, when Alex was told every move to make and beaten if she didn’t comply fast enough. Anyone who sought to control her in that way for a lesser reason than rescuing Marco would be sorely disappointed.
The almost-kiss in the storage room had been a huge mistake. Not only because Rayna had almost walked in on them, but because, up until then, Alex had been blissfully unaware of how much she desired his touch. The new knowledge terrified her and awakened longings in her she never knew existed.
She’d have to be more careful from now on. Renew her efforts to stay away from him. Unfortunately, he was her ticket to be included on this mission. He’d said yes when Joe would have said no . . . and she hadn’t forgotten that he’d glossed over her activities last night when reporting them to Joe might not have gotten her shipped home, but would have certainly curtailed her jaunts on the town by herself. She owed him for that.
A twinge of guilt made her chew her bottom lip. Joe watched over her like a big brother and, as annoying as that was, Alex was well aware he did it for her benefit. He, or any member of the team, would have stepped up to help Nate last night. The difference was she sometimes got stuck in the fuzzy world between her nightmarish past and reality, lost track of who the bad guys were, and didn’t know when to stop. Joe was clearly worried that, one day, no one would be there to call her back. It had taken her a long time and a lot of hard work with her shrink to earn this much of Joe’s trust.
A knock sounded and Rayna cracked the door open. “Are you okay?”
Alex forced a brief smile. “I’m fine. I just came to grab my bag.”
And hide out in my room until I can pull myself together.
Rayna’s eyebrows shot up, and Alex wondered if she’d said that last part out loud.
“Do you want to talk about something?”
Rayna knew her too well, and there were very few subjects they hadn’t already talked to death, together with Cara, Joe’s wife; Darcy, Walker’s fiancé; and Irene, Joe’s housekeeper. Alex loved all of them and appreciated their friendship. So why was it impossible for her to talk to Rayna about how Nate made her feel?
“Thanks, Rayna, but I wouldn’t know where to start. I have to figure out some things on my own first.”
Rayna’s eyes took on an amused sparkle. “I knew it.”
Alex turned to face her, hands on hips, and dread in her gut. “What did you know, Rayna Dugan?”
“You’ve got a thing for Nate.” Her words slid out in singsong fashion.
Alex snorted. “I most definitely do not! The man is infuriating.”
“Okay. Whatever you say, but you have to admit he’s pretty hot.” Rayna’s soft laughter eased Alex’s annoyance.
Her laugh burst free as she tried to count all the ways that statement made no sense. “Hot doesn’t begin to excuse all of his other shortcomings.” She hooked her arm around Rayna’s waist. “Thanks. You’re insane, but I feel better.”
“That’s what I’m here for.” Rayna hugged her back. “Get your things and I’ll see you downstairs.” She waved as she disappeared through the doorway.
Alex grabbed her bag, made one more pass through the room, and headed back to the lower level. She met Jimmy coming up the stairs. His easy smile instantly brightened her mood. Besides the women in her life, Jimmy was her best friend. He hated to be called Jimmy, but he indulged her in that and so many other things.
“Are you ready to go?” She paused with one foot on the first step.
“Yep. Just need my duffel.” His gaze swept over her. “Are you going to be okay on this one? I could ask Joe to let me switch with Nate.”
“Not necessary. I’ve got it handled.” Alex was surprised at how quickly she rejected his offer, and she was fairly certain it wasn’t because Rayna was right.
Thankfully, Jimmy had another explanation. “Oh yeah. I forgot how dead set you are on doing everything the hard way.”
Alex narrowed her eyes. “That’s right. Now get your chore done. You’re going to miss your ride.” She heard him mumble something as she turned and ran down the stairs.
Nate was talking with Ty in the kitchen so she made a sharp right, hurried through the foyer, and slipped out the front door. She circled the house and jogged toward the chopper. Hoping for some time alone to think, she frowned when she caught sight of Joe in the cockpit already performing his preflight check. She stopped in front of the cargo bay, threw her satchel inside, and clambered aboard.
Joe finished his preparations and came back to sit beside her. He was silent for a time before he spoke. “Nate’s a good man, Alex. You can trust him. For God’s sake, let go of your pride for once and listen to him. He’ll keep you safe.”
“Who’s going to keep
him
safe?”
Joe leaned his head back and sighed. “No doubt that will be you, but use a little discretion. Okay?”
“That’s my middle name.” Alex flashed him a wide smile.
He groaned and shook his head. “Just like talking to a brick wall.”
They remained side by side for a few minutes, silently waiting. Walker was the first to appear and hop on board. He was followed quickly by Jim and Nate. Ty and Rayna showed up to see them off, but their transportation would be a commercial aircraft later that evening.
Joe had told her once that his chopper, the Bell UH–1 Iroquois helicopter, was the same style the military used to fly for medical evacuation because of its large cargo bay. The chopper’s original designation had been HU–1, shortened to Huey. Even when the letters were switched later, the nickname stuck. There were only a few seats, forward and aft, with the biggest part of the bay open for cargo.
As Nate approached, Joe stood and moved forward to the controls. Alex scowled when Nate slid into the seat Joe vacated.
“Did you get something to eat?” Nate reached into his coat pocket. “I saved you half of a sandwich.” He held the baggie up between them.
Her gaze drifted to his face. What was his game? Give her food and then demand whatever he wanted from her? Joe’s words floated back.
You can trust him.
How could she be sure? The fact she
wanted
to trust him only made him that much more suspect.
He reached for her hand and laid the baggie on her palm as he leaned close to her ear. “I don’t want anything in return.” His stiff smile gave way to a worried frown before he sat straighter and turned away.
Alex glanced at the sandwich and her stomach growled. The few bites of pie she’d had last night weren’t meant to hold her over forever. With so much emotional upheaval, she hadn’t stopped to notice she was starving. It was nice of Nate to think of her needs, and it
was
just a friggin’ sandwich, but it would be one more thing she owed him for. God, she hated that.
Her empty stomach wouldn’t allow her to give up the food, though, so maybe she could think of something to do to repay him that didn’t involve losing control. Cook him a meal in their little RV love nest, or perhaps something as simple as
not
drowning him in Patagonia Lake.
She hummed the theme song to
Mission: Impossible
as she opened the baggie and drew out the sandwich.
The chopper was only five feet off the ground when Jimmy leaned forward and rifled frantically through his gear. “Oh hell!” He looked toward the front and swore again.
Nate tensed and his gaze darted around the helicopter as though seeking the source of the trouble.