YATES TRIED TO shift in his seat without being too obvious about it. His cock was pressing painfully against the metal zipper of his cargo pants. Almost the instant his lips had touched Trisha’s he’d felt every bit of blood in his body rush straight to his groin.
What he couldn’t figure out was her. Was she disgusted? If he’d had nothing but her reaction to go on, Yates would have suggested she had enjoyed the kiss. Her body had melted into his. Her mouth had opened. She had welcomed the exploration of his tongue and had even made a couple of sexy whimpering noises during the whole process. She’d enjoyed it. He knew that deep in his bones. Yet now she was acting as if nothing had happened.
“I’m going to go in and talk to Roddy,” Trisha announced.
Yates forced himself not to give in to his instant gut reaction. “All right. I’ll come with you.”
“No.” She shook her head, looking adamant. “He’ll never talk to me if you’re with me. He’s really cagey. Nobody goes this deep undercover without learning to be more than a little paranoid about strangers.”
“Then I’ll come with you and I won’t be seen.” He wondered when she was going to figure out that this was non-negotiable. “I’ll stay out of sight. He’ll never know I’m there.”
“How is that even possible?” Trisha gestured toward the building. “You walk in the back door, and Roddy works in receiving. So his desk is off to the right. There’s nothing but storage space and big shelving units full of orders.”
Yates snorted. “You mean there’s nothing but emptiness and places to hide.”
“Point taken,” she admitted. “All right. Fine. But if he figures out I’m not alone and you piss him off, I’m going to be pissed too. If this dipshit is really involved in human trafficking, it doesn’t say much for the intelligence of your traffickers.”
Yates studied the expression on her face. There was something else going on beneath the surface. It was the only answer, which meant the questions remaining were whether or not her secret was personal or professional, and how badly it was going to come back to bite them all in the ass. What was she hiding?
“I’ll go first,” she said, her voice clipped.
Before he could even react, Tasha had shoved herself away from him on the bench seat. She opened the passenger door and slid to the ground. Striding purposefully down the street, she didn’t even wait to make sure he was behind her.
Yates sighed. Tasha Campbell was one of the most fascinating and infuriating women he’d ever met. So why did he find her so damn attractive?
TASHA STRAINED HER ears, trying to hear whether or not Yates was behind her. She’d caught the sound of the truck door closing, but there had been nothing after that. Surely the man couldn’t be that silent.
Finally giving in to curiosity, she turned her head. The alley was dark, lit only by one single light. The overhead floodlight cast an eerie orange glow over the damp pavement. Tasha could see nothing of anyone else in that alley. It was like she was utterly alone.
Maybe he had changed his mind. Consumed with this thought, she didn’t realize that she had stopped walking. She was standing stock still in the alley, about a dozen or more yards from the back door of the warehouse. It smelled of damp and refuse. She was peering at every shadow, trying to figure out where Yates might have gone. Then she started staring at the truck. Was he there?
“Tasha.”
Her name floated out of the darkness, but she recognized Yates’s distinctive voice. “What’s wrong? Keep walking.”
“Right.” She pivoted and did as he suggested—okay, so he’d ordered it—and accepted the fact that the man could conceal himself so effectively that she had no clue where he actually was. Impressive.
Feeling a bit giddy, she walked right up to the back door of the warehouse and pulled the heavy door open. It was never locked. At least, not as long as she’d known Roddy, and that was a good many years.
Just as she was wondering how Yates thought he was going to get inside, she felt a presence at her shoulder. The man had literally appeared out of thin air. Insane! He seemed to be assessing the warehouse entry. There really wasn’t much to it. The lighting was bad. It was cold and cavernous, and even though you could hear the sounds of people working—forklifts moving around, men shouting in the distance—there was absolutely no sign of anyone nearby. That was what made it so easy for Roddy to do his backdoor deals out of this warehouse.
Yates slipped past her without a word. In seconds she couldn’t have said whether or not he was still in the building. There was no sign of him, and no sound to indicate where he might be hiding. It was so surreal.
She shoved that to the back of her mind. Now was not the time to start waxing poetic about some SEAL’s urban warfare skills. She needed to talk to the scumbag sitting in a booth around the corner to the right.
Trisha took a deep breath. She’d volunteered—no she’d pretty much demanded—to be allowed to take care of this task. Now she was wishing she’d kept her mouth shut. Who was she kidding? She didn’t want to talk to Roddy! She hated him. He had hurt her terribly, and she’d vowed never to talk to him again. So for now, she slapped a confident smirk on her face and walked around the corner as if she owned the joint.
THERE WAS SOMETHING wrong with Tasha. Yates couldn’t have said what it was, but he sensed it was true. Her entire demeanor changed when she headed around the corner toward the desk where Yates could see the tall, thin man pushing papers around.
Yates had known Tasha only a handful of hours, and yet he’d seen any number of expressions and attitudes on her face. This was wrong. He could feel it. She was stiff, and her smile was wooden. Yates actually started forward, ready to break his cover and put himself right by Trisha’s side. Then he thought about the message that might send. She would most likely accuse him of thinking she couldn’t do this on her own.
He sighed. He would wait until he was certain things had gone south before he stepped in to help. For now he’d let her muddle through this however she wanted to. Even though that felt like the world’s worst decision.
The thin man was sitting in a booth-like structure. There was a high counter separating him from Tasha, with a narrow open area that was surrounded by a chain link barrier that kept people from actually crossing to the backside of the desk. It was actually a rather convenient setup if one was intending to do illegal drug deals. There were probably thousands of people who came to that desk every day for reasons related to the business actually going on in the warehouse. Nobody was likely to notice a few extras here and there who were coming in for personal reasons.
“Hello, Roddy,” Tasha said in a cool voice. “I see you’re still trapped behind a desk.”
“Tasha Campbell,” the man drawled. “To what do I owe the pleasure?” He sat back in his seat and stared insolently at Tasha, lingering over her breasts. Yates had to ball up his fists to keep himself in place. Eventually he was going to break this asshole’s face. But for now that wasn’t part of the plan.
“I heard an interesting rumor about you, Yates,” Tasha went on. “I heard that you decided dealing to petty thugs and spoiled rich kids was no longer enough for you. I heard you’ve hooked up with a very lucrative buyer who wants his product in bulk.”
“Is that right?”
Yates peered at Roddy. He couldn’t see the man’s entire body, which made it difficult to gauge his body language. But the man’s tone of voice suggested he had no interest in discussing this topic with Tasha.
Roddy wasn’t done. “And I heard something equally interesting about you, Tasha. I heard you’ve nearly been arrested for trying to break into the police station.”
“So you’re still on the old payroll, is that right?” Tasha pressed.
“Why would I tell you anything?”
“Because if you are covering this shit up, you’re helping your bosses cover for an international human trafficking ring.” Tasha gave a shrug. “I don’t know. Maybe that’s right up your alley. I know
you like unwilling girls. Maybe you’re just sharing the love around.”
“That’s such bullshit, and you know it,” Roddy growled. “You were begging like a bitch in heat. Fucking whore! Nobody needs to rape you. You’ll spread your legs for any man that comes along!”
Yates didn’t even realize he was walking. He only knew when his hand closed around Roddy’s throat and dragged the pathetic loser through the little opening above his desk. Keeping a tight grip on the jackass’s neck, Yates held him upside down. The man’s body was sprawled across his desk, his head pointed at the floor, and his knees wedged up against the partition as he struggled against Yates’s grip.
“What are you doing?” Trisha breathed. “There’s video surveillance.”
“You think that really works if this asshole is dealing drugs down here? I’m pretty sure he’s the only one who has access to it.” Yates crushed Roddy’s windpipe just a little more, drawing a choking sound from the man. “Isn’t that right, Roddy?”
“You’re going to kill him!” Tasha’s urgency was completely lost on Yates.
Yates shrugged, grinning down at Roddy’s reddening face. “I’ll be honest. After listening to that crap he just said to you? I really don’t care.”
Tasha seemed to realize that their time was short. She glared at Roddy. “Tell me what you know about the marijuana deals to a club called The Hunting Ground. Now.”
“What deals?” Roddy wheezed.
“You’re right,” Tasha said dismissively. “He’s useless. Kill him.”
“Gladly.”
“Wait!” Roddy choked out. “My sergeant gives me product. Lots of it. The high THC stuff. I have to test it to make sure it’s legit. Then some guy from The Hunting Ground comes and picks it up.”
“When?” Yates demanded.
“He’ll be here Tuesday night.”
“What’s this man’s name?”
“I don’t know!” Roddy was practically gargling now. “I just call him Joe.”
Yates could see that Roddy was passing out. It wouldn’t be long. The blood was rushing to his head, and Yates had tremendous pressure on his throat. Letting go, Yates watched the man’s eyes roll back up into his head. Roddy passed out, and Yates left him dangling over his desk.
Chapter Seven
“Ohmigod, ohmigod.” Tasha chanted so quickly that it was impossible to distinguish one word from the next. Then she grabbed Yates’s forearm so tightly that he wondered if she was going to cut off his circulation. “You just left him there! He was hanging over the desk like he was dead!”
Yates shrugged. “I would have said passed out, but either way, he deserved what he got. Nobody should be allowed to talk to you like that.”
Yates couldn’t look at her. He was afraid she would see just how close to the edge he really was. It was difficult to understand why that loser had pushed him so far so very quickly. Tasha wasn’t his problem. He shouldn’t have been so invested in her that he was freaking out every time someone insulted her. That was a great big weakness he’d just put on display. He needed to be more careful. Besides, Tasha wasn’t his. He needed to remind himself of that.
Tasha opened the passenger door of his truck. He opened the driver’s door at the same moment. She was staring at him through the vehicle, the seat between them like a protective barrier of sorts. Then she smiled. “Thank you,” she said softly. “People don’t—that is to say that I’m not used to having anyone defend me like that.”
Yates pursed his lips. He hated the notion that she might be used to getting treated like trash. Was that really the norm for her? Or was the asshole Roddy a special case? “Get in,” he told her gently. “We need to get out of here before Roddy wakes up.”
She climbed inside the truck and belted herself in. Yates did the same. Within minutes he’d started the engine and was pulling away from the curb. Somehow the silence seemed incredibly loaded. He didn’t know what to say, and wasn’t sure he should say anything anyway. What good were words?
She cleared her throat. “I’m assuming you’re probably wondering why Roddy acted that way towards me.”
Yates shrugged, keeping his eyes deliberately on the dark road ahead. “You don’t have to say. Guys can be complete dicks. I get it.”
“Roddy,” she began slowly. “He wanted more than I—well, I guess he wanted more than I wanted to give, you know?”
Yates fought to keep the truck on the road. He had to forcefully stop himself from turning around and going back to finish murdering that lowlife bastard. “So he raped you. Is that what you’re trying to say?”
“Not exactly.” She seemed to be hedging. “I couldn’t say I wasn’t—I mean I didn’t—I should have been more certain, you know?”
“Did you tell him no?” Yates managed to force the words out between clenched teeth. “Did the word no cross your lips?”
“Yates, please. Just let it go.” She seemed to be pulling herself back together mentally. He actually watched her put the pieces back into place and wrap a tight band around every emotion that had been showing on her face just a moment before. “It’s none of your business anyway.”
“You’re right,” he agreed. “But if you ever want to—talk, or whatever.” He shrugged. What was he doing? He was no counselor or therapist or anyone even remotely qualified to deal with this sort of thing. “Just, if you need something, ask. All right?”
“Yeah. Sure.” She shrugged. “Are we headed back to your place?”
“Yeah. We need to talk to Romero and Cassidy and fill them in on what you just found out.” It felt callous to move on like this. Almost as if he was ignoring whatever had happened in her past. But it wasn’t like Tasha wanted to dwell on her own problems anyway. The woman had secrets. That was all Yates knew for sure.
TASHA SAT PRIMLY on her side of the truck. At least, she felt prim. Or really she felt downright stiff. She didn’t want to think about that time with Roddy. She didn’t want to talk about it, or remember it, or even acknowledge that it had happened. She just wanted to pretend that she was a normal woman with a normal life. Except she wasn’t. Not really. There was nothing normal about Tasha Campbell’s existence.
She stared out the window at the buildings whizzing by in the dark. Her vision swam as she thought about the man sitting next to her. Yates was a stoic presence behind the wheel. He’d kissed her. It had been a ruse, so it didn’t mean anything, but still. The idea that she had been in his arms was—well, it was sort of shocking. Since Roddy, there had been nobody. Tasha had never been particularly popular with the boys. Or at least that’s how her mother would have phrased it. But there had been some dates and a few boyfriends over the years that at least made her feel like she had some kind of social life. Roddy had ended all of that for her. She just couldn’t trust anyone.
Sneaking a glance over at Yates, Tasha wondered why it was so different with him. Why did she trust him? Why would she make such a foolish mistake? Or was it all just circumstantial?
“Lots of thinking going on over there,” Yates murmured. “Anything you want to talk about?”
The words tumbled out even though she tried to hold them back. “I don’t understand why I would trust you.”
To his credit, he didn’t look as if her rude words bothered him. Instead, he looked thoughtful. What she could see of his handsome face in the dim light coming from the dashboard looked contemplative. He didn’t answer right away. He appeared to be truly trying to come up with a reason that would make sense of things.
“I wonder,” he began slowly, “if it makes a difference that you see me as being on your team. Sometimes when people have a common goal that they’re working towards, it creates a feeling of universalization. That builds a foundation for a relationship that grows a lot faster than it would under different circumstances.”
She considered this. Did his involvement in this case—in her cases—make her feel as if they had more in common? “That’s possible, I suppose.”
“It happe
ns with military units all the time. You don’t know someone, but you’re put in a position where you have to depend on each other anyway. It builds trust a lot faster than anything else. People feel bonded by the things they’ve seen, or the stuff they’ve done.”
This made sense to Tasha, but she felt weirdly disappointed by it. Why? It was a logical explanation for something that was making her uncomfortable. She should be thrilled. So why was she mildly disappointed that there wasn’t some strange cosmic explanation for this strange trust she felt toward Yates? It was like she wanted there to be another reason, an illogical one. Something that suggested the two of them had some weird bond.
Oh my God, I’m acting like a romantic fool!
Tasha knew better than that! She was usually much too sensible to buy into some crap about soulmates or couples that just “clicked”. Ugh! Maybe she needed to talk to her doctor about the possibility of her hormones being out of whack. That might explain this ridiculous descent into girlie fantasy behavior.
Yates pulled into the parking area behind his apartment building. He shut off the engine, and turned off the lights. Then he sat. Tasha kept waiting, expecting him to get out of the vehicle. He didn’t.
Then he finally glanced over at her, his face unreadable in the shadowy interior of the vehicle. “I don’t know what you went through. And I’m not going to demand that you tell me. But I will say that sometimes it’s really hard to be objective when you’re so emotionally invested in a situation. So I would just ask that you keep that in mind.”
Tasha was speechless. Did he actually believe that she was going to get too emotional and somehow screw up this case? That was such bullshit! She pointed right at him and tried to keep her temper from exploding. “I’ll have you know that I’m just as capable of being objective as you are. I’m not some emotional teenager ready to throw a tantrum every time things don’t go my way!”
Tasha was still muttering about male chauvinists when she yanked on the door handle and stumbled out of the vehicle. She couldn’t believe she’d actually been considering this guy. Or rather, she’d been attracted to him. She wasn’t even sure what she meant by the word “considering”.
SEAL INVESTIGATIONS: A 5-Books SEAL Romance Series Page 20
