by Zoe York
“This has to be fake,” said Charlie, her gray eyes wide.
He shook his head. “I don’t think it is.”
He wasn’t the expert on these things, but this necklace had to be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars—possibly so much more.
“Look, there’s a note,” said Charlie. She unfolded the bit of paper further. “It says, ‘Dearest Alyssa—I always told you that one day I’d capture the stars for you. As my final gift to you, I’ve made good on that promise. This is but a piece of my treasure, but I’ve left you clues for all the rest. Remember that I’ll always love you. The greatest adventure of my life was loving you.’ ”
Jackson grabbed one of the rolled up bits of paper and tore off the string. Inside, he once again found Rinaldi’s scrawl—and another rhyming verse that made him cringe.
“It’s another riddle,” he said.
“There are nine of them,” Charlotte said. “Does that mean there are nine more places to find?”
“Possibly.”
Together, they tore open the rest of the tiny scrolls. They all contained more riddles, and a couple even had small sketches. This necklace was only the beginning. From the looks of things, Rinaldi’s game was just getting started.
This was ridiculous. Beyond ridiculous. But Rinaldi hadn’t done anything in his life halfway—why should they have expected anything different with the hunt for his fortune? And if this necklace was any indication of what they might find in elsewhere with the help of these clues, then the reward would be worth every bit of trouble—and well beyond what any of them had anticipated.
But as much as this discovery excited him, nothing could compare to the look on Charlie’s face right now. She practically glowed, and her eyes were even brighter than the diamonds that glittered in his hand between them.
“We did it,” she said, her lips curling up into the most beautiful smile he’d ever seen. “We’ve found Vincent’s treasure.”
“Part of it, anyway,” he said, stepping close to her again. Her expression mirrored everything he’d ever felt about expeditions like this. Once again, he felt like she was coming alive in front of him, becoming herself in her truest, most beautiful sense.
He’d told himself over and over again that she shouldn’t be a part of this. But as he looked at her now, he wondered how true that really was. The girl in front of him didn’t belong in some dull insurance company job back in Atlanta. She belonged here. Doing this. With him.
“What do we do now?” she asked.
He knew what he should say—that it was time for her to go home. Time to have a very serious talk about what they were doing and how they saw themselves making this work. But fuck doing the responsible thing. There was only one answer to her question.
He dipped his face down toward hers, his lips curling into a smile. “Go find the rest, of course.”
***
Charlotte understood now.
It wasn’t that she hadn’t understood before, but now it felt like the whole world had opened up in front of her. She felt wild. High. She’d never experienced a rush like this before.
She and Jackson were on the ferry back to Split to meet up with the rest of the Set. They’d had no choice but to leave their unconscious opponents among the olive trees, but Jackson had phoned in an anonymous tip about the location to the local police force. It would buy them some time, at least. Meanwhile, the necklace and Vincent’s accompanying set of riddles were stowed safely in her bag, and though she longed to pull them out and study them, she knew she shouldn’t. Not here, anyway. So she stood next to Jackson at the ferry’s rail and looked out over the water. The sun beat down on her skin and spray splashed up in her face, and though part of her wanted to stand here in this beauty forever, another part of her couldn’t keep still.
She couldn’t stop touching Jackson, either. And he couldn’t stop touching her. Her arm was around his waist, and his hand was everywhere—at her lower back, then drifting up her spine, then playing with her hair, then stroking the side of her neck. She’d always responded strongly to him, but this was different—her whole body was abuzz, and his seemed to be as well. They were two vibrating energies, drawn closer to each other with every breath.
“Is it always like this?” she asked. “After you find something, I mean?”
He turned his face so that his lips brushed against her hair. “Like what?”
“You know, like…” How did she put this into words? “I feel drunk. And like I could conquer anything. My body feels like it’s… Like I’m…”
He laughed, and it was a low, deep sound that shivered right through her. “That’s the adrenaline. Nothing like it, huh?” He kissed her temple.
His kiss set off a fresh rush of sensation, and she couldn’t get close enough to him. She turned her face up to his, catching his lips with hers. He returned the attention enthusiastically, then smiled against her mouth.
“It makes you want things, doesn’t it?” he asked her huskily.
God, does it ever. She wasn’t sure she’d ever wanted him like this. She slipped her arms around his neck and kissed him again, and his hands gripped her waist and pulled her hard against his hips.
The fire from that contact threatened to consume her. The entire world faded to nothing but Jackson—his hands, his lips, his heat, his taste. Her body vibrated with need.
“Why don’t we find somewhere a little more private?” he whispered.
“Yes.” The word was almost a moan.
He led her to one of the ferry’s bathrooms. The moment the door was locked behind them, they were wrapped around each other again—hands grasping, lips searching, tongues meeting. There was nothing to do but surrender.
His mouth burned a path down her throat. Her fingers found their way to his hair. A short time ago, she was fighting for her life. She should be hiding in a corner somewhere, but instead, she found herself shrinking from the idea of running back to safety. She never wanted this rush to end.
Jackson had pushed her straps down her shoulders, revealing her breasts to him. She moaned softly as his lips caressed the delicate, sensitive skin of her nipples.
“I love you,” he murmured between flicks of his tongue.
Her stomach flip-flopped. “I love you, too.”
And she did. God, she did. So much it hurt. So much that she wasn’t sure how she could contain all of the emotion and desire throbbing through her body.
But she also hadn’t forgotten the question she’d asked him in bed only this morning—the question at the center of everything between them. The question that might break her heart again.
Jackson had pulled her dress all the way down to her waist. He was on his knees before her, his tongue lapping at her skin, his fingers curled against her lower back. He was worshiping her body with his mouth and hands, loving her as if any moment could be their last. Her throat ached as she tightened her fingers in his hair.
“I don’t want to go back,” she heard herself say. “I never want to go back.”
His kisses stopped. He looked up at her.
“It doesn’t get any less dangerous from here,” he said softly.
“I know,” she said. Those two men they’d left out in the woods wouldn’t be the last they encountered. “But I don’t care.”
He kissed his way back up her body until he was standing again. She could feel the tension in his arms around her, but his lips were light as air against hers.
“You should care,” he said gently. “If anything ever happened to you, I’d—”
“And what about if anything ever happened to you?” When he didn’t immediately respond, she added, “Think about it. We could see the world together. Find the treasure. Fight the bad guys.” She kissed him, then sucked his bottom lip between her teeth before releasing him again. “Fuck each other silly when we’re finished.”
His nails dug into her skin and his eyes flashed with a devilish look she knew all too well.
“It’s a hard life
,” he said, yanking her even harder against his hips so she could feel just how much he wanted her.
“I can deal with that.”
“You might have to sleep on the ground sometimes. Or go days without a shower.”
“Maybe I’m all right with being a little dirty.”
He pushed her dress down past her hips, then let it fall down her legs.
“I’d probably need to teach you how to shoot,” he said.
“When did I ever say I was opposed to that?”
His mouth took hers in a kiss so fierce her heart nearly stopped. When he finally released her, she noticed he’d managed to undo his pants. He pushed her back against the door.
“Sometimes this job is boring,” he said. He slipped his hand down between her legs. “Sometimes we don’t find what we’re looking for. Or we have to spend weeks researching or prepping an expedition. It isn’t all chases and diamond necklaces.”
She moaned as his fingers found their mark, and she grabbed his shoulders for support.
“I guess we’ll just have to come up with other ways to entertain ourselves during the boring parts, then,” she said.
He growled and grabbed her thighs, lifting her and pushing her back against the door again. She wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist, aching for him to drive into her.
But he didn’t. He held her there, his eyes boring deep into hers. Hunger blazed in their depths, but there was something suddenly serious about his expression as he gazed at her.
“This isn’t a decision you have to make right now,” he said. “You should wait until the buzz has worn off.”
“I know what I feel,” she whispered back.
“You have a life back in Atlanta.”
She gave a laugh. “There’s no way in hell I still have my job.”
“But you’re still giving things up. Still leaving things behind. I won’t ask you to do that, Goose.”
She could feel the restraint in his arms around her. There were so many things in his eyes—lust, tenderness, regret, hope—that she didn’t know which to respond to first. She could only imagine he saw the same things in her expression.
“You’re not asking me for anything,” she said. “I’m making the choice on my own.”
His fingers dug into her. “It’s a reckless choice.”
“So you’re the only one who’s allowed to be reckless?” She shifted her body against him, trying to get closer, but he held her in place against the door. So she tilted her face toward his. “It’s the only way we can be together.”
Something flickered in his eyes—something fierce and gentle all at once. “Not the only way. I could go back with you.”
The fact that he’d even suggest that made her love him even more.
“You can’t leave the Set,” she said. “You belong here. You’d never be happy back there.” She knew it deep in her gut, in spite of the way he was looking at her right now. Jackson needed this. She needed it, too.
“And you think you could be happy out here?” he said finally. His whole body was tense against hers.
She squeezed him. “I feel like I’ve only gotten my first taste of the life I’m supposed to be living.” She wouldn’t be okay with just dreams anymore. If her mom’s death had taught her anything, it was that life was precious and short, and she didn’t want to spend another minute of it wishing she were somewhere else.
Jackson must have seen the resolution in her eyes, because he shifted again, grabbing her ass and grinding against her.
“There’s no guarantee that Roth will agree to any of this,” he said.
She smiled as the ache between her legs intensified. “I found Vincent Rinaldi’s clue in the atlas. He’ll have to give me some credit for that, won’t he? And if he doesn’t, then I’ll just find some other way to convince him.”
Jackson grinned. “What exactly are you planning to do?”
She wiggled against him. “Why don’t I show you?”
Apparently she’d taken him right to his limit, because he drove himself into her so suddenly and so deeply that she let out a cry she was sure they heard all the way out on the deck. But she didn’t have the patience for embarrassment right now.
“You’re not showing anything to anyone but me,” he growled at her.
Her response was a whimper.
As they came together, nothing else mattered. There were still questions to be answered, still things she—they—needed to figure out. But they’d cross those bridges later. This was the life she wanted. The life she’d always wanted. And she was no longer afraid to reach for it, to grab it with both hands and refuse to let it go.
She’d never let it go, as long as she lived. Their adventure was only beginning, and no matter what happened, she and Jackson were in it together.
— EPILOGUE —
Split, Croatia
Four days later
Being shot sucked.
Leo could deal with the pain. He’d had worse. This wasn’t bad, as far as injuries went. But Roth was insisting he take it easy, and that just wouldn’t do.
His boy Jackson had come through—or, perhaps more accurately, Jackson’s girl had. Apparently Charlotte had spotted something even Alexei and Roth had missed in Rinaldi’s atlas, and it had blown the whole expedition wide open. Now they had nine leads, each pointing to what they assumed was a different piece of Rinaldi’s fortune, and Roth wouldn’t even let him look at the damn pieces of paper. Said he wasn’t allowed to do anything until he’d had several more days of bed rest. It was fucking ridiculous. It wasn’t like he’d been shot in the head.
He’d been forced to entertain himself in other ways. Drinking got boring pretty quickly, but he’d found some good sport in saying things to make Charlotte blush—at least until Jackson stepped in and spoiled his fun. Looked like Jackson’s girl might be around for a little while longer—even Roth had had to admit that she’d turned out to be a bigger asset than any of them had expected. Leo was never going to let Alexei live down the fact that Charlotte had found something in the atlas that he, their resident cryptographer, had apparently overlooked. Alexei had always been the quiet, gloomy sort, but he’d been especially broody these past few days.
But even teasing his teammates was getting dull. The truth was, there was nothing Leo hated more than feeling useless. It was why he’d joined the Set in the first place—to get off his ass and do something spectacular with his life. This waiting around was going to drive him insane, especially considering there was more than just the Rinaldi expedition to deal with. Tav was still gone, still presumed to have betrayed them, and the time had come to deal with that. And they’d still had yet to hear anything from Sloane.
That was what was weighing on him the most—Sloane. He’d always felt a little protective of her, even though she’d kicked his ass on a couple of occasions in the past—the girl could definitely take care of herself. But it wasn’t like her to disappear without a word.
He’d seen the question in a couple of his teammates’ eyes—could she have betrayed them like Tav? But he knew that was impossible. Sloane had her own beef with Nash and his men. There’s no way she would’ve thrown her lot in with them. Something was wrong, and he wanted nothing more than to figure out what.
If Roth would ever let him out of this fucking apartment.
They were on the scent of what might be the greatest haul of their lives and the team was falling apart around them. One thing was clear—things were changing for the Devil’s Set. And damn them all to hell if they thought he was going to stay still.
—THE END—
The Set's hunt for Rinaldi's fortune is only beginning, and none of the boys are prepared for the danger--or love--that awaits them as the adventure unfolds. The next book, Leo, will be arriving Fall 2015, but in the meantime, you can join Ember's mailing list [[link for Zara: http://embercasey.com/newsletter/ ]] to get an email reminder when it goes live (plus some other exclusive bonus content!).
Need something else to read until then? Here are some other books by Ember Casey:
THE CUNNINGHAM FAMILY SERIES
His Wicked Games (Book 1)
Truth or Dare (Book 2)
Sweet Victory (Book 2.5)
Her Wicked Heart (Book 3)
Take You Away (Book 3.5)
Lost and Found (Book 4)
Completely (Book 4.5)
Their Wicked Wedding (Book 5)
A Cunningham Christmas (Book 5.5)
THE FONTAINES SERIES
The Secret to Seduction
ABOUT EMBER CASEY
Ember Casey is a USA Today bestselling author who lives in Atlanta, Georgia in a den of iniquity (or so she likes to tell people). When she's not writing steamy romances, you can find her whipping up baked goods (usually of the chocolate variety), traveling (her bucket list is infinite), or generally causing trouble (because somebody has to do it).
Want to contact her? You can find Ember in the following places:
Website: http://embercasey.com
Facebook: http://facebook.com/embercasey
Reader's Lounge: https://www.facebook.com/groups/140041209538572/
Mailing List: http://embercasey.com/newsletter/
Email: [email protected]
UNCHARTED
ANNA LOWE
Website | Facebook | Mailing List
GENRE: Adventure Romance
DESCRIPTION: A Serendipity Adventure Romance
The last thing Julie Steffens needs after a season of research in the jungles of Central America is a gang of armed mercenaries after her for a crime she didn’t commit. And the last rescuer she wants is Seth Cooper, the sizzling vacation fling who disappeared from her bedside two months before. But right now, she needs a way out — and Seth’s sailboat is it. So what if the man kisses like a pirate just back in to port? It’s not about temptation; it’s about survival.
