by Elle James
Tony appeared in the doorway. “I’ll do Mari’s hair while you get ready.”
Lily handed him the brush and elastic band. “I was going to put her hair in two braids so that she could wear a hat to shade her face.” She grinned, grabbed her swimsuit, shorts and a T-shirt and headed for the bathroom. “You do know how to braid, don’t you?”
“Sure,” Tony said, frowning down at Mari’s hair.
Lily was still smiling as she stripped out of her pajamas and stood naked in front of the mirror. Her cheeks were flushed, and she looked happier than she’d felt in a long time. The thought of Tony on the other side of the door made heat coil at her core. What would he do if she asked him to braid her hair? Now…while she was completely naked?
Lily shook her head. That would never happen. Not when two small children were in the other room, unsupervised.
She’d chosen to wear her bikini with a T-shirt and shorts over them. It didn’t take long for her to dress and brush her hair. She pulled it all back and braided it into one thick plait hanging down her back. It wouldn’t behave for long in the wind and humidity, but it would do for a start. Packing sunscreen, towels and a brush into a beach bag, she finally came out of the bathroom.
A member of the hotel staff was pushing a rolling cart through the door laden with covered dishes, glasses of orange juice and chocolate milk.
The four of them sat at the small table and dug into the meal, laughing and talking about the fish they hoped to catch.
When they were finished and had brushed their teeth, they hurried down to the lobby and the SUV that would take them to the dock where they’d meet Marcus. The drive to the dock took only minutes.
Lily carried the beach bag with the towels, snorkeling gear and sunscreen, while Tony carried the ice chest packed with their lunches. Robbie ran ahead. Lily held tightly to Mari’s hand to keep her from following her brother.
Marcus stood on the dock to welcome his passengers to the Lost Cause. While Tony and Lily stepped onto the boat, Marcus helped the little ones into life vests before they were allowed on board. Two deckhands worked around the passengers, cutting bait and preparing the fishing rods.
Minutes later, Marcus maneuvered the boat away from the dock and out into the open water.
Lily stood with Robbie and Mari at the bow, letting the wind blow through her hair, the salty spray kicking up around her.
“Have you been deep sea fishing before?” Tony asked, coming to stand beside them.
“I have. I love the feel of the salty wind against my skin and the sound of the seagulls calling out overhead.”
“Marcus knows the best places to catch the big fish,” Tony said.
“Hopefully, he knows places to catch smaller ones as well.” Lily smiled down at Mari. “I don’t want these little guys to be yanked out of the boat by a whopping big swordfish.”
Tony grinned. “They’d lose grip on the rod before they’d be yanked out of the boat. But I agree. We don’t want to take chances.”
After traveling for thirty minutes, Marcus slowed the craft and brought it to a halt. He climbed down from his high perch at the helm and clapped his hands together. “Let’s fish!”
Marcus and the deckhands equipped them with fishing poles and bait, and then showed them how to let the line loose until it went slack. They gave Robbie and Mari smaller poles they could handle with their little hands and lowered the lines into the water for them.
No sooner had they dropped their lines to the bottom then the fish took the bait and swam with it.
“I’ve got one!” Robbie cried, excitedly. He turned the handle on the reel as fast as he could. The little pole bent over, the fish on the hook giving a good fight.
One of the deckhands stood by with a fishnet, waiting to step in should Robbie need help. The little boy cranked the handle on the reel, working feverishly to bring in the feisty fish.
“You’ve got it, Robbie. Stay with him,” Tony called out. A tug on his own line made him focus on what he had in his hands.
Lily laughed, enjoying the excitement of the moment.
Marcus squatted behind Mari, his arms around her, helping her hold her rod, showing her how to turn the reel. When a fish bit her hook, Marcus helped her jerk back the rod, setting the hook. Then he helped her reel in the fish, alternating between her turning the handle and him.
Robbie, with the help of the Costa Rican teenaged deckhand, brought his fish up close enough to the surface the deckhand could scoop it up in the net. He identified it as a snapper.
“Look, Papi! It’s a ginormous snapper!” The deckhand hung it on a peg and stood Robbie beside it to get a photograph of the boy and his fish. Robbie raced back to his rod and waited impatiently for the deckhand to bait his hook again.
Meanwhile, Mari let Marcus reel her fish all the way to the surface. When they brought it out of the water, it slipped free and flopped on the deck. Mari squealed and squeezed her eyes shut.
“Is Mari doing okay?” Tony asked as he leaned back with his pole, creating a little slack, then he reeled as fast as he could, before leaning back again.
“She’s doing great. She just landed another snapper,” Marcus said. “Gio’s going to help her get her line back in the water.” He moved over to help Lily.
“I can manage on my own,” Lily said.
“Yeah, but you won’t catch much if your bait’s gone.” He took the rod from her and reeled it in. The hook was bare.
Lily propped her fists on the hips “Why those little sneaks.”
“Why don’t you move to the bow? There’s less competition up there.” He carried her rod and a small bucket of bait.
Lily followed, looking back at the children. “I’m not sure I want to be this far away from Robbie and Mari. What if they fall in?”
“They have three people watching them closely. A fourth will be overkill. Besides, you have to catch a fish just like the others. You can’t let a four-year-old catch a fish and you come up empty-handed.”
“I’m okay. I don’t have to catch a fish to be happy.” She stood by while Marcus baited the hook, loosened the reel and dropped the hook into the water.
“When it goes slack—”
“I know,” she said, rolling her eyes. “Turn the reel a couple times to bring it off the bottom.” She gave him a mock salute. “Aye, aye, captain.”
Though he didn’t give her anymore fishing advice, Marcus remained on the deck of the bow with her. He leaned his back against the wheelhouse and crossed his arms over his chest. “What are your intentions toward the boss?” he asked.
Caught completely off balance, Lily let go of the handle on the reel. At that moment, a fish hit her line and practically ripped the rod out of her hand. She fought to get it under control, using the time it took to come up with a response to Marcus’s question.
She chose evasion as her method. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I see the way you look at him,” Marcus said softly. “And I see the way he looks at you. Something’s going on.”
Heat rushed into Lily’s cheeks. “Nothing’s going on,” she said. It wasn’t as if they’d kissed or anything. She had been almost naked in his company, but that had been an accident. “Why do you ask?”
“I’ve known Tony, going on five years. I knew him when Robbie was just a baby, and Marisol was pregnant with Mari.” He paused. “He took her death hard. I don’t want to see him hurt.”
Lily frowned. “You think I would hurt him?” She shook her head. “I’m here to care for the children. I’m just an employee.”
Marcus chuckled. “Sweetheart, you’re more than that.”
Frowning, she tilted her head. “What is Tony to you? I thought you worked for him.”
“He’s my friend. I work with him, helping him with security for his hotel. He helped me out of a dark place in my life and gave me the loan to buy my boat. I’ve since paid him back, but I will never forget how good he has been to me and to others. The m
an deserves happiness in his life.”
“He’s got two beautiful children,” Lily said. “That should go a long way toward his happiness.”
“It does.” Marcus pointed to the rod. “The hook has reached the bottom. You need to give it a couple good turns to bring it up a bit.”
Lily did and immediately felt a tug. She jerked back on the rod to set the hook and felt another tug. “I’ve got one,” she said, glad for the activity that would keep Marcus from asking anymore questions about her intentions toward her boss.
She had no intentions. The man was clearly way out of her league. He was wealthy, incredibly handsome and could have his pick of any woman. What would he find at all interesting in her?
Nothing.
She was just the au pair, watching out for his children. A poor teacher from Texas. Nothing at all exciting about that.
Lily reeled in the fish, bringing it to the surface.
Marcus whistled. “You’ve caught a nice sized dorado. That’s good eating, if you’re into Mahi-Mahi.” Marcus scooped it out of the water into a net and carried it to the back of the boat.
Lily followed.
Tony was still working on bringing in his fish, his rod bent in half, his face strained and sweat popping out on his brow. “Remind me to work out more often. This guy is giving me a run for my money.”
“Want me to take him for a while?” Marcus asked, coming up behind him.
“No, I’ve got it,” Tony said through gritted teeth.
When Marcus offered to bait Lily’s hook again, she shook her head. “I’m waiting to see what Tony’s got. It has to be big.”
For the next twenty minutes, Tony fought the fish, slowly but steadily bringing it in. When it came within a yard of the boat, Marcus snagged it with a hook on the end of a pole and dragged it up onto the deck. “Yellowfin tuna,” he announced. “I’m betting it’s at least eighty pounds. Nice.”
Robbie and Mari’s eyes rounded.
Lily laughed. “It’s bigger than Robbie and Mari put together.”
“No wonder it was such a challenge to bring in.” Tony flexed his muscles and rubbed his shoulders. “I could use a break. Anyone up for lunch?”
Robbie and Mari both yelled, “Yes!”
Lily washed her hands and helped Mari and Robbie wash theirs, too.
Soon they were sitting in the cabin, with the door open to the breeze, sharing their lunch with Marcus and the deckhands, talking about how they brought in their catches and what they would be having for dinner that night.
By the time they finished, it was getting hot. They decided it was time to test their snorkeling gear.
Marcus drove the boat over to a protected cove with a sandy beach and water so clear they could see thirty feet down.
Lily slathered sunscreen on Robbie and Mari and started to put it on herself when Tony took over and got the spots she missed on her back and shoulders. Her heart turned flips, and her pulse hammered the entire time his hands slid across her skin, evoking all kinds of naughty thoughts she shouldn’t be having about her boss. When he was done, Lily couldn’t get into the water fast enough to cool her heated senses.
They spent the next hour snorkeling and walking along the beach, picking up shells. By the time Mari asked to be held and laid her head on Lily’s shoulder, Lily was ready to call it a day and head back.
The day had been magical. Her time spent with Tony and the kids would forever be a fond memory. Lily began to dread the day they’d head back to Hellfire and leave all this behind.
On the way back to the dock, Lily laid Mari on a padded bench in the cabin with her little head in Lily’s lap. Robbie sat beside her, leaning against her arm, his eyes drooping.
Lily could relate. She could easily fall asleep as the boat plowed through the water, gently rocking them all.
Tony had gone up to the helm where Marcus steered the boat. After a while, he came down to check on them.
As he stared at her and his children, all thoughts of sleep left Lily’s mind. The electric current between them practically sparkled.
“Lily, what is it about you that makes me want…” He stopped, as if searching for the right word.
Lily held her breath and waited for him to find it.
He opened his mouth to continue but was cut off when the boat jerked to the right.
Lily barely managed to keep the children from falling off the bench. “What the heck?” she muttered and tightened her hold around Mari and Robbie.
Tony staggered, righted himself and worked his way to the door.
A deckhand dropped down from the helm where Marcus stood, his eyes wide. “Mr. Marcus wants us all to stay in the cabin and get down on the floor.” He hurried out to the other deckhand, who had been busy stowing the fishing equipment, and pulled him into the cabin.
Tony helped Lily pull the cushion off the seat and settle it on the floor. Mari blinked a couple times but was too sleepy to wake.
Robbie clung to Lily’s hand. “Why are we sitting on the floor?”
Lily pulled him close and held onto him and Mari. “I don’t know.” She looked up at Tony.
Tony’s steady gaze held hers for a moment. “I’m going to find out.”
Chapter 8
As Tony climbed up the ladder to the helm, he looked out over the water and spotted another boat, turning around and heading back toward them. The boat wasn’t a pleasure boat, but one like the Navy SEALs might use on a commando raid.
His pulse leaping, Tony scrambled up the rest of the way to the top where Marcus stood cursing.
“What’s happening?” Tony demanded.
“That boat tried to ram us,” he said. “I was able to turn in time to miss them, but they’re coming back at us.” His jaw tightened, and his lips thinned. “And it looks like they have guns.” Marcus handed Tony a set of binoculars.
Tony lifted them to his eyes, focused on the oncoming boat and swore. “Madre de Dios!”
“They’re aiming for us,” Marcus said. “You might want to get down in the cabin and stay low.”
“I can’t leave you up here, exposed to the gunfire.” He jerked his thumb. “Go below. Now.”
“Can’t let you do that, boss.” Marcus shook his head. “You need to get down there and protect those kids of yours. I don’t have anyone depending on me. You do.”
“That doesn’t make your life any less important,” Tony argued.
“It does in my mind. Please,” he tossed over his shoulder. “They’re coming in range, and I need to perform some evasive maneuvers. I can’t do that with you hanging onto the ladder. Go!”
“Do you have any guns on board?”
“There’s a rifle in the cabinet over the scuba gear. You have to dig to the back. The rounds are in the pink fishing tackle box beside it.”
Tony scrambled down the ladder and dove into the cabin.
“What’s happening?” Lily asked.
Tony didn’t want to say anything to frighten the children. “There’s a situation. We’re handling it. The best thing you can do is keep yourself and the children as low as possible.” He turned to the deckhands and repeated the instructions in Spanish.
The young men nodded and hunkered low on the floor.
While Mari slept and Robbie clutched Lily’s arm, Tony dug through the cabinet over the scuba gear until his hand closed around the rifle hidden at the back. He found the pink tackle box and pulled out a box of bullets. When he brought the rifle out of the cabinet, a collective gasp sounded from the deckhands and Lily.
“Just how bad is the situation?” Lily asked, her face pale and her eyes wide and worried.
“Marcus is working on outrunning it.” He tilted his head toward the rifle. “This is just in case.”
“Do you know how to use it?” Lily asked.
He nodded. “I’m quite proficient.”
“Just keep in mind, you’re needed,” she said and mouthed the word alive.
“Understood.” Tony left the cabin
and found a position on the portside of the boat near the stern, staying low and out of sight of the other craft skimming across the water toward them, a machine gun mounted on a turret, aiming toward the Lost Cause. Tony prayed the boat didn’t live up to its name that day.
The future of his small children, the captain and the passengers depended on the boat making it back to port safely.
Above him, he could hear Marcus on the radio calling out, “Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!”
As the boat approached, Tony held his fire, hoping the attackers weren’t planning on actually shooting that wicked-looking machine gun.
As he looked out over the water, he could see that they were still several miles from shore. The Lost Cause was a fast boat, but not nearly as fast as the attack boat gaining on them.
Holding on to the rail, he aimed his rifle the best he could, staring through the scope at the guy manning the machine gun. He held on with difficulty as the little boat bounced across the waves, racing toward them. If he did fire, the likelihood of hitting them would be slim, unless they slowed to give their shooter a more stable base to fire from.
Even Tony couldn’t get a good bead on the gunman with the Lost Cause powering through the ocean’s waves.
Just when he thought their attackers might not use the machine gun, the gunman opened fire.
Bullets flew overhead, some hit the boat, but most missed.
Tony worried about Marcus exposed above at the helm. If he’d been hit, he wasn’t letting it stop him. He aimed the boat at the shore, giving it all the power he could.
Tony braced himself as best he could, aimed at the man behind the machine gun, waited for the second he appeared in his scope’s crosshairs and pulled the trigger.
The gunman’s arm jerked back, and he stopped firing.
Another man yanked him aside and took control of the automatic weapon.
Tony aimed again, knowing it had been mostly luck that his bullet had found his target. The chances of hitting the second gunman were pretty slim. Despite the odds, he braced, aimed and waited for the man to bounce into his crosshairs. When he did, he noticed the gunman was aiming directly at him.
