“I hope you have a pleasant day.”
“Thanks, Ramon. I hope so, too!”
As soon as Rafe had the rental pointed down the resort’s long, winding drive, he fleshed out his role as the would-be love of her life.
“We have to assume Cordell has looked for you on Google. He’ll know about your business and that you’re on your way to becoming one of the wealthiest women under thirty in the United States. He may also have checked out this clown you planned to marry. Was there a public announcement of your engagement?”
“There was,” she said with a wry twist to her lips. “My mother made sure it hit all the papers.”
“Did the breakup hit the papers, too?”
“It did. We were at a restaurant when I confronted Kevin about the files he filched from my computer. He tried to bluster his way out of it, then got all huffy and patronizing, which made me even angrier.”
She squirmed, embarrassed by the memory of the events that had followed.
“I dumped my wine in his lap. You would think that would send a strong enough signal, but he tried to stop me from walking out of the place. So I, uh, sort of slugged him.”
Rafe shot her a quick glance. “Sort of?”
“I went for his chin,” she confessed, her face flaming, “but he ducked and I popped him in the eye instead. Kevin stumbled back and tripped over a passing waiter with a full tray of drinks. They both went down.” She let out a sigh. “Of course, the Albuquerque Journal society page editor had to be sitting in the next booth.”
A smile played at the corner of Blackstone’s mouth. “Of course.”
“That was not my finest moment.”
Laughter rumbled up deep and rich from her companion’s chest. “Sounds damn fine to me. I’m just glad you missed my eyes with those keys last night.”
He should laugh more, Nina thought. Or maybe not. That wicked grin did things to her insides she had no business feeling.
“Tell me about this guy Kevin,” he said, still chuckling. “Where’s he from? What does he do?”
“He’s an investment advisor and financial planner.”
“Likes to play with other people’s money, does he?”
“He does. He also likes to tool around in vintage sports cars.”
She spent most of the drive into town detailing her former fiancé’s background and wondering all over again how she could have fallen for such a wimp.
Not that Kevin was a lightweight. At six one, he packed as much muscle on his frame as Wolf did. It was just distributed differently. A little less at the shoulders, a little more at the waist. They both had dark hair, too, although Kevin’s had already started to thin on top.
Yet despite their outward similarities, the two men possessed distinctly different personalities. Blackstone telegraphed a quiet assurance and an inbred toughness that Kevin couldn’t achieve if he popped B-12 and pumped iron for the rest of his life.
“I’ve got the picture,” Wolf said as they approached the roundabout and the turnoff for the road to Cordell’s distant hacienda. “You got engaged to a glorified accountant with a taste for flashy cars, which he tried to pay for by stealing proprietary data from your computer.”
She bristled but quickly deflated. Hard to argue with the truth. “That about sums it up.”
“He’s lucky he got off with a punch in the eye,” Wolf commented as he slowed for the circle. He had to maneuver carefully to avoid the souvenir hawkers who darted out to flash trays of silver bracelets and rings at the tourists cruising by. “You could have… Well, hell!”
“What’s the matter?”
“We forgot a ring.”
“I don’t need a ring. We’re unengaged, remember?”
“Previously unengaged, currently reunited.”
“Not reunited enough for me to be wearing your ring. Besides, if what you told me is true, a wedding band didn’t stop Cordell from going after Senator DeWitt.”
“True. But her husband stayed home in Maine, while she played with her lover in Washington. Cordell won’t find it as easy to get around me.”
With that dubious reassurance, he exited the traffic circle and took the road leading to Cordell’s distance hacienda.
This talk about engagement rings and wedding bands left Nina prey to some very confused emotions. Frowning, she stared down at her naked ring finger and tried to come to grips with her thoughts.
Kevin had picked out the diamond he’d slipped on her finger. Round cut and mounted on a fussy, filigreed band, it wasn’t a ring she would have chosen herself. Still, after he’d gone down on one knee and presented it with a goofy grin, she’d drifted for weeks on a tide of happy dreams of their life together.
Now, here she was—no Kevin, no ring. Certainly no happy dreams to follow. And she didn’t care.
She really didn’t care.
Relief washed through Nina in waves as she realized she’d put Kevin out of her life and out of her heart. The tumultuous events of the past twenty four hours—and a certain obnoxious special agent—had crowded Kevin completely aside.
She slanted Rafe Blackstone a quick glance. She still owed him for scaring her last night. Nor was she happy about the way he’d strong-armed her into taking this jaunt into the countryside. El Lobo had certainly injected more excitement than she’d anticipated or wanted into her enforced vacation.
Then there was the matter of his startling transformation. Despite his bristles and gaudy tropical shirt, he’d looked hot as hell last might. Minus the bristles, he was smokin’. Far too sexy for any woman’s peace of mind.
She shifted in her seat and sternly suppressed a ridiculous little twinge of regret that their pretend engagement would end the moment they departed Cordell’s hacienda.
Assuming they got in, that is. She knew Rafe planned to plant some kind of listening device. Maybe more than one. He had the bugs with him. Somewhere. God knew what else he had on him.
Nina grew more anxious about that with each mile. Those armed guards with holsters tucked into their armpits had made a distinct impression on her yesterday. She tried not to obsess over the guns. Tried very hard.
In desperation, she focused on the passing countryside. It looked the same as it had when she’d driven through it the first time. Tall cactus, spiny creosote, a scattering of green-leafed trees hugging the few streams and creeks that cut through the otherwise parched hills.
Along one stretch of the road, the trees dripped with vines sprouting bright yellow flowers. She hadn’t noticed the showy blossoms yesterday. Then again, she’d been more concerned with the coughing coming from her car engine than the local flora and fauna.
Despite her determined search for distraction, Nina had worked up a bad case of the jitters by the time Cordell’s compound appeared on a distant hill. With its red tile roof and cream-colored adobe, the sprawling hacienda looked so inviting, so enticing, set on its cliff above the sea.
Their host was expecting them, she reminded herself nervously. Surely the guards would escort them right to the house. Or would they? Remembering how they’d searched her tote, she glanced uneasily toward Wolf.
“You’re not armed, are you?”
He shrugged. “Not with anything Cordell’s thugs will discover if they pat me down.”
Chapter 5
Great. Wonderful. Marvelous.
Here she was—neat, precise, always-in-control Nina Grant—at this very moment pulling up to the gates of a compound with a man packing some sort of lethal weapon that couldn’t be discovered by a pat-down.
Never, ever, in her wildest imagination would she have pictured herself in this situation. Her employees wouldn’t believe when she told them about it. If she lived to tell them about it.
For several panicky moments Nina seriously considered informing Blackstone that she’d changed her mind. No government contract was worth either life or limb. His terse assertion last night that this was a matter of national security made her hesitate.
Then it
was too late. The security cameras mounted at strategic angles above the gates blinked red and Rafe leaned out the window to hit the call button. “Sí?”
He responded to the gruff query. “Dr. Nina Grant and Mr. Kevin James to see Mr. Cordell.”
“Wait there. Someone comes.”
The window whirred up again, enclosing them in a cool cocoon that did little to soothe Nina’s increasingly frazzled nerves.
“I bet they’re going to search my bag again. They’ll check you, too.”
Twisting in her seat, she skimmed a nervous glance over his knit shirt and pleated slacks. She couldn’t spot any bulges. Except one, and that was right where it should be. Hastily, she raised her eyes.
“Are you sure they won’t find anything?”
“I’m sure.”
The reply was calm and reassuring. Until a very belated thought hit her.
“Oh, Lord! They asked me for some identification the first time. What if they ask to see your ID?”
“Not a problem. The people I work with took care of that while you were in the shower.”
“How in the world…?” She shook her head. “Never mind! I don’t want to know!”
“Relax, Nina.” He flicked a casual glance at the cameras still aimed in their direction. “We’re being watched, remember?”
“Like I could forget?”
He shifted in his seat and stretched an arm along the back of hers. Those blue eyes lanced into her. “You’re wound tight, aren’t you? You need a distraction.”
“You think?”
“Let’s try this.”
With calm deliberation, he curled his arm around her shoulders. Nina had a moment, just a moment, to grasp his purpose as he angled her as far as her seat belt would allow and leaned across the console.
She could have pulled back. His hold was loose enough, his intention clear. Sheer surprise held her still—coupled with a overwhelming and completely irrational hunger to feel his mouth on hers.
She got her wish. The kiss started light, casual, a leisurely exploration of her mouth with his. She had no idea whether he deepened it or she did, but someone certainly upped the stakes. Next thing she knew, her palms were splayed against the muscled contours of his chest and the lips that had merely toyed with hers suddenly came down hard. Demanding instead of coaxing. Taking as much as they gave.
Swift and unexpected, a searing heat shot through her. It came in a short, intense burst that curled her toes against the soles of her sandals. Her rational mind said this was crazy, that Rafe Blackstone was a stranger, and a dangerous one at that. The rest of her thrilled to the taste and the feel and the scent of him.
He was the first to draw back. Fighting for breath, Nina was happy to see that the kiss had disconcerted him as much as it had her. The skin across his cheeks was stretched tight. A deep groove creased his forehead.
“Mission accomplished,” she got out on a shaky breath. “Consider me officially distracted.”
The crease carved deeper into his brow. “Christ, Nina, I’m…”
The rattle of the electronic gate swinging back on its hinges cut him off. Muttering a curse, he withdrew his arm and shifted to face front.
The driver of the Hummer that pulled up beside them was the same guard who’d driven Nina back to her rental car yesterday. He leaned out the window, his dark eyes raking over them. Despite Rafe’s assurances—and very potent distraction—Nina gouged her nails into her palms while the guard in the passenger seat climbed out.
“You will step out of the car, please, so I may look inside.”
The searing heat sucked away what little air Nina had left in her lungs, but her hands got cold and clammy as the guard checked the rental’s interior and bent to look under the seats before popping the trunk. When he extracted a long pole with a mirror attached from the back of the Hummer and examined the rental’s undercarriage, Wolf shook his head in a very credible show of disbelief and amusement.
“What’s with all this? Does your boss think my fiancée and I are terrorists or something?”
“Señor Cordell is a very powerful man. He has many friends, and many who envy him his possessions. He takes no chances.”
“Yeah, I see that.”
“Dr. Grant, I must check your bag.”
“Okay.”
The guy pawed through her tote, then set it aside. Nina thought her heart would stop when he turned to Wolf and asked him to hold out his arms.
“You’re kidding, right?”
“No, señor.”
With a shrug, Blackstone extended his arms. Nina didn’t draw a single breath until the guard finished with him and gestured them back to their vehicle.
“Please follow us up to the hacienda.”
She dropped into her seat. This was not her idea of a restful vacation.
“Are you going to tell me what kind of supersecret weapon you’re carrying? It would be nice to know, if you whip it out and I need to duck or something.”
“I’m not carrying anything. You might want to give me the little plastic bottle I slipped in your tote, though. Looks like ordinary hand sanitizer,” he added helpfully.
Her jaw dropped. She had to struggle for words. “You…you used me? As a mule?”
“We didn’t have a whole lot of time to improvise this morning. I figured you’re more the hand sanitizer type than I am.”
Flabbergasted, Nina could only gape at him. In a few short hours, Rafe Blackstone had turned her world upside down. Not to mention putting her on an emotional roller coaster. In rapid succession, she’d progressed from lusting for him to fearing him to loathing him to wishing the kiss a few seconds ago lasted a whole lot longer.
Now anger topped the list again. A nice, cleansing rage, that had her diving into her tote and winding up to fling the plastic bottle at his head.
“Careful! That stuff can be volatile.”
Her hand jerked to a stop. Carefully, very carefully, she deposited the container on his outstretched palm. “What is that?” she demanded as he slipped it into his shirt pocket.
“Nothing you need to worry about right now. We’re almost there.”
Wild thoughts of explosive gels and/or nerve-paralyzing agents rushed through her mind as El Lobo brought the rental to a stop inside the flower-filled courtyard.
Cordell had come out to greet them. Elegant in white slacks, a slim belt, and a pale blue silk shirt with his monogram on the pocket, he strolled forward to open Nina’s door. She had to dig deep for a smile when he helped her out and raised her hand to his lips.
“I’m so pleased you could join me, Dr. Grant. And you, Mr. James,” he added when Blackstone exited the rental.
“Thanks for including me in the invitation.”
The two men engaged in that time-honored male ritual of crunching each other’s digital phalanges while sizing up the competition.
“I gather from Nina’s call this morning that your trip to Cabo was somewhat spur of the moment.”
Nodding, her pretend fiancé looped an arm around her shoulders. She didn’t have to feign unease or nervousness. Or the residual temper that made her shrug out of his loose embrace. She’d be a long time forgetting that plastic bottle of whatever he’d slipped into her tote.
If Sebastian Cordell noted the deliberate disengagement, he didn’t comment on it. Instead, he ushered them through a vine-draped breezeway and into the wide, double-doored entrance to the main building.
Nina had only seen portions of the interior on her previous visit, but that was enough to prepare her for Cordell’s masterful blend of contemporary and antique. Despite her nervousness, she drank in the beauty of his book-lined study, which showcased an Italian Rococo desk topped by a sleek computer with a twenty-inch monitor. In a sunken living room the size of a football field, an Italian rococo armoire housed a state-of-the art sound system. The white leather-and-chrome sectional sofa was positioned opposite a glass wall with a spectacular view of the sea.
But it was the
man’s art collection that once again stopped the breath in Nina’s throat. She’d always been more into science than art, but even her untrained eyes recognized masterpieces when she saw them. Sculptures in bronze and marble held places of honor on pedestals and in subtly lit niches. Paintings—some small and exquisitely framed, some wall size—ran the gamut from soft, dreamy impressionist landscapes to bold, almost violent slashes of color.
“I told the staff to serve lunch on the terrace.” Their host gestured toward a set of sliding glass doors that framed a vista of sparkling fountains, marble statues and colorful bougainvillea. “It’s shaded and cooled by the sea breeze, but we can eat inside if you prefer.”
“No,” Nina breathed awed in spite of herself by the glorious setting, “the terrace looks perfect.”
Wolf made a slight movement on her other side. She threw him a quick look and remembered belatedly that the whole reason for this visit was to give him a chance to scope out the inside of the hacienda.
Well, hell! Five minutes into her role as a modern day Mata Hari and she’d already flubbed it. Kicking herself, Nina tried to recover.
“Unless… Uh… Kevin hasn’t had time to acclimate to the Cabo sun. Maybe we should eat inside.”
“Kevin” shook his head. “Outside is fine.”
“Are you sure?” Cordell asked graciously. “The enclosed portion of the terrace has an equally fine view.”
“I’m sure.”
“Very well.” He slid back one of the glass doors and took Nina’s elbow. “Shall we have an aperitif first? Since moving to Mexico, I’ve invented a most refreshing drink that consists of equal parts lime juice and Pasión Azteca.”
“Pasión Azteca,” she murmured, fighting not to flinch away from his touch. “That sounds very exotic.”
“It is. Quite exotic, I assure you.”
He ushered them along a passage shaded by vines woven through white latticework.
“Most aficionados believe Pasión Azteca is the world’s finest tequila. It’s made from the pure sap of the blue agave plant that’s been fermented, distilled, and aged for more than six years. The bottles themselves are limited edition works of art, done in silver, gold or platinum.”
Risky Engagement Page 5
