by Aliyah Burke
“How so?”
She wanted to sleep. Shifting on the uncomfortable bed, she tried to free her hand but he held on. “If they want my knowledge of what Ashlee shared, I would think they’d let me do the legwork. Obviously, that’s not the case.”
“Which means—”
“They don’t want me digging into her death, because It wasn’t accidental it was—” She snapped her mouth shut, unable to bring herself to speak those words.
“It was what, Ms. Zion?” another voice asked.
Two cops stood there and she froze.
OT never stopped the soothing caress on the back of her hand. “Can we help you?” He turned and glanced at them.
“We have a few questions for Ms. Zion here.”
“Don’t you think you should ask her if she’s up to a few questions?”
The men shared a look.
Natasha looked at OT and shrugged. “I don’t know, I’m tired.” Eyes closed she turned her head away and listened to OT argue on her behalf.
Eventually, she drifted off once more and when she came to, he was the only one there. “Get me out of here,” she begged.
He didn’t argue but rose and left the room. Within the hour, they were in a taxi headed to his place. OT sat right beside her, arm around her shoulders.
She found she didn’t mind so much.
“Are you okay?”
“That’s close to the hundredth time you asked me.”
“Prepare for a hundred more.” He tucked some curls behind her ear. “I get it.”
“Get what?” Truly, she was curious as to what he meant.
“Why you’re hesitant to talk to cops but someone tried to kill you today.”
“I’m aware.”
“You need to be protected.”
“Am I not safe with you?”
His gaze hardened in the flashing lights of the street lamps as they passed beneath them. “Yes, of course, but I’m not a cop.” His hold tightened.
“Used to be though.”
“I was an investigator.”
“Military. You’re qualified. Put it on my tab.”
OT muttered something she wasn’t positive she understood but it had to do with things being too dangerous for her?
Natasha didn’t respond, just allowed herself to rest.
At his house, they settled in the living room drinks in hand, nonalcoholic, and new charts spread out on the coffee table with the markings of where he’d dove earlier that day.
They had a lot of work to do before she could sleep again.
Chapter Seven
“Did the cops find anything out?”
OT checked the scrambled eggs and adjusted the heat once more. “They asked a bunch of questions. Finally left when I said she’d had enough.”
“Damn.” Tully arched that eyebrow again. “And where is she now?”
“She’s been shot and we were up going over some things for hours, so I suspect sleeping. I was going to wake her once the food was ready.”
“Is that what it’s called nowadays?”
“Tully,” he warned.
“It’s okay, OT. You can tell him all about how you had me screaming in ecstasy all night long.” Natasha stood next to him, her hip brushing against him. “I’ll start the coffee. Don’t look so shocked. It was part of the fee.”
Tully’s expression was to die for, he appeared so shocked, OT hid his grin and couldn’t bring himself to correct her statement.
They sat for breakfast and he watched Natasha. Her movements a bit slow, he knew she was sore. He’d been shot before.
“Are we going out today?” Tully glanced between the two of them.
OT focused on Natasha.
She sat there, back ramrod straight.
“Yes, that’s the plan,” OT answered.
“I want to dive.”
Her words surprised him on one hand, on the other, not even a little. “No way,” he stated emphatically.
She drew back but didn’t release his gaze. “No?”
“You were just shot, for one. And as you stated before you can’t dive any longer, for two.”
Her eyes blazed with defiance, the first real emotion he’d gotten from her. He didn’t care, he wasn’t going to let this happen. “I’m not allowing you in the water. No point in arguing, you’re not diving.” He touched his chest with his index finger, briefly cocking a brow.
She narrowed her eyes but held her tongue.
Not common for her he could tell.
Tully bounced his focus between them like a ping pong ball before stepping away to take a call.
Didn’t even hear it ring. “I said I would protect you, Natasha and that’s what you have to let me do.”
“I want to dive.”
“This isn’t going to be a leisure dive. How long has it been for you? Not to mention your chest, can you do it?”
She clenched her jaw. “I haven’t forgotten, if that’s what you’re implying.”
“It’s not and you know it. I goddamn go in the water every week. I love it. I love the water and this is making me nervous. We have some crackpot out there taking shots at you, you’ve already told me you can’t dive anymore. I’m not letting you change that decision. Let me tell you why before you tell me how Magnum would have jumped right in. Which, for the record, doesn’t mean he would have let you even come along. In fact, I’m sure he would have left you sleeping in bed.”
“A place I would willingly stay.”
It took him a moment but he let that statement go. “I can’t keep you safe down there. Not right now. And you still haven’t answered me. Can you dive, truly? Why did you stop diving? Have you been medically cleared to dive?”
She looked away.
He knew he had her. He cupped her chin, bringing her face around so he could see her eyes. “I’m not losing you, Natasha.”
“I was in an accident a few years ago that resulted in a collapsed lung. They nearly didn’t get to me in time and I had to have more than one surgery. I died on the table four times. Outdoors isn’t good for me anymore. I get nervous and it’s hard for me to get my breath sometimes but I’m tired of living on the sidelines. It’s what I was doing when Ashlee was alive. Living through her. I owe it to her to do whatever to find out who killed her and what she was after.”
“She’s not going to want you to kill yourself to do that,” OT replied.
“What do you mean, Marlene?” Tully’s voice reached them. “That’s been paid. I haven’t been keeping anything from you about our money. I paid that.”
I didn’t know Tully was having money issues. Taking Natasha by the hand, he led her outside to the back porch, where they could overlook the water. He encouraged her to sit on the swing and leaned against the railing so he could watch her. “Let me do the heavy lifting on this.”
She sucked her lower lip into her mouth.
He blew out a breath. “What do you on the mainland?”
She scrunched up her face. “Huh?”
“Your job, what do you do?”
“Work with hedge funds.”
He whistled low only to let it fall off when a stranger walked into view.
“Excuse me. I knocked, but no one answered.”
“Can I help you?” OT didn’t move, just watched the man in the expensive suit as he approached them.
“I’m actually looking for Natasha Zion here.”
Cutting his gaze to her, OT studied her expression.
She gave nothing away.
The stranger walked closer, holding out his hand.
OT was there before the man could get to her side. “That’s far enough. What do you need with her?”
“I’m Colton Harris and I worked with Ashlee. I was devastated to hear of her passing and when I found out, I wanted to find you and see if there is anything that I could do to help. With the service, anything like that. She was family to me and spoke of you often.” He slid to the left, so he had a clear view of Natasha.
“We’d been partners for the last four years. I helped her get the information for the treasure and financed a lot of the expedition. Surely, she mentioned me.”
“No. I’ve never heard of you.”
“I know she played it quiet when it came to what she did and who she worked with. I would have been here sooner but I had a hard time getting any information. Your boss didn’t want to share, she’s a stickler for your privacy. Hawaii was all she’d tell me.”
“What do you need, Mr. Harris?” Natasha stood next to OT.
“I was wondering if she managed to share anything on her progress with you. I’m going to have to get another hunter and wanted to provide them with as much information as I could.”
“I’m sorry. As you knew, she wasn’t one who shared and I didn’t even know she was here until I got the notification of her accidental death.”
“I’m in town for three more days, if you think of anything she may have said, or anything that I can do for you. Here’s my card. Give me a call.”
OT had to stifle the urge to keep her back and take the card for her. He didn’t trust him and wanted her away from this man.
Natasha didn’t move away, she reached for the card, mumbled something, and went back to the swing.
Colton gave her a smile, him a nod, and walked away with a slight limp and no look back.
“What?” OT asked her.
“He’s full of shit.”
“What do you mean?”
“My boss isn’t a woman. His name is Lyn, so if you look it up you may think so, but he’s definitely no woman.”
“So he’s one who wants information. I don’t think he’s trying to kill you then. He wants something but for the moment, he’s fishing to find out what you know.”
“That sucks because I don’t know a damn thing, but who does?”
“I don’t have a clue.” And it irked the hell out of him too.
Tully came outside and jerked his thumb in the direction the Colton had headed. “Who was that?”
“Friend of Ashlee’s.”
OT watched his friend carefully. Colton had said no one answered the door but he’d been inside. The call with money issues that he overheard. Could he be in on this?
No way. He’s my friend.
Still, the seeds of doubt had been sown.
αβ
“Hold it, Tully. Slow down and go back a bit to port.”
“Towards the rocks? Are you crazy?”
“Of course, I am. I thought I saw something.”
Natasha thumbed the corner of Colton’s business card that rested in her pocket. She’d called Lyn after the man had left and had verified that no one had checked on her whereabouts.
“Come home,” had been her boss’s advice. “Forget all of that and get your butt back to where it is safe.”
There were moments she wondered if he wasn’t right. Should she chalk it up to being bigger than her and out of her league? She just couldn’t. Damn dog with a bone syndrome. She’d talked to more cops since she got here than she did in a year at home. Striding over the deck to pause by OT, she tried to follow his line of sight. “What did you see?” It wasn’t easy without a pair of binoculars like he had.
“Thought I saw a cave.”
“Is that uncommon?”
“No but I haven’t seen this one before. Tide is out, so maybe it doesn’t show unless it’s out. Yes, right there Tully. Hold her here.” OT put the nocs in her face. “There, do you see it? It’s around that bit there and to the left, you just get a glimpse.”
“Yes, the cave.”
“I’m going.”
She lowered the binoculars and put her hand on his arm. “I’m coming with you.”
“No.”
“It’s not diving. You said so yourself. It’s a cave and the tide is out. We have hours before it comes back in.”
He swung his gaze to Tully.
He held up his hands. “Don’t include me. I already have a woman who bosses me around. This isn’t my fight. I’ll be here with the boat when the two of you come back. But maybe I should leave so people don’t know this is where you are, that way if someone is looking for you, or Natasha, the beacon won’t be parked right out front of the cave.”
She gave him a grateful smile and swung her gaze went back to OT.
He scowled. “Fine. But we take gear in just in case.”
“Just a day spelunking.” She couldn’t contain the thrill from coursing through her. While it may not have anything to do with Ashlee, it was something she could do.
“Magnum wouldn’t do spelunking.”
“Look at you, edging ahead.” She rubbed her chest, a move she did when nerves struck and then she waited while they got ready. “How are we getting over there?”
“Paddle board,” OT replied.
She wheeled back around to stare at OT. Sure enough, he was pulling down a long board and carrying it to the side.
“What about sharks?”
“Now you’re worried about them?”
“Um, no. I’ve always been worried but my ass was in the boat. Now I’m going on a small ass board.”
“Magnum wouldn’t be scared.”
“I’m scared enough for the both of us.”
OT smiled. “What’s the finder say, Tully?”
“All clear.”
“There we go.”
Yeah, she wasn’t all optimistic as he was but she’d been the one to fuss about going. It wouldn’t do to sound like a baby now. Would it? “Where do you want me?”
“On your knees.”
She leaned back. “Excuse me?”
OT gestured to the board. “Knees or sit. I’ll stand behind you. You keep the supplies with you.”
She slowed her heart rate and tried to act nonchalant. Not at all where her mind went with his statement. Facing the water and the board, she took a deep breath.
“What exactly were you thinking, I meant, Tasha?”
The way he said Tasha was heated and full of passionate promises. Her insides trembled with longing. He’d said it slow and low and like an endearment.
“If there’s a god listening, I hope they make the two of you stay in there for a while. You two have some serious tension to work out.” Tully took her hand and helped her over.
Natasha refused to look at the water as she settled on her knees but held her hand out for the bag and put it in front of her. Tully still held her hand, her only anchor to the boat. If he let her go before OT got there, she’d be adrift. Okay, so a bit dramatic but it was her way. She flexed her fingers when the board dipped as OT got on.
“Come back in four hours, Tully. That gives us a window of two before the tide comes in,” OT instructed.
Tully nodded. “You got it. Hey. Be careful.”
OT began paddling. “Always.”
She squeezed her eyes shut as he moved them over the water’s surface.
“Open your eyes, Natasha. It’s beautiful.”
“I saw it from the boat. Right now, I’m working on not falling in and losing this big bag you brought.”
“You’re missing the beauty of this place.”
She cracked open her eyes and saw he was right. The water looked even clearer when up this close.
He hopped off as they got nearer and wedged her up on the sand before offering a hand to help her up and off the board.
“How are you going to keep it from floating away?”
He swung the bag and hefted the board. Right inside the cave, he wedged it into the damp sand and put the paddle beside it.
“There we go then,” she mumbled.
OT reached for her hand and clicked on a flashlight with his other then took her in farther past the mouth of the cave.
Taking her into a world…she’d never been.
Chapter Eight
OT hoped like hell she wasn’t claustrophobic. He wasn’t but this wasn’t the ideal spo
t to learn that about yourself. “How are you holding up?”
“This is amazing.”
No denying the awe in her tone.
“I know. I had an opportunity to tour one tube from Kilauea during the centennial celebration. It was impressive but so is this one. We don’t even know when or if anyone has been in here before.”
She dragged her fingers along the black walls of the tube carved out from the molten lava that used to flow through there. A sparkle hit her gaze he could see in the light. There were many different offshoots they could take and he wasn’t sure where to go.
“I’m guessing we’re not splitting up.”
“Hell no. I’ll tie you to me if I have to but we stick together here.”
“Ideas?” She freed her hand from his and took the flashlight, scanning the walls. “Do we stay in the main one or go off?”
“I think the main. My guess is it will stay bigger, who knows how tiny the others will get.”
αβ
“Have you pinpointed the location of those two who don’t seem to get the hint about leaving this alone?” He paced while he spoke into the phone.
“Yes sir. They’re out alone with nothing but a paddleboard. Right now, they are taking a break and are exploring a cave. It will just be an accident in the ocean.”
He snapped his fingers at the woman who had made the poor assumption that because he was on the phone he was done with her and had begun dressing. He waggled his index finger at her.
She allowed her dress to slip from her grip and walked her dusky self back to his bed where she lay back on the rumpled coverings.
“Get it done. Don’t contact me again. And make sure you don’t fail a second time.” He dropped the phone and eyed the beauty in his bed.
“Not done then?” She dragged a finger down between her perky breasts.
“Not even close.”
She shrugged. “Your dime.”
Anger surged, a simple sentence reminding him that for him to get someone like her, he had to shell out obscene amounts of money. Just one more thing trying to keep him in his place.
If they only knew.
αβ
“You’re sure this one is dormant, right?”
