by M. S. Parker
Unfortunately, that didn’t make me worry any less.
Someone knocked on the door, and Clay got up to answer it. While he did, I pushed myself up the wall until I was standing. I’d had my time to freak out. It was time to come up with a plan and implement it.
“I remembered something,” Sylvia said as she came into the room.
“You know where she went?” Even as I said it, I knew it was a long-shot, but I couldn’t help myself.
“No.” Sylvia shook her head and pushed her hair back from her face. “And I didn’t hear her leave either. What I did hear was the phone ringing.”
“She got a phone call?” I frowned. Bri didn’t have her regular phone with her. It’d been taken and smashed by the cartel. Even though she’d retrieved information stored in the cloud, she didn’t have the same phone number. “Who else had the new number?”
Sylvia shook her head. “I don’t know. All I remember is the ringing waking me up because it sounded like my alarm clock. Brianne answered, but she didn’t say a name. She talked fast and quiet, keeping her hand close to her mouth like she was worried I’d read her lips or something, even though I don’t think she knew I was awake.”
I waited for more, but after a few seconds, it became clear that she’s said everything she knew. The hope I’d allowed myself to feel withered and died. Bri had gotten a phone call in the middle of the night. We didn’t know from who or what was said.
Which meant we still had jack shit.
“Do you know what time the call came in?” Clay asked. “If you do, I can make a few calls, see if I can find out who placed that call.”
Okay, so maybe we had a little more than jack shit. I nodded. “That’s a good start.”
“Let’s all reach out to our contacts,” Clay said. “Anyone who might possibly know anything, who might’ve heard something, no matter how small.” He looked over at me. “We’ll find her.”
Three
Clay
“Thanks anyway, Jack. I appreciate it.” I tried not to let the frustration bleed through my words. “I’ll take you up on that dinner offer the next time I’m in DC.”
As I ended the third call I’d made in the past hour, I wondered if what I was doing was even worth the time. I had a few contacts outside of the United States, but none of them were in Costa Rica. The chances of someone knowing something were slim, but I couldn’t think of another way to find a lead. We were pretty much grasping at any straws we could find.
“The desk clerk didn’t see her,” Tess announced as she came back into our room. “And talking him into letting us see the security footage didn’t do any good either. The quality’s shit and the camera only offers one angle. We can see a dozen people leaving between eight and five, but it’s pretty much impossible to tell who’s who.”
“Perfect.” I sighed as I raked my fingers through my hair. The flicker of a smile on her lips made me wonder if my hair looked as crazy as it felt.
“Nothing on your end?”
I shook my head. “I’m going to try Ray again. He wasn’t answering his phone earlier. I think he might have his kids this weekend.”
“Want something to eat?” Tess asked as I pulled up Ray’s number. “There’s a little place next door that does carry-out.”
“That’d be great, thanks.” I watched her leave, appreciating the view of her tight ass encased in jeans as I tapped the call button. There were so many things I wanted to do to that ass.
“Clay?”
I jerked back to reality and focused on the voice in my ear. “Yeah. It’s me.”
A sigh crackled over the line, loud and clear even from thousands of miles away. “Please say you’re calling to tell me you’re on your way back.”
“I wish,” I said, pressing the heel of my hand into my eye. “The next time you tell me to take a ‘vacation,’ remind me to tell you to fuck off.”
He chuckled, but only for a moment. “What’s happened now?”
I made a snorting sound. “Is it that obvious?”
“The way this trip’s gone, I figure every time the phone rings, it means shit’s going sideways.”
I groaned. “That’d be a pretty good bet.” It was time to get down to business, so I didn’t hesitate to spill the latest complication. “Brianne skipped out on us sometime this morning. No note, nothing.”
“Damn.” Ray let out a whistle. “You think there’s foul play?”
“No sign of it.” I took a seat at the little table in the corner. “She was sharing her hotel room with a friend who doesn’t know when or where she went. Something could’ve happened outside the hotel, but my gut says that’s not what happened.”
“I haven’t heard anything.”
He’d said that a little too quick for my taste, but I wasn’t going to call him on it. I had a favor I needed to ask first.
“Listen, Brianne got a call last night. There’s a good chance that person might be able to help us find her. Obviously, I can’t go through the regular channels for this.”
“You want me to pull the number, see what pops up.” He made it a statement rather than a question.
“If I give you the number, can you do that?”
“If it’s a Costa Rican number, I can try. No promises though.”
“Trying’s better than what I have now,” I pointed out.
“What are you going to do if this doesn’t pan out?”
“I have no idea,” I said honestly. “I’ve got some feelers out, but we’re pretty much doing the waiting game until something pops.”
“Have you considered handcuffing the sisters to you until you get them on a plane? Might be worth the hassle.”
“No kidding.” The mental image of Tess in handcuffs was far too enticing, and I shook my head to try to get rid of it. “I know it’s the weekend, but do you think you’ll be able to get something back to me soon?”
“I’ll make some calls today. I don’t know how long it’ll take though. All depends on the people on the other end.”
“I really appreciate it.” The door to the room opened, and my stomach growled at the smell of meat and spices. “My lunch is here.”
“I’ll talk to you later.”
“Will he be able to help us?” Tess asked as she handed me a plate of food.
“He’s going to try.”
She didn’t ask anything else as she sat down across from me. The two of us ate in silence, but it didn’t feel awkward. If we’d been sitting in a house or even at a restaurant, it would’ve felt normal. Being at a hotel together would’ve felt more natural if it’d been some sort of vacation or something like that.
Maybe, when all this was over, Tess and I could go on a vacation together. Someplace nice. Somewhere she and I could spend all of our time in bed and never have to worry about the outside world.
“I’m bored,” Tess announced as she came out of the bathroom. “Seriously, Clay, I’m going to pull my hair out if we watch one more episode of reality TV.”
“Hey, you’re the one who vetoed every movie I suggested,” I said as I re-folded my hands behind my head. I’d had to keep my hands restrained for the last couple hours because it turned out to be the only way I could sit on a bed next to Tess and not touch her. The need was almost a physical ache, and it just kept getting worse the longer we were cooped up in this room together.
“It’s not my fault that your taste in movies sucks.” She grinned at me as she bounced on the bed next to me.
“My taste in movies does not suck,” I said indignantly.
She nodded, her eyes dancing. “It does. And here’s a secret: it always has.”
I sat up and put my hand on my chest. “You wound me, Tess. What about all those movie marathons we had together?”
“Nope.” She looked practically gleeful. “They all sucked. Every single one of them. Well, except The Princess Bride, but our friendship wouldn’t have survived if you didn’t like that movie.”
I laughed, thankful that I was a
ble to add some levity to her life. I knew she was worried about Brianne, but things were different than they were before. We might not know where Brianne was, but this time we at least knew that she’d left under her own power. Okay, maybe not a hundred percent sure, but after what’d happened to the cartel, I was one hundred percent certain that Brianne could take care of herself. I hadn’t said anything to Tess, and I didn’t intend to stop looking for Brianne, but I wasn’t going to let either of us run ourselves ragged trying to find someone who might not want to be found.
“Seriously, though,” Tess continued, “we need to find something else to do besides watching TV. There has to be something to keep me distracted until we hear back from our contacts.”
When she put it that way…
I went up on my knees and cradled her face between my hands. I forced myself to wait a beat, to give her the chance to pull back, to say she didn’t want this. Her gaze was heated as it met mine, and the thrill of it went through me. What had I ever done to deserve to have this woman look at me like that?
I buried my hands in her hair as I claimed her mouth. Soft, sweet curls and soft, sweet lips. I took my time with the kiss, leisurely exploring her mouth, memorizing the curves and crevices. Her hands moved under my shirt, tracing the ridges of my torso and then up to my nipples. My muscles twitched under her touch as blood rushed south.
I could spend hours touching and kissing her and be content, but that didn’t stop me from wanting to slide into her. To come home. Because that’s what she was, in a way that no place and no person had ever been. I’d been untethered for so long that I’d almost forgotten what it had felt like to be this connected.
Our clothes came off bit by bit, without any real rhyme or reason, until we were both naked, skin humming every place we touched. I’d never been as aware of my own body as I was when all of my attention was focused on her. I’d always considered myself an attentive lover, no matter who my partner was, but with her, it was more than the consideration of wanting her to enjoy herself or the mutual give and take that came with good sex.
I didn’t know of any words that could adequately describe what this was like. Maybe Tess could, since she made her living with words, but I couldn’t. All I could do was hope that she felt it.
I eased her down on her back and finally released her mouth. Her lips were puffy, and her eyes glazed, but I wasn’t even close to finished with her. I kissed my way down her body, pausing to pay extra attention to her hard, little nipples. She gasped as I sucked on one, then the other, each pull of my mouth making her back arch. Her fingers scratched at my shoulders, digging deeper until I retaliated by fastening my teeth on the sensitive flesh in my mouth. I worried at it until she began to push at my head.
“Want your mouth.” The words came out in a near whine. “Clay…”
I grinned as I released her nipple with a wet pop and kissed my way down her stomach to that narrow strip of dark hair that waited for me. She spread her legs without the slightest hint of embarrassment, and my heart gave an unsteady thump as I took in how much she trusted me.
“Clay,” she whimpered.
That was all the reminder I needed. I took a tight grip on her hips and pressed my mouth against her. My tongue delved deep, running the full length of her slit before moving back up to flick back and forth over her clit. Then it was down to circle her entrance. I kept it slow, coaxing her toward orgasm with careful, deliberate strokes. My cock throbbed as I rocked against the mattress, desperate for any sort of friction. My own discomfort wasn’t at the forefront of my mind though. Her taste, her scent, her pleasure, that was everything.
I kept going until she began to thrash, nonsense sounds pouring out of her mouth along with curses. Her muscles quivered beneath my hands, telling me she was close. I rubbed the flat of my tongue over her swollen clit, and that was all it took. She climaxed with a loud cry, her thighs clamping tight around my head. I held her, letting her ride out her orgasm until she finally went limp, limbs splaying wide.
Making my way up her body, I kept myself low enough to feel the heat radiating from her skin. My cock dragged along the inside of her thigh until it brushed against her sensitive entrance. She shivered, a lazy smile curving her lips. I brushed my mouth across hers and then looked into her eyes. Her pupils were blown wide, leaving only a thin ring of indigo visible.
I kept my gaze locked on her as I slid inside her, groaning as the tight, wet heat engulfed me. Our bodies froze, fighting the inevitable need to move as we worked to hold on to this connection as long as we were able. When we couldn’t fight nature any longer, we moved together, her hips rising to meet me, thrust for thrust. It was like a dance, the way we moved. The best kind where no one needed to lead or follow because we both instinctively knew all the steps.
When we climaxed seconds apart, the familiar pleasure came with it, but so did something else. An ache deep in my chest that I knew wasn’t like anything I’d ever felt before. Something I didn’t yet want to name.
Four
Tess
For the past few hours, my brain had been wonderfully and blissfully blank. In the brief moments between bouts of mind-blowing sex, Clay and I talked, but only about unimportant things. He seemed to share my reluctance to broach anything serious, anything about the future.
The past was safe, and we went there often, reminiscing about things I’d forgotten, things I’d purposefully walled up because they’d hurt too much. Now, I could dust off those memories and appreciate them the way I always should have been able to.
“Do you ever go ice skating?” Clay asked suddenly, breaking the silence that had blanketed us for the past quarter hour.
“No.” I didn’t look up from where I was drawing patterns on his chest with my fingers. “I don’t really have the time.”
I didn’t add that, aside from time, I didn’t have anyone to go ice skating with, and going by myself had never been appealing.
“That surprises me,” he said, playing with my hair. “You used to beg me and Brianne to take you skating. Indoor, outdoor, you didn’t care. You were convinced you were going to be the next Dorothy Hamill or something.”
“Kristi Yamaguchi,” I corrected. “But I’m impressed that you know who Dorothy Hamill is.”
He chuckled. “What can I say? Something must’ve rubbed off on me during those insanely long ice-skating competitions you used to make me watch.”
“I didn’t make you do anything,” I argued. “I brokered an agreement that you accepted.”
“Because you stole my Star Wars DVDs and held them hostage,” he countered.
I gave him my most serious look. “A girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do.”
After another couple minutes of silence, Clay sighed and pulled away. “I need a shower.”
“Even though you’re just going to get dirty again?” I slid my hand under the sheet, resting it on one muscular thigh.
His blue-gray eyes darkened into something stormy. “As much as that tempts me, I think we should get out of the room for a little while. Dinner at least.”
“Are you asking me out on a date, Clay Kurth?” I asked with a grin.
He smiled back. “Yes, I am, Tess Gardener.”
Warmth suffused every cell in my body. “About damn time.”
“I agree.” He pressed a quick kiss to my forehead. “We better shower separately or we’ll just end up in bed again.”
While I didn’t think that would necessarily be a bad thing, the idea of actually going on a date with Clay was equally as appealing. I openly ogled his ass as he disappeared into the bedroom, then flopped back onto the pillows with a sigh.
I still couldn’t get over how gorgeous he was. And that he was mine.
My smile faded. Mine for who knew how much longer anyway.
That was something we hadn’t talked about either. When we were going home. No, not home. Homes. Plural. Because we had different homes. In two different states. With almost a whole country betwee
n us.
I wanted to say that we were going to stay here until we found Brianne again, but I knew that wasn’t an option. In fact, I should completely veto the dinner idea because we actually needed to not only leave the hotel but the country as well. It wasn’t safe for us to stay there. That wasn’t a surprise. In fact, we’d all known that we’d be leaving the country as soon as we’d figured out a plan. Brianne had told us we’d meet for breakfast and figure it all out.
It would’ve been nice if she’d bothered to show up to her own fucking meeting.
Clay and I needed to go, but I didn’t want to leave without knowing what had happened to Bri. I’d come here to find her, and now, weeks later, I was back where I’d started, not knowing where she was or what she was doing, if she was safe.
Well, not exactly where I’d been when I first started. It’d taken Clay a couple days to get me into bed back then.
Damn, that seemed like a lifetime ago.
I’d come to Costa Rica as a favor to my mother, and my entire life had changed. The woman who’d left New York City the second day of January was not the same woman who would be stepping off that plane onto American soil again, no matter when we went back.
I shook my head as I swung my legs over the side of the bed. I shouldn’t be sitting here, being all introspective about things I had no control over. What happened between Clay and I would happen no matter how much I thought about it. Finding Brianne depended a hell of a lot more on Brianne than on me. One thing about my life I could control was work. Sort of.
I hadn’t called my office since landing here, and I had no doubt that the chances of me returning to a job were slim. Unless I had something to offer the Times that no one else could. I’d originally considered writing some version of a ‘What I Did on My Summer Vacation’ essay. I’d even thought up a headline: ‘What I Did When My Sister Was Kidnapped by a Drug Cartel.’
Now, I was wondering if there might be something better. A bigger story. I’d been chewing over it earlier when I’d been talking to the desk clerk about Brianne. My informant had said something about government involvement in this whole expedition. If that was the case, then I could have a huge story on my hands.
