Finding Redemption

by Desiree Holt

  “You have gorgeous breasts.” His voice still had that gravely quality to it, but its very timbre only made her hotter.

  “I—I’m glad you like them.” She forced herself to stand still while he kneaded them with a gentle squeeze of his fingers.

  “Oh, I like every part of you. All the parts.” There was no mistaking his meaning.

  When he lowered his head and pulled one stiff nipple into the wet heat of his mouth, an electric shock raced through her. The graze of his teeth over the surface set all her nerve endings on fire. She closed her eyes and gave herself over to the erotic sensations sweeping through her.

  When he had nipped and licked the one nipple for a while, he turned his attention to the other one and did the same things all over. Lisa had to hold onto his shoulders to keep herself from falling backward, and a jumble of hot pleasure cascaded through her. Before she realized what he was doing, he nudged her to the bed where she collapsed on the edge her knees hardly able to hold her any more.

  “Lisa,” he murmured in that sexy gravel voice. “Beautiful, gorgeous Lisa. I could lick you from head to toe” In the next moment, he dropped to his knees, parted her thighs, and proceeded to stroke each leg with his tongue from ankle to thigh, pausing for a barely-there taste of her throbbing pussy.

  Shivers skittered through her, and she sucked in a breath. She wanted to tell him to leave his tongue there. To keep it there. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt this turned on. This wanton.

  She gripped his head and tried to hold it in place, but he just chuckled, the sound vibrating through her core. He teased her everywhere with his tongue, licking and stroking, until she was ready to burst into flames. She almost wept with relief when at last he spread the lips of her sex with his thumb and gave a long, slow swipe of his tongue up the length of her slit. Then he did it again, and punctuated it by nipping her aching clit.

  “God!” She gripped the hair on his head even more tightly and rocked into his mouth as shivers of sensation skittered over her.

  Then, without warning, he thrust his stiffened tongue into her core, scraping the sensitive inner walls and hitting that special hot spot. That was all it took for her body to explode, her juices pouring onto his tongue, her inner walls spasming.

  She was breathless when the orgasm was over, panting, but he gave her no rest. Grabbing a condom from the nightstand, he rolled it on with practiced expertise, lifted her legs, and drove into her with one powerful thrust.

  Oh, god!

  If she thought his mouth did magic things to her body, it was nothing compared to his hands and his hot, thick cock. He filled every inch of her, scraped every sensitive inner nerve as he thrust into her again and again. Bracing himself with one hand, he slipped the other between them, found her clit, and massaged it with expert thoroughness.

  “Now, Lisa,” he commanded, as if he knew every nuance of her body. “Come now.”

  And she did, exploding with him in a cataclysmic orgasm that rocked both of them. The spasms went on and on, his thick shaft throbbing inside her, his breath rasping, although she could barely hear it over the pounding of her heart.

  Then he collapsed forward, his breath choppy and warm against her arm, her own heart pounding in a heavy rhythm.

  She was totally unprepared for his kiss, startled both by the act of it and by the innate tenderness. The unspoken emotion. His tongue danced lightly with hers before he slid his lips to the right and peppered kisses along the line of her jaw.

  She pressed her body up to him, winding her arms around his neck, and—

  “Lily? Hey, sugar, open up. It’s me.”

  And just like that, reality slapped her like a cold drink of water. She pushed herself off the bed, did her best to straighten her rumpled clothes and the mussed bedspread.

  And to wipe the vestiges of the erotic dream from her brain so she didn’t say something stupid.

  “Who is it?”

  “It’s me, Lily. Come to collect my honey.” Ethan used his fake honeymoon voice.

  As she thought about what his “honey” had been doing, had been dreaming, a hot flush raced over her body. She took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, slapped the wig temporarily on her head and headed for the door.

  Wait! What if it wasn’t him? What if this was a trick? She swallowed hard and cleared her throat.

  “How do I know it’s you?”

  She heard him curse briefly, then, “Who else would propose to you at Manny’s Diner? Come on, sweet thing. Let me in.”

  His voice was strained, but when she opened the door and he slid in, he nodded approvingly. “Good. You have a brain.”

  She didn’t know whether to laugh hysterically or smack him, so she just ignored the comment. The wig came off again and she raked her fingers through her hair, hoping he’d think her slightly disheveled appearance would be from studying the material he’d left her.

  “You know that thing goes back on when we leave here.”

  “I just needed a little break from it.” She wet her lips. “I have the information you wanted. How was your outing?”

  “Interesting.” Ethan handed her the small box from the bakery.

  “What’s this?” She frowned.

  “A present from your new husband. If you don’t like the stuff, you can throw it out. It was a couple doors down from the bar, and I needed a distracting errand. They sent someone to watch me when I left.”

  She opened the box and looked at its contents. “These look delicious. Thanks.”

  He tossed his hat onto the small round table and dropped onto the bed, running his hands though his hair. She gave silent thanks he didn’t notice the rumpled spread and pillows. Or if he did, he chose to ignore them.

  “I wish to hell I could figure out a way to leave you out of it tonight. I’m having serious second thoughts about dragging you along on this.”

  She frowned. “Why? What’s the problem?”

  “This place is a little rougher than I’d expected, and they don’t get enough touristas in to provide cover. I’m hoping tonight will be different. I should never have agreed to let you come along. Fuck. If you get hurt, or worse—”

  “Stop.” Lisa held up a hand. “Listen to me. There’s no way I’d still be home in Tampa chewing nails while you were down here looking for Jamie. So don’t go there again. Okay? I don’t know the details of the mission that sent you into such a tailspin, but I can believe it wasn’t your fault.”

  “You don’t know—”

  “I don’t have to. Josh said it wasn’t your fault, and that’s good enough for me. Nothing is going to happen to me, Ethan. You spent all those hours conditioning me, teaching me to defend myself. I have a gun that I know how to handle and won’t hesitate to shoot someone if I have to. And you are going to do what you always did, in the Marines, at Guardian, and in…whatever you did after you left them. You’re going to watch out for me.”

  “But—”

  “No buts. Now shut up and let’s get to it.”

  He clenched his jaw. “Just so you’re prepared, this place we’re going to is dangerous. It’s risky enough for me, and the last thing I want is for something to happen to you.”

  “Damn it, Ethan.” She curled her hands into fists and forced herself to stay calm. The man pushed every one of her buttons. “Nothing is more dangerous than the years I spent with Charles Mallory. If I hadn’t had Jamie to think of, I would have been happy to die just to be free of him. But now my son is all I have, so don’t even think about shutting me out of this.”

  “Doesn’t matter anyway.” He wiped a hand over his face. “I can’t leave you alone here. If someone followed me or sniffed us out you’d be a sitting duck. So. We go as planned. And we’re on the alert every single second.” He got up, went to the minibar, and took out a bottle of orange juice. He gestured toward her. “Want a drink of something? A snack?”

  “A juice if there’s another one.”

  He brought two bottles to t
he round table by the window and sat down. “Okay. Show me what you marked on the map. After that, we’ll eat and pay another visit to La Mama’s.”

  She raised her eyebrows. “La Mama’s?”

  He actually laughed. “Yeah. Wait until you see Mama.” He drank half the juice in two swallows and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Okay. Let’s have it.”

  Lisa unfolded the map on the table and showed each marked route to Ethan. He studied them carefully and nodded his head. “Good. You did a good job.”

  She hated to admit that his praise warmed her. “Thanks.”

  “I’m hoping, after tonight, we can zero in on which of these we’ll take.” He folded the map and stuck it inside his jacket. “Let’s go eat.”

  Lisa set the wig back on her head, fluffing out the curls, and took a moment to make sure her makeup was as thick and exaggerated as when she’d applied it. Then she followed him out of the room. He took them to a small restaurant on a side street running off Cancun’s main drag. The small room inside was dark and cool, but Ethan asked for seating on the patio, where several tables with gaily colored umbrellas made an eye-catching scene. He chose one in the farthest corner, next to a gate in the back wall. When the waitress had taken their drink orders, he opened the gate, poked his head out, nodded, and sat down.

  “I always like options if I have to leave in a hurry,” he explained in answer to her questioning look.

  “Do you think that will happen here?”

  He shrugged. “You never know, but it’s always a possibility. I like to be prepared.”

  “That’s good. Very good.” She looked at the menu, but her stomach was so knotted with apprehension she was sure she couldn’t digest a bite.

  Ethan, however, insisted she get some food into her system, literally forcing the food on her when she simply toyed with it. “You have to have at least one drink in this joint we’re going to. You can’t drink without food in your stomach.”

  She tried to protest. “I can order a soft drink of some kind.”

  He shook his head. “Too conspicuous. Eat up.”

  He kept his sunglasses on, but behind them, Lisa knew his eyes constantly scanned the area, like a revolving radar.

  “Do you see something?”

  “No, but that doesn’t mean anything. I have an itch at the back of my neck I don’t like. Eat slowly so we look like we have all the time in the world.”

  Lisa was more than grateful when Ethan’s plate was empty at last, and he called for the check.

  ****

  Ethan was right. La Mama’s was definitely not on the convention bureau’s list of tourist spots.

  As soon as her eyes adjusted to the dark, Lisa did a quick visual survey of the room, trying to look like a tourist. The only light in the place came from some tiny wall sconces and candles on the table, a vague attempt at window dressing. She was glad she wasn’t seeing it in the daylight. She was sure every bug known to man was crawling around in the corners.

  It was immediately obvious they were an unlikely couple for this place. Ethan had been on target about the clientele. The men reminded her of characters in a B movie. A very bad one at that. And the women had a tawdry look about them. Well, with her wig and ten pounds of makeup, she figured she fit right in. Every eye seemed to be on them, and the looks thrown their way as they walked in made her feel as if she were a dot on a microscope slide, but she played her part, hanging onto Ethan’s arm and swaying her hips.

  When they were seated a table, she glanced around the room and spotted the table with the rough-looking gang. The man she assumed to be the group leader looked as if he’d cut their throats for mild entertainment. But she was trying to take her cue from Ethan and forced herself to appear as relaxed as possible. Only the thought they might get some information about Jamie kept her from bolting.

  “The nasty piece of goods over there is Rafael Cortez.” Ethan’s mouth barely moved as he whispered to her. “He’s the chief badass and the one I think headed up the kidnap.”

  For the first time since she’d asked Ethan Caine to help her, she realized the full dangerous nature of what they were undertaking. Her whole body tightened.

  He had his arm around her, gripping her shoulder. “Look at me. Not over there. Now.”

  She forced herself to turn her head and smile at him, a smile she was far from feeling. She barely nodded toward the heavy man behind the bar and lowered her voice to the level of Ethan’s. “Who’s that?”

  He chuckled. “That’s Mama.”

  Lisa had to stop herself from reacting. “You’re kidding, right?”

  “Not a bit. I’ll bet he makes sure even the unruliest of patrons behave. Here comes my waitress from this afternoon.” He stretched his mouth into an easy grin.

  “I see you brought la senora tonight.” Deloris greeted Ethan with easy familiarity, tipping her head toward Lisa. “I told you, maybe this is not such a good place for her to be. She looks like a classy lady.”

  Ethan rubbed Lisa’s shoulder in an affectionate gesture. “She is, she is. But we been doin’ a little cantina hoppin’ in the downtown area, and she wanted to see where I’d been this afternoon while she took a little nap.” He leaned forward toward Deloris and dropped his voice. “Wore her out last night, ya know.”

  Lisa blushed in spite of herself. “Oh, Ed,” she simpered, nearly making herself gag. She looked at Deloris with what she hoped was a touch of shyness. “He loves to joke around, you know.”

  Deloris moved her shoulders in an eloquent shrug. “If you say so.”

  Ethan nodded toward the table across the room. “I see your friends from this afternoon are still here.”

  Lisa allowed herself another glance at the men. Rafael’s dark gaze made her shudder, and she quickly looked away.

  “Si, but not for much longer. Tonio will have to leave to go home to his wife and child, so el jefe will go, also. No one to fetch and carry for him.”

  Ethan raised his eyebrows. “Doesn’t seem quite fair for the poor little guy to be the only one doin’ it all.”

  Deloris pursed her lips. “Such is life, senor. He needs the money badly enough to let el jefe use him for a doormat. And now I must get your drinks. I am talking too much. El jefe would not be pleased.”

  Ethan slipped her a folded bill even before he ordered.

  “Just for takin’ good care of the missus and me.” He winked at her.

  “Of course, senor.” She gave Ethan a knowing smile. “What would you like?”

  Ethan ordered beer for both of them and tilted the bottle to his mouth as soon as they came. Watching him, Lisa realized he actually drank very little of it. He slouched with his arm around her chair and his hat pulled low, covering part of his face. He was paying careful attention to the group of men at the table across the room while appearing to relax and enjoy himself.

  He hitched his chair closer to her and said quietly, “Move over next to me. Act like we’re in love.”

  “What—”

  “Jesus, Lisa.” He pushed his hat back slightly, pulled her head close to him, and kissed her full on the mouth.

  She opened her mouth to protest, and his tongue slipped inside. The shock to her system nearly paralyzed her. His tongue was like a torch, leaving licks of flame every place it touched in the warm interior of her mouth. At once, her erotic dream of that afternoon popped into her brain, and her long dormant body woke up. Her nipples hardened, and moisture pooled between her thighs, where a heavy pulse throbbed.

  Lisa’s brain froze, and she forgot where they were and what they were supposed to be doing, so lost in the kiss that nothing else mattered.

  When Ethan lifted his mouth, for one brief instant, the pain that was always reflected in his eyes had faded and she saw her own sense of shock mirrored there.

  “Jesus,” he breathed again.

  Her heartbeat sped up and the pulse in her throat hammered so hard she was sure he could see it.

  Then his rigid disci
pline took over again. He moved his head away, and they were two strangers joined in a common plan. The kiss might never have happened at all.

  Lisa forced a calmness she didn’t feel, focusing on the bottle of beer in front of her.

  He put his lips close to her ear. “We’re acting, okay? Just think of it as acting.”

  Acting? Her body wasn’t playing let’s pretend. She reached way down inside herself to gather her scattered wits.

  “Jamie,” she whispered. “We have to focus on Jamie.”

  “That’s what we’re doing.” His mouth was still close to hers. “This is all part of the plan.”

  Part of the plan. Right.

  But she felt the tension in her body reflected in his, and it wasn’t from the danger of the situation. Now what? Had she totally lost her mind? Could the situation possibly get any more complicated? The last thing she’d ever expected was the flare of sexual attraction between her and this unlikeliest of men. But there it was, and she couldn’t deny the fact that she craved it.

  An overdue reaction. That’s all it is.

  A delayed response to all the years when sex with Charles had been either brutal, demeaning, or nonexistent.

  She picked up her beer and sipped at it, hoping the now lukewarm liquid would, in some measure, cool her heated blood. And what would happen when they returned to the hotel and the room they shared? The room with its one bed?

  She didn’t have much time to dwell on it, however. Deloris, the buxom waitress determined to earn her tip, brought them two more bottles of beer and did a little harmless flirting with Ethan.

  “Ah, but you just have eyes for la senora.” She laughed. “If only my man would kiss me with such fire.” She kissed her fingertips and waved them in the air.

  Ethan inclined his head toward Cortez’s table. “Think I oughta buy those folks a drink? Show ’em how neighborly I can be?” He smiled at the group and touched the brim of his hat.

  Deloris shook her head, just a fraction of a movement. Then she leaned over, showing more cleavage than Lisa thought she’d ever have in a lifetime. “They do not take kindly to strangers. You should take la senora someplace else. Cortez, he has been drinking all day and he is eyeing the lady with hunger. Finish your drinks and go.”