Finding Redemption

by Desiree Holt

  Ethan nodded and slid another folded bill into her palm. “I thank you kindly. Gracias.” He stood up. “Can you keep the little lady here company for a minute while I answer the call of nature?”

  “Si, senor. My pleasure.” She didn’t sit down, but her posture made it very clear she was engaged in conversation with Lisa, shielding her from Rafael Cortez’s avaricious stare.

  “Be right back.” He leaned over to kiss Lisa on the cheek and whispered, “Whatever you do, try to look relaxed and don’t stare at that table over there. Deloris rules the roost here. She’ll be sure you’re okay.” He brushed his mouth over hers. “And by the way, the disguise is perfect. If these guys had a picture of Lisa Mallory, they’d never connect it with you. Good job.”

  Lisa swallowed a smile and watched him amble off toward the back hallway, trying to tamp down the case of nerves threatening to burst forth. He wouldn’t really leave her alone if he thought she was in danger. She had to remember that. Or maybe this was one of those times when she’d be expected to take care of herself.

  She turned toward Deloris and pasted on a smile.

  ****

  Ethan had seen Tonio slide from the table and head for the restroom. He had one chance and very few minutes to make this contact and hope it didn’t blow up in his face. The itch on the back of his neck was growing stronger.

  When he pushed open the door to the men’s room, Tonio was just finishing at the urinal and zipping up his jeans. He gave Ethan a quick look, then averted his gaze.

  As he moved toward the door, Ethan put out a hand to stop him. “I have some money to spend for a man willing to earn it.”

  Tonio tried to pull away from him. “Excuse, senor.”

  Ethan didn’t budge. “Five hundred dollars American could go a long way to helping your family, Tonio. And maybe I can help get all of you out of here.”

  At the use of his name, Tonio looked at Ethan, fear flashing in his eyes. “Who are you? Did el jefe send you in here to tempt me? Test my loyalty?”

  “I’m no friend to Cortez. I’m trying to find a little boy who was kidnapped. Rumor has it Las Tormentas did the job. I’m willing to pay whoever can tell me where this boy is now.”

  Tonio began edging away from him. “Senor, I…”

  “Five hundred dollars, Tonio. And a chance to escape Cortez. All you have to do is give me the information I need.”

  “I know nothing. Please.”

  Ethan narrowed his eyes at the man. “You do want to get out from under this, right? Rumors don’t lie?”

  Tonio nodded his head.

  “Okay. Meet me in two hours.” He named a waterfront bar he’d used centuries ago that, according to the phone book, was still in business. “Now you better get back out there. El jefe will send someone looking for you in a minute.”

  Tonio stared at him for a long moment, despair and hope mingling in his eyes. Then he hurried from the restroom as if the devil was on his heels. Ethan waited an appropriate amount of time before going back to his own table.

  Deloris was still standing where he’d left her. He gave Lisa high marks for concealing her nervousness and playing her role as well as she did, smiling and chatting with Deloris. Only someone who knew her as well as he had come to would notice her tight grip on the bottle or the nervous movement of her leg.

  “Ah, here you are, senor. Your bride and I have been having a wonderful conversation.” Deloris winked at him. “And now I must get back to work.”

  “Hi, darlin’.” He kissed Lisa’s cheek while he skillfully slipped another folded bill into Deloris’s hand. “I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to head back to the hotel and get back to the best part of the honeymoon.”

  He winked at Deloris who laughed.

  Chapter Eleven

  Nodding casually toward the group at Cortez’s table and smiling briefly, Ethan led Lisa out of La Mama’s with his arm firmly around her waist and his head angled so he could drop a kiss on her cheek. When they reached the sidewalk, he popped the locks on the rental car and settled them inside. He sat for a few minutes, nuzzling Lisa’s neck until she was afraid her self-control would shatter. The sensual dream still clung to her brain, her nipples hardening and poking into the soft fabric of her dress. Her sex pounded so hard she had to squeeze her thighs together. In a minute, she might have to rip off both her clothes and his and tell him to take her right there in the car.

  Insanity. This is pure madness.

  “What are you doing?” She was trying her best to keep her voice even and slow the pulse that was beating like a butterfly on speed.

  “Watching to see if we have an audience like I did this afternoon. Sure enough, there he is. No.” He gripped Lisa’s chin and held it firmly. “Don’t turn your head. Don’t look. I can see just fine from this angle.”

  She dug her fingernails into the outside of her purse, willing herself not to react to Ethan’s nearness or the feel of his body. “How long do we stay like this?”

  “Just a few seconds more.” His mouth was at her ear. To the outsider looking in, it would appear he was busy necking with his wife. “Okay. Now he’s looking this way again. Make this look good.”

  He threaded his fingers through her hair, gripping her skull, and melded his lips hard against hers. This time, he didn’t wait for her to open her mouth. He thrust his tongue against the seam of her lips and forced them open, the flame of his tongue scorching the insides of that dark wet cavern. His other arm was wrapped around her shoulders, binding her to him so tightly she could feel the buttons on his shirt.

  She couldn’t help herself, drowning in the kiss as she was. She met his tongue and dueled with it, thrust her fingers through the thick stands of his hair, and pulled his head tighter to hers. She pressed herself as hard to him as she could and forgot their situation and their location. Forgot everything except the assault this man was making on her mouth and the fire that raced through her body because of it. Her pussy ached with need, and she was so damp she was sure he could smell her musk. God, how she wanted him inside her. She hadn’t wanted a man this way in so long she was ready to explode.

  Not good! Not good!

  There was something about Ethan Caine that was so primal, so male, she couldn’t tear herself away from it. The tiny functioning part of her brain was shouting I’m in trouble.

  When he released her and moved back into his seat, she felt a sudden sense of loss, a chill replacing the heat. She forced her eyes open and saw him reaching for the ignition.

  “Sorry about that.” His voice was gruff but matter of fact. “I wanted to put on a good show for the guy on the sidewalk.”

  A good show. Yes. That’s all it is, Lisa. Keep that in mind. This is nothing to him.

  Her pulse was beating an erratic tattoo, and she wasn’t sure if it was the kiss or the threat of imminent danger. She smoothed her skirt, adjusted the top of her dress, and ran her fingers through her hair. Her lips felt swollen, and she wasn’t too sure she could form words with them.

  She cleared her throat. “No problem. Whatever it takes.”

  Jamie. Keep thinking of Jamie.

  They pulled out onto Kukulcan Boulevard, the main street that ran the length of Cancun, and blended into the traffic.

  “Now what?” she asked.

  “I’m afraid Ed and Lily Cameron’s honeymoon is about to be derailed.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  Ethan swore softly as he played dodge ’em in the erratic Cancun traffic. When he was clear of a jumble of cars, he answered her. “Sometimes, no matter what part you play, something triggers a reaction you don’t want. The guy who came out on the sidewalk looking for us is the same one who followed me out this afternoon. We stuck out like sore thumbs at La Mama’s and made Cortez take notice of us.”

  Lisa’s stomach knotted. “So what does that mean?”

  “Think. Why else would two unlikely gringos be scoping out a place like La Mama’s? What’s the diciest thing they’ve d
one? Kidnap Jamie.”

  “But…”

  “There’s more behind this than a band of guerillas. Normally these groups don’t cross over the border for their kidnappings. A lot of times, it’s purely the opportunity of the moment. Jamie’s was well planned and orchestrated. It means someone a lot smarter with a lot more connections is behind the whole thing, and they’re on the lookout for anything suspicious.”

  “But who?” she burst out, fear gripping her. “With Charles dead, Jamie and I are of no importance to anyone.”

  “That’s what we have to find out. Going back to the hotel is too risky. I don’t want to be trapped in a closed room. We’ll leave our stuff there in case anyone followed me this afternoon and asked questions about the honeymooners. If they think we’re still hanging around and they can find us, that might satisfy them. Or they might simply walk away from it, in which case we’ll know they were just nosy about two strangers and haven’t connected us to Jamie. Anyway, anything we might need is in the car.”

  “What are we doing now?”

  “We’ll do a little bar-hopping just to try and throw people off if they’re following. Also to make sure we shake them before we head for the marina area.”

  “And we’re going there because?” she prompted when he didn’t continue. God, getting information out of him was like digging a trench in stone.

  “Did you see the guy who came out of the men’s room before I did? I’m meeting him in two hours.”

  “Is he the weak link you talked about? The one who could be bought?” She did her best to keep her voice even, but she wanted to scream at him and rip the words out of his throat. “Can he tell us where Jamie is?”

  “That’s what I’m counting on. Maybe even the name of the person really behind all of this. My end of the bargain is to get him and his family away from where Cortez can get at them. Someplace safe. At the same time, I’ll arrange to have some things delivered to me that we’ll need. So wherever we stop tonight, just keep up with your act if you can.”

  “For God’s sake, Ethan.” She spit the words out. “I’m not going to screw anything up. I’m not an idiot, you know. I’ll do whatever I have to if it means we’re closer to finding Jamie. That’s the most important thing. I’m not going to get myself killed, okay?”

  Next to her, every muscle in his body tightened. Then he flexed his hands on the steering wheel. “Fine.”

  Lisa studied him as he drove, weaving his way through cars and pedestrians. Gone was the man who’d let life consume him. Who ate and drank to excess. Who considered rudeness an admirable trait. All things, by the way, she’d figured out were a disguise to hide the constant pain he lived with. The guilt that he couldn’t deal with, even if it was misplaced. In his place was a hardened warrior focused on a mission. Thank the lord, was all she could think. At last, she was able to believe that there was some truth to the myths about him after all.

  They worked their way in an aimless pattern to the west side of Cancun one bar at a time, staying just long enough in each one not to look suspicious and for Ethan to check out who came in and went out. In the car, Lisa used all her willpower not to constantly turn her head to look out the rear window.

  By the time they reached their destination, her nerves were stretched as far as they could go. She was beginning to get the itch in her back like Ethan, sure someone’s bullet was about to hit her any minute. Her eyes took in every face, every pair of eyes, wondering if she was looking at friend or foe. Fear was gripping her again, and it took everything she had to maintain the appearance of a lovesick newlywed.

  When they pulled into Juana’s on the Beach, Ethan parked at the far end of the parking lot, killed the engine and the lights, and put a hand on Lisa’s arm to stop her from opening the door.

  “Wait.” His voice was so quiet she almost didn’t hear him.

  “For what?”

  “To see who comes into the parking lot next. I wish we’d had time to give Tonio a little test drive, see if he really came through on something, but we don’t have any time to spare. So we wait and pray. Besides, I need to touch base with Nick.”

  He pulled a cell phone out of his pants pocket and pressed the speed dial for Nick Vanetta.

  “It’s me,” he said in his now familiar abrupt way. In concise sentences, be brought Nick up to date. “Just checking now to see if we’ve been made. If we have, you need to help us figure a Plan B. If not, we’re good to go. I’ll need help getting my source to safety. I’ll touch base with you as soon as I know.”

  They sat in the car for five minutes, Ethan draping his arm around her shoulders to give the impression they were doing a little more impromptu necking.

  Lisa forced her mind to think of unpleasant things, cold things, anything to counteract the heat they generated between them. She took some small measure of satisfaction knowing she wasn’t the only one affected by their playacting. Ethan wasn’t as immune to the kisses as he tried to pretend. Or to her. He was a disciplined person, so only if she’d been looking for it would she catch the slightly erratic breathing or the tremor in his arms. But it was there. And it wasn’t due to their mission.

  When had sexual attraction suddenly taken on a life of its own between the two of them? Was it during that almost kiss back at the farmhouse? The caresses at the airport? That first scorcher in La Mama’s? Whatever, it lay there now like an elephant between them, taking up far too much space.

  How was it possible that, in the midst of her terror and fear for Jamie’s life, erotic need was insinuating itself into her existence. Ethan Caine was hardly a person she’d choose to break her long period of abstinence, but God, her traitorous body responded to him without her even directing it.

  And that dream today. Her nipples and her core ached with the memory.

  It’s the danger. The unreal situation. Just remember. We’re here to find Jamie, not to have sex. Nothing’s going to happen. We’re adults. Nothing is going to happen.

  Yeah, keep telling yourself that.

  “Okay.” He slid his arm away from her. “Fluff up that wig a little and wipe off your lipstick. You can put more on when we get inside.”

  “Excuse me?”

  His bad temper edged his words. “You don’t want people to think we’ve been out here discussing world politics, do you?”

  “Oh.” And please continue to be rude to me so I can think of a million ways of killing you. That should keep my libido in check.

  “Come on.” He reached for her hand and led her across the lot to the back door of Juana’s.

  Inside, music was playing loudly from speakers over the bar and the level of conversation was competing for dominance with the music. The room was wall-to-wall people—sitting at the tiny tables, jammed along the bar, standing in whatever space they could find.

  Two bartenders were working at top speed to keep up with the orders hitting them in a steady stream. A couple in one corner attempted to dance on the few inches of floor beneath their feet, although Lisa wasn’t sure what they were doing could technically be called dancing.

  Ethan steered her to a space at the end of the bar and shoved some money into her hand. “Hang onto your purse and be sure you can get to your gun.”

  She tensed. “My gun?”

  “I don’t expect you to need it, but let’s not take any chances.”

  “All right. I’m good, Ethan. I can handle myself. Truly. Do what you need to.” She hitched the strap up higher on her shoulder and brought the purse around so she had her hands on it. Be prepared with the gun. Sure. Exactly. Shoot it off in a crowded bar, right? She could do that. For a moment, she had the urge to giggle, which she quickly stifled.

  “Order us drinks. Anything. It doesn’t matter. We won’t be drinking them. And don’t be in too big a hurry to do it.”

  “Where are you going?” And leaving me here in this mob.

  “To see a man about a bathroom.” He raised his voice.

  ****

  Ethan spotted
Tonio making himself small near the hallway to the restrooms the moment they entered. Leaving Lisa at the bar, he headed in that direction. Two men stood at urinals, and a third was washing his hands, but Tonio wasn’t visible. Ethan took the opportunity to relieve himself, and when the last person had left, Tonio slipped out from the single stall.

  “We can’t talk inside here.” He stood beside Ethan at the sink, his hands shaking as he washed them. “Too much traffic in and out.”

  “Outside. You go first.”

  Ethan followed him out of the rest room. Lisa was still standing where he’d left her, a fake smile on her face as she watched the bartenders. He yelled at her that he was getting something from the car, then made his way to the back door.

  The heat of the tropical night wrapped itself around him, a humid blanket that should have had him dripping in perspiration. But he had that chilled feeling he always got when he was on a mission, the feeling that someone was watching him. He stopped in the shadow of the building and let his gaze travel over the entire area—the other bars and restaurants along this strip, the parking lot, wherever he could see—but nothing jumped out at him.

  Tonio was waiting next to a storage shed, away from any illumination.

  “If this is a trap,” he told Ethan, “go ahead and kill me but leave my family alone.”

  “No trap. You have my word.”

  “What do you want with me? And how can you help my family?”

  Ethan studied the man. Fear rolled off him in waves, and his eyes shifted constantly. They both knew the kind of revenge men like Cortez extracted for betrayal. But Tonio could be as much danger to Ethan as Ethan could to him. Right at that moment, their eyes assessing each other, the decision would have to be made by both whether to trust or not.

  “I hear you have a family, a wife and child, that you’re worried about.”

  Tonio said nothing.

  “A wife and child,” Ethan repeated. “Wouldn’t you like to get them—and you—away from Cortez if the opportunity came up? Get all of you somewhere far away?”