by Elle Kennedy
“Let him,” she said coolly.
A second obscenity sliced through the air. She glanced over and saw Kane scowling at her. “Let him?” he echoed, practically seething. “Are you fucking serious?”
Abby faltered for a moment. How was he surprised? There had never been any doubt in her mind that she and Devlin would face off again.
“Of course,” she answered. “Devlin and I are going to finish what we started in that prison. It’s always been an inevitability.”
“He’s a killer, goddamn it.”
“So am I.”
Morgan’s head moved from her to Kane. He looked intrigued by the exchange. “Nobody is killing anyone,” he said sternly. “At least not until this extraction is behind us.”
“You’re not going near Devlin,” Kane grumbled, as if Morgan hadn’t even spoken.
Abby glared at him. “Is that an order?”
“It sure as hell is.”
From the other side of the cabin, Luke chuckled.
“You don’t give me orders,” she said to Kane, her hands curling into fists. “If I choose to go after Devlin, you can’t do a damn thing to stop me.”
“Wanna bet?”
“Is there a reason why you’re acting like a caveman right now?”
Kane shot her a saccharine smile. “Is there a reason why you’re acting like an idiot?”
Had he just called her an idiot? The soft whistle coming from Luke’s direction confirmed that he had indeed. Lord, you let a man give you an orgasm and suddenly he decided he ruled your life? Well, screw that.
“The subject is closed, Kane,” she snapped. “Seriously, this isn’t open for discussion anymore.”
She thought she heard him murmur, “That’s what you think,” but Morgan swiftly held up his hand to silence them both. “Enough. You’re acting like fucking children. The only thing any of us should be worrying about right now is how to get those girls out of Blanco’s compound safely. Understood?”
Abby sobered instantly. He was right. The whole reason Devlin had targeted her was because she’d risked everything to save Lucia Alvaro and those helpless girls. She cursed Kane for making her forget that.
“Understood,” she echoed. She turned away from Kane’s angry gaze. “I’m taking a nap. Wake me when we land.”
“Where the hell are you?”
Devlin glanced around the cramped motel room and gave a dry laugh. “Bakersfield, California. A rather dull place, I’m afraid.”
On the other end of the line, Blanco released a string of Spanish curses. “I don’t give a damn if it’s the most entertaining location on the planet. I need you back here. Now.”
“I’m tracking the Sinclair woman,” Devlin replied through gritted teeth. “As per your instructions, Luis.”
“Is she in this Bakersfield?”
“Well, no, but—”
“Then get your ass back here. You can just as easily track her from the estate.”
Devlin’s fingers tightened around the phone. Goddamn useless bastard. It was a wonder Blanco had managed to stand at the helm of a successful empire for this long. His dependence on Devlin reeked of weakness, and weakness revolted Devlin. Always had.
“The pilot is waiting for you in the hangar,” Blanco added briskly. “If you’re not here by tonight, you can seek other employment.”
“Don’t you think you’re being a tad overdramatic, Luis?”
“Tonight, Devlin.”
A click sounded in his ear. Devlin growled with rage and tossed the cell phone on the bed. It landed next to the tape recorder he’d stolen from Amanda Silverton’s office, which he’d been listening to before Blanco called and ruined all of his fun. Abby was in the midst of describing the last time Ted Hartford visited her bedroom. Poor thing. Tried to fight back and failed.
He allowed the anger to wash over him for a moment, then squared his shoulders and began gathering his things. So be it. He would indulge Blanco and return to Colombia, but he was nowhere near finished with his sweet Abby.
He tucked the psychiatric tapes into his duffel and zipped it up, the sound of Abby’s young, hesitant voice still floating in his head like the lingering scent of perfume. Oh, how he enjoyed tormenting her. He absently reached up to rub the sickening patch covering the mutilated eye socket the doctor hadn’t been able to repair, feeling himself grow hard as he imagined the punishment he would exact on that little bitch.
Slitting her throat would always be his endgame, but there were still so many moves he wanted to make before he reached that point.
Blanco may have sent him on a bit of a detour, but soon he’d be back on the right path.
The one that would lead him straight to Abby Sinclair.
Chapter 15
It was dark when they finally arrived at the safe house. Kane and Morgan went in first, weapons drawn as they moved stealthily through the house before determining it was clear. The rest of the team filed into the den, Luke mumbling something about finding the nearest bar. Abby didn’t make a move to follow the men, so Kane stayed rooted in place too. He regretted his outburst on the plane, but not enough to drop the subject as Abby had demanded. He didn’t like these phone calls between her and Devlin. Not a damn bit.
“We’ll take the bedroom at the end of the hall,” he said curtly. “Morgan usually commandeers the master bedroom, and the others can bunk in the third room.”
Abby’s yellow eyes narrowed. “I’m not sharing a room with you.”
“No, I’m pretty sure you are.” He set his jaw. “Tonight we’re going to finish what we started, Abby.”
“And if I don’t want to?”
“Tough shit.”
She glared at him again, then spun around and disappeared down the hallway. A moment later he heard a door slam. An involuntary smile sprang to his lips. Damn, he liked her. She was fiery and stubborn and unbelievably hot when she was angry. Cold as ice too, but he’d already proven he possessed the ability to make her melt.
Heading for the den, he poked his head in and said, “Abby and I are turning in.”
Three pairs of eyebrows rose at his remark. D’s wasn’t one of them. He simply stood at his customary place by the fireplace, his black eyes unreadable.
“Kane…” Morgan sounded oddly gentle. For a second. Then he reverted back to his harsh, no-nonsense self. “What the hell are you doing?”
He leaned against the doorframe. “Like I said, turning in.”
“You know exactly what I mean.” Morgan looked frazzled. “Abby Sinclair isn’t a woman you want to mess with, for fuck’s sake.”
“Who says I’m messing with her?” he replied in annoyance. “I happen to enjoy her company.”
“Yeah, I got that. You’ve enjoyed a lot of female company over the years. But I’m warning you that Abby isn’t like the others. She’s dangerous.”
“I think I can handle her, sir.”
Morgan seemed unconvinced. “Just be careful.”
“I appreciate the concern.” In other words, back off.
Morgan got the hint. With a heavy sigh, he changed the subject. “There was a message waiting on my voice mail. Bahar contacted Trevor again. Apparently Blanco wants to meet them.”
Kane gave a pleased nod. “He took the bait, then.”
“Looks like it. They’re visiting his estate tomorrow afternoon. Once we get word that it’s a go, we’ll start to think about the best way to do this extraction.”
“Okay. Keep me posted.”
Ignoring the scowl D sent in his direction, Kane turned and headed to the bedroom. He half expected the door to be locked, but when he twisted the knob, it opened easily. He found Abby sitting on the bed, staring at the wall.
“What exactly did you do to D?” Kane asked as he closed the door behind him.
Her head lifted. “I didn’t do anything to him.”
“Really? Because he’s turned into a tight-lipped asshole since we brought you back to Morgan’s compound. Not that he was Mr. Cha
tty before, but I’ve never seen him act like this.”
Something flickered in Abby’s eyes.
Guilt?
“He doesn’t like me,” was all she said. “He made that pretty clear the night we met, and then several times afterward.”
Kane searched his brain, trying to remember if Abby and D had ever been alone since that first night. He couldn’t think of a single instance, yet he knew they must have had a run-in. D was more volatile than ever, and his gut told him that Abby had everything to do with it.
“So you didn’t say anything to him,” Kane pressed.
“Nope,” she said lightly.
She was lying. He could feel it in his bones, but he had nothing to go on, no solid evidence to throw at her. Whatever. At this point, D’s mysterious rage was the least of his worries.
Kicking off his boots, he moved toward the bed. She flinched at his approach.
“Don’t,” he said harshly. “Don’t look at me like I’m going to hurt you.”
She ran a hand through her red hair. “You can’t hurt me,” she said, sounding so matter-of-fact he wanted to throttle her.
He yanked his shirttail out of his waistband and began unbuttoning. Peeling it off his shoulders, he tossed the button-down across the room, then undid his pants.
Abby looked alarmed. “What are you doing?”
“What people usually do before getting into bed. Undressing.” Sarcasm dripped from his voice.
“We’re really going to share this room?”
“That’s what I said.”
Now wearing only a pair of black boxer briefs, he strode to the bed, lowered his body onto it, and stretched out on his back. Next to him, Abby shifted slightly. “You’re being childish.”
“Me? I’m pretty sure I’m the most mature adult in this room at the moment. At least I’m not going out of my way to pretend there isn’t anything between us.”
“I’m not pretending anything,” she said with a frown. “There isn’t anything between us.”
“You can lie to the targets you cozy up to, but don’t lie to me.”
Shoving a strand of hair out of her eyes, she looked down at him, her face harsh. “You think because you made me come that we’ve formed some kind of bond, Kane? That we’re going to get married and live happily ever after?”
Her emotionless tone annoyed the hell out of him. “I’m not naive enough to think that, Abby. But whether you like it or not, we have chemistry, and yes, I think we’ve formed a bond.”
She shook her head. “Whatever you’re aiming to get out of this, you’re going to be disappointed.” Her voice cracked. “I don’t do relationships. I don’t want relationships.”
“Fine.” He shrugged. “Then I’ll just have to be satisfied with sex.”
Her throat bobbed as she swallowed. “I won’t… I don’t want it.”
“There you go, lying again.”
“I’m not lying.”
“Then why are your nipples so hard? And don’t blame the cold. Morgan cranked up the heat when we got here.” He propped himself up on his elbows, his gaze sweeping up and down her body. “And why are you breathing so hard, sweetheart? Your breasts are practically heaving.”
Those exquisite yellow eyes burned with indignation. “You’re acting like a total bastard right now.”
“I don’t give a damn. I’m tired of this one-step-forward, two-steps-back bullshit. Tonight I want it all.”
He fisted his hand in her hair and brought her head down to his. Their mouths collided in a hard kiss, which he deepened instantly by pushing his tongue between her lips. She gasped, tried to move away, but he held her in place, holding her prisoner with the kiss.
“Go ahead,” he rasped against her mouth. “Tell me you want me to stop. Just say the words and I’ll back off.”
She searched his face, her eyes clouding with confusion. “You’ll really back off if I ask?”
“I’m not like one of those bastards from your past,” he muttered. “If you say no, I’ll walk right out of this room, Abby.”
Her lips trembled, her pulse throbbing furiously in her throat. She didn’t say a word, and a flicker of alarm went off in his chest. Damn it. He wanted so badly for her to say yes. And he knew that if he felt like it, he really could be a bastard. He could force the issue instead of giving her the opportunity to back out.
But…
It has to be her choice.
Although the gentle reminder had his cock twitching with impatience, his brain conceded to it. Abby was not a woman who liked to be pushed. She would push back—and then run away. Christ, he didn’t want her to run from him. He wanted her so badly he could taste her. He craved her.
And he wanted her to feel the same way about him.
Meeting her gaze, he saw the conflicting emotions in her eyes. Need and confusion. Anticipation and reluctance.
“I want to say no.” Her voice shook desperately. “I want to say it so badly—why can’t I do it?”
He brushed his lips over hers. “Because you want to see this through as much as I do.”
“I…”
“You know I’m right.” He lifted his hand to her breast, cupping the firm mound. “You want me to touch you. And you”—he gripped her wrist with his other hand and dragged it down to his groin— “want to touch me.”
Her palm rubbed over him in a featherlight caress.
He sucked in his breath. “You’ve spent your entire life holding back. Don’t you want to feel what it’s like to let go?”
Those lush lips trembled again. “When you let go, you fall.”
His heart squeezed in his chest. He stared into those gorgeous yellow eyes and suddenly found himself looking at a different woman. One who’d been hurt repeatedly as a child, one who’d built those enormously high defenses, that impenetrable wall, in order to protect herself.
But the wall was down now. Her face was awash with vulnerability. She was scared.
A rush of emotion flooded his body. He hadn’t felt anything like this since Emily died. Hadn’t allowed himself to get close to anyone, especially not the women he slept with.
This was different. Abby was different. She was a killer, a cold, distant woman who’d spent years building that wall around herself, yet somehow she’d broken through his wall. His defenses.
Jesus.
“I won’t let you fall,” he murmured, rolling onto his side and pinning her down on her back.
She gazed up at him uneasily, her red hair fanned out beneath her like strands of silk. “I’m not sure this is going to end well, Kane.”
“Why does anything have to end?” He lowered his head and pressed a kiss to her neck. “Right now, let’s just focus on the beginning.”
Her uneasiness seemed to fade. “Okay.”
That was all he needed to hear. He swiftly moved in to kiss her, and this time she responded. Her arms twined around his neck, pulling him closer, and he could feel her heartbeat vibrating against his chest. She was so warm, so soft and beautiful. It took all of his willpower not to rip her clothes off and devour her. She must have showered after their swim in the pond, because she smelled distinctly like the fancy Swiss soap Lloyd kept stocked in every bathroom at the compound. But another aroma mingled with the soap, something flowery and feminine and unbelievably intoxicating.
He breathed her in, then tasted her with his tongue, licking his way up her neck so he could nibble on her earlobe. She made a contented sound and her lower body moved restlessly against his, a slow, lazy rhythm that turned his cock to granite.
He kissed her again, groaning as their tongues met and swirled together. Gripping her waist with both hands, he ground himself against her, desperate for any contact. He wanted inside her. Wanted it more than life itself. But he didn’t want to rush.
With infinite gentleness he hadn’t known he possessed, he moved one hand between her legs and stroked her, eliciting another soft sound of pleasure from her throat.
“That’s nic
e,” she whispered.
“Very nice,” he murmured back. He slowly dragged the panties off her smooth legs, sliding down so that he knelt at the juncture of her thighs. Unable to resist, he dipped his head and gave her one long lick.
Abby cried out.
Kane grew dizzy. Jesus, she tasted like heaven. Sweet and feminine. Heaven. He lapped at her with his tongue, surprised by the violent wave of arousal that slammed into him like an eighteen-wheeler. If he died right this instant, then he’d die a happy man. He couldn’t remember the last time going down on a woman had brought him such incredible pleasure, and the new sensation spurred him on.
Abby moaned as he feasted on her. He alternated between long licks and lazy kisses, then tongued her frantically, until she was clawing at the sheets and murmuring nonsensical things at him. When he slid a finger inside her, she bucked her hips off the bed, crying out. He felt her orgasm pulsing against his tongue, and he rode it out with her, his mouth pressed to her damp sex as she lost control. He was pretty close to losing control too. His cock was hot and heavy between his legs, begging for attention. The need to claim her was so freaking strong he barely gave her time to recover before he was moving up her body, one arm fumbling over the edge of the bed for his jeans so he could get the condom he’d stashed there.
Abby’s hands dug into his shoulders, stilling him. “Not yet,” she said softly. “It’s my turn.”
Before he could blink, she had him on his back and her long red hair tickled his pecs as she slithered down his body. When he felt her warm breath on the tip of his cock, he nearly exploded right then and there. Breathing deeply through his nose, he willed away the impending release. Abby’s tongue darted out to lick his engorged head, summoning a low groan from his chest.
She rubbed her lips over him, then lifted her head to meet his eyes. “Tell me what you like.”
“Everything,” he choked out. “I like everything you’re doing.”
“Tell me,” she insisted.
Kane was floored by what he saw on her face. Eyebrows drawn together, lips pursed, eyes shining with fortitude. She seemed determined to bring him pleasure and he could suddenly picture that same determination hardening her features on the field, as she threw her entire being into the task of accomplishing her goal.