Deadly Secrets, Loving Lies (14 page)

“Tree house,” she interrupted.

“What?”

“It’s not a mushroom house. It’s a tree house.”

He raised a brow. “Looked more like a mushroom to me.” He pulled out his phone. “Anyway, I’m calling Cameron. Or at least Johnny. Maybe there is somewhere on this island he can land other than the lawns surrounding your dad’s house.”

“No. Don’t,” she insisted, hissing beneath her breath.

“Why not?”

Her eyes flashed. “We can do this alone. We don’t need them. Besides, we can’t take the chance with that the mole is still in play. And there
is
a mole. I did not send you that text telling you to meet me at the warehouse, and there’s no one else who had that number.”

“I suppose,” he admitted.

“And if that’s true, for all I know it wasn’t even Becca who texted me to meet her there in the first place. And who sent me my mother’s necklace this morning?”

“All the more reason to call Cameron,” he insisted. “If there’s a double agent working in the department, he needs to know. He has the resources to follow up on your suspicions, to find out definitively if someone in CTA is in Emerich’s camp. Why keep operating in the dark if you don’t have to?”

There was that stubborn look again. “And what if Cameron’s the mole?”

“We’ve worked with the man for years,” he returned reasonably. “If he’s been working against you all this time, don’t you honestly think you would have been able to sense it?”

Genie stared at him, her mouth parting in astonishment.

“I know I would have,” he said quickly. “But I haven’t. Not the least bit. He’s always been there for us. We have to trust in someone, Genie, and I trust him.”

She eased out a long breath. “I hope you’re right. But you have to admit, this is hardly the time or the place to put that theory to the test.”

“I think an extraction is exactly what we need right now.”

“I know where my dad is. And to get to him, we need a boat, not Johnny. That boat.” She pointed to the yellow jet boat tied up at the dock. It was a beauty, and looked powerful with the long pipes of the exposed engine gleaming in the sunshine.

He got a sinking feeling in his gut. “You mean the one with the two armed thugs guarding it?” This could get ugly.

“That would be the one.”

“And you think this is a better plan then calling Johnny,
why
?”

“Because we can do this. And besides, Johnny wouldn’t be able to pick us up without Emerich’s goons getting to us before we even lift off the ground.”

“Fine.” Resigned, her reasoning flawless, Kyle put down his phone. “But I’m calling Cameron as soon as we get to where your dad is.”

“Deal.”

Kyle hoped they were doing the right thing. It was a risky move, and if Cameron found out…

“Don’t worry. He won’t find out,” she muttered.

He searched her face as she peered over at Emerich’s men hanging at the dock. “How do you always do that?”

“Do what?”

“Seem to know what I’m thinking.”

“I could say the same about you.”

“You’re fairly predictable. I say black, you say white.”

She turned to him, smiling. A smile he would never grow tired of seeing—no matter how frustrating the woman behind it. “And you’re just plain easy to read.”

“You’re really doing wonders for my ego today,” he said dryly. “So, tell me then. Why am I standing in the bushes with you, risking my life?”

“Because you’re too damn bull-headed to leave me alone.”

He rolled his eyes as she turned and ran down the hill, toward the dock, toward Emerich’s men. She kept to the trees and bushes until she reached the back of the equipment shack at the edge of the jetty.

“I guess that must be it,” he muttered, shaking his head and loping after her right into the line of fire. That, and because she’d become a puzzle he couldn’t seem to figure out or put down.

He just hoped his unwilling fascination didn’t get him killed.

…

Standing behind the equipment shack, Genie studied the men on the dock by the boat for a full minute. There were only two of them, each armed with SIGs at the waist and most likely knives at the ankles. But she had Kyle. She smiled at the rightness of the thought. They were working together again,
really
together this time. They could take them, and then take their boat. The problem would be sneaking up on the men. They’d be in plain view walking down the dock, there was no way to get around that. Unless…

“We need a distraction, some kind of a diversion,” she said. Staring at the men in the jet boat, and taking in the small sailboat next to them, a plan began to take shape in her mind.

Kyle pursed his lips, momentarily distracting
her
. “What do you have in mind?”

“You’ll see.” She grinned as she pulled off her black shoes and socks revealing her ten perfected painted red toenails. Next, she slipped out of her pack and dug inside for a tube of glossy red lipstick and large white sunglasses. She rolled the gloss over her lips, pulled the band out of her hair, and then fluffed her loose curls until they fell around her shoulders. Kyle’s surprised gaze dropped to her fingers that were deftly unbuttoning the buttons of her boring white, no-iron blouse, until her cleavage bulged out the opening.

“Your mouth is hanging open, Kyle. You’ve seen me dressed like a girl before.”

“Yeah,” he said, his voice a strangled rasp as his eyes swept down her body, reminding her of the heat his touch and kisses had set off within her. “I guess it’s just been a while.”

She tied the bottom of the shirt into a knot snugged up under her breasts, making sure her red satin bra peeked through.

He took a deep breath and cleared his throat. “A
long
while.”

Genie smothered a smile. Kyle struggled to swallow. Enjoying herself way too much, she smoothed her hands down her belly to her waistband, where she removed her Ka-bar and the sheath, and dropped them into the pack. Slowly she unfastened the top button of her cotton pants, unzipped them, and wiggled them over her hips. She gave him a saucy smile as they dropped to the ground. She stepped out of them wearing nothing but a very skimpy pair of red satin panties.

“Instant bathing suit. From that distance all they’ll see is legs.”

“Yeah,” he repeated, clearing his throat again. “From
this
distance all I can see is legs. Beautiful long legs curving up to
—
”

“Don’t get yourself all hot and bothered again,” she interrupted, telling herself the very same thing. “You need to watch my back, not my ass.”

He made a face. “Yes, ma’am.”

She slipped her ankle holster and gun off, and deposited them into her pack along with her pants. “Okay, stay in the trees until it’s clear.”

He regarded her with amusement. “I love it when you’re bossy.”

She rolled her eyes, and gave him an exasperated look, but she liked his teasing attention. She always had. He had a way of looking at her like no one else ever had. It made her toes curl.

“Wait,” he took his cell phone out of his pocket and took off his gun and holster, and dropped them in her pack, too. “I’m not sure this is such a great idea. In fact, I’m sure it’s not. It’s too damn risky.”

“No, it’s not. They don’t want to hurt me, Kyle, I think that’s pretty clear.”

“Kidnapping isn’t hurting? We still don’t know what they want with you.”

“Doesn’t matter. We need that boat. I’m almost certain my dad is on the other side of the island, and a boat is the only way to get there. Okay?”

“What if they recognize you?”

“Only one came to the door this morning and he’s not here. And how often have you seen me with my hair down?”

His gaze fell appreciatively over her long blond curls. “Not often enough.”

“So are we good?”

Reluctantly, he nodded.

She smiled, slung the pack over one shoulder and sauntered toward the dock while pulling out his cell and holding it to her ear. “Come on, Matthew,” she whined loudly while strutting down the jetty with an exaggerated swing to her hips, drawing closer to the goons. “You promised me a boat ride. I got all ready, and I’m here waiting for you.”

She made eye contact with one of the two men who were openly gawking at her, opening her mind, reading him. But all she got was unadulterated lust. “You aren’t going to be too terribly long are you? You know I hate being all by myself. And, trust me, I’m feeling very lonely right now.”

Both men smiled widely. She smiled back and threw them a wave.

She continued past them and then stepped into a sailboat moored not too far from the men and the yellow boat. She turned her back on them and bent over to pull her Glock out of her pack, knowing their eyes would be glued to her ass. Giving Kyle all the distraction he would need to slip out from behind the shack and advance toward their target. She had to find a way to incapacitate them, so she and Kyle could take the yellow jet boat for themselves.

“Well, darn, Matthew. What am I going to do here all by myself for a whole hour?” Genie turned back to the men and smiled, then hung up the phone. “You boys don’t happen to have something to drink do you? It appears I’ve been left here all by my lonesome.”

The tall one grabbed a beer out of a cooler and headed toward her. She plastered a wide smile on her face and adjusted the large sunglasses on her face as he reached her, holding out a bottle of beer.

“Well, aren’t you my big life saver,” she said.

He smiled at her and then his smile faltered. She opened herself up to him, then staggered backward. Flashes of images whipped through her mind—Emerich, guns…
Becca
. And a room with bars on the windows. The cold ambition rolling off this guy was dizzying. He thought she was going to make him rich. And because of that, he’d do whatever it took to get his hands on her. The other man hadn’t vacated the boat as she’d hoped. He was still standing there, staring at them. She needed them both off the damned boat. She started to untie her blouse, drawing the tall one’s attention away from her face.

Come on, Kyle. Where are you? I need you, baby.

…

Kyle couldn’t help the smile splitting his face as he watched Genie in action. The woman truly was a brilliant operator, and was wasting her talents hiding out in her mushroom in the desert. He would get her to come back to CTA, even if he couldn’t get her to come back to him. Not that he should even try to get her back. Hell, one more kiss like that and he’d be putty in her hands and completely useless. For his sake—and his job’s—he must keep her at arm’s length. He watched with a sinking heart as she sashayed down the dock in her hot, sexy underwear. It would not be an easy task. The woman was way beyond sexy. And infuriating as hell.

Knowing there was no way he could walk up the dock without being seen, he took advantage of Genie’s delicious diversion, slipped out of his jacket, and dropped into the freezing water.
Holy crap
. His breath caught as he silently waded over to the jet boat and around the back of it. As gingerly as he could so he wouldn’t slosh in the water, he climbed up onto the back of the boat and crouched down, hiding behind the massive engine. Trying to pinpoint the location of the second man, he heard the sound of a cell phone not five feet away.
Hell
. He slid back out of sight into the water and clung to the back of the boat as the man spoke briefly into the phone.

It would appear their luck was running out. It sounded as if the rest of Emerich’s men were on their way back.

Kyle climbed back up onto the rear crouching behind the exposed engine, and found just what he needed. As soon as the man hung up the phone and turned away, Kyle jumped onto his back, toppled him to the floor, then used a five-pound extinguisher to bash him in the head and knock him unconscious.

Kyle took the SIG off the guard and shoved it into the back of his own waistband, then grabbed a line to tie the guy up. He rolled the unconscious man into the bow compartment, shoving him under the deck back beyond the boat supplies to hide his body. He glanced up.

Genie was still on the sailboat in the next berth, looking panicked now, backing away from the other guard who was reaching for her with a nasty smile on his face.

Kyle climbed into the captain’s chair and turned the key. The powerful engines roared to life. The tall man pivoted, his mouth dropping open as he glanced at Kyle with astonishment. Kyle smiled and waved. The man started to charge, preparing to leap across the narrow gap between the two boats. Genie hit him on the back of his head with the butt of her gun. He dropped into a heap.

She took his gun, stashed it in her pack along with her own then hurried toward the yellow speedboat.

“Should we try to hide him?” she asked.

“We don’t have time, the others are coming back.”

“Then let’s roll.” She jumped onto the boat and took the wheel as Kyle untied the lines and tossed them to the dock. With a roar, they backed out of the slip then headed for open water.