Game Of Risk (Risqué #3) (4 page)

‘Never met a skeet that I couldn’t take down,’ he grinned, briefly taking his attention from the road.

‘Skeet?’ she said, sitting up straight. ‘We have hit-men and possibly the Treasury Department on our tail and you’re making jokes about skeet shooting?’

‘Governors aren’t protected by the Treasury Department.’

Grinding her teeth, she tried to contain her fury. ‘You said Ashcroft had contacts, didn’t you?’

‘If the Secret Service are after us then I think you’d need Chris Kyle in your arsenal.’

‘He’s unavailable,’ she said. ‘Just what exactly is it you do for a living that you think you’re so qualified to take care of me?’

‘I have two brothers. I’ve been scrapping since I was in diapers.’

His jokes didn’t encourage assurance. ‘Quit dancing around it. What do you do for a living?’

‘I’m a trader.’

‘Trader? Like on Wall Street?’

‘No,’ he said. ‘Not that kind of trader… I’m in product sales.’

He didn’t speak with shame, but his explanations were elusive. ‘You’re in sales? What do you sell?’

‘Whatever my customer needs.’

Just when she thought the situation couldn’t get much worse, she faltered. ‘You’re kidding, right? This is a joke?’

‘Nope,’ he said.

‘Did you go to college? Spend time in the military?’

‘I have a degree in communications.’

‘Wonders never cease,’ she said, wondering if she would survive a leap from a moving vehicle. ‘My brother sent a salesman with a degree in communications to save my ass? I think I need to get out of this truck now.’ Her throat tightened and despite his calm demeanour, she was overcome with anxiety.

‘What? You’ve got something against a guy who uses brains rather than brawn?’

‘No, no… no, I…’—the bitter adrenaline brought bile to her throat—‘I’ve been told there’s a chance I’m going to be tracked down and murdered by unsavoury thugs and my idiot brother…’—the thump of her heart echoed to her tongue—‘He sends a fucking retailer!’

‘I’m not a typical salesman. I don’t drive around selling products door-to-door.’

‘I think I’m going to be sick,’ she said, pushing the button to lower her window all the way down. She stuck her face out hoping for a blast of cool air, but she was just struck by humidity.

Ducking back in, she fanned her face and tried to steady her breathing. Panic wasn’t what made her hyperventilate, it was anger. This was the man her brother had sent to make her feel better, and to look after her, and he had no skills to do either.

‘What’s the problem?’ he asked.

‘This is just like Drew—save a buck and send a friend!’

‘I was in Miami to look out for you. I travelled down because I owed your brother and I always pay my debts. You should be pleased that I was already in position to pluck you up and save you.’

‘It didn’t occur to him to send some kind of security guard, or a cop, or anyone remotely qualified?’

‘I’m qualified,’ Ruger said.

‘To do what exactly? Take commission on my purchases?’

‘You’re freaking out over nothing,’ he said, with a sloping smile.

‘What qualifications do you have to save my life if it comes to it?’ she asked, ready to have him prove her point for her.

‘The way it was pitched to me, it’s my job to get you out of Miami and to a safe place. Drew has a plan beyond that.’

‘Oh yeah, what?’

‘I don’t know,’ Ruger said. ‘I didn’t ask. Get the girl out of Miami, that’s my task, and I’m going to do that.’

‘Great,’ she said. ‘A licence to drive, that’s your qualification.’

‘Not only that,’ he said. ‘I’m a brother.’

Opening her mouth wide to inhale, Layla was about to argue back, but found herself closing her mouth again because somehow that actually made her feel better. ‘A brother?’

‘Sure and I wouldn’t let anything harm any of my siblings. My brothers can take care of themselves now and they’re both involved with women who I think of as sisters. I’m in the position of understanding Drew’s concern. His little sister is in trouble and he couldn’t come to you himself. He’d do the same for me.’

‘If there was a case in it maybe,’ she said, calming down and folding her arms after she put the window up. ‘Getting out of Miami is a good start if that’s where the bad guys are headed… do you know anything about who specifically is looking for me?’

‘No, but they’re not looking for me. These guys would never link us, which makes me a great person to help you keep a low profile. Drew will work this out. In the meantime, I’ll ensure that no one finds us.’

If no one found them then there would be no need for fighting or shooting, so she dampened her own impulse to be direct. ‘You have your own business?’

‘Yes, you could say that,’ he said. ‘You know it wouldn’t be out of line for you to show me a bit of gratitude.’

‘For cutting your fake vacation short and getting yourself pulled into an adventure that might get someone else killed? What kind of gratitude are you looking for?’

‘You’re in PR, right? Maybe you can draw a poster for my brother’s business when this is over.’

‘Draw you a poster?’ she gaped, ready to bite his head off when she read his retaliation. ‘What kind of business?’

‘He owns a strip club.’

‘Your brother owns a strip club?’ she asked. In an automatic nod to her shock, her eyebrows rose. ‘And he has a girlfriend?’

‘One he loves a lot.’ Layla wasn’t sure what kind of woman would be happy being in a relationship with a man who paid women to get naked. ‘Be careful, your judgement is showing again.’

‘I’m not being judgemental,’ she said, unsure of what other word she could use to describe what she’d been thinking. ‘I just can’t imagine what kind of woman would be happy with her boyfriend being in that profession…’ Ruger said nothing. ‘Maybe you should just concentrate on driving.’

‘I understand your resentment toward a person who has a stable career. Blaser is quite the entrepreneur. He’s no sleaze. He knows what he wants from his life.’

‘I have no resentment. I’m a fully trained cosmetologist, I specialise in hair, so I could have a stable career if I wanted one,’ she said.

‘You are?’

‘Yes, I went back to school a couple of years ago to train.’

‘Let me guess, you were heading in a new direction after breaking up with a boyfriend or fiancé?’

Ignoring the haughty amusement he exuded, Layla carried on. ‘I understand a person who has a trade and I respect that. But while my life is in danger, I’d like my protector to be equipped with more than a credit card machine.’

His playful smile made his eyes dance and he didn’t try to hide his enjoyment of her wit, although he delivered his line as if he meant it. ‘Do you know how lethal those things can be? Any weapon in the world can be obtained if you have the right amount of green.’

At the end of her rope, she implored for some time to reflect. ‘Let’s sit silently for a while and revel in the joy of our new friendship.’

Friendship was a loose term, she was stuck with this guy. When she calmed down and processed this development which Drew had caused in her life, she might be more receptive to getting to know Ruger. For now, she had to come to terms with the fact that the new life she’d started in Miami was over already.

After her evening drink with Potter, Layla had been supposed to return to the office to email Mandy a full report. The time for that had come and gone Mandy would be seething. No doubt Potter had taken his business elsewhere by now and had probably called Mandy to regale her with tales of how the meeting ended.

With darkness now upon them, Layla didn’t object when Ruger took them to a drive-through for food then pulled the truck into a motel parking lot. She remained in the truck listening to the radio while he went inside to pay for a room.

Layla’s thoughts turned to her possessions, to what she’d need to prepare for bed and get ready for a new day. Her purse was still in her apartment. She hadn’t needed it because her now previous employer had a credit account at the bar, and she had stashed a key for her place outside her apartment. What that meant for her was, she had no bank card, no ID, and not a cent to her name.

Ruger returned to the truck and opened her door. ‘Are you coming?’

Holding on to the food bag, Layla climbed out of the vehicle and waited while Ruger retrieved two cases from the back of the truck. Ruger carried the luggage into a motel room on the ground floor of the two-storey structure, while she followed him inside and closed the door.

‘Left or right?’ he asked, nodding at the twin beds.

‘I don’t care,’ she replied and he tossed one case onto the bed furthest from the door.

‘That’s you.’ Putting the other case on the end of the other bed, he unzipped it and began to retrieve items. ‘Dig in and eat, don’t wait for me.’

On the table by the front window, she began to take out the food and divide hers from his. Dropping onto a hard chair beside the table, she nibbled her burger. ‘What did you bring me?’ she asked, eyeing the case he’d put on the bed indicated as hers.

‘Check it out and see.’

From his own luggage, he’d taken out a towel and a change of underwear, which he tossed aside with a razor and a couple of bottles. After another bite of her burger, she brushed her hands together and crossed to unzip her own suitcase. It was packed with clothes and there were toiletries too. He’d done a good job overall, except the only footwear she could see were her ratty old running sneakers. She couldn’t find nightwear either, but her disappointment was short-lived when she caught sight of her purse, stuffed in the corner.

Screeching out, she threw everything else aside and pulled it out. ‘Ah! You brought my purse!’

‘I have female relatives, including a mother, and I’ve had girlfriends,’ he said, planting himself in a chair at the table. ‘Guys know how a woman values her purse… he just doesn’t understand why.’

Hugging her purse to her chest, she refrained from hugging him too. ‘If you expect me to bounce from motel to motel, I need my purse.’

‘We won’t be bouncing from motel to motel,’ he said. ‘Getting off the road is the best way to make sure we’re not found. I’m going to shower after we eat. Do you need anything?’

Layla wasn’t sure what he meant about getting off the road, but she joined him at the table to finish off her food. ‘Where are we going then?’ she asked.

‘Somewhere they’ll never find you,’ he said, scooping up ketchup with his fries.

‘You’re trying to be mysterious again. If you won’t be honest, I can just call Drew and he’ll tell me.’

‘I didn’t tell him where I’m taking you.’

Drew didn’t know where she was going to be with this man who was a virtual stranger. But it wasn’t her safety that she was concerned for. Having had time to absorb what Drew and Ruger had told her, she found herself preoccupied with where her brother was and who might be after him.

‘I don’t like the idea of lying low while Drew is out there in trouble,’ she said, munching a fry. ‘We should be up there helping him.’

‘Helping him, how?’ he asked with his mouth almost full. ‘He knows what he’s doing. He has the support of friends who are far more lethal than I am, if the need arises. Once Serendipity finds a publisher and releases the story—‘

‘Who cares about the story? Someone should call the cops.’

‘The cops don’t care about a crooked politician who signs their boss’ paychecks. Do you think they’ll do anything to protect your brother? Half of them are probably on the take. Your brother burned a lot of bridges before he left the force.’

‘You two watch too much television,’ she said, still eating. ‘He should go directly to the DA.’

With a snort, he gave her a shrewd look. ‘Now who watches too much TV?’ he asked, taking a bite of his burger. ‘You can’t just stroll up to the DA and ask him to arrest someone. Anyway, the DA and Governor Ashcroft went to law school together. You’re not going to see a traditional prosecution… at least not without public pressure.’

‘So you want a prosecution from the court of public opinion?’ she asked, pushing the rest of her burger aside and slipping off her shoes. ‘Do you think that Drew will be any safer after he reveals this guy’s connections? Who is he connected to?’

‘I don’t know,’ he said. ‘Are you going to finish that?’ She shook her head, prompting him to reach over his drink to pick up the remainder of her burger, which he gobbled up. ‘I haven’t read his or Serendipity’s notes.’

‘We need more information,’ she said. ‘Do you have a computer?’

‘Not on me.’

‘Maybe Drew can email the details to us and if we can get to a café with Internet—‘

‘You think he’s nuts for investigating this story, and yet, you want to investigate too?’

‘If you can get me to Drew then you can go back to your life.’

‘Jansen told me not to bring you to him,’ he said, finishing off all the food that was left on the table, including her fries. ‘It’s not safe to take you into the belly of the beast, and your brother wants to finish his work without distractions.’

‘You two spoke about that, but you didn’t bother to ask him about the criminality of the governor you voted for?’

‘I didn’t vote for him, I told you that I don’t live in Jersey,’ Ruger said. ‘Jansen is protective of this one.’

‘So the plan is to keep me out of it? My brother is your friend and you’re happy with that? You’re happy that he’s up there and in danger?’

‘They don’t want to kill him, not until after they know what he knows and where he’s stashed the evidence.’

‘I’m reassured,’ she said, going back to her suitcase and sorting through the clothes again. ‘You didn’t bring me anything to sleep in.’

‘I wasn’t going to rifle through your underwear,’ he said, sucking grease from his fingers then crossing to retrieve a tee-shirt from his suitcase. ‘Wear that.’ He tossed the tee-shirt onto the pile of clothes in her case.

Maybe protecting her modesty had been his reason for not going through her underwear. But the truth was that she didn’t have jammies, so he would have struggled to find anything that could pass as nightwear. So she didn’t object to the tee-shirt.

‘I want to take a shower first,’ she said.

‘Ok.’ He bunched up the trash and tossed it in the can by the door.

‘What are you going to wear to bed?’

Glancing down at himself, he looked up at her. ‘Do you have a preference?’

‘I don’t want you getting any ideas,’ she said, pointing a finger. ‘You stay on your side of the room… and keep your jeans on.’

‘You want me to sleep in my jeans?’

‘Yes,’ she said. ‘I don’t want you stripping down and trying the old, “Oops, sorry, I slipped and fell” routine.’

His lips quirked. ‘Happened to you a lot?’

‘Once,’ she said.

‘You must date some classy guys. What happened to Mr. Clumsy?’

‘He was a colleague, not a boyfriend. We were at a company conference, and he got my fist in the side of his face.’

‘I’m pretty steady on my feet, Layla. You’ve got nothing to worry about.’

‘Good,’ she said, snatching a motel towel from the end of her bed. ‘And don’t think about making an excuse to come into the bathroom while I’m in the shower either.’

‘I’ve got no interest in seeing you naked,’ he said, sitting on the bed to unlace and toe off his boots. ‘There’s probably pay-per-view on the TV if I need relief with a view.’ Lying back on the bed, he stretched to reach for the remote on the nightstand.

‘You are not going to watch porn,’ she said, marching over to snatch the remote control away from him. ‘I’m not sharing a room with a pervert.’

‘You think that watching porn makes a guy a pervert?’

‘A guy who watches porn while there’s an unfamiliar woman naked in the next room taking a shower? Yes. A guy who gets himself aroused and plays with himself while there’s a poor unsuspecting female trying to sleep in the bed beside his? Yes.’

‘Have you ever watched porn?’

She didn’t really want to answer that and his mischievous smile told her he knew it. ‘Who asks a person that? We just met and you’re asking me about porn? How would you feel if a man asked your sisters-in-law that question?’

‘My brothers aren’t actually married, but their girlfriends would have no trouble answering that question. Lyssa makes a living asking questions like that and Bri’s sexual history is synonymous with Blaser’s, they learned everything together, I’d guess they tried porn together too. Anyway, this is about you, and you don’t look like the shy type. You look like the type who’s had a few rolls in the hay.’

‘Oh my god,’ she said, throwing the remote onto her bed and slamming her fists to her hips. ‘You are so insulting. Are you saying that I look like a slut?’

‘You know what you’re doing with men. You know how to play them.’

‘I do not!’ she asserted. ‘What would make you say something like that?’

‘You knew what you were doing when you put on that dress tonight. Your client could barely keep his tongue in his head.’

Examining her dress, she pointed to the hem. ‘It almost reaches my knee.’

‘You have great legs, those speak for themselves. But they were going to be under the table all night, so you used your other assets.’ He spoke to her breasts. ‘I’m more of an ass man myself, but those babies even caught my eye, so well done.’

‘Don’t look at my chest,’ she said, bringing her fists back to her hips. ‘That’s a perverted thing to do when you’re alone in a motel room with your friend’s baby sister.’

‘I’m a red blooded male, you don’t think I looked? Doesn’t mean I’m interested in touching.’ Rolling over, he reached for the remote on the edge of her bed and flicked on the TV. ‘I’m not paying for pay-per-view anyway. I’m tired. I’ll stick to a game show or something, I promise.’

Dropping onto the corner of her bed, she sighed. ‘Forget it.’

‘I thought you were going for a shower,’ he said, when she didn’t make a move for the bathroom.

‘I’m uncomfortable now.’

His laugh took her off-guard, but he slid up the bed to sit on his pillows. ‘I’m really not interested in you and there’s a lock on the bathroom door. Go for your shower. I promise I won’t budge from this spot.’

‘You really don’t try to put a woman at ease, do you?’

‘I’m actually impressed that you’re being vigilant. But I jerked off this morning, so I can live without tonight.’

Her mouth dropped open, but no breath entered her lungs. ‘You’re gross,’ she said, getting up and moving for the bathroom. ‘I hope your brothers know how gross you are and that they don’t act this way with their women.’

‘I don’t tend to talk to my brothers about that kind of thing, but given that they’re both having sex with their women, they probably know about each other’s masturbatory habits.’

‘I can’t believe that you’d speak to me this way.’

‘I’m an open book,’ he said.

‘Too open,’ she said with a scowl.

‘You should talk to Lyssa about your sexual neuroses when you meet her. She’ll really help you relax about it.’

‘I am relaxed about sex,’ she asserted and his remote-control occupied hand fell to the bed. Now she had his attention, but she didn’t want it in the way that his lowered eyes and heightened brows suggested. ‘Relaxed doesn’t mean that I’m easy.’

‘Never said you were,’ he said, going back to his channel surfing.

‘When I’m with a guy, I love sex. Lots of it. All the time,’ she said and his lips edged up, except he kept on perusing the TV channels. ‘You know exactly what I mean, you’re just trying to rile me up.’

‘I’m sitting here not saying a thing, Legs. Take your tantrum into the shower and let a man rest up, huh?’

Drew had said this guy had a great sense of responsibility and while she didn’t feel threatened, she did feel a bit peeved. Regardless, she retreated into the bathroom to wash off the day. She’d need a good night’s sleep because tomorrow she was going to get answers from Ruger and more importantly, from her brother, Drew, too.

Ruger was asleep by the time Layla got out of the shower. So much for him being there to protect her. Anyone would have walked in and delivered her to her very own
Psycho
shower scene because her protector was snoring as loud as a tractor—giving her prospective murderer all the audio cover he needed to commit his crime.