Hot Ice (A Hostile Operations Team Novel - Book 7) (21 page)

Eventually, when it grew dark and the truck’s headlights were a poor beacon in the night, Garrett found another of those roadside motels that didn’t belong to a chain. He went inside for a few minutes, and then he was back and driving them around behind the motel. He parked the truck and turned to her.
 

“Get everything you have. Don’t leave anything behind.”

She did as he said, and then she got out and followed him across the parking lot to a room on the opposite side from where he’d parked. He opened the door and went inside, and she walked in behind him, her heart sinking only a little at the dinginess of the room.

He locked the door behind her and went into the bathroom, then returned and flipped the covers back. The linens appeared to be clean at least.
 

“The shower works and there aren’t any bugs.” His gaze was steady on hers. “I know this isn’t what you’re used to, but it’s best not to call attention to ourselves by driving up to the nearest Marriott.”

She dropped her backpack and computer case on the floor beside the bed. “I’m not an idiot.”

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I know that, cupcake. Just operating on autopilot here.”

She walked over and slid her hand along his jaw. His eyes darkened. “I’m sorry. You haven’t had any sleep, and you’re doing your best to keep us both alive.”

He put his hand over hers and held it there against his cheek. “I know you’re smart and tough, Grace. I should give you more credit and stop worrying that this place isn’t good enough for you.”

“I’ve gone camping before, you know. In a tent with bugs and everything. This counts as a palace compared to that.”

He snorted softly, his gaze slipping over the threadbare curtains and the paneled walls. “Maybe you need some new glasses, Doctor.”

Her heart squeezed in her chest. What she needed, she thought, was him.
Oh, Grace, you are getting much too carried away with this idea.

“Are we safe for the night?”

He pulled her hand away, but not before placing a kiss in her palm. “I damn sure hope so. I need sleep and food, not in that order, or I’m not gonna be any good to anybody.”

“A shower might be nice.”

“Yeah, that too.” He pulled in a breath. “I’ll go to that diner across the street and get us something to go. You stay put—and don’t open the door for anyone or anything, got it?”

She nodded.

“If I’m not back in half an hour, I want you to go out the back window and into the woods, okay? Stay put until morning, then go over to the diner and make a phone call—not on your phone, on theirs—to this number.” He picked up the pen lying on the table by the bed, took off her cap, and wrote a number inside the hat. Then he handed it back to her. “Don’t lose the hat. Or memorize the number if you’re worried. But call it if I don’t return.”

Her heart was hammering now. “I wish you wouldn’t talk like that.”

He went to the door and shot her a grin. “Just keeping it real, princess. But I intend to come back.”

“You’d better.” And then, just in case he didn’t for some reason, she rushed over and threw her arms around his neck. Then she kissed him for all she was worth, infusing the kiss with emotion, passion, and desperation, all rolled into one.

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her tightly to him, their bodies pressed hard to each other, curves and angles fitting together as if they’d been designed for one another.

His cock grew bigger, a hard bulge in his jeans that she wanted to release. But she had to let him go get food first.
 

He needed something better than chips and soda—and so did she, since her stomach chose that moment to rumble. He softened the kiss and set her away from him. His eyes were dark and hungry, and her mouth tingled.

“Come back, Garrett.”

“I will.”

He slipped out the door, and she locked it behind him. Then she pressed her head to the door and breathed deeply, praying he’d be safe.

She thought about showering while he was gone, but she couldn’t manage it. She backed up and sat on the bed, staring at the door and waiting. She kept checking her watch, wondering what she would do if thirty minutes passed and he wasn’t back. She hadn’t even gone to check out the window in the bathroom, but she knew she was supposed to crawl out of it and run into the woods.

She didn’t want to do it. She wanted to stay right here and sink down in this bed with Garrett for the night. As her watch ticked off twenty-eight minutes, she got to her feet and started pacing. Her bags were still where she’d dropped them, and she knew if she had to carry something with her, it would be the computer bag.

Though, if she had to, she would delete her notes and destroy the computer before she would allow it to fall into anyone else’s hands. She went into the bathroom and checked out the window. It did indeed look out on a vast and dark wooded area, which she could see only because of the watery light at the corner of the building.

She imagined herself running into those woods, waiting there until morning, and shivered.
 

Her watch ticked to thirty minutes, and her heart lodged in her throat. She grabbed her bag and then turned toward the door, then went over to the window and pushed the curtain aside, squinting toward the front of the motel and the parking lot there. The restaurant was in front of the building blocking her view, so she couldn’t see what was happening.
 

Was Garrett still there? Was he returning? Or had he been caught by the men who’d been after them?

If he had been, she knew he wouldn’t give away her location.

She stared for another minute, her heart in her throat. Just when she was ready to turn and head for the back, she saw a lone figure jogging around the building in front of her. He was carrying a bag and moving at a fast clip toward where she waited.
 

She stood and watched him—and then when she was certain it was Garrett, that he was headed her way, she ripped the door open and stood in the entry.

He rushed forward with a curse, pushing her back and slamming the door behind him. He was wet and steaming, and he smelled like rain and man. She stumbled back, her pulse pounding as his eyes flashed hot.

“Goddammit, Grace,” he growled as he set the bag on the table near the door.

“I knew it was you.”

“You still shouldn’t have opened the door.”

She bristled. “I was about to head out the back, but when I realized it was you, I stopped. Would you rather be chasing me through the woods?”

He pushed his jacket off and dropped it on a chair. Then he shoved his hand through his wet hair. “No.” He looked at his watch. “I’ve been gone for thirty-two minutes. You should have left.”

“I was about to. But since it’s you, and you clearly aren’t a bad guy, I’m glad I didn’t. Those woods are dark. And cold.”

He pushed his hands into his jeans pockets. She thought they might have been shaking, but she wasn’t sure. “I’m glad you didn’t too. Fucking place was slow. If I’d left when the order was nearly done, I’d have made an impression I’d rather didn’t. So I waited.”

She knew it had to have grated on him to wait when he’d told her to go. She stared at him, not quite sure what to say—and then she realized it was worse than that. He’d actually been unnerved by the thought of her fleeing into the woods. That he’d told her to go and she had.

Or maybe he was unnerved that she hadn’t.

“I knew you’d come back.”

His eyes glittered in the meager light from the bedside lamp. “You should have done what I told you, Grace. Your life could depend on it.”

“But you’re here, and it’s fine. It was two minutes. I had my bag. I was about to go—and then I saw you.”

He reached for her, jerked her into his arms—and she went, wrapping her arms around his waist and standing there, the warmth of his body seeping into her. He was wet, but he was also hot because he’d been running.

“It’s okay, cupcake,” he said, his cheek against her hair. “There’s no one out there.”

She squeezed him tighter. Her eyes filled with tears.
Why?
“That’s because you’re awesome. The best. We’re safe because of you.”

He wrapped a hand in her hair and tilted her head back. His face was stark and hard—but sensual and needy at the same time. “I need you, Grace. I need you now.”

A thrill shot through her. “Yes.
Yes.
”

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

“ICE IS OFF THE GRID.”

The guys were grim faced as they listened to Mendez deliver the news. It wasn’t anything they didn’t already know, but having the colonel confirm it was like a blow to the belly. It hurt no matter how prepared you were.

And they were prepared, because it had been hours since the perimeter alarms at the safe house were triggered, hours since they’d been scrambled to the location from HQ, and hours since they’d had one last communication from Ice telling them that he and Grace Campbell were safe.

Ryan had been preparing to join Ice at the safe house, along with Dex and Fiddler, when Alpha Squad had gotten the news that someone had breached the perimeter. They’d raced to the helicopter pad, boarded the Black Hawk, and been whisked out to Virginia.

The foreign agents had still had men on the scene, and HOT mopped them up with their usual efficiency. They’d captured four men, who were even now being interrogated. So far, they’d learned next to nothing about the men or their mission—and they had no idea how many had gotten away or how many were still looking for Ice.

Brandy and Victoria Royal sat beside each other, shoulders touching, looking intense. Ryan thought of them on the range earlier and swallowed at the memory of Victoria putting a bullet into a target with deadly accuracy.

He thought of the text he’d gotten from Victoria’s sister last night, and a chill ran down his spine.

Really, that was a connection he needed to sever before Victoria severed his head from his shoulders. Emily was vulnerable, and he didn’t think Victoria would like her being involved with a guy from HOT.

Not that they were involved, but he’d somehow become the person she asked for advice or just talked to when she needed someone. And he didn’t think Victoria would like it one bit if she knew. Emily knew Victoria wanted to be the one to help her, that Victoria would drop everything to be there for her sister—but Emily pretended everything was okay because she didn’t want that to happen. She felt guilty over the trouble she’d already caused in her sister’s life, and she was determined not to cause more.

“He could be headed this way.” Matt’s voice cut into Ryan’s thoughts. “Bringing her in under the radar.”

Mendez propped his fists on his hips. He looked menacing, as usual. Ryan wondered if the colonel ever relaxed. “That’s what I’m hoping. But there’s no telling with Ice, is there?”

No, there was definitely no telling. You thought you knew a guy, and then you found out you really didn’t. Ryan had no doubts about Ice’s integrity, but he’d realized he damn sure didn’t know the guy he’d trusted with his life on more than one occasion.

Ryan cleared his throat. “Did you guys know he has a kid?”

He could still hear Grace Campbell asking Ice about his daughter, and Ice’s reply that she lived in Georgia with her mother.
 

Most of the guys wore various expressions of shock. Mendez didn’t look surprised at all, but then he had Ice’s personnel files and would know. No one got into HOT without Mendez knowing everything about them.
 

“Damn,” Kevin “Big Mac” MacDonald said. “I had no idea.”

There was a chorus of
me neithers
from everyone except Mendez and Matt, who said he’d only learned the truth recently. Ryan told the rest of them quickly about the conversation between Grace Campbell and Iceman and how he’d learned that Ice had a daughter who lived with her mother in Georgia. Maybe he shouldn’t have said anything, since Ice clearly hadn’t wanted them to know, but there was always the possibility it would help them understand something about how he might react to the current situation. A slim possibility, but still. It was best to leave no information unexamined.

“All right, let’s get back on task here. There’s nothing in the car to indicate they were taken by force,” Mendez said. “And the missing truck still hasn’t been found.”

They’d found Ice’s car at a motel about ten miles from the cabin. There’d been no signs of a struggle, no scuffing around the car—and a resident couldn’t locate his truck, though he’d been a bit addled by drink and couldn’t precisely recall if he’d left it somewhere.

“He’s got it,” Knight Rider said. “I’d bet anything.”

“And he’s going to dump it soon,” Dex added. Because that’s what any of them would do. They’d been trained to go off the grid, and until they came back onto it, no one was finding them.

“That’s what I think too.” Mendez walked to the console and pulled up a map on a wall-mounted screen. “Let’s go over all the possible routes and try to anticipate where he’s headed.”

“Sir,” Matt said, and Mendez looked up. “I think we have to acknowledge there’s a leak somewhere. Ice wouldn’t have cut off communications if he didn’t think so.”