Hunted (17 page)

“Well, not now, no. But I was born and raised a Catholic and I can still appreciate the beauty of a building like that. I just rebelled harder than most girls in my teens,” she finished, fluttering her lashes at him.

“I bet you were always a rebel.” He couldn’t see her ever being any other way.

“I guess to a certain extent,” she said with a shrug. “I think my parents would say I’ve always been known for standing my ground and saying what I think.”

He’d met her parents briefly at Tuck’s dad’s funeral in June. Seemed like good people. “Don’t I know it,” he muttered, earning a light jab in the ribs with a black-painted fingernail. He’d never forget that dig about him having a bug up his ass.

“What about you?” she asked, peering up at him. “Were you always kind of…rigid?”

His lips twitched at her choice of adjective. As a writer, she’d have plenty in her vocabulary arsenal to choose from, so he knew she was being polite. For him, the world was nearly always black and white and he wasn’t embarrassed by his sometimes-rough edges. “I was raised in a conservative family, so I guess I’ve always been pretty set in my views.” And he made no apologies for that.

“Ah. You were always on the straight and narrow, then? Apple of your parents’ eye? Bet that drove your sister nuts.”

His stomach grabbed slightly as he thought of Pam, who was two years older than him and had once been the golden child of their family. Honor roll throughout all of school, head cheerleader in high school, valedictorian, captain of her softball team at college. One car wreck had destroyed everything.

Zoe tilted her head. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I was just thinking…” He drew a deep breath, let it out slowly. “About my sister.”

“Tuck’s told me a bit about her. Is she any better?”

He hid a flinch. “No.” And the sad truth was, she was never
going
to get better. The car accident at age twenty-six had screwed up her back, but the prescription painkillers had begun the endless downward spiral that had ruined her life.

“I’m sorry.”

He nodded, jaw tight. “It’s all right.” He’d long ago accepted that there was nothing he or anyone in his family could do to save her, not from the drugs, certainly not from herself. “She’s addicted to the point that no one can help her. She’s been in and out of rehab more times than I could count. Can never stay clean. I think the longest stretch was eleven days.”

Zoe winced. “What kind of drugs?”

“OxyContin’s her drug of choice, but she’ll take whatever she can find to stay high. She’s done crack, meth and heroine too.” It was like she couldn’t stand to face what her life had become and needed the drugs to stay numb so she wouldn’t have to deal with it.

“God.” She glanced up at him as they walked, her eyes full of understanding. “Is that why you were so dead set against using painkillers in the hospital?”

“Yeah. I figure if it could happen to her, then it could happen to anyone, and I didn’t want to tempt fate just in case, you know?”

She nodded. “Where is your sister now?”

“With my parents, back in Pennsylvania. I talked to my mom a couple days ago.” He hesitated before continuing, part of him relieved to be talking about it. Zoe made him feel like he could tell her anything and she wouldn’t judge him. He felt more comfortable with her than he did some of his teammates, guys he entrusted his life to in the line of duty. “They’d just found her on the street again.”

Zoe leaned into him and squeezed her arm around his waist. “Sorry to hear that. Did she go back into treatment?”

“No. My mom is afraid to let her out of her sight, so she keeps her with them and gives her regular doses of OxyContin to keep her there. It’s twisted as fuck, but that’s how it is, and at least the dosages are controlled that way so she won’t overdose. It’s one of the reasons I left to join the Navy. I couldn’t stand watching that cycle anymore. I don’t understand it and I don’t condone it. My mom and I have gone twenty rounds about it. She always says I don’t understand and won’t until I’m a parent. My dad buries his head in the sand and lets her enable Pam. They’d both rather keep her addicted and at home with them because they’re afraid she’d die otherwise.”

“I understand. And it also explains why you turned out the way you did.”

He raised an eyebrow at her. “How did I turn out?”

“Honorable, focused and dependable. And also a big-time control freak. Which, considering your background, makes total sense and I don’t blame you for it.”

“I guess I am, yeah.” He slowed as they reached the square, met her gaze. “Especially in one notable area.” The statement hung in the air between them, heavy with promise. He’d already shown her last night that he wasn’t conventional in bed. And judging by her reaction, she’d loved it as much as he had.

Her golden eyes widened a fraction as his meaning sank in. Blowing out a breath, she shot him a mock glare. “You’re such a tease, saying that out here in public when you know I can’t get another demonstration.”

Reaching out a hand, he cupped the edge of her jaw and brushed the pad of his thumb across her lower lip. “I don’t recall teasing last night, raven.”

Her pupils dilated. He felt goose bumps rise on her bare shoulder. “No, I guess you didn’t. You sure took me by surprise though.”

His thumb rubbed across her lower lip more firmly, testing the resilience of that soft flesh. “In a good way?”

She nodded. “In a
very
good way. I wanted to return the favor but when I woke up you were gone.”

Part of him wished he’d been there when she’d woken up, but the other part knew if he’d stayed, he would have woken her in a way that left her pinned, helpless and writhing. As much as he loved that idea, he knew things would get intense between them from here on out and he wanted to make sure she was ready for it.

He glanced down to find her hardened nipples standing out against the stretchy fabric of her dress. Given the temperature was currently in the mid-seventies and rising, it made him smile. Any satisfaction he felt in that moment evaporated the second she parted her lips and let her tongue dart out to lick his skin. His gaze flashed to hers, a jolt of lust slicing through him when she closed her lips ever so slowly around his thumb and sucked.

He pulled in a sharp breath, his dick throbbing at the blatant caress meant to mimic her sucking something much more enjoyable.
Fuck.

“Now who’s teasing?” he murmured, his vigilance shot all to hell. They were standing in the open, totally exposed, and he couldn’t have said how many people were behind them or on either side of them, let alone have any clue if a threat was coming. It was so unlike him to lose focus, it shocked him.
Shit. Get your head on straight, man.

With a knowing smirk, Zoe released his thumb just as slowly as she’d taken it in, dragging the edges of her white teeth over it. “Believe me, when I start teasing you, you’ll know.”

Oh, he’d show her the true meaning of teasing later when they got back to her place. That couldn’t come soon enough for his liking.

Wrapping his arm around the curve of her waist, he regained his vigilance and guided her around the spectators enjoying the free music. If he hadn’t promised to meet Tuck and DeLuca in the hotel lobby ten minutes from now, he’d have hustled her straight back to her place that instant and shown her exactly what he’d been fantasizing about doing to her these past few months.

They walked up Chartres Street, past the shops and restaurants, and when the hotel’s side entrance came into view, Clay immediately noticed the increased security presence outside. A half dozen government vehicles were parked around the perimeter, along with several NOPD cars and an ambulance.

Zoe must have picked up on his sudden tension because she looked up at him uncertainly. “Is everything okay?”

“Not sure.” He kept her close as they approached the perimeter and he spoke to one of the uniformed cops. In the covered parking area next to the side entrance, another vehicle was pulled up to the door with its rear doors open. Men were loading a stretcher into it, and Clay caught a glimpse of a black coroner’s bag before it disappeared into the back of the vehicle.

From the amount and type of security here, this was no simple case of finding a dead body. Had to be a homicide. He tightened his grip on Zoe and turned his body to keep her from seeing the body bag. “What’s the story?” he asked the cop, showing him his FBI badge and ID.

“We received word about ten minutes ago that everything’s secure.”

“Thanks.” Clay walked Zoe over to the wall of the hotel and dialed Tuck, who picked up on the second ring. “I’m outside with Zoe. What’s going on?”

“We were just getting briefed on that,” Tuck said, voice tense. “We’re in the lounge. Bring Zo in for a minute if you want.”

“Will do. We’ve got something to tell you, too.”

He kept a hand on the small of Zoe’s back as they showed their ID once more to the men guarding the side entrance. Men and women stopped and stared at her as they made their way through the lobby, but Zoe didn’t seem to notice or care and he found that confidence extremely sexy.

“Whoa, Schroder looks a little green around the gills,” she said over the buzz of background conversation filling the lobby.

Seated at the table with Tuck, Evers and DeLuca, their medic was sprawled in a chair with his head resting in one hand, eyes half closed, his face looking pale beneath his red-brown stubble. “That he does.”

Everyone looked up at them when they entered the lounge. There was no alarm on any of the men’s faces, and Clay relaxed a little. Tuck’s and Schroder’s eyes bounced from where Clay’s hand was planted against Zoe’s back, then up to his face. DeLuca pushed up the brim of his San Diego Chargers ball cap and grinned, appearing amused at seeing them together.

“Looks like you need a hair of the dog,” Clay said to Schroder.

The guy grimaced and squirmed in his seat, placing one hand on his stomach. “No thanks. Pretty sure I’ve got an entire fur coat in me already.”

“Spent half the night on the bathroom floor,” DeLuca said with a shake of his head, settling back into his chair and crossing his arms. “Evers was nice enough to throw him a pillow before shutting the door.”

“Yeah, I appreciated it,” Schroder muttered, rubbing a hand over his face.

“So what’s the deal with all the security?” Clay asked. He didn’t mention the body bag. Zoe might have a fascination with the darker side of things, but she wouldn’t like knowing someone had just died here a little while ago.

The guys glanced at each other before looking at him, and Clay understood that whatever had happened, it wasn’t something they could say in front of Zoe. “Tell you later,” Tuck said. He aimed a smile at his cousin. “You hungry?”

“No, we already ate,” she answered. “Have you spoken to Celida this morning?”

“Not since around six. Why?”

She licked her lips, shifted her weight. “Can we talk to you for a sec?”

Frowning, Tuck’s gaze went from her to Clay and back. “Sure.” He rose from the table and followed them a short distance away to give them some privacy.

Clay was prepared to give him a rundown but Zoe told him what had happened. Tuck’s expression grew increasingly darker with each piece she revealed. “What do you mean, you’re going there tomorrow morning?” he finally demanded.

“I have to. It’ll be okay though, because Clay’s coming. I was hoping you would, too.”

Tuck sighed and ran a hand over his face. “Well, shit, I can’t let you go there without—”

The sound of the Adams Family theme song came from Zoe’s purse.

She dug out her phone, already knowing who it was because of the specific ringtone. “It’s Celida.”

Walking a few steps away from the guys as they continued to talk about her security situation, Zoe plugged her other ear and answered. “Hey, bébé. You get my message?”

“Yeah, and I’ve had one of our guys pull some footage from the cameras in your neighborhood. The perp was wearing a ball cap and hoodie, so we can’t get a good look at his face, but he was carrying a backpack that could have had a bolt cutter inside it.”

“Okay. Anything else?”

“Nothing besides his obvious physical description. Looks like he’s in his thirties. Can’t tell from the shots we have because there are lots of shadows, but he’s either dark-haired or has a shaved head. Big guy, over six feet, and he looks pretty built.”

Zoe swallowed as a shiver crept up her spine. If this wasn’t random, then it might be Leticia’s ex, and based on that description, it wasn’t hard to imagine why Leticia would be afraid of him.

“I’m sorry I don’t have anything more concrete for you, but we’ll keep working on it. I’ve got another tech lined up to take a look once she finishes something else for me. Not that you’re not a priority for me.”

“I understand. Thanks.”

Celida snorted. “Don’t you dare thank me for that. And by the way, what’s this about Bauer staying the night at your place last night?”

Tuck must have told her. Zoe smothered a smile at the blatant interest in her best friend’s voice. “What about it?”

Celida made a huffing sound. “You guys were alone?”

“Yeah.”

“
And
? Come on, Tuck was all in a twist this morning when I talked to him, all protective big brother. It was adorable. He told me he said his piece to you before leaving last night.”

“He did, and I love him for it. But I’m a big girl. I can take care of myself and make my own decisions.”

“I’m well aware of that, hon, and you’re preaching to the choir anyway. Now tell me what I want to know before you make my head explode. You two together, or what?”

“Um…” Not exactly. “I’m not sure what we are.”

Celida gasped. “So something happened?”

Zoe couldn’t help but smile. “Yep. And if I’m not mistaken, a whole lot more’s gonna happen later today.” It would if she had anything to say about it.

“Get outta here! You and Bauer?” She sounded both fascinated and aghast.

“Don’t read too much into it.” Zoe didn’t know what would happen between them after today, let alone once he left the city. “I’m just taking this one day at a time, and I plan to enjoy him while I can.”