Kiss of a Stranger (Lost Coast Harbor #1) (26 page)

She tried swimming, but the ocean pulled at her. Before long, she had no idea which direction she was heading. She was as the mercy of the insistent waves, and she had couldn’t tell if they were drawing her toward the shore or further out to sea.

How had Gabe survived this? The sea was cruel, demanding all her warmth and energy until she couldn’t even tread water. It tugged at her ankles, an inexorable pull she grew too tired to resist.

When the spotlight found her, she only made a weak effort to avoid it, and when strong arms lifted her from the water, her struggles were pitiful.

Strong arms that held her so tight she could scarcely breathe.

Maddie blinked, clearing the sea water from her eyes. “Gabe?”

“I’m here, Maddie. I’m here.”

No angels’ chorus had ever sounded as sweet as the voice whispering in her ear. She buried her face against his chest. He was as drenched from the rain as she was, and still he felt like the warmest, most solid thing she’d ever touched. Too soon, he moved away.

Her teeth chattered, and she shivered uncontrollably.

“You need dry clothes. A warm blanket. Come on. Let’s get out of the rain.”

Gabe swung her into his arms. A door opened, and a second later they stood in a warm, dry room. She stared in wonder. It was nicer than her living room, with leather couches, a gas fireplace, and a flat-screen TV.

“How did you find me?” Her voice was muffled by his shirt. “And where are we?”

“This is Oliver’s private yacht. It turns out he’s a good guy, after all.”

“Told you so,” Maddie muttered.

She felt the low rumble of his suppressed laugh. “So you did,” he whispered. In a louder voice, he spoke to someone over her shoulder. “She’s okay, but she needs to get warm now.”

“Get her below. You’ll find some of Clare’s old clothes in my cabin.”

Maddie attempted to lift her head to thank her friend, but all she managed was a small wave.

As soon as they were below deck, Gabe stripped her. His hands lingered on her skin, but she didn’t sense any lustful intentions. He only wanted to confirm she was safe and healthy.

Once she was naked, he swung a heavy blanket over her, rubbing her arms and upper back through the fabric.

“There are easier ways to warm me.” She smiled, trying to look alluring despite her still-clattering teeth.

Gabe pressed his lips against her forehead. “Temptress,” he murmured.

Nothing in her life had ever felt better than that touch. “Does this mean you might forgive me?”

He ripped off his sweater until he stood in just a t-shirt, then hugged her again, giving her as much of his body heat as possible. He kept holding her until her shivers finally stopped. “It means I should have forgiven you three seconds after I saw those damn account numbers.”

She raised her face to his, amazed to see him smiling down at her. “Wow. I should almost drown more often.”

He gave her a light swat on her ass. “Don’t you dare. Now get dressed.”

She was still a little stiff, but she happily pulled on a pair of jeans, a heavy sweater, and wool socks. By the time she towel-dried her hair, she almost felt normal again.

“Let’s go thank our rescuer,” Gabe said, sounding happy about the chance to talk to Oliver.

He threaded his fingers through hers and gave a gentle tug, indicating she should follow.

She’d follow him anywhere.

They were at the bottom of the stairs when the boat was knocked several feet off course. Loud bumps and scraping sounds followed.

It wasn’t the storm. It was the sound of another boat boarding theirs.

They rushed upstairs. Maddie tried getting there first, but Gabe insisted on placing his body before hers.

Which was why he was the first one to reach the yacht’s living room. The first to see Peter Hastings walk toward them.

It took Gabe longer than it should have to identify him. He’d only seen the old man once, at a party weeks before, and he spent much of that party distracted by Maddie’s blue dress. He was tall like his sons, with the same broad shoulders. Unlike them, he used a cane, and when he spoke, only half his mouth moved.

But he knew the voice well. Only hours before, the man calmly discussed Maddie’s death.

Panicked, he shoved Maddie behind him, his body the only protection between her and the gun pointed directly at them.

Correction. The
guns
.

Peter Hastings held one. His fucking son held the other.

Oliver reclined in a leather chair. His pose was lazy, but his eyes didn’t miss a thing.

This probably wasn’t the time to say “I told you so” to Maddie.

“What is this?” Gabe’s eyes flicked between the two men, trying to identify the bigger threat.

“Thank you for getting them both in the same place, son. It will make their elimination much easier.” Peter glanced around the yacht. “Though it will be a shame to lose a boat this nice. Vince, how long will it take to wire this?”

The other man studiously avoided looking at Gabe. “Another ten minutes. Twenty if you want to make sure it looks like an accident.”

Peter nodded. “Better to be cautious. We don’t want to arouse more suspicion than necessary. Just make the explosion big enough to cover up any bullet wounds.”

Vince pulled up the hood of his rain jacket and returned to the deck. It looked like he was laying wire along the railing.

Gabe glared daggers at Oliver. “You think anyone’s going to believe two of your boats just happened to blow up in one week?”

The other man’s smile was grim. “You’d be amazed what people will believe. I shouldn’t need to tell you that.”

He started forward, stopping only when he felt a hand tug on his coat. Maddie moved to the side, refusing to stay hidden.

He considered his options.

Peter might be an old man, but he wasn’t weak. Even with the cane, his spine was so straight it might have been supported on a metal rod. The hand holding the gun didn’t shake.

Gabe could take him. Even a fit septuagenarian was no match for a man in his prime. And Oliver…well, Gabe could kill him just for fun.

And if Maddie wasn’t there, he’d be running at one of them right that moment. The men could empty both their guns into his chest, and Gabe thought he would keep going. Nothing so inconsequential as a bullet would stop him from destroying this family.

Except Peter didn’t point the gun at him. The barrel was now aimed directly at Maddie’s heart.

He’d broken that heart once today. There was no way in hell he’d let anyone else touch it, not before he had a chance to put it back together.

Not ever.

So instead of rushing Hastings with no plan in his head but revenge, once more he placed himself between them and Maddie and tried to think his way out of this.

“So which of you was it? Which of you bastards likes to set up innocent men?”

Peter Hastings snorted. “Innocent? You’re nothing but a street thug. If you hadn’t been convicted of that crime, it would have been something else a few months down the line.”

Gabe tensed, becoming as hard and sharp as a knife’s edge. Behind him, he could practically feel Maddie vibrating with anger—anger for him. If it wasn’t the worst timing in the whole damn world, he’d have kissed her.

There was no point arguing with Hastings. Men like him were always right. They created their version of the world, one that justified how they destroyed lives in pursuit of their own happiness. No one else’s opinion mattered.

But somehow, he needed to stall.
Think, you bastard. Think!

“What about you, Oliver? You just do what daddy dearest tells you?” Gabe sneered at the man.

Oliver returned his stare, eyes cold. “It doesn’t matter who did what. Only the end result matters.”

This time, there was no stopping Maddie when she darted around him. “What end result it that? Putting more illegal guns on the street? Heroin available to any addict with the money? Or do you mean the end result where the people you pretended were friends are blown up on your own damn boat?”

Oliver closed his eyes for just a second, though his gun never wavered.

“We’re wasting time. End this, Oliver.”

“No!” Maddie stepped in front of Gabe, trying to shield him with her body. He wanted to kiss and throttle her at the same time.

“There’s a reason you didn’t have Harold kill me,” she said. “Why you’re here now, instead of in your warm home. You need to know if I told anyone, don’t you? Because I did. The secret’s out. Too many people know.” Maddie’s tone was dangerously close to taunting.

“Not so many as that, I’m sure.” The man was unbothered. “Three people can get into a car accident easily enough.”

This time, Gabe needed to pull her back before she launched herself at Hastings. Her hands were curled into claws. She probably envisioned tearing the skin from his face in ribbons. That’s what he was picturing, at least.

“Oliver already informed me, young lady. There are no secrets between us now.” The old man nodded at his firstborn. “You picked an excellent time to join the family business, son.”

Gabe blinked, uncomprehending.

“So you see, there’s no reason to delay. Good-bye, Miss Palmer.” With a disinterested shrug, Peter Hastings placed his finger on the trigger.

Gabe’s world narrowed until all he saw was the man’s finger. He watched it squeeze the trigger and send a bullet toward Maddie’s chest.

“No!” Gabe couldn’t scream loud enough, couldn’t move fast enough. The world slowed to a single second, and an eternity passed while he leapt in front of Maddie, praying he caught the bullet intended for her. His upper arm ripped across the edge of a glass table. The skin split open and blood poured through his t-shirt, but that was his only wound.

He landed hard on the ground, the breath rushing from his chest in a sudden gust.

Somehow, Maddie remained standing. No bullet holes. No blood. Nothing.

Peter Hastings had been too close for the shot to go wide. One or both of them should be bleeding right now.

Except…he hadn’t heard a gunshot.

Oliver set his gun on a side table. He held out his hand, the fingers wrapped in a fist. One at a time, he opened them. A stream of bullets poured out.

Hastings stared at his oldest son, and if Gabe hadn’t despised the man with every fiber of his being, he’d have almost pitied him. At that moment, he looked every one of his seventy years. “Ollie?” His voice trembled.

“I didn’t want to believe it. Not when I found out there were shipping routes I never heard about. Not when cargo kept slipping through the docks. Not even when the feds showed me their files. I couldn’t believe you were capable of this.” There was no softness in Oliver’s voice. No mercy.

“The feds? Son, what did you do?”

Oliver scratched behind his ear, then held up a dot so small Gabe had to squint. “I said I’d help prove you were innocent, and if that wasn’t the case, I’d help them prove you were guilty. They heard it all. They’ll be here soon.” Oliver raised his voice. “If you don’t want to spend twenty more years behind bars, Vince, I suggest you stop setting the explosions. One charge for attempted murder is probably enough.”

Peter Hastings strode to the side table and grabbed Oliver’s gun. His son made no move to stop him when he turned it on Gabe and fired. Again, the chamber was empty.

“It’s over, Dad. Give up.” Oliver only sounded tired.

His father paced the room, refusing to settle. Oliver never looked away from the father who betrayed him.

It was the moment Gabe dreamed of for years. Now that it was here, it felt like a hollow victory. Revenge meant nothing. All he cared about was that Maddie and her friends were safe. That Oliver was making a terrible sacrifice.

“You’re really going to send your dad to prison? Expose your family to the scandal?” he asked.

Oliver stood and visibly shook off his fatigue. “It’s where he belongs. Besides, this town needs a new scandal. Someone has to distract them from Maddie’s condom purchase.” He managed a weak smile, and Gabe couldn’t help returning it.

“For god’s sake,” muttered Maddie. She’d found a strip of cloth and busied herself wrapping it around Gabe’s bleeding arm. “You wouldn’t think a woman having sex with her boyfriend would be so shocking.”

Gabe stared at her, certain he’d misheard. It was the letdown after the crisis, and now he was hallucinating. Maybe she’d finally snapped from the stress of the day. Whatever it was, it wasn’t real.

And yet somehow, it felt more real than the ship he stood on, more real than the rain still pelting the roof above them. Had he been a boyfriend before? He couldn’t remember ever wanting to be. Now it sounded like a decent start, a prelude to other things she might someday call him.

“Gabe?” Oliver’s fingers snapped before his face, summoning him back. “The feds are here. You ready to tell your story?”

He managed a dumb nod. “I mean, yeah.”

Gabe wrapped his unhurt arm around Maddie and pulled her against his side. He didn’t plan to let go for a very long time, but there was something he still needed to say. “I’m sorry, man. Sorry for assuming the worst.”

Oliver waved it off. “You couldn’t know. I’m just glad I had the chance to make things right.”

“So you went undercover?” Maddie teased.

Oliver’s smile contained more sadness than humor, but he was trying. “What do you think? Do I have a future as the next James Bond?”

Gabe considered the man before him. After racing through the rain to make sure the yacht reached his father’s ship in time, Oliver’s thick hair was damp and unruly, and his suit was ruined. Even so, he managed to look debonair, the very picture of wealth and privilege.

But he was also a damn good guy, even if he was a Hastings.

Another boat came alongside theirs. As soon as the walkway was moved into place, a familiar face strode onto the yacht. The last time Gabe saw him, Agent Glover was interrogating him about his involvement in the gun shipments. Now he was grinning ear to ear. With glee, he snapped handcuffs on Peter’s wrists. The man’s dark scowl only made the agent smile wider. “I’ve been waiting six years for this, Hastings.”