Targets Entangled (27 page)

From Daegan’s current position up on the primary payload winch, he angled toward the captain’s position at forty-five degrees. He would be able to see everyone in the crowd from a somewhat elevated angle, just slightly higher than the captain himself. It was Daegan’s hope that he wouldn’t be seen and still maintain the advantage come tomorrow. He would have to wait to the last minute to get into position in order to ensure that no one came up behind him, spoiling the advantage prior to the formation falling in; however, he would need to preposition his rifle easily enough that no one would know it was up there.

Daegan allowed another minute to pass before climbing down and giving up his concealed location. He silently made his way back to where the team waited for him. They knew better than to say anything and give away his position to those crewmembers still on the weather deck.

“If one crewmember spots you up there with that rifle, it’ll create dissention, distrust, and downright mutiny,” Starr advised, although she didn’t order him not to position himself up on the winch housing. “I do understand how being concealed and given freedom of movement and observation are an advantage. One warning—don’t be seen or I’ll have to answer the mail.”

“Copy that.” Daegan would have to be in place just before the Chief of the Boat calls the formation to attention and Captain Hensel makes the announcement to avoid being detected, but it was doable. “Are we still going with the back-up plan?”

The team had discussed several scenarios on how this could go down and one of them being where they elicited no reaction at all. If that were to happen Captain Hensel would simply say Agent Joel’s flight had been delayed. Again, they would have to wait and see what response they drew from the offender.

“Yes.” Starr glanced over Daegan’s shoulder and he turned around to see Lieutenant Irvine walking toward them. He wasn’t in on what was taking place tomorrow and that’s how it would stay. The less outside influences, the better the outcome. The man didn’t look pleased, but that wasn’t such a hard feat to accomplish as of late. He’d made his objections known earlier that he should have been on the plane to accompany the men responsible for the attack on
The Promised Land
, but the team had agreed having him aboard for tomorrow’s operation was for the best. “Lieutenant Irvine, is everything all right?”

“May I speak to you in private, ma’am?”

“Of course,” Starr replied, conveying with her tone that she wasn’t going to buckle underneath his displeasure. “Gentlemen, we’ll meet in the team ready room at zero five hundred.”

Starr walked off with Lieutenant Irvine, who was physically waving his arms in disagreement with the way she’d handled the transportation of the pirates. Diesel was by her side instantly, although she patted him on the head and sent him back to where the team still stood. The Shepherd kept stopping to look back at the duo, obviously not happy that he couldn’t assist Starr in dealing with this man who resembled a French bulldog.

“Diesel, come,” Trigger commanded, bringing the Shepherd to his side. “She’s got it handled, buddy.”

“That she does,” Gunny said before concluding their meeting. “And she’s got a point. We have a long day ahead of us, so let’s get some shuteye.”

Daegan had other plans, but the team didn’t need to know about that. This route they’d taken had been wrought with life-threatening incidents, causing him to rethink his stance on life in general. It sounded cliché, but damn if he wasn’t coming to realize how important Ferrin was to him in a completely different way than Kayla or any other woman he’d spent time with. She had a point when she said that he was living each day as if it were his last and he’d even verbally agreed with her. But what did that get him? At the end of the day, sex was nothing more than two people satisfying a physical urge. He wanted more than that, but Ferrin didn’t seem to want to consider he’d changed and it was his own damn fault. He’d given her no reason to believe otherwise…maybe it was time to change that after tomorrow’s mission.

‡

“W
here are we
going?” Ferrin asked, slightly irritated and yet unable to keep herself from laughing at Daegan’s boyhood antics. He was leading her up to the weather deck, a soft blanket in hand. “I told you what happened today and instead of going to Starr with the information, you’re taking me outside.”

“I’ve already relayed to Gunny everything you told me,” Daegan reassured her, stepping over the lip of the hatch. The sound of the seeping waves sliding past the sides of the ship were mesmerizing, but not loud enough to drown out his husky voice. She followed him onto the deck and inhaled deeply, loving the salty air. “See? You needed some space away from everything that’s been going on and that’s what we’re going to enjoy. Follow me.”

It wasn’t like Ferrin had a choice. Daegan didn’t release his hold on her hand as they continued over to the starboard side midway down the deck to where the gangplank was hoisted up and stored while at sea. It was dark, with the exception of some stars as they peeked out from behind the thin clouds. He maneuvered up and over the steps so that she was able to trail him without incident. He led her to a flat section of the gangplank that had canvas on either side where unless one was to know their exact location, they wouldn’t be seen by anyone they couldn’t hear coming their way.

“What are we doing up here though?” Ferrin asked, bending her head back and looking up into the night sky. She hadn’t been on the weather deck in a while and she couldn’t breathe deeply enough to satisfy her need for the fresh ocean air. “A picnic without food?”

“For my part, I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream,” Daegan said, flicking the blanket until it glided in the wind and gracefully covered a four by six square of the stacked gangplank. He lowered himself and held out his hand. “Vincent Van Gough. I think he had it right. Have you ever lain down in the middle of a field and just stared up the stars? It’s an amazing experience. Twice as amazing at sea.”

“Quoting famous people, Einstein?” Ferrin loved this side of him and found herself sliding her fingers into his and taking a seat beside him before he lay back against the blanket. She did too, with their shoulders touching in the cramped space. She was really liking this intimacy that he’d created and wasn’t ready for it to end. “I used to daydream a lot when I was little.”

Their hands were clasped together and snuggled in between their bodies as they watched the occasional break in the clouds reveal the sparkling stars above. The breeze was cool, but not enough to say she was cold. It took a moment for her to realize that she’d said those words aloud, but from his silence it was too late to take them back.

“My mother didn’t have a college education when my father died.” Ferrin had told Daegan a bit about her family, but she hadn’t shared how it all but destroyed the carefree attitude she once had. He’d shown his trust in her with disclosing his past about Kayla. She would do the same and hope that he could recognize why she was holding back. “There were the three of us and he’d had no life insurance. My mother was left with a pile of debt, a house she couldn’t afford, and two daughters to raise.”

“And you felt you had to help.” Daegan’s words weren’t accusatory, but more so curious. His thumb continued to caress the back of her hand, encouraging her to share more. “I’m sure your mother appreciated everything you did.”

“She did.” Ferrin remembered the tears that filled her mother’s eyes when Ferrin had brought home her first paycheck and placed the money on the table. They’d used it for groceries and splurged on a container of her sister’s favorite ice cream. “It was a wake-up call, though. I heard Mom crying in her bedroom one night and I waited until the house was silent to go into her bedroom to make sure she was okay. Bills and a checkbook that had fifteen dollars written on the ledger had covered the bedspread. I knew then that we weren’t going to make it unless I got a job to help her.”

“And your sister?”

“Too young,” Ferrin said automatically with a shake of her head. Her cheek tingled as a breeze caught her hair and she lifted her free hand to tuck it behind her ear. “Stacey’s worked so hard and done so well for herself too. She’ll be the first doctor in the family.”

“I’d say you’ve done rather well for yourself,” Daegan said, releasing her hand and shifting so that he was resting on his elbow and looking down at her. “That young carefree girl that you once were is still inside of you though. I saw her the other day as she was zip lining over a Panama rainforest and she was more beautiful than the romantic sunset over the water.”

“You did, did you?” Ferrin asked, unable to prevent a smile at the picture he painted. Yes, she still had that young girl inside of her, but she was rarely let out to play. Daegan gave her reason and although she found it exhilarating, it scared her that she would lose sight of her responsibilities. Just look at where they were now…they’d broken the fraternization rule long before the ship ever set sail and they were now lying on the blanket underneath the stars, concealed only by a thin sheet of canvas, when there was murderer somewhere aboard
The Promised Land
. This wasn’t like her and yet she couldn’t bring herself to get up and crawl down to the deck. “What else do you like about that girl?”

Daegan shook his head, refusing to answer as he leaned down and kissed her. It wasn’t like the other night, but instead a slow discovery. He softly brushed his lips against hers before his tongue lightly grazed her lower one. She parted her lips and sighed in contentment when he slowly explored. Ferrin wanted more pressure, but he pulled back with a smile when she lifted her head. She frowned her displeasure and her heart skipped a beat when he finally spoke.

“I like all of you, Ferrin Hewitt. I like your sense of responsibility while you still dip your toes into a pool of adventure.” Daegan pressed his lips to her neck and followed a path to the curve of her shoulder. His breath was hot against her flesh, creating goose bumps. “Did I mention that I adore the flush that comes over your cheeks every time I undress you?”

“No,” Ferrin whispered, turning her head for more of his gentle kisses. “What else?”

“I like that you’re using me as an anchor for our adventures.” Daegan slipped a hand underneath her shirt, making sure it still covered her. She arched her back in pleasure when his fingers slid beneath her bra and cupped her breast. “Your eyes search for mine when the intensity of something becomes too much.”

Ferrin proved him right when she quickly turned her head as his fingers lightly pinched her nipple. She couldn’t prevent a gasp from escaping, although he caught it when he once again melded his lips over hers. She even moaned when he released his hold on her and trailed his hand lower, working the button on the jeans she’d changed into earlier. The sound of the zipper lowering was covered by the churning waves and the wind that had picked up in pace. She hastily grabbed onto his wrist, pulling her lips from his and searching his eyes for answers.

“What are you doing?” Ferrin breathed out, her body now a tangled mass of nerves. Daegan had the ability to arouse her in less than one point five seconds…hell, less than that. “We’re here on the weather deck for anyone to see.”

“No one is going to see anything,” Daegan assured, resting his forehead against hers. He remained still though, awaiting her consent. “That young girl inside of you wants out every now and then. I’m your key, your anchor, and your gateway. I’ll protect you, siren. Look up at the sky and allow the stars to do what they were made to do.”

Ferrin’s heart burst with the need to have this moment with Daegan. She trusted him to not allow anyone near them in this private moment, so she slowly and methodically released his wrist one finger at a time. She rested her palms on the blanket at her sides, arching when his hand gradually worked its way in her jeans and under her panties. His fingers were cupped and he shifted enough that her gaze landed on the stars above her as he pressed against her clit. He didn’t stop there though. He went farther to where her cream had gathered at her entrance before pulling back to where he was able to concentrate on her bundle of nerves.

“All the way, siren.”

Daegan meant more than her reaching an orgasm, but she concentrated on the sky above her as his fingers took her higher and higher until she thought she’d be able to touch the twinkling stars. The rough pads of his fingers were moving in circles with just enough speed and pressure to make this moment last longer.

As the tremors started in the muscles of her thighs, Ferrin closed her fingers around the edge of a section of planking for something to hold on to. The clouds parted in that moment, revealing a vast universe of glimmering stars and it was as if they were the only living beings on the face of the earth. The world was theirs in that moment. The light breeze, the salted air, the resonance of the sea melded together for an experience that left her breathless and when she fell off the precipice, Daegan was there to catch her.