Page 53 of Exposed

He brushed his hands along the bedframe and then went to the closet. Dylan crunched in his ear. “Now you’re eating? Please, dude. Shut the hell up. I need to hear if someone comes in and you’re a major distraction.”

“Hey, I didn’t know we were on a mission. I’m tired and starving.”

“Shh,” he hissed. It took all of his willpower not to race down to the suite below his feet and strangle the moron.

Dylan grunted, but the chewing stopped.

Nate slid the mirrored closet door open and his gaze raked over the nicely hung clothes. Maddie’s clothes were closest to him, folded neatly in little shelves. His eyes lowered to a set of drawers and he yanked them open. At least a dozen black, white, and pastel-colored panties filled the drawer. His fingers grew damp on the knob and the front of his pants stretched against his groin.

He shut the drawer with a soft click. He didn’t need this right now. What he needed was to clear the place. He moved to Carlos’s side of the closet. He probably wouldn’t leave a bug where Maddie would spot it. His fingers grazed beneath the shelves, a device could be hidden in any crevice.

Huh. Maybe he was getting paranoid. That didn’t surprise him one bit. Where Maddie was concerned, he didn’t fire on all four cylinders. He dropped to one knee and peered down the side of the closet organizer. Clean.

Pulling away, he moved to get to his feet, but his eye caught a flash of black at the back of the closet. His brow furrowed. He parted Carlos’s pressed dress pants and stretched his hand to the back of the closet. His fist closed around a strap and he dragged out a heavy duffle bag.

What the hell?

Their suitcases lined the top shelf of the closet. Why would there be a full bag hidden? He tore open the zipper and the muscles in his neck clenched. Jesus.

He lowered his hand into to bag and pulled out a bundle of crisp hundred dollar bills. He snorted. All this time they’d been searching for an electronic exchange of money and Carlos had had it on the ship the whole fucking time. Another glance in the bag showed dozens more bundles. He rummaged through them, doing a rough count. Three million dollars sat inches from his knees.

Never in his life had he been this close to that kind of money and he wanted to bleach his skin as if a flesh-eating disease had crawled on it. He tossed it back in the bag and zipped it shut.

A soft click sounded. He froze. The hair on the back of his neck stood at attention. Voices flooded down the hall to his ears and the front door of the suite snapped shut.

“Shut up, Hector. I’ll tell her to come to the room now and get to the bottom of it.”

Fuck. Carlos and Hector were here.

“Get to the bottom of it? She’s lying to you!”

“And I will deal with it.” Carlos’s voice shook with menace, the vibration reached Nate’s bones, chilling him.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

Sweat broke out on his temples, cooling his skin. He didn’t give a damn if they caught him. His fear wasn’t for him. They had to be talking about Maddie. He returned the bag to the back ofthe closet and pushed the closet doors back in place. His pulse drummed in his ears.

His feet were rooted to the carpet, and indecision rippled through him. There was no way out. He couldn’t get caught. They’d piece things together and it would only endanger Maddie more. But what the hell did they want to talk to her about? He leaned forward in time to catch Hector’s tall, brooding form follow Carlos into the office.

His teeth sunk into his tongue. They’d left the office door open. Carlos’s slender arm hung in view, his back facing the door. If he tried to make a break for the front door, they would catch him. But what other option did he have? He couldn’t exactly hide under the damn bed.

He pressed his back against the wall next to the closet and closed his eyes. His breath came in smooth shallow puffs through his nose. He was six-foot two and two hundred and twenty fucking pounds. Where the hell could he hide?

The curtain at the patio door fluttered open, beckoning him. He squeezed his eyes tight. Oh, hell no.

“Everything okay, bro? You’re making some funny sounds.”

For once, Nate was grateful for Dylan’s voice. “They’re in the suite. Carlos and Hector. I need to get out.” His jaw worked as his gaze went back to the patio door. Dylan’s suite was directly below Carlos’s and his stomach coiled at what he would have to do.

“Sonofabitch,” he growled. His anxiety radiated through the phone, matching Nate’s. “Okay, are you still in the master bedroom?”

“Yeah.” It came out as a grunt, barely above a whisper.

Carlos’s voice carried down the hall, his tone curt and demanding, but his words muffled. He was bringing Maddie into a damn trap. What did Hector have on her? It had to be something incriminating. Damn it to hell and back. Had hefucked up? He needed to know what Carlos wanted to talk to Maddie about—but he couldn’t stay in the suite.

He pressed his head into the back of the wall and inhaled through his nose. He had no choice. A glance into the office showed Carlos’s back facing him. He pushed away from the wall and skirted across the room to the balcony.

“I’m going to have to escape through the balcony. There’s no way I can make it to the door.” His throat closed on the words. All he wanted was to be back on land. If he ended up back in the unrelenting waves, he’d have a fucking heart attack.

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