Page 60 of Exposed

Her breath caught in her throat as his finger touched her chin, turning it up toward him. His mouth came down on hers, hot and demanding. Revulsion spiked at the back of her throat and her arms dropped to her sides.

The last few days she’d gotten away with the odd peck or kiss on the cheek, but nothing too invasive. He was testing her… searching to see how far she would go to prove herself to him. She opened her mouth, welcoming him. His tongue was sticky, as if he needed a gallon of water and his lips scraped over hers.

Brrring! Brrring!

The sharp chirp of his phone sounded from the nightstand behind her. He pulled away. “I want more of that later. But I need to take this call. Come find me at breakfast, we need to talk.”

He brushed past her and reached for his phone. She fought the urge to wipe her mouth with the back of her hand. She moved quickly into the bathroom, shut and locked the door, and pressed her shaking hands to her face. Oh, God. He wasn’t stupid. If she didn’t sleep with him tonight, he’d probably call the whole deal off…

Or kill her.

By the time she got out of the shower, he was gone. She dropped on the bed, and rolled her shoulders back. This case was wearing on her. She wouldn’t admit that Nate had been right… at least not aloud. But she’d come close to death more times than she cared to count and they were nowhere near finished.

She picked up her cellphone and curled her legs under her. She clicked on Zoe’s contact and the phone rang in her ear.

“Maddie! Where are you?” Zoe’s soft, flighty voice rang out. Anxiety laced her words and guilt stabbed through Maddie’s heart. After all Zoe had been through, the last thing she needed was to worry about her best friend.

“Well, hello to you too. How are you?”

Zoe breathed a sigh through the phone. “Worried sick. You’re in Miami, aren’t you?” Her tone seethed, but pain hung behind it.

Zoe was the one person—besides Nate—that she didn’t have to lie to. But she still hadn’t told her exactly what she was up to. She would have tried to stop her from getting involved with Carlos and the last thing she needed was guilt while trying to keep Carlos’s suspicions at bay.

“Umm… close. I’m on a cruise heading to Puerto Rico.” She lifted an extra towel and scrunched the moisture out of the ends of her hair.

“What?”

Maddie yanked the phone away from the piercing cry. She massaged the outside of her ear with her finger and nestled the phone on her shoulder. “I told you I was going to do something about Leila.”

Silence hung in the air. Okay, so she hadn’t specifically said she was setting out to avenge Zoe’s little sister’s death. But she had told Zoe that Carlos would pay for what he’d done. And she was so close to keeping that promise.

“I appreciate what you’re trying to do,” Zoe said softly, her voice thick with tears. “But I don’t want to lose my best friend too. Why didn’t you tell me? I knew something was up when you weren’t returning my calls. Then you missed two Wine Wednesdays in a month—which is a first. I called your work and they said you were away.”

Shit. She should have known Wine Wednesday would be a dead giveaway. “I’m sorry I didn’t call, but it was just too risky. I shouldn’t even be talking to you now.”

“Oh no. You need to stop this. Please, come home.”

Her stomach twisted and tears clouded her vision. “I can’t. I’m almost there… this is too big. I’ll call in two days—I promise.I love you.” Her throat tightened as she disconnected, not waiting for a response.

She dropped the phone on the bed and covered her face with her hands. She wished she could have told her she was being as safe as possible and working with the FBI, not to mention Nate. But she couldn’t risk it.

She wiped her tears with the back of her hand and straightened. She had to get her game face on. Nate was waiting.

She got dressed quickly and let her hair hang wildly around her shoulders. No point in straightening it when the humidity would turn it into a tangled mess anyway. She shimmied a white floral sundress on, grabbed her beach bag, and shoved her feet in her shoes.

She picked up her phone and roamed her fingers over the screen.

He’s gone. Is it safe to come over?

The device pulsed in her hand seconds later.

All clear. Dylan has his eyes on Hector and Carlos in the dining room.

Her hand shook on the door handle. She took a deep breath and stepped out of the room. The hallway was empty, but most everyone would be at breakfast before they docked.

She crossed the wide breadth of the hall and rapped her knuckles against the thick, white-painted wood of Nate’s door. It swung open as if he’d been standing there waiting. His hand swooped around her shoulders and he pulled her into his suite. She dropped her head against his chest, breathing in his warm, heady scent. He wore a white T-shirt and light blue swimming shorts. Fresh aftershave reached her nostrils and she glanced up, confirming that he’d shaven his stubble.

She rubbed her knuckle over his jaw.

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