Page 14 of Wanted
The crunch of fenders wasn’t nearly loud enough. She shifted into drive and cranked hard on the steering wheel. She pulled forward until she was inches from the old tree. Then it was back into reverse andWham!The crunch of a headlight made her smile.
“There,” she said without humor. “That’s better.”
It took valuable minutes to complete the twelve-point turn, but by the time she’d cleared the tree, his front end was sufficiently mangled to satisfy her. She inched by the old oak, and gravel flew when she hit the gas. He’d come too close this time. She’d made a mistake in not trusting her gut, but she was listening to it now. It was time to run.
She took the turn onto the street almost on two wheels and gunned the accelerator as she headed for the interstate. She needed to get out of Conrad and out of the state. Maybe it was even time she left the country.
* * *
By the time Reno emerged from the fight in the back room, Dani was long gone.
“Shit,” he said as he looked down the hall. He slapped the doorjamb and immediately reached for his aching side.
He’d received a black eye and some bruised ribs, but he’d left the bouncer moaning on the floor. He knew that the cavalry would soon be coming to the man’s rescue, so he turned to the back door. Gingerly, he made his way around the bar and across the street.
She couldn’t have gotten far. He’d made sure of that. His footsteps quickened when he saw the light in her motel room.
“Dani,” he called as he knocked on the door. “Let me in. We have to talk.”
He looked in the window when she didn’t answer, but he didn’t see her. His eyebrows lowered; he doubted she was in the bathroom. He held his side as he turned around. She must be on foot.
Which way would she have gone?
It was impossible to tell, but he knew he’d make better time on her if he drove. He reached into his pocket for his keys and headed to the alley. His footsteps skidded to a stop, though, when he saw his battered car. “Fuck!”
Her car was nowhere to be seen.
He gave a roar of frustration as he hurried to his car.
The front end looked like a crushed aluminum can. Worse, glass covered the ground. She’d made sure to smash both his headlights. Impulsively, he kicked the crushed bumper, but had to step back when it fell off completely.
“Ah, hell,” he said as he reached for his ribs. That had been a smooth move.
He let out another curse as he planted his hands on the hood of the car. She was gone, and he was hurting. Not only were his ribs sore, he still had a steel-hard erection.
“Idiot,” he said as he slapped the hood.
Could he have been any stupider? She’d done it again. She’d slipped out of his reach just when he’d been certain he’d had her. Only, this time, he’d helped her escape.
He hung his head. What the hell kind of agent was he? Just when had it become more important to screw her than to arrest her?
His professionalism had flown right out the window the moment she’d walked into that dark room. He hadn’t thought once about her supposed crimes or his job to apprehend her. All he’d been able to think about was getting between her legs. He’d just wanted to hold her until she didn’t want to run from him anymore.
Yeah, that had worked.
Shaking his head, he reached into his pocket for his phone. The car was probably still drivable, but without headlights, he couldn’t chance it. He needed to find a repair shop quick, or better yet, a rental agency. He’d have to let the Conrad boys follow her and catch up to them.
“Ah, Dani,” he sighed. He lowered the phone. He couldn’t send anyone after her. She wasn’t safe to be driving right now as it was. He wasn’t going to put some overeager highway patrolman on her tail.
He ran a hand through his hair. Hell, he’d really done it tonight.
Only he wasn’t fully to blame. She was the one who’d crawled right onto his lap.
He pushed himself away from the car and started pacing. What had she been thinking, anyway? He thought he understood the reason why she’d begun stripping. It was a good way to make fast money. He just didn’t like how much she obviously enjoyed her new occupation. She’d been squirming around on his lap like a cat in heat. For all she’d known, he could have been any neighborhood pervert, yet she’d let him touch her and masturbate her almost to the point of orgasm.
A garbage can suddenly stood in his way. He let his foot fly, and it clattered down the alleyway. “Only it wasn’t a stranger, it was me.”
Cautiously, he rubbed his sore chest. She’d responded to him. Nobody and nothing would ever make him believe otherwise. She might not have known who was touching her, but she’d definitely been attracted to the man in that chair.
