Page 74 of Hot Pursuit
Shit.
Five cars.
Nate woke up. That was the only explanation. He woke to find her missing and knew exactly where she’d gone. And he could’ve let it go, but he didn’t. He came after her.
Shit. Shit. Shit!
Jo closed her eyes, squeezing, as her heart thudded in her chest, beating like a fist against a locked door, trying to break free.
She had to calm down.
She had to focus.
They’d planned for this. Their escape routes had been specifically designed around the possibility of being surrounded. Thad would go to the roof, and from there, the opportunities were endless—the man was practically a monkey. He’d climb into the neighbor’s terrace and maybe over one more building just to be safe, and then he’d hide until the street cleared. Jo wasn’t worried about him. Not at all. He was a master of the getaway.
Jo, on the other hand, had already shown her cards.
Her exit was out the back.
Into the alley.
Where Nate would undoubtedly be waiting.
If she hadn’t taken him out that door earlier that night, he probably would’ve never known it existed. Not every townhouse had them—in fact, very few did. Jo would’ve been gone before the Feds even thought to check the opposite side of the block for an exit. She would’ve been free. Instead, she was trapped, in a web of her own making.
With that singular realization, all her dreams went up in smoke. Her bakery. Her coopies. The image of being nestled in Nate’s arms, watching snow fall. All of it. Gone. Poof. Because when he caught her, there’d be no deal. No leverage. No immunity. He wouldn’t need it. She’d be caught red-handed, a criminal through and through, with the ski mask to prove it. Which, really, when it came down to it, was no worse than she deserved.
A warm palm landed on her shoulder. Jo spun with a gasp, but it was Thad. Only Thad. He stared at her, trying to understand her panic, when as far as he knew the plan was still foolproof, still a go. And for him it was. There was no reason for Thad to get caught. Not when it was her fault, and hers alone, for getting in too deep.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
A hard knock sounded against the door.
Jo and Thad locked eyes.
The homeowner would be awake any instant. The Feds were about to bust their way in. If they were leaving, it had to be now.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Instincts taking over, they snapped apart and turned, running for the stairs. Thad raced up. Jo hurried down. No time to think. No time to process. Only to act.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Footsteps thudded from the bedroom upstairs, but Jo was already on the ground floor, racing for the back exit. And she had no doubt Thad had made it to the roof terrace and was already climbing his way over the divide and into the neighbor’s property. She unlocked the deadbolt on the patio doors, slid outside, and crossed the courtyard in a matter of seconds. Her hand hovered over the knob for the exit into the alley. She paused, ripped off her ski mask, and arched her head back, sucking in a long, cool breath of air. Her last, she was sure, as a free woman.
Then she opened the door and stepped through.
- 26 -
Nate
There was a defeated look in her eyes as she stepped through the door, something resigned yet content, something he’d never seen before. Her hair was disheveled. Her movements slow. Her body stiff. They locked gazes across the dark expanse of the alley as Jo quietly shut the door behind her. For a moment, they both remained still. Quiet and still. Was there anything left to say?
She glanced behind him, to either side, her brows pulling together and her mouth dropping as she realized Nate was alone. “No backup?”
The question could’ve been flippant, but with the shock running through her tone, he didn’t think so. If he were being honest, he was just as surprised as she was. Nate had no idea why he’d told the others he was going to do a quick scan of the surrounding streets. He had no idea why he’d shrugged off Leo’s offer to provide backup. He had no idea why instead of actually taking a lap around the block, he’d turned into this discreet alley, blanketed in shadow. He had no idea, and yet, even worse, he did.
Because he knew Jo would be here.
