For a brief moment, she let herself hope.She let herself imagine that the arms dragging her out of the museum belonged to her Sexy Stranger, that he was pulling her away into safety and rescuing her from whatever she'd accidentally stumbled into.That hope faded the moment she felt the gun pressed to the back of her head."Keep moving," growled Gravelly Voice from behind her. To the others, he yelled, "Stay back or I'll actually shoot her this time!"She was starting to regain her senses. A high-pitched ringing still vibrated through her ears, making her head throb, but she was starting to make sense of her surroundings again. She hadn't been shot. She wasn't dying. But that didn't mean the danger was over.The man currently dragging her outside was Gravelly Voice's companion, and while he was certainly the better-looking of the pair, that wasn't saying much. He had a crooked nose and one of his eyes was slightly larger than the other.The Caribbean sunlight was blinding after t
Leo was startled by the intensity of the relief he felt at seeing Ruby unharmed. He was so relieved, in fact, that he didn't see the frying pan come swinging at his kneecap until it was too late."Mother fu - " His curses dissolved into Italian, into the phrases his father used to shout at Luigi the cat whenever he got underfoot. He sank down onto the deck, clutching his knee as searing pain shot up his leg.The girl was quick. She was up the ladder and shoving past him while the pain was still blinding him, but he reached out instinctively, grabbing for her. He managed to catch her by the ankle as she tried to run past, and she fell onto the deck next to him.He only just managed to get his arm up in time to block the pan as it swung at his head. Another jolt of pain rattled through him, this time aggravating the healing bullet wound in his upper arm. He bit back another string of curses."Damn it, woman, I'm trying to rescue you!""I don't know what you people want with me, but
Puerto Plata, Dominican RepublicRuby looked around the hotel room where she'd be spending the night.Well, this trip could have been worse. You could have been here with Jamie.She laughed silently to herself, but the humor only made her feel slightly better. Her troubles weren't over just because she was back on dry land. She still had plenty of things to worry about - things like figuring out how she was going to get back to the United States. And whether or not her kidnappers were going to come after her. And whether or not she wanted to punch or kiss the man who'd rescued her, assuming she ever saw him again. For a moment, after they'd checked her into the hotel, she'd thought her rescuer was going to insist on staying with her, but ultimately he hadn't said a word. She told herself she was perfectly okay with that.With a sigh, she sank down onto the edge of the bed. Her fingers traced the faded palm trees on the comforter. She shouldn't be thinking about some other man, not
"Shh," Leo hissed through clenched teeth. "Damn it, woman, do you want to draw them right to us?"The girl stopped squirming in his arms, looking up at him with shock in those big, dark eyes. Once he was sure she wasn't going to scream her head off, he peeled his hand away from her mouth.They were on the ground behind a parked car, crouched on gravel and dirt in the shadow of a few tropical trees he'd never learned to identify. Xavier was at the opposite end of the car, peering around the curve of the bumper, watching for Nash or security guards."What the hell are you doing?" Ruby demanded in a sharp whisper, her eyes flashing with that fire he'd come to appreciate from her. "You scared the crap out of me! Why are you here?""I could ask you the same thing," he replied, watching her carefully. "You were supposed to go straight to the Consular Agency this morning." He'd almost lost it when he saw her running up the hill. She was supposed to be gone - and safe. Instead, she'd falle
Ruby stared out at the shining blue water all around her. Well, this trip has definitely taken an unexpected turn.Two days ago, she'd been on the honeymoon from hell. Now...she wasn't sure what she'd call this trip, but it was exactly what she needed.She was surprised these guys were actually taking her to Curaçao. For a brief moment, she'd wondered if it was all a trap - if they were murderers or kidnappers just looking for the excuse to get her out into the middle of the Caribbean where they could easily dispose of her body. But the more she thought about it, the less likely that seemed. They'd had plenty of opportunities to murder her already if that had been their end goal. Besides, what sort of murderer attempted to literally carry her into the U.S. Consular Agency? No, it appeared that they were actually trying to help her.You finally know their names, too, she reminded herself. First names only, but it was better than nothing. The name Leo suited her Sexy Stranger. She fou
Once Leo made sure Ruby was safely in the cabin below - he prayed that she listened to him and stayed down there - he returned to Xavier's side and looked out at the sea behind them.The boat tailing them was undeniably closer. They still had quite a lead, but that might not last forever. Xavier was a decent helmsman, and Leo had also spent a fair share of time on sailing vessels, but there were a lot of variables at play. They'd been able to catch up with Nash and his team yesterday, but a lot of that was luck - and the fact that Nash hadn't expected any hot pursuit. If their rivals had managed to get a faster boat..."What do you think - should we break toward the open sea?" Xavier asked. "Or take our chances by putting in at the next harbor and trying to escape them on land?""Honestly, I have no idea." Leo glanced toward the ladder that led down into the cabin. "Do you think they're after Ruby? Or us?""Both, most likely," Xavier replied. He was looking forward, guiding their b
Ruby had been told not to come up on deck for any reason, but she'd never been good at following directions. Once it had become obvious that the people chasing them were friends of Leo and Xavier - she'd heard every word of the conversation they'd been shouting back and forth - she'd managed to relax. At least as much as she could relax with the memory of Leo's kiss on her lips. Her face still felt flushed, and the heat of him lingered on her mouth. The way he'd grabbed her like that, the way his lips had fallen on hers with such hunger, even desperation...When she started to hear words like "treasure" and "solid lead" mentioned in the shouting match above, her interest had been piqued again. This was much better than drugs or smuggling. Leo was a treasure hunter! That had to be the sexiest, most exciting profession she'd ever heard of. And a whole lot of things were starting to make sense.Leo was gaping at her like he was actually shocked that his secret was out - but what had he
In sight of Willemstad, CuraçaoThey'd made good time to Willemstad, Curaçao, and Leo was pissed.He was pissed at the wind, which had been strong and steady the whole way across the open water. He was pissed at the boat, for being so inconveniently fast. He was pissed at a lot of things, really, and none of his complaints were logical. These last few days of sailing across the Caribbean with Xavier and Ruby had gone by too fast.It didn't help that he'd often caught Xavier grinning at him. Right now, his teammate looked like he was on the verge of laughter."Try not to break something, buddy," Xavier said. "Or hurt yourself. I'll need your help when we reach the marina."Leo muttered something noncommittal and turned back toward the water. Behind them, their teammates' boat was easily staying in their wake. Ahead of them, Willemstad, Curaçao had come into view. Just above the eastern horizon, the morning sun shone on them as cheerful as could be.He hated that fucking cheerful s