The cold outside matches the temperature of the blood running through my veins even though I'm still wearing Graham's coat and we've been inside the Pelican Bay police station for over an hour. Detective Anderson from last night asked every question under the sun involving Dwight and working at the bed-and-breakfast. My whole life was laid before everyone.I've been less than helpful. Not because I'm still in shock — which I am — or because I have any loyalties, but I had no idea. Sure, Dwight was a bit strange, but I never thought he could be a drug kingpin of Pelican Bay. I never saw that coming. Who would?A shiver racks my body and Graham pulls me in close, rubbing his hand up and down my arm."I promise we're almost done here," the detective says, scratching a few of my last words on a piece of paper in front of him. "Is there anything else you can think of before we finish?"I shake my head with a double shrug. "I'm sorry.""Cammie never said anything to you or gave you
"Everyone knew you were working for him." For an undercover spy he was horrible at hiding his identity."That part didn't matter. I needed a reason to be here. He needed somebody with a reasonable explanation for a long stay. He was tracking the bed-and-breakfast for months but had been unable to find any concrete information. My job was to poke around when no one was looking."Of all the information I've learned tonight — from Dwight running a drug business and my friend Cammie being somehow involved — Graham's lies hurt the worst. I want to lash out at someone or something. Preferably him. I thought we had something special. We were building a relationship, but the only thing Graham cared about was building a case."So, you pretended to like me because you needed information about the bed-and-breakfast?"He scoots closer on the bed, throwing his legs over the side to get as near me as possible without touching. "No. I will fully admit you were a possible subject, just like ev
One year later*Graham*A breeze picks up on the street and blows Tara's hair behind her. Jasper, our Labrador puppy — who isn't so much a puppy anymore — tugs at the leash headed home."He would not make it in Maine," I say watching the sixty-pound dog tug at Tara's hand. Any time the temperature falls below forty we cut our walks shorts, but living in the city is hard and he needs exercise. Across the bay the lights of San Francisco twinkle.How much has changed in one simple year? Tara and I moved to California so I could work at the new branch in San Francisco, but rather than live in the overpriced city, we decided to stay in another overpriced city, Sausalito. Jasper came a few months later. At this time of night most people have cleared the streets as the temperature falls, but a few of the art galleries that drew Tara to this piece of land over the bridge are still open.Going back to work at a hotel was something Tara wasn't ready to do yet, but after we settled in a
VOLUME FIVE: QUICKEST RISK"Don't die. Please don't die." I smooth my hands along one of her curves. "Please, baby, not now."Steam rises from the edges of the hood. Gentle petting turns to angry hits on her dashboard as the car vibrates so strongly I'm forced to pull over to the side of the road."No! No! No!" Why me? Why, why, me?Is this Karma? Have I pissed off a Voodoo Queen somewhere? All those motivational speakers go on about how when one door closes, another opens, but there's no freaking doors in sight. The only thing visible for as far as I can see is cacti, dirt, and sand. So much sand.I bang my head on the steering wheel. Whose bright idea was it to come out to the desert in the first place?Right.Mine.No one has ever accused me, Hannah Stoneman, of being a brainiac.The car rolls to a stop, the engine giving out. It putters and croaks one last metal-on-metal clanking sound that can only mean final death. With one last lurch forward, we settle on the s
"I'm so sorry," she says, and she does look upset.Not that it does me any good."Whatever. Thanks." I hike my backpack higher on my shoulder and turn, stomping my way out of the lobby. Fuck how childish it looks. Anything is better than crying or stepping on the jerk's foot as I walk out. If he hadn't sped past me on the way in, I would have gotten the last room.The hot Nevada air assaults my face when the door opens and I take my first step outside — a not-so-pleasant reminder I have no water. Or food. Or sunscreen.The bell attached to the door dings again, and I turn back to watch the asshole who got the last room step onto the sidewalk. "Hey, wait up."What now? I stop and scowl in his general direction. "What?"The man smiles. Who knows what he's so happy about, other than having a room when I don't. Big blue eyes sparkle in the midday sun. That coupled with the dirty blond hair and a dominating presence makes him hot. And not in a temperature way."Looks like you
The waitress sets down three tall glasses of water, all filled to the brim with ice. Luk grabs a glass closer to his side of the table like I'm a wild animal who will cut his arm off if he touches my water.Okay, it's not that far from the truth. The other two glasses end up on each side of me, leaving room for the plate of food that has yet to be delivered. A restaurant that serves breakfast twenty-four hours a day and an ice maker. The Last Chance isn't so bad.Of course, I'm eating this meal with a man who walks around with a bag of guns. After Lukis finished unloading his sacks of destruction, he had three reasonably-sized guns lying on the bed. And when I say reasonably, I mean they were regular-sized. Still big, and guns, but not so big and scary I wanted to run away with my arms flailing... much. There's a double-barrel shotgun I'm pretty sure people only use in Westerns, and the most reasonable of the pack is a tiny black pistol. He laid them all out on the bedspread like t
I pull the material of my slinky swimsuit up to my waist and then take a deep breath, letting it out slowly. Making my chest and lungs as small as possible, I shimmy the suit past my boobs and wrap each arm through the holes. I love this swimsuit even if it's a bitch to get over my hips. It's a one piece, but there's boning inside the torso that pushes up my boobs and sucks in my stomach. If I could handle not breathing for so long, I'd wear it underneath my clothes every day of the week.And while I don't consider myself overweight, there's nothing that makes you feel like a fat ass more than waking up next to a guy who spends way more time in the gym than you do. Since I spend no time in the gym. I've always been a little proud of my curves, but the only thing curvy on Lukis is the dips where his abs form.True to what he said, Lukis remained respectfully on his side of the bed last night. In fact, he laid down straight on his back with his arm set to his sides and passed out. I
Even though the temperature is already soaring at 8:30 in the morning, no other families gather at the pool. Apparently, all those men surveying the mines don't feel like in a dip before the workday starts. Is Lukis here to spy on one of them? Is something dangerous going on in the mines?Either way, it is not my problem. I plan to sit in the sun, burn off the top layer of epidermis, and figure out what in the heck I'll do with my life and how I will get home.Lukis isn't a guy I can bum a ride from out of here. I lay the towel over the lounge chair and spread my body out on top. The backpack slides under the chair to keep it out of the sun's rays, and I take out one water bottle for easy access. My eyes flutter closed. I didn't get much sleep last night since I woke up every few minutes with lots of tossing and turning. That's what happens when you're sleeping next to a hot guy who promises he'll stay within his half of the bed but you aren't sure if you can trust him. Or if you w