She'd had a bad night. Emotionally. Physically. In every possible way. She knew what was waiting for her when she opened her eyes. She wanted to be grateful, but fuck them all, she wasn't. It was their fault she was a pitiful wretch of a human being to begin with; a frail ghost who was too useless to function without an army of prescription pills and vitamins. Speaking of which¡ she managed to crack an eye open to survey the dim lighting of her bedroom. Oh, thank goodness, the maid had left the blinds closed. Alonzo must have warned her about Casey's terrible night.She shifted carefully under the blankets, as much as she dared, and snaked an arm out, reaching for the plastic cup on the table next to her bed. Just as her fingers closed around the smooth surface, slippery with condensation, Alonzo's voice rumbled from the doorway, interrupting her peace, "Take the meds as well, Mrs. Hernandez."Casey flinched and nearly lost her hold on the precious drink. She slapped her other hand
Casey hadn't thought about the man in over six months. It took her a second to realize who he was when he suddenly appeared next to her in the pouring rain, on the pool deck, water dripping down his tanned face and running into his collar. She was damp herself, but sitting comfortably underneath her patio umbrella lounge set. Her fearful gaze flickered toward Alonzo, who was standing underneath the overhang of the towel cabana. He didn't move or indicate in any way that she might be in danger of the man standing arrogantly next to her, as though he had every right to invade her space, so she figured she was safe enough.She looked back up and forced herself to try to remember him. Her memory was not always the best, not since the car accident that had cracked her skull open ten years ago. Sometimes she had difficulty remembering things, which seemed to annoy people. Her bad memory coupled with her sometimes impulsive words and other little quirks tended to get her in trouble."You're a
"When do we make our move?" Alejandro asked, leaning against the doorframe of Reyes' Plaza condominium. He'd rented an entire suite for himself and two more for his right hand and the rest of the guys."Soon," Reyes grunted, flicking him a look, daring him to keep talking.Alejandro was as good as a brother, but some lines were not to be crossed. This one question was the only one that would be allowed. Reyes would set the date and time when he was ready. He knew the guys were talking about his hesitation. So far, the talk had not crossed any lines into dangerous territory or Reyes would have had to deal with his own men. But he knew he would have to act soon, before his hesitation to act swiftly and brutally on the Miami front was perceived as weakness. He just wasn't certain yet what to do about the woman. He needed more information and so far, getting that information was harder than getting into a bank vault. His private meeting with her had not gone down as he'd hoped. He thought
Casey laughed out loud, amusement animating her features when Reyes pulled up outside the club. She waited for him to come around to her side of the car and open the door for her. She raised a pale eyebrow at him as he took her arm. "Why are you bringing me here again?" she asked with another laugh. "You didn't get enough of this tacky place last time we were here?""I wanted to have you here again, just you and me. Now we can talk like we should've done the first time we met. You'll class the place up, nena." His low chuckle sent a thrill through her body and she turned toward him, helplessly drawn to his power. She was slightly taller than him in her four inch Luis Vuitton heels. Though he wasn't a massive man in comparison to her bodyguard, he exuded raw Latin masculinity, the type that Ignacio had always tried so hard to express but failed at on every level. She suspected from the lean flexing of his hands and throat that a tough musculature roped his body beneath the tastefully
His dark eyes studied her intently as she spoke. Then he ignored her question and reached to touch her face. She jerked in her seat, but he just leaned forward, persisting. He brushed the hair off her forehead and tapped two fingers against the edge of her eyebrow. "How'd you get this?" he asked with a slight frown.He dropped his hand to her shoulder, cupping her as though he had every right to touch her so casually. Her heart thumped in both anticipation and trepidation at his touch and she had to take several calming breaths. She wasn't used to being touched so much. If he kept this up she was likely to pass out at his feet from all the gasping and heart stuttering. She had to force her brain to keep up with his words. He wanted to know about her face? Ah… right, the scar."A car accident," she told him. "I have other scars."He reached for her lap, picked up her hand and curved it so they could both clearly see the shiny scarred "H" on the back. She shuddered and shook her head.
"I understand," she whispered. Then she sighed, her breath rushing across his lips in an unconscious invitation. His hands tightened on her arm and chin until she flinched in his hold and he was forced to set her back along the seat in the booth.He nodded slightly and kept his arm around the top, near her head, as though ready to reach for her if she tried to bolt. Which wasn't far from the truth. She was exhausted and ready to go home. The anxiety and intensity of her emotions were becoming overwhelming. She didn't know how much more she could take. She really didn't understand why Ignacio was allowing this to happen to her. He'd never allowed other men this close before. She understood the need to keep Bolivia happy, but when had keeping a business contact happy meant allowing them to take his wife out to a club?"Now tell me about the accident," he demanded.She shrugged and reached for her orange juice, desperately wishing it was something stronger. She wondered what he would d
"Fuck that woman," Reyes growled, downing a generous drink straight from the bottle before slamming it on the table.Casey Hernandez was dangerous. She was testing his calm. She was driving him to drink.He strode to the window and glared into the night. His meeting with her had not gone as he'd planned. Instead of clarifying things, he'd found himself more confused, more entangled. She was an infuriating mixture of world-weary siren and stunted half-child that never grew up. When she'd flat out told him that her husband hadn't touched her in over a year, he'd damn near torn her clothes off and fucked her right there in the booth, despite the few hundred witnesses swarming around them and her bodyguard a few feet away.Then she'd given him the one gift he couldn't refuse, the one thing that was guaranteed to save her life in all this. She'd promised him loyalty. Well, not him. But as good as. She'd given her loyalty to Ignacio Hernandez, a disgusting pig of a man. One of the poorest
Casey woke to the beautiful aroma of subtle, flowery perfume. A smile curved her lips and she sighed, stretching under her blankets, enjoying the smoothness of her sheets against bare legs and arms. She usually wore light cotton sleep shorts and a tank top to bed. Not very sexy, but it didn't matter since she slept alone. She enjoyed the comfort and she liked the feel of her fluffy quilt wrapped around her body.Today was one of those mornings where she preferred to wake up slowly and allow the day to creep in with soothing sluggishness. She wiggled her face against the blanket, enjoying the softness against her cheek. The lovely sweet smell wafted around her, tantalizing her and drifting softly next to her face. Her lashes fluttered open and she forced herself to focus on the thing that had touched her.It was a petal. Like from a flower. She untangled her arms from the blanket and pushed herself up on an elbow, reaching for it. She picked up the silky rose petal and rubbed it betwe
Alejandro resented being put on babysitting duty. The woman had been on her own for years. There was no reason she couldn't board an airplane and make her own way to the meeting point with her cousin. But Casey hadn't wanted Angelina to fly alone. She'd wanted her cousin to feel taken care of, special. So, as the most trusted person on Reyes' payroll he'd been appointed her official escort.He stepped off the airplane and into the cool, sunny day. He brought a hand up to shade his eyes, looking around. He saw a car and assumed it must be her ride since it was the only one on the tarmac. He strode toward the vehicle just as the back door opened and a long, curvy leg slid out, then the rest of her. She gripped the edge of the door and stood, looking around uncertainly.If he hadn't had years of combat and military training he might have stumbled. Angelina Giancarro was perfection. From the top of her flyaway blond hair to the bottom of her heeled sandals. She clung to the car door as i
Alejandro flung her into another room. She'd been marched through the sterile halls of the prison building in such a hurry that she couldn't tell at all where she was until she got a good look around. His office. There was a large desk, impeccably tidy with an ashtray for his cigars. She smiled fondly, tilting her head so her hair covered her expression. He didn't need to see the peace on her face while he was in such a towering rage. Actually, worry was probably a more accurate emotion to describe her love. Only he didn't know how to do worry, so anger was the next best thing, as evidenced by his next words and actions. First, he used his hand to wipe her all around her mouth, though she knew there was nothing there. Then he gripped her arms in a hard hold and snarled, "The poison, Gina. What kind?""Cyanide," she told him right away and cringed when he slammed his fist into the desk next to her hip. She placed a shaking hand against his chest and said quietly, "I'll be fine. He di
"No," Alejandro said coldly. "Get back in the jeep, turn around and wait for me at home."Gina stared up at her formidable husband in dismay. He was wearing his military-style fatigues and his face looked as though it was carved from stone, there was no softness for his wife. She hadn't anticipated this barrier to see the prisoner once she had permission from his boss. Of course, the prisoner and prison fell under Alejandro's jurisdiction, so he could stop her from having this visit if he wanted."Please, Alejandro," she begged him. "I need to see him.""No," Alejandro said coldly, steel threading his voice, "you don't. I've been back for two days and you haven't come to see me.""That isn't fair!" she cried. "I thought you were avoiding me. I didn't want to push myself on you if you didn't want to see me. I was trying to be…""What?" he demanded, pushing himself against her and backing her into a concrete wall. She clutched the muffin tin against her chest and lifted her chin.
"Drop it!" Gina yelped.She heaved a sigh of relief as the muffin hit the floor and bent over to scoop it up, tossing it in the trash. She placed a new chocolate chip raspberry muffin in Casey's palm and whirled around the side of her kitchen island to check on the batch still in the oven. They were rising beautifully, the tops baking to a lovely golden brown."You want to tell me what that was about?" Casey asked suspiciously, peeling the paper away from the base of her still warm muffin. She took a big bite, closing her eyes in what looked like ecstasy."Uh, nope," Gina mumbled, mixing another batch in a big metal bowl."My god," Casey moaned, licking her lips. "You suck at hand-to-hand combat, weapons and pretty much anything else self-defence related, but damn girl, you can bake! Can I take some up to the main house for Reyes and the housekeeping staff?" Gina laughed, covered her hand in an oven mitt and took the trays out of the oven, making room for her next batch. She chew
"Do you have arsenic?" Gina asked, leafing absently through a cookbook."What on Earth for?" Casey asked, stacking supplies on the counter. "What else do you need?"Gina leaned over and checked the muffin recipe. "Creamed butter and milk."Casey opened the stainless-steel door of her refrigerator and stuck her head inside. "Don't have creamed butter, just the regular kind, but here's the milk."Gina laughed and reached around her cousin for the butter. "The regular kind will work just fine. I can cream it myself. You really need to learn how to cook."Casey backed out of the fridge with a key lime pie held in her arms like a prize of war. She looked around for her housekeeper and danced toward the drawer for forks, handing one to Gina. "Haven't needed to cook for myself since… well, since I've been alive. Why learn now?"Gina frowned. Casey had a point. She tilted her head to the side and ate a bite of pie. "Well do you at least know how to use a can opener in case of a zombie ap
Gina moaned and tried to roll onto her side, but something stopped her. She reached out, sliding her hand across the silky bamboo sheets. Where had the fluffy blankets gone? Then something intensely pleasurable shifted her thoughts away from any other musings. She tried to sit up so she could see what was happening, but a huge hand reached out and palmed between her breasts, shoving her back down. She hit the pillows behind her while the sensation of a tongue working magic directly between her legs increased until she was moaning helplessly and reaching over her head to grasp hold of something, anything, as an orgasm built.Just as she thought she would shatter into a thousand pieces he shifted, changing his attack tempo and forcing her budding orgasm to calm. She whimpered in misery and reached out to grasp his hair, "No!" she yelled, tugging at the strands. "Almost there, don't stop!"He chuckled against her, vibrating her clitoris with his deep voice. He took her wrists in his han
The meal Casey had asked the chef to prepare was indeed a feast worthy of their wedding day and seeing the pleased look on Gina's face as they lifted their glasses to toast the bride and groom, Alejandro was glad that he hadn't just dragged her back to his home. She deserved every happiness possible, even if it meant he had to wait a little longer to bury himself in the woman he'd spent a year pining over. Hell, it had been a year since he'd touched any woman, period. It was like the moment he met Gina, his dick was no longer interested in anyone else. And Alejandro was old enough, experienced enough to get the message. Gina was forever material. The type of woman a man waited for. Did not take for granted by fucking around on. Even if she never knew the depth of his feelings until he was ready to declare himself.So, he lifted his glass, toasted, smiled and laughed alongside his bride and the rest of the family. He spent two hours accepting congratulations, talking, eating and listen
Alejandro wanted to tear La Paz apart stone by stone until he had the man responsible for his woman's abduction. Though he knew if Reyes was correct in his assumption that the person behind this mess was as much a heavy as themselves, then the likelihood of his being in Bolivia was slim. This was the reason he kept sending amateurs in. Which was why Alejandro kept getting lucky. If his enemy, whoever he was, got smarter, Alejandro might not continue this lucky streak. He needed to be more careful now that he had more than himself to think of."I can practically read your thoughts, amigo," Reyes said from beside him. They were travelling in the back of one of the armoured SUV's to the meeting point to pick up the women. "Your anger will make you reckless."Alejandro grunted and cracked his neck to the side to relieve some of the pressure. He'd had to make short work of killing the priest. It hadn't been nearly as satisfying as it would've been if he'd had the time to do a proper job.
Two men entered through the door, their street clothes and tattoos pronouncing them thugs. Gina shuddered and flinched back when one of them reached for her. She lifted her hand instinctively to fight him off, but Selena said sharply, "Don't fight back, girl." Gina caught her eye and read between the lines, fight later when we have an advantage. She immediately dropped her hands. It took every ounce of self-control to let the man drag her into his body, to allow him to grab her by the face, yank on her hair and leer down at her, all while licking his lips and rubbing himself on her."Luego," the other man said, snapping his fingers at the guy holding Gina. Awesome, she thought, vomit rising in her throat, he just gave the guy holding her permission to fuck her later. He tossed a stack of bills at the priest and dragged Selena toward the open door. Gina was pushed out the door too and into a car similar to the one that was used to attack her and Alejandro the night before.As she was