Sinful Seduction (7 page)

Blue tried to shove the thought away so he wouldn’t get another hard-on. Now was not the time to think about the short summer dress she was wearing. Or the visible thin straps of the black bikini tied around the back of her neck. All he’d been able to think about was what she would look like wearing just that two-piece suit. Hiding his erection from her had been impossible. She’d pretended not to notice but her face had flushed before she’d laid her head on his chest.

“Your place is beautiful, I didn’t even realize this neighborhood existed,” Mina said to Carter as she glanced over at their neighbors’ docks. Six stretched out next to them, all sporting similar sized boats.

“Yeah, it’s our little slice of paradise,” Carter said, clearly proud and Blue didn’t blame him. He knew what real estate went for in Miami and could only guess what this place was worth. Which told him that the Foley brothers were doing well for themselves.

“Will I get to meet your brother?” Mina asked, much more at ease than she had been when they’d made their covert escape from her condo.

“If you two join us for dinner tonight you will.” Carter looked at Blue, eyebrows raised.

Blue hadn’t discussed anything with Mina past this water excursion. She hadn’t said one way or another whether she wanted to hire Red Stone and he hadn’t pushed. Carter had stopped by Blue’s place to grab a bag of clothes for him before picking them up. Then they’d come straight here. Blue didn’t want Mina going back to her place at all, at least for the time being, but he wasn’t sure how to bring it up. He was still getting to know her and he wanted to tread carefully with this situation so it didn’t seem like he was taking over everything.

Before Blue could answer, Carter continued. “Y’all should just stay here anyway, at least for the night. With the threat right now, going back there isn’t safe.”

Swiveling from his friend, Mina pushed her sunglasses back on her head and eyed Blue questioningly. “Is that what you think we should do?”

Okay, she wasn’t completely shooting the idea down. That was good. “It doesn’t have to be here, but until you hire full time security and until we get a handle on who wants to kidnap you, it would be smart to put some distance between you and your place. I know it’s secure but if they get desperate enough they might attempt to breach your condo anyway.” Even if they failed in taking her, there was always a chance she’d get hurt.

She bit her bottom lip and nodded slowly. “I was hoping I’d have heard back from my dad by now, but…” She sighed. “Yeah, okay, I’ll need more of my stuff, but that’s definitely smarter. I just hate that someone is driving me from my home.”

Carter clapped Blue on the shoulder as he stepped toward the back of the boat. “Just have Blue text us what you need and my brother will pack you a bag. If you want to stay here you’re more than welcome. We’ve got two extra rooms.”

Mina looked uncomfortable at that, probably because she didn’t want anyone going through her belongings, or maybe because she didn’t want to give her security code out, but she nodded. “Okay.”

“I know you’re armed, but there’s extra hardware down below. Check under the pop up bench in the stateroom,” Carter murmured only loud enough for Blue to hear before jumping onto the dock and beginning the process of untying the boat for them.

Blue had come more than prepared but was relieved to hear he had backup weapons if necessary. Not surprising considering the Foley brothers’ military record.

As soon as Carter was out of earshot, Blue looked at Mina. “We don’t have to stay here.”

“No, you guys are right. And…I officially want to hire Red Stone. I keep expecting my dad to call, but this is on me. I’ve got to take charge of this. I just don’t know how to go about hiring them. Should I call directly or…” She looked so lost as she stared at him and all he wanted to do was pull her into his arms.

“If you want to hire Red Stone then you can go back to your place tonight. We can still have dinner with Carter and Chris, but we’ll meet the team this evening. Nothing has to change for your work schedule.” Which he knew was important to her. “I’ll talk to Harrison and set it up. I think you should start with a team of six. What do you think?” When she blinked at him, looking like a deer caught in headlights, he shook his head. “We’ll start with six, but they should get a bead on these guys soon.” He had absolute faith in the computer specialists and it wasn’t like the men who had attempted to kidnap her were stalkers. A stalker was an entirely different beast whereas paid kidnappers usually wouldn’t risk their lives if a job went south. They would just pull out.

“Okay.” She stood there for a brief moment, watching him with an expression he couldn’t begin to read. Taking him completely by surprise she wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a tight hug. “Thank you for all you’re doing. I’m embarrassed that I don’t know how to handle all this stuff.”

Savoring the feel of her lean body against his once again, he wrapped his arms tight around her. If Carter wasn’t so close Blue would be tempted to take this into more than a hug—even though he knew he shouldn’t. He inhaled her sweet tropical scent before reminding himself that he had to be more professional now. If she was hiring Red Stone, she was a job. Okay, she was a hell of a lot more than a job, but if he was going to be lead on her team, he had to act like it. And that meant not crossing any lines.

* * *

Mina sat on the bucket seat behind the wheel while the twin engine boat idled quietly in the water. Alex, who was currently inside the cabin, had been an impressive driver, clearly understanding the GPS system and everything else on the dashboard as he navigated them out to open water. She could steer a boat and that was about it. She also knew this particular vessel wasn’t cheap so it was impressive the brothers had just let her and Alex take it out.

While she waited, Mina played with the hem of her dress as she fought her stupid internal battle. She hadn’t been naked with a man in longer than she cared to admit and while she didn’t plan to get naked now, her bathing suit was skimpier than her normal underclothes. Finally she just locked her insecurities up and slipped her dress over her head. She was going to have to take it off once they got to the reef so she might as well do it now.

She plucked the sunscreen from the cup holder next to Alex’s bottle of water. He’d told her they were almost at their destination and even though it was weird to not be working during the day, it was a relief to get out of her condo. With the stress of kidnappers out there she wouldn’t have wanted to be cooped up inside all day anyway.

Popping open the top of the bottle, she started smoothing sunscreen on her arms and legs, but kept scanning the area for any newcomers. She knew Alex was keeping watch too through the interior windows, probably more diligently than her, but she couldn’t just not pay attention when she knew a threat was out there. Even if the threat had no clue where she was.

“Everything’s all set.” Alex’s deep voice made her swivel toward the open cabin doors a few feet away from her. He stood there wearing plain blue swim trunks and nothing else. A rush of heat zipped up her spine as she drank in the sight of him. There couldn’t be any fat on him. He was all sharp, cut lines and striations of perfection. The rise and fall of his chest was unsteady as he watched her. He wasn’t looking below her neck, but it didn’t matter. She might as well be naked for the hunger the man was emanating for her.

Instinctively she wrapped her arms around herself, feeling self-conscious. Maybe she shouldn’t have taken her dress off. Now she was suddenly aware of how little clothing both of them had on—and how little restraint she had left when it came to Alex. She wished she could find the courage to make a move, but couldn’t squash old insecurities.

Dispelling any ideas she might have to do just that, Alex looked away, his jaw tight. He rubbed a hand over his short hair. “We’re almost to that reef if you want to grab some fins and a mask down below. I already laid mine out, but I wasn’t sure what size your feet were.” Without waiting for a response, he went to the wheel and gently moved the boat from neutral to drive, giving it a little gas as he steered them forward.

And that was that.

Feeling out of sorts, she stepped into the luxurious cabin and saw his fins and mask on the shiny wood tabletop of the dining area. Next to it was a small opening and stairs, likely leading to the stateroom. On that wall was a half-open door. She could see lifejackets and a mesh bag full of diving and snorkeling equipment. Good quality stuff, too.

After finding what she needed, she gathered both Alex’s stuff and hers and headed back up top. As she stepped outside, he was slowing down. “Looks like we’re not alone today.”

Following his line of sight she saw there were five other boats, most were smaller than theirs, anchored in shallow looking water. “Is this the reef?”

“Yeah, Carter said mostly locals come here. We’ve got five known boats right now. If anyone else arrives and we don’t like the way they look, we’ll head out.”

“That sounds good to me,” she said as she set their masks and fins on the deck. “Would you mind putting sunscreen on my back?” She felt nervous asking, but she wasn’t going to risk burning because of nerves.

Nodding, he cleared his throat as he retrieved the bottle. Turning, anticipation hummed through her as she waited to feel his big hands on her bare skin. She gathered her long hair together and pulled it to her front so it was out of his way. As the boat quietly idled, water lapped against the side of it, the salty scent permeating the air as she practically held her breath.

Lap, lap, lap.

It seemed an eternity passed before one of his hands smoothed lotion over the top of her back. She couldn’t help it, she let out a little shudder at the feel of his callused fingers tracing over her. It didn’t matter that there was nothing sexual about it, she liked him touching her. Heat flooded between her legs as he rubbed over her skin. Moving quickly, too quickly it seemed, he spread the sunscreen over her back, underneath the back tie of her top and over her shoulders. And was that her imagination or had his breathing increased too?

“All done,” he rasped out. Oh yeah, he was definitely breathing harder.

When she turned around to face him, his back was to her. “Would you mind putting some on my back too?”

Swallowing hard, she nodded, then realized he couldn’t see her. “No problem.” She sounded a lot more steady than she felt. Her fingers actually shook as she squeezed the lotion into them. And when she started slathering it across the wide expanse of all those muscles, she had to actively stop herself from rubbing lower, lower… Her fingers skimmed the top of his swim trunks and she realized he was completely rigid. Like a statue.

“All done,” she finally muttered as she practically shoved the bottle at him. Her face felt as if it were on fire. God, she’d been about to keep going until she felt all that deliciousness under his trunks. What was the matter with her? Had she actually planned to grab his ass and molest him? She needed to get herself under control now. This was simply sexual frustration. That’s all.
Right.
Even she couldn’t convince herself of that. It wasn’t just any man who could make her react like this. No, it seemed Alex had turned her into this quivering mass of nerves.

Half-turning away from him, she scanned the wide open ocean again. Still just five boats. “Do we need to move in closer or are we good here?” At least her voice sounded steady when she asked.

“We’re fine anchored here. It’s all shallow and sandy-bottomed until it drops off into a reef. Look over the side. We can just walk to the reef.” He didn’t sound the least bit affected from her fingers on him, which made her feel stupid.

Unable to look at him, she grabbed her fins, mask and jumped over the side instead of using the back ladder. There was no point when it was so shallow, but mainly she just needed some distance from him. Fast. The clear blue water was warm, but still had a wonderful cooling affect on her overheated nerves. Ducking under, she savored the feel of the salty water and the sweltering sun overhead kissing her skin.

As she came out of it, Blue was standing right in front of her, the water coming up to his waist. She hadn’t even heard him get in. Talk about stealth. She sucked in a quick breath at his close proximity. His eyes were unreadable as he watched her, but when his gaze briefly dipped to her breasts, she saw that flash of lust that mirrored her own. Just as quickly it was gone and disappointment flooded her. “Stay close, I don’t want to be too far from the boat.” His tone was brusque as he started wading through the water.

But she didn’t take offense to it, she understood he was being vigilant. As they started heading for the reef two other boats roared up from the other direction and they both froze. The boats were too far away to see their occupants without binoculars and even though she doubted anyone knew where they were, a thread of panic twined through her.

“Come on.” Alex took her hand and moved them toward the back of the boat. He tossed their fins and masks inside as they half swam, half walked to the ladder. “Let’s just wait a minute,” he murmured, his gaze on the newcomers who were moving closer and closer to where they were anchored.

The clear water around them grew choppier as they reached the back. Taking her by surprise, Alex grabbed her by the waist and set her up on the flat back area. But he barely glanced at her. Instead, he placed an almost absent hand on her knee, as if telling her to stay put, while he peered around the side of the boat.