Blanca turned her head to look at me, and we were so close I could hear her breathing accelerate. “I’m sure I was imagining things,” she said before looking away.
“Tell me what it was.”
She shook her head.
“Just tell me.”
“There was a man trying to make conversation with me. He left abruptly, and then I swear I saw him standing on the bridge we went under before the last one.” Her eyes met mine again. “Crazy, right?”
“Could’ve been someone who looked like him.”
“That’s more likely.” She pulled out her phone. “I took a photo, but it’s grainy.”
“Mind if I take a look?”
Her hands were still shaky, so I took the phone from her when she held it up.
“Hard to make out whether it’s even a man or a woman,” I commented, although I knew exactly who the man on the bridge was. “No need to worry, though.” I flexed my other arm. “Ranger and I will protect you.” When I smiled, so did she.
“I can see why my sister liked you.”
Being on Blanca’s detail meant I had to temper my response whenever she mentioned Sofia and particularly my relationship with her, so I did my best not to react. I could tell, though, that it hadn’t been enough.
After our boat ride, Blanca, Ranger, and I shared a cab back to our hotels which, as she’d said, were across the street from one another. On the way, I received an update from Wasp, saying he and Trap still had their eyes on Hatchet and his current twenty was in Essex County, at least an hour from where we were.
Since Diesel had swept Blanca’s hotel room, placed our own surveillance in it, and was staked out in the one next door, I had no qualms about her heading there on her own.
“How’s eight for dinner?” I asked as I walked her into the lobby.
“I’m kind of tired—”
“Seven, then? Or would you like to go earlier?”
She looked at her watch. “It’s six now.”
“Name the time, and I’ll make reservations.”
“How about seven thirty?”
“Meet you back here at seven fifteen.”
Instead, I arrived at seven and ordered a drink from the bar. The lobby was small, so from where I sat, I could easily see Blanca exit the elevator.
I made use of the time by mentally assessing the team. Ranger and Swan were staked out near the restaurant I’d chosen. Wasp sent another report that Hatchet’s twenty hadn’t changed, and once Blanca came downstairs and the town car I’d made arrangements for arrived, Buster would be our driver for the evening.
Over dinner, I planned to get Blanca to tell me what Hatchet had said to her, but not at the expense of adding to her anxiety. Since my intention was to spend as much time with her as I could, we’d eventually have that conversation.
I took a sip of my drink and rolled my shoulders. My muscles were stiff from lack of exercise, like they had been when I was at my parents’ place. Once we got to the lake, I had to get back into my regular routine, or I’d wind up in too much pain to be helpful if Blanca was in danger.
I heard the ding of the elevator, looked up, and saw her take a step out. She faced the street, her back to me, but I had no complaints about the view. The woman, from any direction, was a walking goddess. Her long dark hair had more red highlights in it than Sofia’s had and hung down her back in soft curls that made me want to weave my fingers in them.
The way her white dress clung to her full, round, perky ass made me want to cup those perfect cheeks with my palms. She spun around on her stiletto heels and smiled when she saw me studying her.
I stood and walked in her direction, holding out my hand when we were close enough that she could take it.
“You’re stunning.”
“Thank you.” Her cheeks, pink from spending the afternoon in the sun and on the water, grew more so, and her beautiful smile spread across her face.
The halter-style dress she wore made her already bigger-than-average breasts look even larger. It was all I could do not to tear my gaze from hers and look down at them.
“Ready?” I asked when I saw Buster pull up out front.
She looked around the bar area. “Where’s Ranger?”
“He won’t be joining us.”
“Oh.”
Was that disappointment I heard in her voice? Was her only reason for getting so dolled up to impress him? It sure as hell wouldn’t have been for me, now would it? As far as Blanca was concerned, I was her dead sister’s boyfriend.
“I’ll do my best to be a worthy second choice as your dinner companion,” I said, winking through my discomfort.
“Second choice? Um, no, that isn’t what I meant. I just…”
“It’s okay. I understand. He reminds you of his brother, Jimmy.”
Blanca laughed and put her arm through mine. “That isn’t what I meant either, but it doesn’t matter.”
We’d been in the town car for several minutes, me studying her while her focus was on the views we passed by.
“I’m surprised you didn’t ask where we were going.”
“Hmm?” She turned toward me. “I’m sure wherever you’ve chosen will be lovely.”
If they didn’t look so much alike, I would’ve questioned whether Blanca and Sofia were even related. The twin seated beside me wasn’t just warmer, calmer, more alluring; she possessed a grace I hadn’t witnessed in her sister.
“What took you to Europe?”
She sat against the seat and looked down at her hands. “It was the farthest place from home I could come up with at the time.”
“Where specifically?”
“Italy. I must’ve watched Under the Tuscan Sun thirty times when I was a teenager. I was obsessed.”
“Is that where you stayed the whole time you were over there?”
“For the most part. I traveled around quite a bit for my work.”
“Which is?”
Her cheeks flushed again. “I’m a writer.”
“What do you write?”
Blanca turned her head toward the window. “Fiction, mainly.”
“You gonna make me drag it out of you, sis?”
“It isn’t that interesting, honestly.”
I leaned closer. “Let me guess. You write that Fifty Shades stuff?”
“Not quite.”
“Okay. You don’t want to tell me now. I’ll get it out of you later.” I rested my hand on the seat between us like hers was and brushed her pinky with mine. “Just joshing. I’ll stop buggin’ you.”
“It’s a little racier than that.”
“Wait. What? It’s racier?”
Blanca raised her chin. “Yes.”
“Well, damn, sis. Can I read it?”
She laughed out loud, and, wow, it was a beautiful sound. “Maybe someday.”
“You write under a pseudonym or your own name?”
“I’ll never tell.”
“Damn, girl…” What? What could I say to her? I wish I’d known you before your twin because I think you’re the prettiest, smartest, sexiest woman I’ve ever met? Fuck. This was a major Charlie Foxtrot, if there ever was one.
“Are you okay?”
“Yep. Fine and dandy. Hey, if you loved Italy, then I think you’re going to enjoy where we’re having dinner.”
When we pulled up to the most exclusive hardest-to-snag-a-reservation-at restaurant in all of New York City, Blanca’s mouth dropped open.
“You’re kidding. We aren’t really eating here.”
“Sure, we are.”
“Why? How?”
The owner of the restaurant was someone I used to pilot for occasionally. Since I had no intention of telling Blanca why I wouldn’t be returning to that particular career, I kept my answer simple. “I know a guy.”
The food was amazing. I was sure of it. Not that I remembered a thing about it. I could, however, remember every word Blanca uttered, every smile, and every nuance in the way she angled her neck and lean
ed in whenever I spoke.
Instead of talking about my job—present or former were both off-limits—I told her about growing up in California and all the trouble my brothers and I used to get into.
Blanca didn’t say much about Sofia, probably for the same reason I didn’t talk about work, but somehow, the conversation never stopped.
I did a double take on the time I read on my watch, incredulous that it was almost eleven.
“I’ve kept you up past your bedtime,” I said when she pushed the crème brûlée we’d shared toward me and I took the last bite.
“What would you say if I told you I wasn’t ready for our night to end?”
7
Blanca
As soon as I said the words, I realized what they implied. My statement was accurate; I wasn’t ready for our night to end. I’d never enjoyed conversation with anyone as much as I did with Montano. He was intelligent, witty, attentive, and flirted just enough that it buoyed my ego without it feeling as though he was coming on to me.
“I have an idea.”
I tried my hardest not to cringe in anticipation of what he might suggest. He reached over and covered my hand with his.
“Don’t worry, sis. I know what you meant.”
His continual use of the word sis should relieve me, but it didn’t. I was ashamed to admit it, even to myself, but I didn’t want him to think of me that way. I wanted him to want me as a woman in the same way he’d wanted my sister. What kind of person did that make me? A horrible one.
He squeezed my fingers. “Hey, what’s wrong?”
“I don’t want you to think I’m…”
“Being friendly? Getting to know me like I’m getting to know you?”
Of course Montano would make me feel at ease. Hadn’t he been all evening?
He released my fingers but kept his hand on mine. “I say we ask the driver waiting out front to take us for a drive through Central Park.”
“I’d really like that.”
He stood, helped me with my chair, and as we exited the restaurant, kept his hand on the small of my back.
When we got in the car, he sat close enough that our arms brushed against each other. As tall as he was, when he adjusted his long legs, our thighs touched too.
Perhaps it was the wine we’d shared at dinner that went straight to my head, but with our bodies rubbing against each other’s, I had to squeeze my thighs together to ease my ache of want.
“I hope you don’t want to get on the road too early tomorrow,” he said a few minutes later when we were on the road that cut through the park.
“I don’t, but why?”
“Since the weather is so nice, I’d like to go for a run here in the morning.”
“Me too.”
He nudged me, kind of like you might see a kid do to another kid. “It’s a date, then.”
When I yawned twice in close proximity, Montano asked the driver to take us back to our hotel. Not hotel—hotels. He was the perfect gentleman and walked me inside and over to the elevator.
“I had a nice time tonight,” he said, leaning forward to kiss my cheek.
“I did too. Thank you again for dinner. It was fabulous and very extravagant.” Not that I saw a bill. Considering no one stopped us on the way out, he must’ve made prior arrangements to pay it.
“It was my pleasure.”
“Well, good night, then.” I stepped inside the elevator, raising my hand to my cheek where he’d kissed me once the doors closed.
Before we exited the town car, we’d made arrangements to meet at eight the following day to go for our run. I wondered, as I tossed and turned, unable to sleep, if Ranger would join us. I hoped not.
When I exited the elevator fifteen minutes early the next morning to get a coffee before we left, Montano was already in the lobby, waiting for me.
“Did I get the time wrong?” I asked.
“Not at all.” He reached behind him and held up two cups. “One straight-up black coffee. One skim latte. Which would you prefer? Or would you like something else?”
“Which do you prefer?”
He smiled. “I drink it both ways.”
“Latte, please.”
“I thought that’s what you’d pick.”
“Will Ranger be joining us this morning?”
I caught a quick glimpse of a frown before Montano said, “He’s still asleep.” He reached into his pocket. “You want me to wake him up and tell him to get his ass over here?” His cheeks pinkened. “Sorry for my language.”
I laughed. “First of all, remember what kind of books I write. Second, no, I was hoping it would just be the two of us.”
He put his phone away and leaned against the bar behind him. “You do my ego good.”
“I doubt your ego suffers much, Montano.”
The smile left his face. “You’d be surprised.”
Since he didn’t elaborate, I assumed he didn’t want to talk about it. I finished my coffee and tossed the cup in the recycle bin. “Ready?”
“When you are.”
As we exited the front door of the hotel, I saw the same town car and driver waiting out front. “Did he sleep here?”
“Nah, I’m not that mean. I did tell him to get here by seven, though.”
“Why?”
“In case you came downstairs early.”
I waited while the driver got out and opened the back door of the car.
“You’re always anticipating the needs of others, aren’t you?”
“You met my mama. She’d get after me if she heard I wasn’t a gentleman.”
“It’s more than that,” I murmured when he waved me into the car.
The driver said he’d be on standby and when we finished our run, to just send him a text.
“Doesn’t that get expensive?”
“Nah. He gives me a discount.”
“Someone you know, then?”
“An acquaintance.”
We ran the trails of Central Park, occasionally stopping to take in the scenery. Most of the trees had lost their leaves, but there were still some exhibiting their rich fall colors. At one point, I noticed a rowboat out on the lake. In it were two older people. The man was paddling slowly, while the woman held an umbrella to shield them both from the sun.
“Do you mind?” I asked, pulling out my phone to take a photo.
“Not at all.”
I snapped several and put my phone away.
“Why them?”
“What do you mean?”
Montano waved his hand in the direction of the lake. “While there aren’t many people out, there are some. Why did you only take a photo of that couple?”
I shrugged. “Inspiration.”
“For your books?” He raised a brow, perhaps due to their age.
“It isn’t all sex. There’s a story there too. A happily ever after, if you will.”
“You believe in that?”
I thought about the question as we ran. “I suppose I do, since I write it.”
“You want that for yourself?”
“Doesn’t everyone?” I asked.
“I guess.”
“Sometimes, it’s hard to believe it will happen.”
He nodded but didn’t speak again for several minutes.
When we came around a bend and saw two people seated on a bench, each playing a cello, we stopped to listen. I pulled my phone out and took a short video of them.
“More inspiration?” Montano asked.
“Maybe.”
“Let me see if I can piece it together. This is the couple from the boat. They met at Julliard and came to the park to practice every day. Soon, they fell in love. Now, they’ve given up playing but come to the park, and he rows her around the lake.”
“Wow. You’re good. Maybe you should be the one to write their story.”
He’d been smiling, but stopped. “I wouldn’t be any good at writing the happy ending.”
I watched as he turned and picked up
our run, wondering what made someone who could see the same story I did so clearly, think there couldn’t be a happy ending.
8
Onyx
Chump. That should be my code name. Hadn’t I learned my lesson from Sofia? Now, here I was, imagining the same happy ending I thought she and I would have, with her twin sister.
Just like I said last night, Blanca was being friendly. That’s it. What was it about me—and the twin sisters—that made me so ready to jump to the happily-ever-after part? I wasn’t such an idiot with any other women. Never had been. Not in my whole life. So why them? Did magical blood flow through their veins?
“Hey, Montano!” I heard Blanca call after me. When I turned around, she was pointing to another pathway. I ran back in her direction to see what had caught her attention. Another group was set up in the park, playing music, except instead of a duo, this was six guys playing jazz.
Like she had earlier, Blanca pulled out her phone and took a short video. “They’re really good, right?”
They were. In fact, I wondered if they played any clubs or even larger venues. Also like she had with the couple playing cellos, she pulled out some cash and tossed it into their collection basket. I hadn’t paid attention before, but this time I saw she gave them two twenties. Maybe more.
“Generous,” I commented when we resumed our run.
“It’s the least I can do.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Their inspiration is invaluable.”
“Yeah? You gonna write them into your next book?”
“Of course I am.”
When we came to the edge of the park, I saw Buster waiting with the car.
“Wow,” mumbled Blanca, noticing him like I had. “Has he got a tracker on you or something?”
I laughed, and so did she, but the truth was, he had one on both of us.
A little under two hours later, Blanca had picked up her rental car and we were on our way to the Adirondacks. I was relieved when Buster drove Ranger, her, and me to the rental place and I saw she’d reserved a full-size SUV. If she’d gotten a compact instead, I would’ve had to rent my own car. Either that or not been able to walk upon arrival after sitting in a cramped position for four hours.
Onyx (K19 Security Solutions Book 10) Page 4