She brought the plastic takeout trays to the table and uncovered them, releasing even more of the aromatic fragrances from the dishes.
Enchiladas. Chicken in a rich mole sauce garnished with toasted pumpkin seeds. Neatly wrapped flautas topped with some queso fresco. Not to mention the chicken soup and a trio of side dishes. Refried beans, yellow rice, and ripe plantains drizzled with sour cream and more queso fresco.
“That looks and smells great,” Jesse replied as she grabbed a ladle Bruno had provided and spooned soup into his bowl.
“She and dad are great cooks. It’s made the restaurant a big success, only…”
Bruno sat beside Jesse and said, “Only what?”
“They had a fire some years back. Nearly put them out of business.”
“Sorry to hear that,” Bruno said, and a muffled cough erupted from Howard.
Bruno looked over at him. “Not joining us?”
“Ate already. You should watch what you eat,” Howard cautioned.
Bruno, who Liliana was beginning to suspect was not the brightest bulb, looked down at the slight bulge in his midsection and then glared at Howard. “I’m not fat, man.”
Howard said nothing else, just remained in the pose, staring straight ahead as if the three of them were not sitting only a few feet away. Unnerving, and in the back of her brain, it occurred to her that Howard’s earlier warning had to do with more than the food.
Was he worried Bruno was getting too friendly with them? And what if he was? They weren’t criminals.
“Soup’s delicious,” Jesse said as he brought another spoonful up to his mouth.
“I’ll let Mami know.”
Jesse savored the richness of the dish and wondered if it was possible that the love it had been prepared with somehow made it tastier. He hoped that one day he would be able to thank Liliana’s mother himself for the meal.
Probably unlikely, but then again, he had to have something to look forward to besides helping his sister. The latter still seemed like a long shot, given everything happening with his body and the people with whom he was dealing. Although he had agreed to assist Whittaker, he didn’t really trust he would keep his word. For that matter, he still wasn’t sure that he could rely on Whittaker’s assertion that his sister was sick. But he would not let his doubts possibly endanger Jackie.
Spooning up more of the soup, he considered whether Liliana was a woman of her word, and the answer was immediate.
Yes.
Which made him consider whether telling Liliana the truth would help in any way. Whether it would abate his guilt about deceiving her.
But as she sat beside him, quietly eating, he realized that if he told her the truth now and she wouldn’t play along with him, he would be risking his sister’s well-being and possibly even Liliana’s life.
So instead, he finished off the bowl of soup and afterward felt amazingly recharged. “This is a cure,” he said, rubbing his hand across his stomach.
“There’s more,” she said and would have risen to remove the soup bowls, but Jesse stood instead.
“Let me.” He quickly cleared off the three bowls, and by the time he returned to the table, Liliana had served each of them an assortment of the dishes.
As he watched Liliana, Jesse thought about how different she was from the women in his past. Women who had warmed his bed—but not his heart, he reluctantly acknowledged—and who had all been alike. The same false smiles and equally plastic parts.
Unlike Liliana, he thought, shooting a glance out of the corner of his eye at her generous curves. Provided by nature, of that he had no doubt. The comely doctor would likely not approve of enhancing herself physically, since she prized other, more important traits.
Intelligence. Dedication. Honor.
In the short time they had spent together, he knew more about her than the many women who had passed through his life.
She faced him, her fork halfway to her mouth, and paused. A furrow developed in the middle of her forehead as she considered him. “Is everything okay?”
He wanted to say that it wasn’t. That he had so much to tell her. That he needed to kiss her again and find satisfaction with her like none he had experienced.
But the words failed him.
“Everything is fine. The food is… amazing. I’ve never had anything like it.”
“Me neither,” Bruno advised and pushed away from the table. He rose and gestured to Howard, who had remained silently passive throughout their entire meal.
“You sure you don’t want some of this?” Bruno asked the other guard.
The distant rumble of the garage door opening snared Howard’s attention. “Whittaker’s here.”
Beside her, Liliana sensed the immediate tension that entered Jesse’s body, but before she could say anything, Howard barked out an order.
“Bruno. Get Bradford settled upstairs. He probably needs some rest.”
Jesse pushed off abruptly from the table. “I think I can find the way to my own bedroom.”
He held out his hand to her.
She glanced at the three men, wondering at the hostility she sensed among them. Footsteps sounded in the hall, approaching briskly, and a moment later, Whittaker appeared at the far door to the kitchen.
He jammed his hands on his hips, which pulled back his suit jacket, revealing the double holster beneath with the menacing grips of his gun.
He arched a brow and asked, “Something wrong?”
CHAPTER 13
Tired. I’m going upstairs to rest,” Jesse replied, and before Whittaker could protest that statement, Jesse was in motion, leaving the room—and her—behind.
Whittaker glared at her. “How did the treatment go?”
“It drained him physically, but I’m hopeful that the samples we took after the therapy will show a reduction in the bone-morphogenic proteins in his blood.”
“What about his marrow? When will you test the inhibitor?” Whittaker snapped.
Liliana rose from the table, intending to follow Jesse as soon as she could finish with the FBI agent’s questioning. “Dr. Rojas should still be at the lab, cloning the marrow specimens so that we have enough material—”
“And when will that be?” Whittaker barked.
Anger ground through her at his attitude. She wasn’t one of his men he could order around or a criminal he was trying to intimidate. Which made her wonder yet again why it was that Jesse was being treated like a prisoner.
“Special Agent Whittaker. I assure you that we are working as quickly as possible and in accordance with accepted protocols.”
He didn’t miss the chill rebuke in her tone. With an exasperated sigh, he ran his fingers over his buzz cut and shook his head. “I understand.”
Liliana supposed that was about as close to an apology as she would ever get from the taciturn agent.
“If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to check on Jesse one last time before heading home.”
She left Whittaker staring at his two men. He waited until he could hear her footsteps on the stairs and then questioned them.
“Did Bradford get the inhibitor?”
A puzzled look came to Bruno’s face, but Howard quickly answered, “He went for it but then chickened out.”
“Damn,” Whittaker cursed.
“Not to worry, boss,” Howard replied, reached into his suit jacket pocket, and pulled out two test tubes.
“The inhibitor?” Whittaker questioned and waggled his fingers for the tubes.
“Yes, sir. When Bradford failed to fulfill his mission, I stepped in,” Howard said as he placed them in his boss’s hand.
Whittaker held the test tubes up to the light. They were filled with clear liquid. Hopefully enough for Morales and Edwards to not only use on the patients, but to analyze and synthesize more.
“Did they see you take them?” he asked as he pocketed the medication.
Howard shook his head. “No, and I don’t think they’ll notice that they’re gone. Br
adford knocked over the racks and quite a few of the tubes broke.”
“There was glass all over the place,” Bruno jumped in, but Howard shot him a dirty look.
“No thanks to you. I think we have a problem with Bruno. He’s getting a little too friendly with Bradford and the doctors,” Howard warned.
Whittaker glared at his other man, who squirmed beneath his observation.
“I know what I have to do, boss. Just say the word and they’re all history,” Bruno replied, a whiny tone weeding through his words.
“For now, keep things normal. Even let Bradford out and about, as long as you keep an eye on him. Dr. Carrera is already uneasy, and we must not let her think there’s anything unusual going on.”
Whittaker raised his hand, crooked his forefinger at Howard. “Come with me. I may need assistance at our other location.”
Whittaker shot a withering glare at Bruno. “Make sure Bradford is tucked in for the night and that Dr. Carrera is satisfied that all is in order.”
“Yes, sir,” Bruno replied, mimicking Howard’s earlier tone. Not that it would help, Whittaker thought. Bruno came from the streets and lacked the spit and polish Howard had acquired from his many years of serving beside him in the military. Whittaker would trust Howard with his life, and as for Bruno…
He was as expendable as the people he was guarding.
“We’ll check back later,” Whittaker said and exited with Howard.
Bruno watched them go, an unsettling feeling in his gut. He didn’t much like the way either of the two men treated him, as if he was inferior. And despite his assertion that he’d kill either Bradford or the doc without hesitation, well…
He wasn’t quite sure it would be all that easy to do, not that he hadn’t disposed of his share of miscreants in the past when it was necessary. But the doctor and Bradford were different.
Different, but still dead meat as far as Whittaker was concerned.
With that in mind, he hurried upstairs to make sure all was in order as Whittaker had instructed.
Liliana listened to the beat of Jesse’s pulse and glanced at the pressure gauge. Perfectly normal, which brought a smile to her face.
“Everything is fine,” she said, completing the exam.
“And I feel fine,” he said, trying to relieve her of any concerns after the little spell he had faked back at the lab.
“Glad to hear that.” She was just putting away the blood-pressure device when Bruno appeared in the doorway, a stern and yet almost comical look on his face.
“Something wrong?” she asked.
“Just wanted to make sure everything was okay up here,” Bruno replied and glanced between the two of them.
“Everything’s okay, thanks. I won’t be much longer,” she answered. Although she was done with her assessment, she wasn’t quite ready to leave Jesse for the night.
Bruno turned his attention to Jesse, who said, “Could you please see the doctor to her car after she’s done?”
“Sure thing, Jesse. I’ll give you two a little time alone,” he said and, with a conspiratorial wink, closed the door behind him.
“He’s not your typical FBI agent, is he?” Liliana asked, both amused and puzzled by Bruno’s behavior.
“Maybe he got pistol-whipped once too often,” Jesse teased, leaning back into the pillows, although his gaze never wavered from her face.
His too-earnest attention was a little disconcerting, and she averted her gaze as she put everything back into her medical bag. She zipped it shut and was about to rise when Jesse lovingly placed his hand on her arm.
She followed the long, strong line of his arm up to his face, which had grown serious.
“About the kiss, Doc…”
She waved him off. “No need to apologize.”
He chuckled, and a hint of mischief glittered in his gaze. “Not apologizing, Liliana.”
She shouldn’t like the way her name sounded on his lips. He was her patient and therefore off-limits. He was unpredictable, with violence just a hair’s breadth away at any moment. And he might be dying. Dying unless…
“I need to keep a level head. Maintain order and balance,” she cautioned, maybe more for her own welfare than his.
The glitter intensified in his gaze, and the dimple winked at her as his smile emerged. “Do I upset that order and balance?”
He cupped her cheek and ran his finger along an ever-intensifying flush. The heat of it warmed her skin, especially when he dipped his thumb down to trace the edge of her lips.
She needed distance.
Immediately.
There was just one way to get it.
“I can’t trust you, Jesse. Your anger and your past. The future you may not have if I can’t—”
“Maintain order and balance,” he said, all of his earlier playfulness receding.
His gaze was colder now, an icy blue that froze her out. A hard, granite-like set to his features.
“I’m sorry, Jesse.”
“No need to apologize, Doc. I guess I’ll see you sometime tomorrow,” Jesse replied, hands fisted at his sides to keep from reaching out for her again. He wanted to shake her until she admitted her feelings, but then again, she expected that kind of behavior from him. Uncontrolled. Even violent, as she had seen earlier in the day.
It took all of his willpower to curb the twined serpents of anger and need roiling in his gut. But he did. Because he wanted to prove something to her. Because he needed to prove it to himself.
He could be better than he had been before.
She made him want to be a better man.
She seemed to understand he was at the edge, since she gave a curt jerk of her head and her short strides carried her from his bedroom.
Liliana’s soft footfalls came on the stairs, followed by a muffled conversation with Bruno, the distant rumble of the garage door opening, and a car starting.
She was on her way home.
Somehow with her gone, his house felt even less like a home. Maybe because in the short time she had spent with him, something had changed.
Something he wasn’t sure he could live without again.
He closed his eyes, imagining how different his life could be if he had someone who cared for him. Maybe even someone who could love him. Envisioning that one day he might be the kind of man worthy of such affection.
But no matter what he imagined, Liliana was always in the picture. Always by his side, providing love.
An impossible future, Jesse thought, running his hand over the patch of bone on his side. Trailing it upward to rest directly above his heart as he imagined it hardening, as well.
Love was not meant for him. Especially with a woman like Liliana, he thought, but somehow she came to him in his dreams once again.
And as he had before, Jesse welcomed her embrace.
CHAPTER 14
Liliana phoned the lab just to make sure Carmen would soon be on her way home. Her friend was notorious for getting so involved in a project that she lost all sense of time. More than once Carmen had worked through the night on an analysis or had forgotten to get something to eat.
Carmen answered on the first ring, and Liliana admonished her to call it a night.
“Don’t worry. Ramon is coming by to get me when he gets off duty. We’re going to grab a bite before heading home,” Carmen replied.
“Heading home? As in your home, or his?” she kidded while wondering if her cousin and Carmen had gotten to the spending-the-night-together phase. If so, she wondered why she hadn’t noticed it before.
“That’s TMI for now, Liliana. I’ll see you in the morning,” Carmen confirmed and hung up.
Too much information, huh? Carmen had never been one to keep any kind of info from her before, but then again, in all the time they had known each other, Carmen had not been seriously dating anyone.
And if she had to pick someone for her best friend, she couldn’t think of anyone better than her cousin Ramon.
Liliana stro
lled to her bedroom and changed into comfortable flannel pajamas. Even with their heavier weight there was a nip in the air, so she grabbed a robe and slipped it on.
Although she’d had a long and demanding day, she was too wired to sleep. In the living room, she snapped on the ten-o’clock news, but as she sat there, only half listening, her mind busy processing the overload of the day’s events, she stared out the window.
Must be a full moon, she thought, noticing the glint of silver on the waves and the brightness of the occasional wind-blown whitecaps.
A full moon might explain her earlier lunacy, she surmised and headed out to the small balcony off the living room. Her condo was located on the side of the building, just one unit away from those that faced the ocean. Luckily that was forward enough to still give her a view of the water.
Out on the balcony, a strong wind blew off the ocean, crisp and bringing the first warning that winter would soon arrive. Out beyond the boardwalk, the dune grasses danced wildly in the wind while the pennants strung between a strip of stores and the casino in Asbury Park fluttered and snapped.
A lone pedestrian, head tucked down into a heavy jacket, braved the boardwalk, his steps brisk as he hurried from Asbury Park and deeper into the heart of Ocean Grove.
In the dim illumination from the streetlights, Liliana could make out the shape of the cross on the beach before her. It was just one of several along the beach, a testament to God’s Little Square Mile on the Shore, as the town was proud to say.
She reached up and took hold of the gold crucifix she had worn all her life. It was cold beneath her hand, the surface smooth from wear and prayer.
She needed prayer tonight. For guidance on what to do in her confusion about Jesse.
Her heart told her to trust, but her heart had been wrong before. She had loved and trusted her ex-fiancé, and he had both mentally and physically abused her. If not for her brother Mick and for Caterina, it might have taken her longer to find the strength to put an end to that relationship.
But she had found the strength.
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