by Tess Oliver
"I envy him."
I'm surprised by his words. I turn back to him.
"I have money to buy anything, but James Maddox has the one thing I want."
I shake my head and pull my hand away. "You don't want me. You want the submissive little angel who is willing to spread her legs at the slightest touch. It's been a nice few months of fantasy, Kane. You've helped me see sides of myself that I never knew existed, but I don't want to feel this way anymore. I want to think straight again. I want all of me back. I want that girl back who first looked at you through that one way mirror. That's the real me."
He releases my hand just as footsteps come up from below deck. Maddox's long hair is wet and dripping down on a new clean shirt. His hands are still cuffed together. His green eyes flinch when he sees how close I'm standing to Kane. I step discretely back from him.
"Mr. Maddox, here are a few sandwiches. Come eat some lunch."
Maddox walks over and stares down suspiciously but also hungrily at the food.
"It's fine. No more sedatives," Kane says. "Eat. Afterward, I'm going to let you two have some time to talk. Alone."
I look at Kane. He nods to let me know he's serious.
Maddox grabs two sandwiches and sits down to eat.
37
Maddox
"No cameras in here." Oscar shuts the door. Ten and I are standing in a small bedroom, plainly furnished with a bed, a dresser and one porthole for natural light
Finally free of the handcuffs, I crack and circle my shoulders. I do a quick sweep of the room for hidden cameras or bugs. The room is so sparsely decorated, the search is easy. I find nothing.
I stop and crack my shoulders again. "Why do I feel like I've just been fed my last meal?"
Ten smiles sadly at my morbid attempt at humor.
"Nice dress, by the way." I look pointedly at the sundress. "I've only seen you in a dress a few times. One of those was at Lieutenant Barton's funeral so that doesn't really count because I couldn't see more than your knees."
She sighs with aggravation. "Yeah, well I do occasionally wear dresses and I can look pretty damn good in them. You just don't know that because you only think of me as your partner in jeans and sweatshirts."
"Not true, Ten."
She crosses her arms, seemingly feeling self-conscious after my totally unnecessary comment about the dress. I know damn well that Ten doesn't fall for stupid flattery. It's another thing I love about her. I don't even know why I said it except maybe to avoid the more serious stuff that needs to be discussed.
Ten walks to the porthole. "You shouldn't have come, Maddox. Now we're both screwed. I was handling this on my own just fine." She spins back around to face me. Her pupils are dilated from the drug.
"Were you? Because I'm looking at someone who is going to have to go through a hell of a lot of detox when she gets out of Freestone's clutches. Or maybe you don't want out. I mean planes, yachts and all the other perks he offers."
Ten marches back toward me in her flouncy dress and nails me across the face with a stinging slap.
There is no way I expected the conversation to head so quickly south, but I can't let go of the idea that she's been with him in his underground sex den for months.
She rubs the sting out of her palm. "You couldn't stand that your partner was on something big and you weren't going to be a part of it."
I stare wide eyed at her, speechless for a second. "Really? That's why you think I did all this? You don't fucking know me at all then."
"I can't think of any other reason. All I know is now you've put us both in danger. Your pretty fiancée must be going crazy without you there to help pick china patterns."
I scratch the beard that's sprouting on my chin as I try to figure out how to respond. "Yeah, well, that didn't really work out. Tiffany broke up with me. It finally dawned on her that she could do a lot better."
"She's a fool. But yeah, she could probably do a lot better." She smiles weakly. "I'm sorry, Maddox. I'm sure you were broken up about it just like I was—" She stops and seals her lips in a tight grin. "Anyhow, what's going to happen next?"
Maddox tilts a brow. "Shit, this isn't promising. I was just going to ask you that. Figured you had some insight into the man's psyche."
Ten sits on the side of the bed. She is too skinny. The muscles in her arms and legs have all but vanished. She's a frail shadow of her former self, but there's still Tennyson spunk under the surface. It's in her eyes.
She crosses her arms against the cool ocean air in the room. "He's the most complicated man in the world. Must be the genius thing. I think there's something major in his past that shaped who he is, and whatever it is, it's not good and wholesome. There are times when I despise him, and other times when I look forward to seeing him."
"That's the drug," I say quickly, more to appease my own jealous feelings than to explain her affinity for the man.
"No, I don't think so."
I'm not sure how to interpret her statement and decide to leave it alone for now.
"Why do you think he brought us both to his yacht?" I ask. "Seems strange."
She nods. "I agree. Especially after the last time he brought me here."
I sit down next to her. Her arm touches lightly against mine, but I resist throwing my arm around her shoulder. Everything seems tangled between us at the moment. I can no longer read her and predict her next words like I could for so long.
"So you've been on the yacht before? I'm almost afraid to ask, and if it has anything to do with passion or desire, please do your old friend a favor and spare the details."
"Old friend," she sighs. "How sexy that sounds."
"See, there's that Tennyson sarcasm I miss. Just not the same having Silvana in the passenger seat."
She turns to me. It seems we've both temporarily forgotten how close we are sitting. We stop to exchange a long gaze, a long and impossible to interpret gaze.
"Silvana?" she asks after the moment passes. "They paired you with Silvana?"
"Yeah, I know. Poor me."
"No," she laughs. "Poor Silvana. Silvana's like a big, soft huggable pillow. He's the perfect partner when you're feeling down. You, on the other hand, are a complete asshole."
"Thanks. Guess I have to agree. And turns out Silvana is an O.K. guy just as long as he doesn't eat burritos at lunch." I comb my hair back with my hands. It's tangled from lack of a hair brush. "Seems like you're avoiding talking about the last yacht trip. Maybe it will give us some insight into what this guy has planned for us."
"It's a little embarrassing because I did something kind of stupid." She takes in a deep breath and seems to be thinking back to that day. "I haven't really thought about it again until you brought it up." The pink in her cheeks fades some.
"Ten? What happened?"
She rubs her arms once for heat and then lowers them to her lap. She stares down at her fingers, as they fiddle with the hem of the dress. "I ran. My head had cleared up because I had skipped my injection. Blake, the guy who was sort of my personal assistant was busy flirting with Jason—"
"Jason? Huh, never would have guessed. Go ahead."
"Anyhow, it was the first time I was above ground and on a boat, no less. Kane had some business with a realtor. He's buying an island or something," she adds quickly. "Anyhow, I talked Blake, Oscar and Jason into letting me go on shore for an excursion through the market. I was nervous as hell and feeling like shit because the drug was wearing off, but when the opportunity presented itself, I ran. And let me just say, this skinny, buzzed version of Angie Tennyson is not nearly as fast as the old one. Oscar and Jason had nearly caught up to me when I asked a guy standing next to a truck for directions to the police station. He offered to take me there. I climbed inside with him and his buddy just happy to be able to lose the big guys. I thought luck was finally with me. Only it wasn't. At all."
"Fuck. They were creeps?"
"The worst kind. They drove me out to some random, remote building.
I tried to fight them off. Even hit one in the head real good with a bottle of booze. But so much of my strength had been zapped, I was basically helpless."
A hard knot forms in my chest. "Christ, Ten, did they—?"
She shakes her head slowly and looks up at me. "The next thing I knew, the guy I'd clobbered was crumpled in a heap on the floor and the other guy was struggling to breathe." She stares back at her hands again and rubs the line around her wrist, a mark left behind by the leather cuffs. "Kane was strangling him. I begged him to let him live so he could have his day in court, but Kane told Oscar to get me out of the building. I passed out after that." Her bottom lip wavers as she continues. "I'm sure he killed him. The look in Kane's eyes—He wasn't going to let the guy live."
"Well, there's one point in Freestone's box," I say wryly.
She hops up with a moan of disgust. "No, the guy was scum, but he should have been arrested. Not murdered. And I'm telling you this humiliating story just to make a point. Kane is capable of murder. He's capable of killing someone with his bare hands. Which is why I wish you had never stuck your big head into any of this. I would have found a way out on my own."
"Yeah, clearly the last story proves that."
"Grrr and on top of it you're being an asshole." She comes at me with her fists. I grab hold of her wrists and easily stop the pummeling she's about to give me. My fingers wrap all the way around her thin wrists. One squeeze and I could break them. I lift one hand to my face and press my mouth against her palm.
I lower my voice in case one of the giants or Kane is listening in at the door.
"Ten, I'm just glad you're alive. Whatever happens to me, I see the way this guy looks at you. I don't think he'll do anything to hurt you. I can almost like him for it." I release her wrists and lower my voice. "Which brings me to my next plan. Turn against me. Tell him you don't want anything to do with me and that he should do whatever he needs to. Tell him you are going to stay with him." I lower my voice even more. "Clark is getting closer. It's pretty hard to hide your comings and goings if you're tooting around in a private plane. Airports keep tight logs."
She stares up at me with her brown eyes that are even bigger in her small face. Without warning, she reaches up and pushes a strand of my hair back off my cheek. The gesture causes me to take hold of her hand once again. I kiss her palm and the line on her wrist where Kane has kept her shackled like his captive.
She drops her hand away when I release it. "I don't like that plan. I'm going to talk to him, plead with him to let you go," she says confidently as if she has that kind of control over him. And maybe she does. She sure has more control over me than I realized.
"Well then, problem solved," I say wryly. "Just don't be too sure about it. This guy is thinking on a whole different level than us mere stupid mortals."
"We'll just have to see," she says confidently.
A knock on the door startles both of us. "Mr. Freestone wants everyone up on deck," Oscar says as he pops open the door.
"After you, Miss Tennyson," I say as I wave her past with a flourish.
Ten slips past Oscar. He holds up the handcuffs before I can get by. "Back into the shackles for you."
I hold my hands together in front of me. He shakes his head and tells me to turn around with his finger. I turn around and he wrenches my arms behind my back. The one thing I have learned since my undercover assignment fell apart is that hands in the back mean something bad is coming. My gut tells me the same thing as Oscar cuffs me and pushes me forward.
38
Angie
Kane has on his captain's hat as he stands in the wheelhouse getting the boat ready to leave the dock. It's as if we're all just out here on the water for a nice day trip across the sparkly blue sea. Only Maddox is sitting silently, his mouth set grimly in a straight line and his hands fastened behind his back. Jason has gone ashore. It seems he will be 'missing the boat' for lack of a better phrase.
The yacht club has sent out two men dressed in white shorts, matching blue shirts and holding two-way radios to help Kane with the moorings and navigation out of the marina. It's a glorious day out on the water, glowing sun, fresh air, sea birds darting down for fish. The picturesque scene ahead makes the whole thing feel even more surreal because the mood on deck is far from glorious.
Once the yacht is clear of the marina, buoys and other obstacles, the boat speeds up and we glide over the turquoise water toward the endless horizon. With the tough maneuvering out of the way, Kane takes a sip of his drink and stands alone in his wheelhouse. I decide it's my chance to talk to him in private.
I climb the stairs and step inside the glass encased captain's bridge. "We left Jason behind," I say unnecessarily.
"Yes, he had some things to take care of for me on shore." Kane puts on his black sunglasses. They reflect the sunlight and make it impossible for me to read his eyes and figure out what he might be thinking. Something tells me that it's intentional.
I stare out at the ocean. The view is fantastic from the bridge. "So you know how to captain a yacht. I suppose I should have known that."
"Did you eat some of the fruit Oscar brought back from the market?"
"I did. It was delicious. I'm thrilled to be enjoying food again. Where are we going?" I decide to start with the easiest question only I forget I am asking the man who has perfected the art of dodgy answers. He doesn't disappoint.
"Felt like a cruise around the ocean."
"Of course. Well why not then. Sounds perfectly wonderful except there's a man in handcuffs sitting on the polished teak deck of the yacht. Just let him go. You've taken every precaution to make sure no one knows how to get to the Lace Underground. He'll go back to the precinct, and they'll be right back at square one."
"Sounds like you have things all figured out." Kane's face turns my direction. I can't see his eyes but I know he’s looking at me. His hand reaches for my arm. He strokes it lightly, sending a swirl of heat through me. "What would you sacrifice for him? What would you sacrifice for the man you love?"
I spin around and pretend to be interested in the scenery. "I don't love him, and he certainly doesn't love me. There are different kinds of love. You are a purported genius yet you know almost nothing about human interactions."
"I know far more than I realized, thanks to my Sweet Sin." I hear him lift his glass for a drink. "See that man down there, the one who hasn't taken his eyes off this wheelhouse since you climbed up here? He came here for you. Not for any police investigation. Not for a medal or a big story in the paper. He came here for one reason. To find you. The woman he loves."
I shake my head. "You have it very wrong."
"I don't think so. That's why I'll ask you again. What would you sacrifice for him?"
I turn back around. He pulls off his sunglasses, apparently realizing everything he says and does is far more effective when his piercing blue eyes are drilling in to me.
"What do you mean?"
Kane drops his gaze to the swell of my breasts and down to my legs. "Lift your skirt for me, Sweet Sin."
"No."
"He can only see your back and he can't see down below your waist. Lift it or leave because the discussion is over."
I reach down and lift the dress up above my panties. The nectar in my blood races through me and straight to my pussy.
"Close your eyes," he orders.
I slowly let my lids drop, blotting out the sun and the sea and white frothy wake behind the boat.
Kane's voice is deep and husky. "Would you sacrifice your freedom?"
I don't answer and startle when he takes hold of my hand. He places it firmly between my legs. "Touch yourself, my sweet. I want to watch."
"Please, no."
"Guess that answers my question. You won't sacrifice much then. Makes my decision easier."
"No. I'll do what you want." I slide my fingers under my panties. As my fingers slip between the hot moist folds, Kane tugs the bodice of my dress down enough to expose my nip
ples.
"That's it. You know what I want to see. What I want to hear." His voice is nearly drowned out by the wind and sea.
I drop my head slightly back and stroke myself. I lose concentration for a second when Kane's mouth comes close to my ear. "Come for me, Sweet Sin."
I release a long low moan as I shudder with the sensations. I open my eyes and pull my hand free of my panties.
Kane is staring at me. "Give up everything. Stay with me. Be my Sweet Sin."
"Why would you want me? Knowing how much I've deceived you? Knowing that I badly want to go back home. We're standing here on your yacht, which we reached by flying in your private plane. You look like you stepped off a magazine cover. The captain's hat works for you, by the way. Why would you want me when you can have any woman?"
"I don't want any woman. I want you."
I think back to the suggestion Maddox made that Clark could be closing in on Kane. I would be free soon enough.
"All right fine. I'll do it. I'll stay and be your Sweet Sin until you can't stand me anymore. Then you can toss me away. If you let Maddox go, I'll stay with you."
He nods. The thought of staying on with him sends a cold chill through me. Since seeing Maddox I can think of nothing else except getting out from under Kane's control.
I head to the steps.
"Only one problem with that," he says before I leave. "I can't trust you. Or did you forget that this whole thing started with you pretending to be a homeless girl? Unfortunately, you're a bad actress." He moves closer and presses his mouth to my ear. My eyes flit down to the deck. Maddox is staring up at us. "Just like a few seconds ago—when you pretended to come."
I flinch at his words. He steps back. "I've memorized every physical reaction you have when you reach orgasm, every sound, every eyelash flutter, every parting of those fucking amazing lips. I even know exactly how your nipples tighten when you come. You were pretending. Again. It seems. So, no deal because I can't trust you."