“You can’t send it here?”
“The more open the area, the better. We can send it from here, but we’re going to need a rendezvous point that doesn’t require a two-day trek to reach.”
“I know just the place,” he said, leading her into the jungle and onto a narrow trail that was obviously made by animals and not humans. “The north shore isn’t far from here. Maybe five miles at the most?”
“Good. Let me have the bag. I can start the upload process, and the satellite will pick it up when it can.”
“Alright,” he said, handing her the backpack. “While you’re doing that, I’ll grab something for us to eat while we walk. The terrain is too rough to go faster than a walk; we might as well kill two birds with one stone.”
“My kind of man,” she said smiling.
She opened the laptop and bypassed the fake desktop to turn on the satellite uplink. She clicked the box that would enable the files to load as the connection was made so that the documents could load while they made their way to the beach. She opened a secure email, clicking on Andrew’s contact and sending him a quick text.
Twenty friendly basement, she wrote, then hit send. The email agent informed her that the email would be saved as a draft until it could be sent. She clicked the button to okay the action then shut the laptop, putting it in her bag still powered up.
Luis returned with an armful of coconuts. He took the multi-tool pocket knife she handed him and carefully cut a hole in the top of two of the coconuts. He handed one to her, and she drank the sweet milk until it was gone, then smash the fruit against a tree to break it to get to the meat of the fruit.
“I think the jungle suits you more than you know,” he said, looking at her with open admiration.
“I’m just frustrated. I didn’t want to leave all those people behind, but if we alert the guards and the scientists before Andrew is here, they’ll destroy all the evidence.”
“I get that. I’m sorry I got upset back there. Martin is a good man, and seeing him like that killed me. I know they’ll get him out.”
“Actually, I think we need to get him out. Andrew and his team will be busy stopping the people who work there from destroying evidence. They’re not going to have the resources to get those people out until hours later when they have everyone in cuffs. I don’t think some of those people need to wait that long.”
“I hear you. I like your plan better, anyway. I don’t want to sit on my hands while Andrew goes in and saves the day. That’s not who I am.”
“I’m glad,” Tara admitted.
They walked down the trail single file, both lost in thought for a while and silent as they worked at their coconuts and watched the terrain around themselves for dangerous animals. Tara let herself enjoy the time they had left together. She felt like she was hurtling toward the future, though they were not proceeding with anything until Andrew showed up. Still, she wanted to hold onto these memories; from the smell of his skin to the feel of his mouth on hers. She didn’t want to ever forget this time.
The trail sloped downward, and as Tara topped the gentle rise behind Luis, she could see the beach, still nearly two miles away.
“The trail is a switchback trail, so it’s going to take a bit to get down there. Unless you can get a signal here?”
Tara pulled her laptop out and opened it, checking the signal.
“The signal is strong right here because we’re so high and the trees aren’t overhead. It’s already sending the files. It shouldn’t take more than thirty minutes to get them uploaded.”
“Why so long?”
“I’m not plugged into the FBI server directly like I was in the GRE server. And the files are encrypted before they’re sent, then when they arrive, they are un-encrypted. Despite what the television shows would have you believe, this is not a fast process.”
“I understand.”
Tara was digging through her bag, pulling her phone out and attaching it to the laptop while she powered it on.
“Can you call him from your phone?”
Tara watched the phone’s screen while it loaded, then whooped in delight and smiled at Luis.
“Yes, I can.”
She pressed the speed dial on her phone, waiting excitedly for Andrew to pick up.
“Figueroa,” he answered from his burner phone.
“Andrew,” Tara almost shouted. “The files are in the air, and there’s a lot. But we found something while we were inside.”
“I got your email. Are you sure?”
“Yes. There are people inside.”
“Did you get a count on the unfriendlies?”
“I did an office count because they work in three eight-hour shifts so it’s hard to get a count. But there are twelve offices and nine labs on the top three floors, and then the friendlies in the basement.”
“Where are you now?”
“By the northernmost beach just east of the building and out of sight and sound of it.”
“Our team is gathered already, and we can be there in three hours. Can you hang tight until then?”
“Of course. How is the team already gathered?”
“Remember the investor I was meeting with Ian Cross?”
“Yes.”
“Well, I’m not sure how Ian missed it, but she’s one of the women who escaped a few months ago. Her hair is colored, and she’s wearing colored contacts, but it’s her. Santiago recognized her and told me, thinking that I was going to deal with her or at least tell Ian. I told him that I would take care of it. I have a feeling that taking down the research side of GRE isn’t going to be the only thing that goes down on the island today, so we were already preparing to leave for the island.”
“Will you be coming by this beach so we can watch for you and head back to the building then?”
“We will. Well, half of us will. The other half are going to the village in case we’re needed there.”
“Perfect. We’ll stay here and wait. When we see you, we will go back to GRE and wait for you to take the front of the building, and we will go through the back and get the friendlies out and take them toward the jungle.”
“Great.”
Andrew hung up without saying goodbye, and Tara unplugged her phone from the laptop and put it back in the bag.
“They’ll be here in three hours. So we have some time to kill.”
She looked at him, her eyes saying more than her words could.
“I can’t believe this is almost over,” he said.
“I’ll be leaving with Andrew,” she said. “So I’ll probably take the prisoners back to Peru to await extradition.”
“So you would be leaving this afternoon?”
“Yes,” she whispered, not believing how quickly things were falling into place. How had she found the process from infiltration to takedown tedious and drawn out before? Now she would give anything to feel as if she was hurrying up just to wait for hours and even days for any action.
“Then I guess we should make the most of this time,” he said. He took her hand and pulled it to his lips, grazing her knuckles tenderly. “And I know just the place.”
CHAPTER 12
Luis led Tara down a narrow trail that she hadn’t seen when they had first come to the edge of the cliffs that looked out over the water. She followed him as he moved in the direction away from GRE, the trail running parallel to the beach the entire time.
“Where are we going?” she asked, her stomach flip flopping with anticipation.
“Somewhere pretty. You will see. I know you’ll love it, but you have to trust me.”
“Alright,” she said. “I trust you.”
“Good,” he said.
He took her hand and led her along the trail, pointing out hazards and keeping her as far from the edge as the narrow trail would allow. Her heart was racing, the edge of the cliff no more than two feet from the trail they followed.
They had gone almost a mile when he stopped at an outcropping of boulders that
were precariously close to the edge. He moved around them, going to the right of them, the cliffs to their left. Tara followed suit, wondering where in the world he was taking her. They had plenty of time to kill, but she didn’t want to lose sight of the ocean just in case Andrew got there before they expected him.
He stopped just on the other side of the rock, taking her backpack and setting it against the rocks. The jungle was dense where they were, and Luis was blocking her view of what lay ahead. The trail had turned sandy, and she could hear something in the distance but couldn’t identify the sound.
“Take your clothes off and leave them here,” he said, already shrugging out of his shirt and tossing it onto her bag.
She looked at him, about to argue but decided against it. She had said that she trusted him. Quickly, she stepped out of her clothes and stood there, her bare feet sinking into the blissfully warm sand.
Luis’s eyes raked over her naked body and then he reached out for her hand.
“Close your eyes,” he said, smiling sweetly.
“Okay,” she said, not sure she was ready for whatever he was going to show her.
He led her slowly down the trail, and the sound grew as they went. They’d gone several feet when Tara finally put her finger on the source of the sound and she smiled. They were near a waterfall of some sort, and it must be a high one because as they got closer, it was almost deafening.
“Alright,” he said, “open your eyes.”
Tara opened her eyes and sucked in a quick breath in surprise.
“Oh, Luis, this place is stunning.”
“Isn’t it though? It’s the only place like it on the islands.”
“It looks like an infinity pool, but I don’t see the waterfall.”
Luis took her hand, and carefully they picked their way along the rocks that bordered the pool, getting as close as they dared to the edge until she saw it.
“The waterfall spills out into the ocean,” she said in quiet awe.
“It does.”
He sat down on the rocks and waited for her to sit before sliding into the water.
“There’s a ledge here,” he pointed out. “If you stand there, you can look out over the ocean and let the water that’s spilling over the edge rush past you.”
She let him help her down, putting her feet on the ledge that was no more than three feet wide and turning around. The water came up just below her breasts, and when she leaned on the rocks, the rushing water toyed with her nipples, the cool flow teasing them into hard points.
Luis was behind her, his arousal already evident against the back of her leg. She smiled when he pulled her hair back, kissing the back of her neck and reaching around in front of her to play with her large breasts.
She moaned softly, the pleasure already building. She felt secluded and exposed all at once, the danger of being caught almost nonexistent but it was the almost part that was getting her. But the view before her soon overwhelmed her with its beauty, and the danger of being so close to the edge without the risk of going over sent a thrill of adrenaline through her.
She leaned forward a little, raising her body so that her round ass rubbed against him.
“Patience,” he said, laughing. “You’re insatiable.”
“It’s you,” she said. “You bring out the best in me.”
“Lucky me,” he said, kissing her shoulders and rolling her nipples gently between his fingers on either hand.
He tugged gently and she moaned, the pain and pleasure blurring in her mind, her heart pounding with excitement. His erection pushed against her legs, and she opened them slightly, inviting him into her heat, which was building like a wildfire inside of her.
He gave into her need, slipping inside of her folds and staying there while he continued to tease her nipples. His hips began to move slowly, taking his sweet time with her and ignoring her subtle hints that she was ready. He was in no hurry, and he wasn’t going to be rushed.
She was pinned between his naked body and the rocks, unable to move against him and take her pleasure. She was at his mercy, and he was enjoying it.
“I need you,” she said, her voice breathless.
He moaned with pleasure but still wouldn’t be rushed. He moved slowly, pushing into her so deeply that she struggled to find where she ended and he began. With shallow thrusts, he stayed deep, his hard member rubbing against her sweet spot, his small thrusts driving her mad with need.
Luis moved one hand down her body, wrapping the other arm around her body under her breasts and pulling her even closer against him. The air felt good on her body, his hot hand running down her waist and over her hip, slightly rough against her smooth skin.
When he reached her legs, his hand went to the front, his fingers slipping between the folds of her sex and finding the little nub that begged for his attention. Tara cried out when his finger found the mark, her head falling to the side and exposing her shoulder to his tender kisses.
He tugged at the little nub, his thrusts getting faster little by little. She was breathing hard now, her eyes staring out onto the bright blue water, Luis’s lips on her shoulder.
“You’re beautiful,” he said. “I love how your breasts look sitting above the water.”
She blushed, feeling so very naughty and loving it. His hand was still working her body into a frenzy, his touch drawing the heat out of her expertly as he continued to move within her.
As her pleasure built, so did his speed, and somehow the sensations and the view and the gorgeous man behind her overwhelmed her so much that her orgasm slammed into her, stealthily building until it caught her by surprise. She cried out before she could stop herself, the sound dying almost instantly as the massive waterfall swallowed it whole.
“Don’t hold back,” he said. “The waterfall absorbs the sound. No one can hear you.”
He drove into her now, his thrusts hard and fast, the pleasure so tremendous that she couldn’t have been quiet if her life depended on it. She shuddered, calling out his name into the sky, angling her hips and pressing against him to deepen the friction.
He tensed, then his hips moved at lightning speed as his own orgasm overtook him and sent him soaring along with her. He cried out, saying her name over and over and peppering feather light kisses over her neck and shoulders.
Exhausted by the pleasure, her body slumped forward onto the rocks as he slowed his movements until he was still, standing behind her, still inside of her.
She went to move but he stopped her.
“I’m not even close to done with you,” he growled, and slowly, he started thrusting again, his shaft still rigid inside of her.
His hands were on her breasts again, and it was all Tara could do to keep herself upright. Her nerves were on fire, and she didn’t think she could go another round, but Luis wasn’t going to let her quit.
To her surprise, her second orgasm came quickly on the heels of the first, and Luis worked her body again and again until she lost count of the orgasms. He finally collapsed against her, his breathing labored and his heart pounding.
When they’d caught their breath, he slid out of her and turned her around to face him. He kissed her deeply once, then took each of her breasts in his mouth, sucking roughly on the nipple before releasing it and moving onto the next.
He pulled her into his arms and hugged her close, their naked bodies entwined in the flowing water, the ocean stretched out before them as far as the eye could see.
They stood like that for a long while, each lost in their own thoughts. When Luis finally moved, she raced him across the tiny pool, swimming as fast as she could but not even close to beating him.
They dressed quickly and headed back to the lookout point, fantasy encounter over and ready to get back to the business at hand. They ate meal replacement bars as they walked, and more than once, Luis made reference to her wild streak, causing her to blush.
“I love when you do that,” he said. “I don’t think I could ever get tired of seeing
you blush like that.”
“If you keep taking me to exotic places and rocking my world like that, I’m sure it will keep happening.”
“Good to know,” he said. “I wouldn’t want you to get bored with me.”
She laughed. “You? Boring? I don’t even think that’s possible.”
Back at the lookout much quicker than she was ready for, they settled down on the trail, sitting so that their backs were against a boulder and snuggling together to wait for Andrew and his team to arrive. Once they did, it was back to reality for Tara.
But until then, it was Tara and Luis against the world, and she was going to milk this beautiful moment until the very last second so that she had something to hold onto when their mission was over and they went back to their respective lives.
*
Tara was lying in Luis’s arms, watching the ocean beyond when she saw something that caught her eye way out in the calm ocean waters. With a heavy sigh and knowing that their time together would soon be over, she sat up, motioning toward the direction she’d seen the glint from the sun.
“Do you see it?” she asked, knowing his eyes were much better than her human eyes.
“I do. I see several boats coming up fast. I can’t make out their faces, but every last person is in black, and it looks like tactical gear.”
“We should go,” she said, getting up and gathering their things.
“Are you ready?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be.”
Luis grabbed her bag, putting it over his shoulder and grabbing her hand. He pulled her close, giving her a passionate kiss before pulling away.
“I’m going to miss this,” he said.
“Me too,” she agreed, trying not to let the sadness creep into her voice.
They walked back to GRE in silence, each lost in their own thoughts as they hurried to get into position.
They chose a vantage point that gave them a clear view of the back of the building and the ocean beyond. The boats were likely landing on the north shore and going east, using the curve of the terrain and the many trees and boulders that lined the beach for cover.
Her Undercover Panther : A Paranormal Shapeshifter Romance Page 11