She was tough and strong, but still relatively naive. He would guess for all her bravado, she didn’t have the instinct to go for the cheap shot. His instincts had been honed while being held and tortured in a South American jungle. He knew he would kill to survive. She hadn’t been tested yet. Neither of them could know how she would react.
Oddly, a part of him wanted to make sure that didn’t change. He wanted to ensure she was never that scared, that up against a wall. He wanted to keep her safe.
Travel light, he reminded himself. Caring only brought trouble. Nick had been an easy friend. Nick had understood and could take care of himself. But Dana would require things he didn’t have to give.
“Dana, I’m cooperating because it suits me, nothing else. The day you get to be too big a pain in the ass is the day it all ends.”
“You don’t scare me.”
“I’m not trying to. I’m making a point. I don’t owe you or my sisters anything.”
Her mouth twisted. “You’re wrong. You do owe them and you know it. You hurt them because of something Jed did. That isn’t right. Now you have to make up for that.”
She sounded sincere. Did she actually believe that?
He looked at her. “Have we met? I’m Garth Duncan, ruthless bastard.”
She dug into her breakfast. “You’re not all that.”
“Sure I am.”
The corners of her mouth tilted up in an almost-smile. “Oh, please. I’m so not impressed.”
She was lying, but he could live with that.
Once again she was dressed for comfort, not style. Jeans, a pullover shirt shapeless enough to hide every curve. Her boots looked worn and she wasn’t wearing any makeup.
He was used to women who understood the power of a well-fitting skirt and just a flash of breast. Women who smelled like exotic flowers and sparkled with expensive jewelry. He guessed Dana didn’t understand the appeal and if she did, she didn’t care. He should have been able to dismiss her.
But he couldn’t. Maybe before he’d kissed her, but not since. There had been an instant connection, a compelling heat. He enjoyed sex and took his pleasure easily. This wasn’t about getting laid. It was about what he felt when she was in his arms. Hungry. Desperate.
Uncomfortable sensations for a man used to being in charge. Which meant he would have to tread carefully. He would have Dana, but on his terms.
They ate in silence. Dana finished first, then went and got a sticky Danish.
“Not counting calories?” he asked.
She licked frosting off her fingers. “Do I look like I need to?”
“No, but that is rarely why women do it.”
“I’m not that typical.”
“Yet my sisters are. How did you become friends with them?”
He thought she might avoid the question, but she finished her Danish, then picked up her coffee.
“I met Lexi first. We were in school together. I mostly played with the boys, but when I was ten or so, they stopped letting me hang out with them. The girls all got on my nerves. Too silly, I guess. I hated playing with dolls. But Lexi was different. Mostly she was by herself. Maybe it was being a Titan. The other kids thought she was different and she didn’t know how to convince them otherwise. We both liked horses and reading. It was just the two of us until Skye and Izzy got older.”
There was more to the story, but he didn’t press. He could fill in the details. How she would hate to go home because her father beat her. How Glory’s Gate was big enough to hide in. How being friends with Jed Titan’s daughter would be a measure of protection at home.
“Now they’re my family,” she continued.
“Is that a warning?”
“It’s a threat.”
He grinned. “Want to tie me up and punish me?”
“You wish.”
He glanced at his watch. “We’ll be there in less than an hour. We should talk about the meeting and what to expect. Things should go smoothly, but if they don’t we’ll need a plan. Before I forget, there’s a bulletproof vest in the back. Put it on.”
DANA FOLLOWED GARTH OUT of the jet onto the tarmac. The airport was little more than a strip of road in the middle of nowhere. There were mountains in the distance, trees and grass nearby and the only sign of civilization was a small building a hundred yards away.
The structure was more shack than house, weatherworn. The wood had once been painted red and blue but most of the paint had flaked away. There were holes where windows had been, and several lizards scampered across the uneven boards.
The heat was oppressive, especially for November. She’d dressed for an overcast, cool day in Dallas. The vest she’d put on under her sweatshirt added a layer of heat that made her sweat. She had her gun in her hand and an extra magazine in her left front pocket.
She had no idea where they were, what they might be facing, and there was a chance she might have to shoot someone. That wasn’t her favorite way to start a day.
She wasn’t afraid, exactly, but she was on edge. Her senses were heightened. She knew exactly how many steps it would take to get back to the plane and how fast she could move at a dead run. Based on what she’d seen of his body, Garth would move faster, which was good for both of them. Of course, if they were running and someone was shooting at them, the person running behind was more likely to be shot. Something she didn’t want to think about.
He checked his watch, then walked toward the building. There were no cars or trucks around, no signs of people, but she had the feeling they were being watched.
“You realize we’re prime targets,” she said, keeping pace with him. “Out here in the open.”
“Where do you suggest we hide?”
His point was a good one. There was nothing but cement and grass between the jet and the building. Nowhere to crouch or take cover.
“Don’t worry,” he added, waving the paper-wrapped package in his left hand. “This is a financial transaction. We’ll be fine.”
“If that’s an attempt to reassure me, it’s not a good one. We’re wearing bulletproof vests. That implies a certain amount of concern.”
“I’m a good customer. They have no reason to kill us.”
“So you’ve done this before?”
“Not so directly, but yes, I’ve used unconventional means to get information.”
She was carrying a damn gun and they were both wearing bulletproof vests and he considered this unconventional? She would have worded that a little more strongly.
“There’s something wrong with you,” she told him.
“You’re not the first person to mention that. Now be quiet. I’ll be doing the talking.”
For once she didn’t argue. She had no idea what they were facing and would prefer to spend her energy on staying alive. Garth could talk all he wanted.
They entered the small structure.
It was dark and at first she couldn’t see anything. After a few seconds, she made out a battered table and several chairs. Other than that, the room was empty.
She quickly figured out the best defensive position and stood there. She could see out the front door and two of the three windows. Which left them only one blind side. Garth shifted so he could see anyone coming from that direction, then nodded at her.
“Now we wait,” he said.
This was very different from the low-key stakeouts she was used to. No talk radio, no relaxing time with her own thoughts. Adrenaline pumped through her, as her back prickled with sweat. The building smelled musty and unused. Something rustled in the leaves on the floor, but she refused to react until she saw what it was. Seconds later, a small lizard scurried through the front door.
“Three men,” Garth said quietly. “They’re armed. Stay relaxed. We’re here to do business.”
This was so not her world, she thought as her heart rate doubled. She stayed where she was, her gun in her hand, not prepared to start anything but more than ready to finish it.
Two of the men walke
d into the building. They glanced around, taking in her and the room, but not acknowledging her. She moved between them and the door. The meaning was clear—if anything went wrong, they would have to get through her to get out.
“Duncan,” the first man said. He was of average height, muscular and tanned.
Cuban rather than Mexican, Dana thought, remembering the report Garth had showed her. His source of damning information.
Here was the bastard who had set up the explosion that had nearly killed Izzy. He’d been paid for that job and was being paid again for sharing the details. Asshole, she thought angrily, wishing she could shoot him.
Something must have shown on her face or in her body language, because Garth gave her a warning glance. Which only made her want to shoot him, too.
“Ramon.” Garth nodded.
They spoke in Spanish. Dana caught a few words. From what she could tell, they were asking about each other’s family and how business was going.
Garth set his package on the rickety table. Ramon did the same with a box the size of a business file.
“Always good doing business with you,” the man said as he picked up what Garth had left. “Have a good flight home.”
Garth nodded.
The men turned to leave. Dana kept her gun trained on them. Ramon walked past her without acknowledging her, but the second man hesitated before hurrying out the door.
Dana stayed where she was until Garth said, “They’re disappearing into the trees. Come on.”
He picked up the box and started for the plane.
Less than two minutes later, they were on the jet. Even as Garth pulled the door shut, the engines started. They taxied to the end of the runway and took off.
“You okay?” Garth asked, unbuttoning his shirt and tossing it onto the leather seat.
For a second, she thought he was getting naked for her. But before she could tell him off, he was unfastening his bulletproof vest.
Right. Because he didn’t need it anymore. They were done.
She ducked into the bathroom at the back of the plane and leaned against the closed door. She shut her eyes and deliberately slowed her breathing. It was finished. They were safely on the plane. She could relax. In and out.
It took a few minutes for her heart to slow. Her hands stayed steady, which was a point of pride. She pulled up her sweatshirt, then shrugged out of the vest. She slipped the sweatshirt back on, then splashed water on her face.
Garth was waiting for her by the leather chairs. As she approached, he handed her a glass of something clear over ice.
“I’m not thirsty,” she told him.
“It’s not water. Straight vodka. It’ll be the easiest to get down. I have Scotch if you prefer.”
It wasn’t even noon, but she felt as if she’d lived through three days already. After taking the glass, she downed the contents in two gulps, then gasped as the alcohol burned the back of her throat.
She moved to her seat and saw the package sitting on the small table.
“Go ahead,” he said. “I already know what’s in it.”
“Ramon told you?”
“I guessed.”
She unwrapped the package, then opened the box.
There were receipts, some original, some copies. Photos, notes, checks and lists of materials. There was also a timeline that went back several months.
Dana looked through everything. With each new piece of paper, the knot in her stomach grew. She recognized Jed’s handwriting on a few pages, a call log with a Dallas area code listed and a diagram of an explosive device.
Individually there wasn’t all that much, but together, it was enough to convince her of what she’d been desperately trying to avoid accepting.
“Jed arranged for the oil rig explosion,” she said, barely able to form the words. “It wasn’t you.”
Garth sat in the seat across from hers and watched her. “It wasn’t me.”
“He knew everyone would think it was you. That must have been part of his plan.”
“Escalation.”
“Izzy could have been killed.” She couldn’t wrap her mind around that fact. Jed could have killed his own daughter. How was that possible?
“She was lucky, as was everyone else on the rig. There weren’t any fatalities.”
Dana felt sick inside. “There’s no way to make this right. There’s no way to explain it. How am I going to tell them?”
“You’re not,” he said. “I am. I’m meeting with Cruz later.”
Cruz. Right. Cruz would know what to do. He would protect Lexi and Mitch would protect Skye and Izzy had Nick, now. They would be fine.
Dana pushed the box away and closed her eyes. It was Jed, not Garth. Jed, whom she’d known for years. She might not have liked him too much, but she’d trusted him. She believed he had a moral code.
“This has to stop,” she whispered.
“That’s the plan.”
“You think you can defeat him? He’s ruthless.”
Garth gave her a cold smile that made her shiver.
“He hasn’t got a chance. I’ll destroy him. When I’m finished, he won’t have anything and there’ll be no coming back.”
Dana swallowed. There was a promise in Garth’s words, but that wasn’t what made her uneasy. It was the knowledge that he would do anything to win. How far was this deadly game going to go?
“NICK’S HERE TO SEE YOU,” Agnes said through the intercom.
Garth looked up from the report he’d been reviewing. He hadn’t talked to Nick in weeks, not since Garth had sacrificed their years of friendship in the name of winning. He had nothing but regrets but didn’t know if Nick would want to hear them.
“Send him in.”
Nick walked through the door and into the office. Garth stood. They met in the middle of the big room.
“Cruz sent me to pick up the information you have for him,” Nick said by way of greeting.
Information Cruz could have collected himself, Garth thought. Or sent an assistant.
Garth pointed to the large envelope on the corner of his desk. “It’s copies of everything I picked up in Mexico. I have the originals in my safe. If anyone needs to see them, they can, but I want to keep them for now.”
“You’re not turning them over to the police?”
“Papers I bought from a Cuban in a foreign country? No. I’m not turning them over to the police. If we’re going to get Jed, we’ll have to do it another way. Besides, this is insurance. If he gets out of hand, then I can threaten him.”
“He already tried to kill Izzy. I would say that’s out of hand.”
“You can’t change the past.”
Nick stared at him. “You got that right.”
At one time they’d been friends—even brothers. They’d nearly died together. Garth would have thought they would be there for each other no matter what. Until he’d played to win and lost one of the few relationships that mattered.
“You’re still going after Jed.” It was a statement from Nick, not a question.
“With everything I have. It’s what he deserves.” Garth glanced at the envelope, then back at Nick. “There’s a tape recording inside. Cruz might want to listen to it before playing it for Lexi and her sisters.”
Nick frowned. “What is it?”
“Jed offering me Titan World on the condition I cut out his daughters.”
“When did that happen?”
“A while back. Before Izzy had her surgery.”
“That bastard.”
Nick walked to the desk. Garth waited until he had the envelope before saying, “I’m sorry. I know it’s too late, but I want you to know I’m sorry. For what I did, for what happened. I was wrong to assume you didn’t care about Izzy. I was wrong to risk our friendship. You saved my life and I owed you. I should have remembered that.”
Nick’s expression remained unreadable. They were both good at hiding their feelings.
“I came between you and Izzy. I could
have destroyed what you had.”
Nick looked at the papers he held. “Maybe not. I’m not the kind of guy women let go of so easily.”
Humor? It was a good sign. “If I had it to do over again, I wouldn’t.”
His former friend walked to the door. “I heard what you said, Garth. I’m going to need some time to figure out if I think you mean it.”
THAT AFTERNOON Garth arrived for his meeting with Cruz. By the number of cars in the driveway, he could tell it wasn’t going to be just the two of them. Nick’s SUV was parked behind a truck, making Garth think all three Titan sisters were waiting for him on the other side of the door.
Not only was he hesitant to see them, he wasn’t excited to be the one to inform them that their father didn’t give a rat’s ass about them. He would rather that kind of news came from someone else.
Nick answered the door, but didn’t speak to him. Garth followed him into a large living room where Garth’s three sisters, Cruz and Mitch, Skye’s fiancé, waited.
No one said anything. Garth could feel the anger in the room and had a bad feeling it was directed at him. A case could be made that he’d earned it. He’d hurt everyone standing in front of him.
He’d loaned Lexi a couple million dollars, only to call the note when she was most vulnerable. That had been the opening shot of his campaign. He’d messed with one of Cruz’s drivers, had tried to turn Mitch against Skye, gone after Skye’s foundation more than once and played Nick to hurt Izzy. It wasn’t a body of work to be proud of.
“You need a hug,” Izzy said unexpectedly, coming up to him and wrapping her arms around him. “Don’t let them mess with you.”
She hugged him fiercely, as if trying to give him strength. He wanted to tell her he didn’t need it, that he would be fine on his own, but the warm embrace was oddly comforting. Without meaning to, he found himself hugging her back.
When Izzy stepped away, Cruz motioned to the sofas. “We should sit down and discuss this.”
Garth noticed Cruz waited until a very pregnant Lexi had settled on a cushion before sitting next to her. Izzy curled up next to Nick and Mitch stood behind the club chair Skye had chosen. Only Garth was alone.
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