He turned back to her, and now he was wearing the nerd glasses with the clip-on shades. "Am I wrong?"
"No, you're not wrong, and you look hilarious in those clip-ons. So is there a number two?"
He grinned. "There's always a number two if you start with number one. Otherwise, why say that?"
"Some people do."
"Not me. If I ever start with number one, you can guarantee there's at least a number two."
That's good to know." She liked that he wasn't careless with his words. Words were cheap in Hollywood, tossed around with no thought about the repercussions. Lex wasn't like mat. "What's number two?"
"You may not have noticed, but this is a most excellent parking spot. We're on the end, so when I come back, leaving it lot will be a snap. I don't want to lose this spot"
First she was sad thinking about him coming back here without her, but as the comment sank in, she began to feel insulted. "You mean you'd give up seducing me for a parking spot?"
"It's only one factor. There's also a third factor. Now that we're in sight of the ship, I could use my cell to bring Cora down here in less than a minute. In other words, I can call for reinforcements. Seducing you would be a last resort."
Now she was really insulted. "A last resort? What's that supposed to mean?"
"Gillian, it's a compliment" he said gently.
Doesn't sound like one."
"Well, it is. If kissing you messes with my concentration, I can imagine what making love to you would do. I'd be worthless as your bodyguard. Instead of keeping an eye out for the bad guys, I'd want to spend every spare minute in bed with you."
That program sounded good to her, but she wasn't about to give him the satisfaction of knowing that when he was looking for every way to avoid physical contact. A girl had her pride.
She took a deep breath. "Well, then, we might as well get on board, don't you think?''
"Yep." He climbed out of the car. "Just let me haul the backpacks out of the trunk. I have Dante's in there, too."
Backpacks? Gillian got out of the car and walked around to the trunk. Sure enough, Lex unloaded two large backpacks, but they weren't just ordinary backpacks. "Star Wars and Lord of the Rings." She shook her head. "I see you took this disguise seriously."
Lex swung a backpack over each shoulder and started toward the ship. "Admit you're jealous because I have these cool backpacks and you don't."
"Yeah, baby." She laughed. "I'm in love with the clip-on shades, but I really lust after those backpacks."
"That's good, because I thought you might like to have one when you make a run for it."
Gillian stopped laughing. Then she stopped walking. She couldn't do this, simple as that.
LEX KNEW THE MINUTE GILLIAN SKIDDED TO A STOP that he'd said the wrong thing. He shouldn't have mentioned making a run for it. What a stupid thing to say. "Listen, forget that. One day at a time. You—"
She was breathing fast—too fast. "You know what? This is a stupid idea. Who do I think I am, a contestant on some reality show? I don't know the first thing about disappearing into a foreign country and living off the land. It all sounded possible after several martinis, but the truth is, I'll never make it."
Lex cursed his loose tongue. "It won't be so bad. The Mexican people are very friendly. My family used to go on vacation down there all the time when I was a kid. You'll be fine."
"You don't understand." She looked totally freaked. "I'm not a risk-taker. I eat familiar foods, drive familiar streets. I choose swimming pools over the ocean because I'm afraid of sharks. I don't even go on Splash Mountain!"
He frowned. "Are there sharks at Splash Mountain? I haven't been to Disneyland in a few years, so I—"
"No, no, there are no sharks in Disneyland. I was making the point that I don't even take the risk of going down that waterfall, because something might happen. I'm a coward!"
Lex came closer, set down both backpacks, and took her by the shoulders. "I don't believe that for a moment." Then, because it had worked to calm her down before, he pulled off his nerd glasses, abandoned his no-kiss rule, and planted one on her.
Just like before, he was swept away to a place he'd never been, a place where a woman with lips like a tropical flower beckoned him deeper into ecstasy. More, she seemed to say. Give me more. As he began sliding quietly and willingly under the waves of surrender, a piercing whistle brought him back to brutal reality.
He broke contact instantly and looked right and left, heart pounding. If anything was threatening Gillian, and he'd been too busy kissing her to notice, he'd never forgive himself.
"Up here, Romeo!"
Glancing skyward, he spotted Dante leaning on the railing of the cruise ship. "Hey!" Lex yelled. "Don't scare me like that!"
"Me? You're the scary one! I thought you were going to call me and let me know what was going on with you guys!"
Lex groaned. He'd been so involved with Gillian that he'd spaced that request. He remembered it now, when it was too late and he looked like an absentminded professor. "Sorry, man."
"Tell me about it!" Dante seemed to relish the role reversal. Usually he was the screwup. "Cora and me, we've been chewing our fingernails wondering what the deal was. I come out for a look-see and find you playing tonsil-hockey."
"We'll be right there." He glanced down at Gillian. "At least I hope we will," he said quietly. "Are you okay?"
She took a deep breath. "I'm lots better than I was. It's amazing how that works."
He decided not to remind her that those kisses were giving her a false sense of security. He wanted her on the ship, and if a kiss worked to get her there, he'd have to live with the consequences, which happened to be a raging case of hormones at the moment.
Putting on his nerd glasses with the clip-ons, he picked up the backpacks and hoisted one over each shoulder. "Then let's go."
She straightened her spine in a really endearing way. "Okay."
"Like I said. Let's not project too far into the future. One day at a time."
She smiled bravely. "Right."
At the top of the gangplank, Lex turned to scan the parking lot. There were plenty of dark sedans there, unfortunately. One looked familiar, but he might be spooking himself. He'd lost that creep back on the freeway.
That might not mean anything, whispered a voice in his head. This was the Mob they were talking about. By now they had a full description of his car. If he'd lost one goon, another might have picked up the trail later on.
But he couldn't imagine how one of those guys could be on the cruise without Lex or Dante spotting him. No way would a gangster be able to pass himself off as a nerd.
THE MINUTE GILLIAN AND LEX WENT THROUGH THE security check at the top of the gangplank and were given directions to their two cabins, Dante appeared and hustled them down the corridor. Then he unclipped something from his belt and spoke into it. "Screen Goddess, this is Italian Stallion. Painted Lady and Clark Kent are on board. Over."
Cora's voice crackled from the walkie-talkie. "Copy that, Italian Stallion. Screen Goddess, over and out."
Gillian paused to stare at him. "Painted Lady?" If she was going to have a code name, she wanted something better man that.
"Yeah. Because you're a makeup artist. Cora wasn't wild about it, but I thought it was kind of clever."
"When did you come up with walkie-talkies?" Lex asked.
"Brilliant, huh?" Dante beamed.
"I'm not so sure it is," Lex said. "Communicating with each other isn't a bad idea, but those things will make us look suspicious."
"Aha!" Dante looked pleased with himself. "Start thinking like a nerd, my friend. Cell phones won't work on the ship, so wouldn't a certain type of geek decide to create his own form of communication?"
Gillian was impressed. "Good thinking, Dante."
"We can talk about it more on the way to the cabin. Cora gave me orders to get you two into her room the minute you arrived. She wants to see with her own eyes that you're okay, plus
she thinks we need a strategy session."
Lex inserted himself between Dante and Gillian as they headed toward the elevators. "Do we have a schedule for the rest of today?"
"Yep. Plus an overview of the activities for the cruise. It's, uh, different, as promised in the brochure. Oh, and Gillian, I don't know where you're going to put your clothes. Cora's hogged the entire closet."
"That's okay." Gillian couldn't think of anything less important right now than closet space. She'd been given a code name and they were headed for a strategy session, which meant this escape plan was for real.
By stepping onto the ship, she'd left behind her previous life, maybe for several years. She didn't know when she'd set foot in the United States again. Besides that, she'd finally found a man who could kiss like he meant it, and she couldn't have him because she was on the run.
"I guess the walkie-talkies are a good idea," Lex said at last. "I should have thought of something like that"
"To be honest, it was Cora who thought of them, so we stopped by a Radio Shack on the way here. I was waited on by a genuine geek who thought they were very cool. I thought we should only get one for you and one for me, but Cora wanted one, too."
"I don't get one?" All this spy talk was making Gillian nervous, but if everyone else had a way of communicating, she wanted that too. The ship felt cavernous and spooky without any other passengers on board. "Someone could get lost in all these hallways."
"That's why you should take one of us with you whenever you go anywhere," Lex said.
"Exactly." Dante led them to the elevator and pushed the button for C Deck. "Normally, the person being guarded isn't supposed to worry about walkie-talkies."
Gillian didn't like that lack of control. "But I really would like to have one. It may be too late, but—"
"Don't worry. Cora knew you'd want one, so I ended up with four. Cora and I have tested them all over the ship, and they work great. If anyone asks about them, we explain them as a nerd toy."
"Sounds good," Gillian said. "Then I shouldn't have to take someone with me wherever I go. I can use the walkie-talkie, and if I get in trouble, I can radio for backup." The walkie-talkie concept made her feel much safer. Now if the ship could only sail around the world forever and she wouldn't be required to set off on her own in Mexico, life wouldn't be so bad.
"I still think you should have someone with you," Lex said. "Although all of these precautions are probably unnecessary. Don't you think we could pick a Mafia guy out from all the nerds on board?"
Dante shook his head. "I keep trying to tell you, Mafia guys don't all look alike. You could end up with a nerdy mobster, and then where would you be?"
"Someone followed us on the freeway, probably the same guy who was parked on Cora's street," Gillian said. "But through some masterful driving, Lex got rid of him." After that last kiss, she wanted Lex to know that she'd forgiven him for scaring her to death.
"Way to go, buddy!" Dante sent Lex an admiring glance. "Way to guard the Painted Lady."
Lex shifted the Star Wars backpack higher on his shoulder. "Look, we really need to come up with a different code name for Gillian. Last I heard, painted lady meant something we might not want to associate with our client"
"Fine with me." Dante turned to Gillian. "What do you want to be called?"
She didn't even have to think about it. "Norma Jean."
"Sounds good," Dante said. "Does that work for you, Lexter?"
"It's better than Painted Lady, but this whole code name business seems silly. I agree the walkie-talkies are a good idea, but we'll all recognize each other's voices. The code name thing seems like some B-movie shtick."
"Then don't think of it as a code name." Gillian held up the nametag she'd been given at check-in. "They gave us this with our real name on it, but they said we could change it to our nickname if we wanted. Don't you think it would be a good idea for me to go by Norma Jean instead of Gillian?"
He frowned. "I suppose."
She sent him a questioning glance. Dante had some good ideas, but instead of welcoming them, Lex was acting grumpy. "Anything wrong?"
"Nope." But his jaw was clenched.
"Maybe he doesn't want to be Clark Kent," Dante said. "How about Superman, instead? I picked Clark Kent because you have to wear the glasses and the nerd outfit, but we can go with Super—"
"We can talk about it later," Lex said.
"Okey-doke. Whatever you say. Well, here we are." Dante pulled a key card out of his pocket. "Cora's going to be so glad to see you two."
As Dante inserted the key card into the slot, Gillian tugged on Lex's arm, pulling him back a couple of feet. Then she stood on tiptoe to murmur into his ear, "What's bothering you?"
His expression was grim. "This isn't a game. I don't like that he's treating it like one." "But I know it's not a game." He stared into her eyes. "Good. Don't forget it."
Eight
FOUR PEOPLE IN ONE OF THESE ROOMS WAS A TIGHT squeeze in Lex's book. In his current hormonal state, he didn't need to be squeezed into any space that included Gillian. When she'd murmured a question in his ear a while ago, he'd nearly pulled her into his arms for another liplock.
Now he was sitting beside her—thighs touching—on a bed, for God's sake. If they lay back and scooted sideways, they'd be in business for a little horizontal tango. Instead he had to force himself to concentrate on the list of shipboard activities Cora was reading as she sat on the other bed next to Dante.
The room was so small that all four sets of knees were bumping each other. That alone should have kept Lex from thinking about sex with Gillian, but it had no noticeable effect. The warmth of her thigh against his was the only thing that seemed to register in his fevered brain.
"We have the captain's cocktail reception tonight," Cora said. "We all need to go to that so we can survey the passengers and pick out any suspicious-looking characters."
"If they all look like us, that's gonna be tough." Dante started to laugh. "Lex, could you please take off those clip-ons instead of leaving them flipped up like that? I can't concentrate with you sitting there looking like a dweeb."
Lex took off the glasses, clip-ons and all. He wasn't about to admit that he admired the design of those clip-ons. If he wore glasses he'd be sorely tempted to go the clip-on route instead of buying prescription sunglasses, or worse yet, the ones that went dark in the sun but never quite looked right in the shade, either.
"I think clip-ons look cute turned up, like miniature awnings," Gillian said. "And when you stop to think about it, don't you agree they're ingenious?"
Lex blew out a breath. Did she have to be sexy and kind? What was a guy supposed to do?
"Obviously, Lex doesn't agree, which is as it should be." Dante leaned toward Gillian. "The Lexter and I will be surrounded by geeks on this cruise. We have to fit in, but there's a small danger that in the process we'll become infected with geekiness if we're not careful. It probably won't be as much of a problem for me, because I was born cool, but for Lex, it's a concern. So let's not be telling him he looks cute with his clip-ons flipped up, okay?"
Lex was about to tell Dante what he could do with his pair of clip-ons, but Gillian beat him to the punch.
She leaned forward with deliberate purpose. "I wouldn't say Lex is the only one we have to worry about getting infected. You were the person all excited about the walkie-talkies and assigning us each code names."
Lex could have kissed her. Well, he was always on the verge of wanting to kiss her, but after that comment, the urge was overpowering.
"The ... the walkie-talkies don't count!" Red crept up from the collar of Dante's shirt. "That's part of security. I didn't say I liked the walkie-talkies."
Gillian smiled. "You didn't have to."
"No, you sure didn't." Lex knew he was piling on, but he didn't care. Dante was too damned sure of himself and his cool factor. "The minute we got here, you were all about the walkie-talkies, and code names and stuff."
&nbs
p; Dante flushed. "No, really. They're a tool. I'm not into them at all. It might have seemed that way, but I'm—"
"Children!" Cora rattled the paper she held in her hand. "Enough of your hang-ups. Let me finish reading the schedule. I want plenty of time to get dressed before the cocktail party."
"Right." Dante shifted his weight on the bed. "Let's concentrate, people."
Lex glanced at Gillian and caught her smiling at him. He couldn't help smiling back. The shared moment left him feeling even more turned on than he had been before. They needed to finish this strategy session, if only to let him get out of this cozy situation with Gillian before he lost it.
"After the cocktail party we have the first seating for dinner," Cora said. "Those who are in the second seating, which would be the four of us, are invited to the lounge for karaoke."
"That rocks," Dante said. "I'm great at that."
'Which misses the point of going," Cora said. "We need to scout out every possible venue looking for problems."
"And sometime after we sail," Gillian said, "I want to make a ship-to-shore call to the LAPD."
Cora gave her a sharp glance. "You want to tip off the police?"
"Yes. I can't let Neil get away with this. And I need to make the call soon, in case..."
Lex's blood ran cold at her implication. "In case you forget," he said quickly. "Because nothing is going to happen to you. Nothing at all. Right, gang?"
"Absolutely not." Cora gazed at Gillian. "I appreciate your impulse to do this, but be sure and take Lex with you when you go into that room. The calls are so expensive that the place is usually deserted."
"That's good." Gillian sat up straighter, as if gathering her courage. "I wouldn't want anybody to hear me make the call. Or even suspect I was about to make it"
Lex could kick himself for suggesting the call in the first place, but it had been the only way he could think of to keep her from going to the police before they sailed. Now he searched frantically for alternatives. "What about e-mail? That might be less suspicious. Everybody likes to check their e-mail."
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