by Bex Dane
He's quiet as he starts up the car, but his brow is furrowed and his shoulders stiff. As we pull out into the street, he asks, "Did you tell anyone else you were home except Griffin?"
"You think Griffin did that? It could've been set before I was kidnapped."
"True. This means someone is on to you. Possibly the person who kidnapped you or the people who have your missing person."
"Or they are one in the same."
"Could be."
"Someone wants me to stop investigating this case. You see why I can't stop?"
He nods. "This shit just got interesting."
***
We arrive at Dragon Lounge, and Mace was right. It would've been suspicious if I drove considering the outfits we're wearing.
He waves off the valet and parks himself.
"What's our plan?" I ask him.
"No plan."
"No plan?"
"Plans screw things up. Prepare for the unexpected."
That's the opposite of everything we learn at the academy, but he's all I've got right now. "I don't even know who I'm looking for."
"If he's here, I'll give you the signal."
"What's the signal?"
He shrugs. "You'll know when I give it to you."
"I'm not liking this." I grumble under my breath and get out of the car.
He comes around and puts a hand on my back which makes me shiver and tense. See? This is why we need a plan because I wouldn't have agreed to pretending to be with him, but it's too late. The valets have eyes on us, and there's a huge crowd. I tighten up my body and do my best to impersonate a girl who would be happy to be at a club with a giant rhinestone cowboy.
Mace attracts a ton of attention as he struts up to the entrance. From the looks on the female's faces, they'd be thrilled to walk up here with Mace at their side, but they don't know him and the evils he's capable of.
Mace works out a deal with the doorman, and we pass through the red velvet rope ahead of the line.
"How'd you do that?"
"I have connections."
With his hand on my back again, we make our way through the rows of high-backed booths. Illuminated dragons glow on the walls, and young people dressed in sleek clothes pack in around the bar and dance floor. The loud bass of the hip hop beat pounds in my ears. It's so loud, fighting it is futile. You have no choice but to let it vibrate through your entire body.
Mace must feel it too because he grabs my hand and smiles as he leads me to the bar. "What do you drink?"
"I don't drink."
He shakes his head and rolls his eyes. His hand grips mine tighter as he leans in to get the bartender's attention. He towers over everyone and the bartender is female, so he gets served right away.
As we're waiting for our drinks, I scan the room for anyone familiar. None of this feels like I've seen it before. Not even a little déjà vu. Mace could be making this whole thing up, and I wouldn't know. Depending on him makes me nervous.
His possessive hold on my hand, the energy in the club, the way we're dressed, it's all getting to me, and I'm trying hard to remember this is for work because if it wasn't, I'd be enjoying it far too much.
The bartender passes him two drinks, and he finally lets go of my hand to juggle the drinks and his wallet. His drink is a short, cylindrical glass with dark brown liquid in it. No ice. Mine is a vibrant yellow color in a similar glass, but it has a cherry and ice.
"What's this?" I ask as he hands it to me.
"Whiskey sour. Try it." I take the glass from him and he raises his over our heads. "To my arch-enemy, for having fuck-me shoes in her closet ready to go."
It's loud in here, and I'm not sure I heard him right, but oh my word, Mace saying fuck-me in my ear has to be one of the most erotic things I've ever experienced, apart from actually sleeping with him, which is still at the top of that list.
He leans back and takes a sip from his drink. My eyes are glued to his mouth as he swirls it around and his Adam's apple when he swallows. Everything he does is so blatantly sexual, it should be illegal.
I take a small sip of my drink, and the tart lemon takes the bitter edge off the whiskey. "Not bad."
Leaning back with his elbows on the bar, he scans the room. I still don't see anyone I recognize. This entire exercise is a massive waste of time and energy. "I don't think this is working."
He ignores me like he can't hear me over the music, which he probably can't. "We need to draw some attention to ourselves," he says while staring out over my head.
"What? No!" But I'm too late, he's already dragging me out to the dance floor. My drink splashes as I reach to set it down on the bar.
He pulls me through the crowd and stops dead center in the middle. I'm afraid of what he'll do next, but I'm stuck out here with him. A new song comes on and a wicked grin blooms on his face like they're playing it just for him. It's a grungy rock song, and his hips start moving to the vicious beat.
"C'mon. Dance, Lola."
His whole body is vibrating to the music now, and the heat coming off of him is making me sweat. I start to move to the music but only a little, shifting my weight from foot to foot.
"Put your hips into it." He makes a circle with his hips.
My cheeks are flaming hot. I never draw attention to myself like this, and Mace is far too comfortable with it.
His hands grab my hips and sways them back and forth. "Think inner lioness." He makes a rawr sound and a tiger claw with his hand. He's ridiculous and also gorgeous. It's very hard to resist him. This is for a job after all. I let my hips go loose and finally start feeling the beat.
"That's it. Woot!"
He takes off his jacket and tosses it into the crowd.
Oh my God, he's crazy.
The chorus of the song says "Porn Star Dancing," and I have to laugh at Mace for picking the perfect song to start stripping in a club. He goes for the buttons of his shirt, and I reach out to stop him.
"Mace, no."
"Why not?" His hands are stronger than mine, and he has his shirt open in seconds. He's pulling it over his shoulders, and I'm flashed with his massive hairy chest, ripped abs, and tattoos. He's a feast for the eyes. Several people have started to watch him now that he's half naked.
And oh my, with his shirt and jacket off, his pants are more visible. I'm trying not to stare, but I think he's half-hard, and I can see the outline of a giant penis in his pants.
He's not self-conscious at all. In fact, I bet he's proud of his penis imprint on his suede pants.
I have to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all. The laughter breaks through my inhibitions, and I find myself dancing with him too. My arms go up, and my hips sway. It's fun and sexy and so different from my normal life. Time to let go and be grateful I'm alive.
He pulls me close with a paw around the small of my back. I'm pressed up against his bare chest, and my hands come up to brace myself. He bends us left and right in some kind of banana move that is both sexy and stupid. A thin sheen of sweat makes his skin damp and shiny.
Finally the song ends, and he's beaming with pride as he walks us back to our seats. About ten girls immediately bound up to him and push me out of the way.
Someone else's arm circles around my waist and pulls me back. I turn, ready to fight.
"Hey, Loralei." A man with a mostly shaved, tattooed head is smiling down at me.
I look back at Mace for some kind of sign. He stands up and points. "That's him." He mouths it, but I get what he's saying. Pretty much everyone in the bar gets it.
"Uh, hey."
"You need some more favors from old Helix here?"
Helix. His name is Helix. It fits with the biometric tattoos all over his body including his scalp. He looks more like a machine than a human.
"Actually I need the same favors again." I have to arch my neck and pull him down to get his ear. "Can we go somewhere and talk?"
"Without doubt." He grabs my hand and walks me toward the back of the club.
<
br /> Mace stays behind with his gaggle of girls. A tickle of apprehension grips my throat, but I push it down. I'm a cop. I can handle being alone with this guy even if he is tall and scary and I'm unarmed. No place to hide a gun with this outfit.
He takes me out to a small balcony with a loveseat and pulls my hand until I'm sitting next to him. The cool evening air raises goosebumps on my skin as he puts his arm behind me over the back of the seat. The music is muted out here, so I don't have to scream at him to be heard. "So, those favors?"
His head tilts to the side as he examines me. "What do you mean?"
"Can you do the same favors again for me?"
He scratches his shaved head and chuckles without smiling. "You didn't hear Morganna's dead?"
"Oh, yeah, I did hear that. I mean the other favor." Please let there have been more than one favor.
"You didn't get what you needed from Marval last time?"
Okay. This is good. Marval. I don't know anyone named Marval. "No, I didn't. Can you set it up again?"
"You want to take another shot at Marval Diablo Rios?"
Excellent. Now I have a name. Diablo does not sound good. "Yes."
He shakes his head and tsk-tsks me. "This is not wise. Why don't you come sit on my lap for a minute, and we'll talk about it up close and personal?"
I don't know what I told him about why I wanted Marval, but I need him to remind me, so I'm going to have to give in on this one.
With a coy smile, I make a move to climb up onto his thick thighs as strong hands grip my hips and pull my knees on either side of him. The heat from his body immediately hits me. I didn't realize before, but Helix has stunning silver eyes. He's actually a good looking guy underneath his harsh external appearance, and his shoulders feel sturdy when I brace my hands on them.
"Is this about your old man?"
I blink several times and stare at him in shock. My dad had something to do with Marval Diablo Rios? "Why would it be about my dad?"
He shrugs. "Thought you might be digging into the past."
I may have lost my memory, but I know I wasn't looking into my dad's associates. "No. I just want to talk with him." I twirl my fingertip around his ear. These tattoos are actually really well done. The dark and light are drawn in a way that it appears three dimensional like someone has actually cut his scalp away to reveal metal gears and thick bolts. "So you'll set me up with him?" I adjust myself on his lap, and he looks down at where my dress has slid up.
His tongue juts out and swipes his lower lip. "I'll see what I can do."
"Thank you." I embrace him with a hug and he stiffens. His hands come off my hip, and he holds them up in the air.
When I pull back, he's staring over my shoulder, his face drawn. Behind me, Mace stands in the entrance to the balcony. He has one foot kicked out and all his weight on one hip. His mouth hangs slightly open, and his eyes look sharp as razors. He's wearing his jacket without the shirt underneath, and he looks incredibly hot.
Helix's hands return to my hips but only to lift me up and plant me next to him on the seat. Helix stands up and wipes his hands together. "I'll get back to you on that, Loralei."
Mace glares at Helix as he leaves the balcony. I stand up and face down Mace. "I was making progress with him."
"You didn't have to sit on his face to get what you needed." He leans down and forces me to step backward.
"Why do you care what I do?"
My back hits the plexiglass wall around the balcony.
"Do you know who he is? He's a bounty hunter, yes, but he's also a hitman. A trained assassin. And you crawled up on his lap like he's a stripper. You were probably sitting on at least three loaded guns." He has me pinned with his hips, his hands above us on the plexiglass, and I am face to face with the gorgeous hair on his naked chest.
"Who was acting like a stripper tonight? You literally took off your clothes! The girls were all over you." I have to close my eyes to stop all the sensations he's throwing at me. He's too beautiful, too hot, too close.
He grins. "That was fun." And his smile is dazzling.
I push against his chest but he won't budge. "We're not here for fun!"
"I am always up for fun, no matter the job. You take it where you can get it. You should try it sometime."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
He looks over my head, out at the view of the city. "Never mind." He pushes off the wall, and his smile fades into a grimace. He takes my hand and pulls me back into the club. He waves goodbye to Helix and walks us back down to my car.
I'm scuffling along in my ridiculous leopard heels behind him trying to keep up. "You know him?"
He shrugs. "Bounty hunters stick together."
I stop to take off my shoes. "Did you tell him I'd be there tonight?"
"I may have mentioned it."
"Did he know about my missing memories?" I'm standing on the cold asphalt in bare feet, but it feels so good to be free.
He leans down and grabs my upper arm. "Hop on. I'll carry you."
"No. This dress."
"Hop on!" He tugs me up and over like he's putting on a jacket, and somehow I'm getting a piggyback ride down to my car in the parking lot. I find myself smiling. When was the last time I rode on a giant's back? Probably not since I was a kid and my dad carried me like this.
"I wouldn't tell Helix you lost your memory because it would put you at risk if he was the kidnapper. I protected you. From the looks of it, it's not him, so we're good."
"I agree. I don't think it's him. He said he'll hook me up with someone named Marval Diablo Rios."
He stops cold, ten feet away from the car. "Do you know who he is?"
"No."
He glances back over his shoulder at me. "He's a Venezuelan cartel boss."
Oh good Lord. I had a meeting with a cartel boss, and I don't remember? "Did you know I met with him before?"
"No." He starts walking again and finally stops at the passenger door to my Maserati before dropping me to my feet. "That's where I blew it. I stopped following you too soon. Nothing you were doing looked like it was related to me or my family, so I took off. Was chasing a skip in Arizona when I got the call." He looks down and shuffles his feet.
"It's okay, Mace. It's not your fault. You couldn't have known I was headed for trouble."
He shakes his head. "If I had just stuck with you a little longer, I might have been able to stop it."
"You don't know that."
He looks at me and nods, but I don't think I've convinced him. He feels guilty for my kidnapping, but it has nothing to do with him. He opens the passenger door to my car and waits for me to sit down. I buckle up as he comes around the back to the driver's side. "We have two more stops tonight. You up for it?"
I'm actually exhausted, but I'm not telling him. I want retracing my steps to be over and done with. "Sure."
He starts the car and takes off out of the parking lot. I squeeze my eyes and try to remember, but nothing shows up. It baffles me how my mind refuses to grant me access to parts of my brain.
I'm glad I have Mace to help me, but I'm not sure what to make of him. He's both charming and frustrating. On one hand, he seems to care about me and wants to protect me. On the other, he's a wild card that could turn on me at any moment. For now, I'm stuck on this ride with him, and I need to make the most of it while I can.
Chapter 5 The Bluffs
Mace
Lola's Maserati Gran Tourismo handles like a cheetah on the prowl. A slight tap on the gas and it explodes like a rocket, smooth like glass and faster than any other car on the road. Sexy red leather seats and the sleek console beg me to push her limits. Lola doesn't want to get pulled over by the cops, and she clenched up at seventy, so I keep it under eighty on the highway. First chance we get, we're taking this baby to the desert to break a hundred. This car can probably reach one-twenty in eight seconds. It's bored with twenty-five mile per hour speed limits. This car wants to soar like it was designed to do.
/>
Kinda like Lola.
Her inner lioness is dying to come out. She has the shoes, the car, and the attitude. The way she let loose and danced with me was such a turn on. That's the kind of girl I could spend hours with, teasing her, making her laugh, making her crazy, watching her recover, and doing it all over again.
In the midst of my thoughts, I went the wrong way and missed the turn for the Golden Gate. Luckily there's a junction I can take that will swing us around the other way.
"Where're we going?"
Of course Lola noticed my change in direction. That's something she probably never does. She probably has her route all mapped out. Never misses an exit or uses a junction to reverse course. Well, I'm driving tonight, babe, and I take the long route.
She forgets her question as we ascend into the fog surrounding the bridge.
"Whoa." Her face lights up, and she looks stunning with her ultra sexy hair and makeup.
"Didn't you grow up here?"
"It's always pretty, but this is incredible. The fog is so thick. Like we're floating."
"Yeah. Cool." It's a beautiful sight, even though we can't see the water. The jet black vehicle, the aged metal of the iconic red structure, and a ghostly blanket of fog so thick we can't see the cars in front of us or behind us.
I probably wouldn't have thought about it twice if she hadn't brought it up, but now that she has, I see it from her perspective.
As we exit the other side of the bridge, we're greeted with the winding streets of downtown San Francisco. I take her to an upscale Italian restaurant off Lombard Street on Telegraph Hill. "I love this restaurant."
"I know. After you went to the nightclub, you stopped here for dinner. Alone."
"I did?"
"Shall we go in and see if it triggers any memories?"
She looks down. "I can't go in there dressed like this."
"You did. Wearing exactly that. You sat at a table all by yourself and confidently ordered a meal."
Her gaze focuses on the entrance to the restaurant. Does she have the same courage tonight, or has she lost her mojo with her title as a cop?
"Fine. Let's go."
Good girl. "You can wear my jacket."
She doesn't answer, but I drop it over her shoulders as we enter. The hostess gives us a table and asks for our drink orders.