‘You have a funny way of showing it, Maguire.’ The sting was softened by the fact that she was still in his arms, her lips the merest whisper from his.
Pulling back a little, he gazed deeply into her eyes. ‘Go home, Holly. Please.’
‘No.’
He sighed, brushed his lips gently over hers, then gathered her close and kissed her again. When they broke apart Holly’s breathing was unsteady.
‘This is wrong.’ Connor sounded anguished. ‘Go home, damn you. Keep this on ice until the job is done. Promise me . . . baby . . . Holly. You don’t know what you’re getting into.’
But Holly was kissing him, not listening. He’d told her to feel, not think. She was full of feeling. If she’d thought about it she’d have wondered what the hell was the matter with her. But whatever it was, it was afflicting Connor as well. Reason fled, commonsense melted away, personal hang-ups were forgotten, past hurts no longer counted. Holly Jones and Connor Maguire might have been forgiven for feeling that they’d been born for this particular moment.
A long time later Connor stirred, nuzzled her neck and asked, ‘Are you awake?’
It seemed a funny sort of question to ask. ‘You can’t seriously think I’m asleep.’
Holly raised herself on one elbow and looked down at him. He was quite a mixture. His lovemaking had been tender and passionate, and he’d remembered her sore ribs, taking great care not to hurt her. Suave, cheeky yet vulnerable, these traits were all there in his face. And a little bit extra. Sensitivity that was strictly his own. It was an irresistible combination. She realised suddenly that all the empty spaces inside her had been filled. There was no longer the hollow feeling of betrayal, loneliness or anger. She was complete again. It didn’t matter if the relationship with this man would last, or if he’d want to take it further, or even, for that matter, if she’d want to. All Holly knew for certain was that he had swept away her inability to trust. With that finally gone, she could take the first step towards the rest of her life. None of these thoughts showed. She simply smiled at him and said, ‘Maguire, you are one beautiful man.’
‘Jones.’ He looked serious. ‘You are one beautiful woman.’
‘But,’ she said, snuggling into him with her head on his shoulder, ‘you’re not off the hook. I think you have something to tell me. The diversionary tactics were very good but I’m not a guppy. My memory is excellent. As I recall, you confessed to being dishonest.’
‘I did not.’
‘I haven’t been entirely honest with you, quote, unquote,’ she repeated his words. ‘Same thing.’
‘What do you mean, diversionary tactics?’
‘You’re doing it again, Maguire. Talk to me.’
He was weakening. ‘I’ll hate myself in the morning.’ He tried appealing to her better nature.
‘Hard luck.’ Holly was damned if she’d fall for it. She had no problem shelving her better nature when the necessity arose.
‘My only concern is keeping you safe. That’s why I’m prepared to talk.’
‘Ta.’
She heard a smile in his voice. ‘I’d have told you earlier but you seduced me.’
‘Didn’t.’
‘Shameless. You don’t care, do you?’
‘Nope.’
He moved to prop himself over her. ‘I didn’t want this to happen.’
‘It’s happened.’
‘How do you feel about it?’
‘I feel good about it.’
‘Good?’
‘Okay. Better than good.’
He kissed the end of her nose. ‘Since it’s obvious you’re not going to ask, I’ll volunteer the information that I feel better than good about it too.’
Connor’s lips moved over her cheek to just below her ear and then back, along the line of her jaw to rest firmly on her lips.
‘Nice try, Maguire,’ Holly mumbled, returning his kiss.
‘It’s not my fault,’ Connor objected, revisiting her ear. ‘My diversionary tactic has just developed rigor mortis.’
‘I’m not a government agent, a police officer or anyone official, that’s the first thing you should know.’
Connor was propped against a stack of pillows, the sheet pulled up to just below his navel, a glass of wine in hand. Holly sat cross-legged next to him, acutely aware of his brown, lean body and how it had felt in her arms. Draped in a beach robe, her wine on the bedside table, she experienced the deepest desire to pounce on this man beside her and kiss him all over. She resisted the temptation. Reluctantly.
It was six in the evening, and as pre-dinner drinkies and some small talk went, this promised to be, in her own words, a lulu. Connor had been amused when she’d expressed that opinion but was now semiserious. ‘I didn’t want to tell you, I didn’t want to get involved with you and I don’t want you with me. So how come nothing seems to be going my way?’
She’d shrugged. ‘Some people sure know how to make a girl feel good.’
Half-smile, half-dimple. ‘You know what I mean.’
‘Agreed. I just don’t know why.’
‘I could kill for a cigarette.’
‘Likewise for some information, Maguire.’
‘Okay.’ He sighed. ‘I’m not a government agent, a police officer or anyone official, that’s the first thing you should know. I’m acting on my own, and if it goes wrong, I could be in deep sticky brown stuff. That’s why I don’t want you involved.’
There was no doubting his concern. Holly felt a rush of appreciation that this man sincerely cared about her safety. That, and apprehension for his. ‘I’m listening.’
‘My first wife, Diana, was a stunner,’ Connor began. ‘We were eighteen when we met, twenty-three when we married. She . . . I loved her very much, but I was too young and inexperienced to realise that she needed constant reassurance. As I told you last night, while I was building for our future, she was destroying herself.’ He sipped his wine. ‘With the booze and cocaine came the inevitable undesirables. We started fighting about her friends. In the end, she ran off with one of them.’
Holly could imagine his confusion and hurt.
‘For a while I clung to the hope that she’d come to her senses and return. I blamed myself and wanted to understand what went wrong, to find a way of avoiding the same mistakes. Where to start was a problem. I had no experience of drug addiction or alcoholism. All I knew was that I had to be there for her when she came home.’
Without thinking about it, Holly rose from the bed and picked up Connor’s discarded shirt. She found cigarettes, lit one, inhaled with the silent satisfaction of a person who had given up but would really rather not have, and passed the cigarette to Connor. Taking it without comment, he kissed her his thanks.
‘One thing led to another. I met with all sorts of groups. Some trying rehabilitation, others counselling the addict and their family. You name it, it’s been tried. Tough penalties, educational programs, individuals going into the streets and devoting their lives to saving others, shooting galleries, scare tactics, alternative drugs.’ Connor ran a hand through his hair. ‘Jesus, Holly! The world has turned itself inside out to help these people but nothing seems to work.’
‘I wouldn’t say that,’ Holly said gently. ‘Although I can see how it must seem like that to you.’
‘The more I looked into it, the more hopeless it became. I grabbed a few headlines, blamed a few government departments, raised some money for research, generally made a noise, but it got me nowhere. Diana never came back. Then, out of the blue, I received a phone call. This person represented a particular syndicate . . . and no, I can’t mention their name . . . that had been extremely active and quite successful in tipping off Customs whenever a large consignment of drugs was due to be smuggled into Australia. Apparently they’d been following my one-man crusade for some time. They’d seen what I was trying to do. There is nothing vigilante about them but . . .’ he hesitated, ‘. . . let’s just say that they are well connected, work outside the usua
l channels and, in order to succeed, sometimes find it necessary to break the law themselves. They believed that with my commercial connections and networks I could be useful to them. At first I wasn’t keen to get involved. It seemed way out of my league. I had businesses to run and, because of my profile, it’s not easy for me to do anything without the media getting to hear of it.’ He cocked one eyebrow at Holly.
‘Guilty.’ Holly raised an arm.
He smiled slightly. ‘I said no. They didn’t push it.’
‘What changed your mind?’
‘Time passed. I remarried, probably on the rebound and was regretting it within two months. What was it you said? Choose a wife with your ear, not your eye?’
‘Not my wisdom. I found it in a book of proverbs.’
Connor offered her the cigarette but she shook her head.
‘Events kind of took over. Our marriage broke up, the press learned of it and, for a week or so, it was splashed all over the gossip columns. The group made contact again.’
Holly cut in. ‘I know I asked earlier but I’ll run it past you again. Is Raoul involved?’
The answer was the same. ‘To be absolutely honest, I don’t know. He’s having an affair with Liang Song, has the right connections, no conscience, is insatiably greedy. I’m guessing he’s probably involved with her European side of the business but the Australian deal . . .’ Connor shrugged. ‘I’d have expected him to leak something, show off a bit, let me know that he knows. He’s that kind of man.’
‘I agree.’
‘Liang Song needs my connections in Australia. Raoul doesn’t have them. Up to now, Madame Liang has been concentrating on Europe and has established a successful network on the continent. Now she’s looking to expand. Mainland Africa is not a lucrative option. The Nigerians have got it tightly sewn up. But the west coast of Australia is wide open.’
Holly had a flash of insight. ‘It would serve your purpose quite nicely if Raoul were involved. That way, if Madame Liang goes under in the Australian deal the rest of her drug business is likely to come to light and, if Raoul is involved with her, he’ll most likely go under too. Is that what this is all about? Getting even for the shipping failure?’
Connor’s eyes were unreadable but a deeply felt emotion flickered in them briefly. ‘Yes.’
She was disappointed. There was a spiteful element in his plan that she hadn’t expected. ‘So you said yes when you were approached for a second time?’
‘Not right away. I had the same worries as before. Told them I’d think it over and took a long-promised trip to Ireland.’
‘Which was when you found William’s journal?’
‘Correct. It was like fate had pointed me in this direction. I didn’t have much of a plan but it seemed to me that by being here I might be able to dig up enough dirt on Raoul to pay him back. I decided that a search for William’s treasure would make the perfect smokescreen. On my return to Australia I said I’d help but only if they had something for me on Mauritius. They did. So here I am.’
‘To do what exactly?’ Holly thought she knew but wanted it clarified.
His dark eyes bored into hers. ‘That’s a big ask, Holly.’
‘I know.’ She held his gaze. ‘You can trust me,’ she added quietly.
‘Yes.’ He nodded. ‘I suppose you do need to know. You’re pig-headed enough to go off halfcocked if I don’t explain. Besides, you are already too connected for my liking. If this goes wrong . . .’ He let it hang. ‘Madame Liang and I are setting up a trading company.’
‘To deal in drugs?’
‘That’s the plan.’
‘Wait just a minute here, Maguire. This mysterious group who need you to front for them. How do they fit in? It’s all very well for them, you’re the one in the hot seat. What if you’re caught? Australia would lock you up and throw away the key.’
‘Not necessarily.’
‘But . . .’
Stubbing out the cigarette, Connor leaned over, put his arms around her and pulled her down to him. When he had her snuggled to his satisfaction, he said, ‘Shut up and listen.’
Holly fumed briefly but decided to do as she was told.
‘As I said, there’s nothing official about this. But . . .’ he stressed the word, ‘I’m not as far out on a limb as it might seem. If I screw up, the Australian government will deny all knowledge of my activities. If I’m successful, they’ll take the credit. I don’t exist and neither does the group I’m doing this for. We do, however, have Canberra’s unofficial blessing.’
‘So all you have to worry about is being dead and discredited.’
He hugged her into him. ‘It won’t come to that. If the deal goes wrong my name will be kept out of it.’
‘You’re messing with the Triads for God’s sake, Maguire. You don’t half live life on the edge.’
‘I believe in this, Holly.’
She saw how serious he was. ‘For Diana?’
‘Yes.’
‘And she’s too far gone to know the risk you’re taking on her behalf?’
‘She’s dead, Holly. Found in some Kings Cross hotel room a few months ago. Overdose.’
‘I’m sorry. I didn’t know.’
‘Where were you at the time? Siberia? It was all over the papers.’
‘A few months ago I wasn’t very interested in anything.’
‘The divorce?’
‘Yes.’
‘I can identify with that.’
Holly kissed his bare shoulder. ‘I like you,’ she said softly.
‘Thank you.’ He kissed her hair. ‘I could get used to this.’
‘One more thing.’
‘I rather thought there might be.’ His lips were still against her hair. ‘Are you always so persistent?’
‘Always.’
‘What’s your question?’ He was nibbling her ear.
She moved slightly. ‘Mmmm. I can’t think straight when you do that.’
‘I’ll bear that in mind.’ His eyes smiled at her. ‘I get the impression that you’ll occasionally need controlling.’
‘I’m not a horse, Maguire.’
He grinned.
‘How far down the track are you with Liang Song?’
‘The groundwork’s been done. The company has been established. Arrangements made. Just the last-minute hiccups that usually crop up. Madame Liang is keen for this to proceed but she’s understandably cautious. She knows that if anything goes wrong, fur will fly all over the world. It’s big, Holly. Liang Song thinks we’re setting up a regular trade route but she accepts that our first consignment will be the easiest. Australian authorities would quickly pick up on any increase of heroin in the market and it wouldn’t take them long to make the Mauritian connection. For that reason the initial delivery will be massive, bigger than anything anyone has attempted before. The whole stockpile, in fact. And Customs will grab the lot. Madame Liang isn’t as clever as she thinks. The link will be made back to her, I can make sure of that. By busting the attempt to breach Australian shores, her whole European network should also break down. It’s a one-off hit.’
‘What about her family? Are they in on it?’
‘A few. Not on the Liang side. Sadly, Liang Song’s father-in-law is as honourable a gentleman as you’d hope to find. He hasn’t a clue what she is doing. She’s got some unsavoury relations, particularly two of her uncles.’
‘Those two who followed me?’
‘The very same.’
Holly thought for a moment. ‘If you pull this off, what guarantee do you have that the Triad won’t come after you? They’re not exactly known for their forgiving nature.’
‘That’s been taken care of.’
‘How?’
‘Better you don’t know.’
‘Maguire!’
‘I can’t tell you.’
‘Okay,’ she said slowly. ‘How about this? You are a very clever businessman, well versed in the practice of covering corporate tracks. If the Australian
government is backing you, albeit unofficially, some kind of insurance policy must be in place, a watertight safety net perhaps. Am I on the right track? At least tell me that much.’
‘Close enough. Now can you please drop it?’
She did. ‘Raoul?’
‘Hurt him financially. Maybe a spell in prison. Get back at him somehow.’
She gave him a shrewd look. ‘That’s the only thing that doesn’t make sense. It’s out of character.’
Again, a deep pain crossed his eyes. ‘Trust me, Holly. It’s not.’
There was something else, something she couldn’t put her finger on. A failed business deal on its own should have been shrugged off. Holding a grudge did not seem like Connor Maguire’s style. Holly let it go. He obviously wasn’t going to tell her any more. ‘So you’re not really searching for William Maguire’s treasure at all?’
‘Well yes, I am actually. It’s for a good cause and it’s the kind of thing that appeals to me.’
‘Rodrigues. Is that treasure or drugs?’
‘I’ve always wanted to go there. Haven’t you?’
‘Maguire!’
‘Treasure,’ he yelped, when she dug fingers into his ribs.
‘Maguire!’ Her fingers were poised for another prod.
‘And drugs. There’s a connection. My trip there is to meet somebody.’
Holly was absently stroking Connor’s chest. ‘The other day when you deserted me in the restaurant, who did you need to speak to?’
‘A contact. He’s Australian, fluent in French and under deep cover. He’s . . . I can’t tell you any more, Holly.’
‘He wasn’t the only reason you chose that particular restaurant. You knew Liang Song was in there.’
‘Killing two birds with the one stone. I wanted to rattle her.’
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