HOT SEAL Target

by Lynn Raye Harris

  The shock riding his system was quickly turning to alarm. Crying was a more normal reaction, sure, but still not a good one because he had no fucking idea what to do about it. He didn’t have time to pull over and drag her into his arms to comfort her.

  “Quinn. You gotta stop, baby. You gotta pull it together. Fall apart when we’re safe.”

  She waved a hand, gulping. “I’m sorry. Really. I’m just…” She drew in a few deep breaths, pressed her hand to her belly. Didn’t say anything for a long minute.

  “I’m stunned but I’m also relieved,” she finally began. “And that makes me a terrible person, doesn’t it? I’m relieved the bastard is dead.” She swiped beneath her eyes. “He was good to me for a while. He made me feel special, and I adored him. But he changed. So I can cry for the Hunter I once loved—the one that wasn’t real—and I can also be relieved that the terrible person he really was is no longer in my life. Right?”

  “You can feel however you want to feel. You’ll get no judgment from me.”

  She sniffled and sucked in a breath. “God, I feel terrible and yet I’m also happy that I never have to deal with his moods ever again. That he’ll never slap me or pinch me or drag me to our room for sex.”

  The idea that Hunter had done any of those things to her made him want to howl. “Did he do those things often?”

  Blade was proud of how even he made his voice sound. How normal.

  “Not as often as he used to—well, except for the sex. He hasn’t done that in about six months.” She paused for several moments as she stared out the window. He couldn’t see her face so he didn’t know what she was thinking. “But it’s over now and I’m free.”

  Not as free as he would like her to be. They still had to deal with the threat to her life. And with the aftermath of Hunter’s death.

  He was a wealthy, powerful man. And while she’d said there’d been a prenup, that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to be involved in the resolution of Halliday’s estate.

  Which meant she was still at risk, especially if the triad hadn’t gotten their money. They’d keep coming for it, and they weren’t going to care who they had to threaten—or kill—to get it.

  “Do you know what’s in Hunter’s will?” he asked her.

  She shook her head. “No idea. I mean, I don’t expect to get anything, of course. I imagine it all goes to Darrin.”

  “Are you on any bank accounts?”

  “Yes. Hunter had a procedure once and he was worried about his ability to do business while in the hospital. He put me on the account so I could do his bidding. Before you ask, he didn’t trust anybody who worked for him to execute things precisely as he wanted. In fact, he thought they might try to oust him. Anyway, that’s neither here nor there. So yes, I’m on the account. But my signing authority is limited. Hunter had to approve anything over ten thousand dollars.” Her eyes widened as the implications of Hunter’s death hit her. “Oh my God, this means I have full control of the account now, doesn’t it?”

  He flexed his fingers on the wheel. “Technically? Yes. But it’s probably not wise to do anything crazy. The estate will come after any money that isn’t yours, and they’ll come after it hard.”

  “I wouldn’t steal anything,” she said a touch indignantly. “I just thought maybe I could give the household staff some bonuses. Hunter never did. Lupe needs a new car—she’s the housekeeper in Dallas and she’s been with him for ten years now—and I’d like to give it to her. Things like that.”

  Of course she would. Quinn had always been sweet like that. And he wanted her to be able to do it, but now wasn’t the time.

  His brain churned with the things he knew about the situation. She could sign checks. She had access to Hunter’s bank account. If the triad knew that, they wouldn’t give up trying to collect the debt. They’d take everything they could get their hands on if they got to her. And then they’d make sure she disappeared for good.

  He glanced in the rearview mirror, looking for anything out of the ordinary. It would have been prudent for the triad to secure Quinn before killing Hunter, but a man like Shan might have let his anger get the best of him. Shan probably wouldn’t have thought that taking Quinn would be difficult. His people knew where to find her, after all.

  Quinn hugged herself. “Where are we going?”

  “We’re getting the fuck out of Hong Kong.”

  “How? You aren’t planning to drive out, are you? I don’t think we’ll get too far.”

  “No, we’re not driving. I have friends who can get us out. We’re going to meet them right now.”

  She looked suspicious. “What kind of friends?”

  “Friends like me. Men who’ve done this sort of thing many times before.”

  She yawned suddenly, her jaw cracking. “Sorry.”

  “It’s understandable. You had a long day.”

  She nodded. “I’m tired and overwhelmed—and I’m just going to let you do what you do. I don’t even want to know right now. Is that okay?”

  “More than okay,” he told her. “Go to sleep, Quinn. I’ll wake you when we get where we’re going.”

  “I don’t think I can sleep,” she whispered. Too many thoughts racing through her head, no doubt.

  “Just lean back and close your eyes. See what happens.”

  She did as he directed. Five minutes later, she was out.

  Quinn didn’t know how long she dozed, but she snapped awake in a panic, a little scream on her lips. It took her a few moments to remember where she was and who she was with. And what had happened to put her here.

  Blade was beside her, big and calm and comforting. The interior of the car glowed brightly, and she realized they were in a parking lot with huge floodlights shining down.

  She sat up and blinked. “Where are we?”

  “We’re waiting for our contact to meet us.”

  “Contact?” She pushed her hair out of her face. She’d never gotten to shower, so her hair was wavy and full. “It sounds like we’re in a spy movie. Did you make a chalk mark on the sidewalk?”

  He grinned. “Nope. They’ll find us without that.” He turned to look out the front windshield, presumably searching for something, his fingers tapping on the steering wheel. “I’ve got friends who will help us. Just waiting for one of them to show up and get us to the airport.”

  “Why can’t you drive us there? Abandon the car in long-term parking and forget about it.”

  “Do you really want to stroll through passport control?”

  “I don’t think we have a choice.”

  One corner of his mouth lifted. “Now that’s where you’re wrong. It’s all in who you know.”

  A van pulled up and flashed the headlights three times. Blade flashed back. There was an answering flash and then he turned off the ignition and opened the door. “Come on, let’s go.”

  “To that van?”

  “Yep.”

  She grabbed her bag and opened the door, striding around the front of the car to meet him. The air was crisp at this hour, and Hong Kong was beautiful as the sun began to peek over the horizon and wash the water pink.

  Blade put a hand against her back and propelled her softly but firmly toward the van. The door slid open at the last second and two men smiled at them.

  “You made it, frogman.”

  “Was there any doubt?”

  The man who hadn’t spoken yet snorted. “There’s always doubt with the new recruits. But you passed.” He reached out a hand for Quinn.

  She hesitated.

  “It’s okay,” Blade said. “I work with these guys.”

  She took the man’s hand and he helped her into the van. A moment later, Blade flopped beside her, dropping his backpack onto the floor next to her tote bag.

  “Mrs. Halliday,” the first man said, extending his hand. “I’m Jace.”

  She placed her hand in his. He was leanly muscled and surfer-boy handsome. He looked like he’d be tall when he stood up.

 
“Call me Quinn,” she said.

  “Quinn, then.” He jerked his head at the other guy. “The one who helped you inside is Brett.”

  “Hey,” Brett grunted as he settled a mean-looking rifle on his lap.

  “And driving this bus is none other than our man Colton. We’re gonna get you to the bird safe and sound.”

  Quinn turned to Blade. “Bird?”

  “Plane,” he said. “These guys are former military. Mostly. We speak a different language sometimes.”

  She looked at each of them in turn. They didn’t have short hair or uniforms, but she could believe they’d served. They all had that determined look that she recognized from the past couple of days with Blade. It was a look that spoke of supreme confidence and utter certainty that they could handle any job put to them.

  “Any sign of pursuit?” Jace asked.

  “Nope,” Blade replied. “We got out pretty quickly.”

  “And that’s the plan right now. Get out fast before the authorities can shut down all traffic in or out. So hold tight, ladies and gentlemen. Colton is about to remind us why his family used to run moonshine during Prohibition.”

  Quinn grabbed the seat as the van shot forward and then careened left before straightening again. The lights outside the van windows sped by. Eventually, after some twists and turns and what she suspected were near misses, they pulled to a stop.

  “Gate’s up ahead,” Colton said. “Best hide them.”

  Jace pointed to the bench seat beneath their asses. “Y’all need to get inside there until we’re through. I’ll throw a blanket over it.”

  Quinn’s lungs constricted as she looked down at the box she sat on. “It’s small,” she managed to squeeze out.

  “It is. Sorry about that.”

  Blade gave her hand a quick press. “It’ll be fine. I’ll go on the bottom and you can lie on top of me.”

  He tugged her upright and Jace threw the lid off the bench. Blade quickly got inside, lying flat on his back. Quinn tried not to panic as she stumbled to the edge. Blade lay inside on his back, his eyes shining up at her.

  “Come on, baby,” he said. “You can do it. It won’t last long.”

  Jace was waiting. “Soon as we’re through, you can get out again. These bastards are lazy, promise. But we left with three and we don’t need to return with five.”

  “And if they find us?” Quinn asked.

  “They won’t. Money will exchange hands before that point, if necessary. It’ll be enough.”

  “Okay,” she whispered. She stepped into the coffin-like structure, feet between Blade’s legs. He held up his arms, opened them.

  “Come on, Quinn. You can do this.”

  She dropped down and stretched out over him. They touched everywhere, chest to hip to crotch. As the lid went down over her back, flames roared through her body at the contact with Blade. He put a hand behind her head, pressed her cheek to his chest. She felt his lips make contact with her hair. A shudder rolled through her. It was such a simple contact, and so profound at the same time.

  “Don’t make any noise,” he whispered. “It’ll be over soon.”

  Her heart felt like a squirrel on crack and her blood roared so loud in her ears that she wasn’t sure if she’d even hear a noise if she made one. The tailpipe was louder here, the vibrations stronger. There was a hole at one end of the bench, and she focused on that. Stared at it and at the movement outside it. There wasn’t much, but it was enough.

  She was much too aware of Blade’s body. How strong and big it was and how she responded to it. Her skin was on fire. Desire swam in her veins. In spite of her fear at the tight confines, liquid heat flowed through her on waves of flame, pooling between her legs.

  The van lurched forward again, and the box vibrated around them. She must have made a sound because Blade’s fingers moved in her hair.

  “It’s okay,” he whispered.

  She wouldn’t have heard it except that his mouth was so close to her ear. His breath was hot against her, his body even hotter. And there was something else too… a growing hardness pressing into the apex of her thighs. Pressing against flesh that was already aching for want of him.

  The van rumbled to a stop. Voices sounded outside the window. And then the engine shut down and Quinn turned her face into Blade’s chest and tried to calm the hammering of her heart. She wasn’t cut out for this stuff. She was a mouse compared to these men. She liked routine and quiet. God, she’d thought she was bored day after day with Hunter not letting her go anywhere, but right now she wished she was back in her bed with a good book. Or maybe with Blade.

  The van doors opened. She could see light coming in through the hole. Two men with machine guns spoke rapidly. The man called Jace was closest to them.

  “Hold up, hoss. Did you say you’re looking for a runaway? We don’t have any of those. We don’t pick up hitchhikers.”

  Blade’s grip on her tightened. The guard said something else in Chinese. Jace responded in kind. Then he said something in English that chilled her blood.

  “Be my guest. We’ve got nothing to hide.”

  The guard clambered into the van and started banging around. Quinn squeezed her eyes shut and prayed. Something hammered on top of the bench and Blade tightened his arms around her when she would have made a noise.

  “Dude,” Jace said. Then he started speaking in Chinese. A few moments later, the man clambered out of the vehicle, the doors slammed, and the van was moving again. The lid popped up and Jace peered down at them.

  “Told ya,” he said with a grin. “Bastard wanted money.”

  “Yeah, I heard,” Blade replied. “But the runaway he was talking about is Quinn. Somebody got an alert out pretty damned quick, don’t you think?”

  “It’s a triad. They probably own half of Hong Kong.”

  Blade pushed her upright, and Jace helped her from the box. She sank down on a seat opposite, grateful to be breathing fresh air but also sad that she was no longer pressed up against Blade. No longer feeling the long, hard length of him pushing into her pubic bone.

  He climbed out of the box and dropped it shut, then sat down on it again. “Any more checkpoints?”

  “Nope, that’s it. Almost there.”

  Within minutes, the van rocked to a stop and the doors popped open. A gleaming jet sat a few feet away, stairs pushed up to the open door. The jet was plain white, nondescript. The engines whined a little higher as the group jumped from the van and headed for the stairs. Jace went first, followed by Brett. Blade pushed her in front of him. Colton brought up the rear, but not before he spoke to someone waiting nearby and handed them the keys to the van.

  Quinn stepped onto the jet and then stopped as she entered the main cabin. It wasn’t at all what she expected. She was accustomed to traveling in Hunter’s jet, which had been outfitted with as much luxury as he could get. But this one was a military command post, complete with computer banks and a conference table at one end. There were plush seats surrounding it and there was a hallway leading to the rear of the aircraft, but she couldn’t see what was beyond it.

  Blade put a hand against her back and propelled her forward. A man emerged from the hallway, smiling broadly as he saw them. He was tall, handsome, with black hair and dark eyes and a rough sort of masculinity that would have made her heart throb if not for Blade.

  “Well, well,” he said. “What did the cat drag in?”

  “Ian,” Blade said from behind her. “This is Mrs. Halliday. Which you know.”

  Ian came forward and held out a hand. “Indeed I do. Hello, Mrs. Halliday. How are you?”

  She took his hand because it was expected, but she wasn’t sure she wanted to. “Tired. Confused. Overwhelmed.”

  “Yes, I imagine so. Why don’t you follow me? I have a place where you’ll be more comfortable.”

  She hesitated, glancing at Blade over her shoulder.

  “It’s okay,” he said. “I’ll go with you.”

  Ian didn’t look
insulted by her hesitation. He simply waited.

  “Thank you,” she replied. “I’d appreciate that.”

  They went down the hallway and came out into a cabin that had lay-flat pods. “Sit wherever you like,” Ian said. “Unfortunately, there’s no time for beverages. We’re departing immediately.”

  As if to punctuate that statement, the aircraft engines spooled up.

  A woman’s voice came over the speakers. “Ladies and gentlemen, we need you to take your seats and buckle up. We’re cleared for departure and we’ll start our taxi in approximately two minutes. I’ll update you as soon as we’re airborne.”

  Quinn sat down and buckled her seat belt. Blade sank into the pod beside her and did the same. Ian took one across the aisle.

  Quinn leaned toward Blade, pitching her voice low. “Who is he?”

  “Right now, he’s the man who’s getting you out of here. And he’s my boss.” Blade frowned. “Other than that… I have to be honest and say I don’t really know.”

  “Well, that’s comforting.”

  Blade snorted. Then he took her hand in his and held it. She liked the warm feelings spreading through her. He hadn’t touched her like this when they were teenagers. She’d have given up potato chips for good to have had him hold her hand back then, but he’d never shown the slightest inclination.

  “Yeah, sorry,” he told her. “But he’s one of the good guys. That much I’m pretty sure of.”

  “Pretty sure?” Quinn glanced at the man who scrolled through his phone, seemingly oblivious to their conversation.

  “It’s as good as I’ve got. But he’s getting us out of here, so let’s focus on that.”

  She was trying to. But she was also focusing on her hand in Blade’s. “I like you holding my hand,” she said softly.

  His eyes were hot as they met hers. “I like it too.”

  She sucked in a breath. “When we were in that box in the van…”

  “Yeah. Sorry about that.”

  “I’m not.”

  He lifted a hand to her cheek, brushed her skin lightly. Tenderly. “I’ve wanted to touch you like this since I first saw you again. But I couldn’t.” His brows drew low. “And I’m not sure it’s such a good idea now.”