CHAPTER TWELVE
Sloane
Steam moved in tiny tendrils above my morning cup of coffee. Seabirds were waking up with the sunrise, starting their morning chorus. I’d been up before daybreak, waiting to see what was proving to be a spectacular event.
Just as grand as the sunset was, the start of the day was equally gorgeous. I was ready to get going on a new day.
Having Zane leave so abruptly had been a blessing and a curse. A curse because of the mind games I’d been playing with myself, but a blessing his absence had given me an opportunity to slip into Smith’s abode.
True, I hadn’t found anything useful, but I’d eliminated the bungalow, which was useful intel. Now, I just needed to follow him around to see where he was keeping the stash of money the FBI was told he possessed.
“Gorgeous.”
I turned my head find Zane standing on his deck. Even just after waking up, scratching his head, and wearing nothing more than red pajama bottoms, the man looked like something out of a naughty dream.
“It is, isn’t it. You just don’t get sunrises like this back home.” I sipped my coffee and tried not to look at Zane’s crotch to see if there was any morning wood action going on that would give me a hint to the size of his magic wand.
“I was talking about you, Sloane.”
I rolled my eyes but was secretly pleased. “Such a sweet talker.” I pulled the sides of my robe closer together to make sure my tits weren’t exposed. I had nothing on underneath the robe. After the long bath last night that had a very happy ending, I floated to the bed and fell right into it without bothering with nightclothes.
“What do you say to some breakfast before you get rolling on your book writing?” He leaned over, gripping the rail with both hands, making his pecs and biceps flex, the tattoos moving over the muscles.
My stomach growled as my eyes roamed freely over him. I was hungrier for him than anything else, but he hadn’t offered that.
Damn my luck.
“My stomach is telling me to accept that invitation.”
Pushing his hair back with one hand, he smiled. “Cool. I’ll take a quick shower and come over to escort my lady. Give me fifteen minutes. Or do you need more time than that?”
“Nope.” I put the coffee cup down and got up. “I can be ready in fifteen.”
I was a bit on the giddy side as I hurried to shower and dress. The best thing about being in a tropical paradise was no one expected you to wear a full face of makeup. It would just melt away anyway, leaving you looking like a sad clown. And with the constant breeze, I pulled my hair back into a ponytail to keep it from blowing all around my head the way it had yesterday.
Well within my time limit, I’d showered, and put on a simple outfit of white shorts and a pale blue gauzy top, then slipped on some sandals.
I loved island life.
Zane knocked just as I was walking out of the bedroom. I grabbed my bag and joined him outside, locking the door behind me.
“You look great.” He took my hand and pulled me to him, leaving a kiss on my cheek.
My lips tingled, wanting a taste of those luscious lips of his, but I wasn’t about to grab him and force him to satisfy my craving. Not after being rejected last night. I couldn’t handle another rejection this early in the morning.
The sound of another door closing had us turning around, and there was Smith with his girl.
Damn.
“Hey there, Charles.” I looked at Zane in surprise.
When the fuck did he meet my rabbit?
“Hello, Zane. How ya doin’ this fine mornin’?” Smith knew Zane?
How? When? Why?
Zane’s arm moved around my shoulders. “This is Sloane, my girl.”
His girl?
And why did my stomach just flip?
I extended my hand, common manners taking over. “Hello, Charles, did he say?”
“Yeah, I’m Charles.” He shook my hand with a couple of quick jerks then looked at the woman he was with. “This is Grace. She’s my girl.”
“It’s so nice to meet you both.” I shook her hand too.
She had a great smile, but one would expect that out of a mafia moneyman’s arm candy. “It’s a pleasure.” She let my hand go to run hers over her hair that was already beginning to blow around. “You don’t happen to have a spare hairband, do ya?”
I actually did have one wrapped around my wrist. It was a little thing I did when I wore my hair in a ponytail, just in case the one I had broke. My thick hair had been known to pop a band a time or two. “Here, take this one. I have plenty.”
Grace pulled her hair up and slipped the band around it. “Charles picked me up so quickly that I didn’t have time to get every little thing.”
“Oh, was the trip a surprise?” I was loving that I was getting to actually interact with them. I could get the job done so much faster this way.
Zane’s hand ran down to the small of my back. “Baby, we can talk over breakfast. You two should join us.”
How lucky for me that I was with Mr. Social. “Yes, join us. That would be so nice.”
“Sure.” Charles took Grace’s hand, and we all set out to walk up to the café.
We were a few steps ahead of the couple, so I leaned in to whisper, “And when did you meet this guy?”
“Last night.” He moved his arm up and wrapped it around my neck, holding me close and kissed the side of my head. “When you were supposed to be sleeping.”
I didn’t know what he meant by that, but I was still curious. “How did you meet?”
“I’m surprised you didn’t hear us. We were talking back and forth on our decks. What were you up to that you didn’t hear us?”
He grinned, and I felt for a moment that he might know what I had been doing in the bathtub. I had opened the blinds after all, so I could see the moon.
But then I remembered that it was dark inside my bungalow, and the bathtub was deep. Zane couldn’t have seen anything. “Sleeping hard, I suppose.”
He was still grinning. “I suppose so. Did you see them when you were on the plane?” He let me go and held my hand.
“Who? Them?”
He nodded. “Yeah. You all came in yesterday. It would make sense that you all rode on the same plane.”
I couldn’t very well tell him that I came in on a private jet. That would send up a bunch of red flags, and I’d have to create even more lies. “I might have. I really didn’t pay that much attention. I slept mostly.”
“Hmm.” We walked off the pier and onto the beach where Charles and Grace came up beside us. “Did you guys come here on the same plane Sloane did? She said she was sleeping, so she wasn’t sure.”
Charles eyed me then shook his head. “Nope. I’d remember. I never forget a face.”
Zane was really pushing it. I needed to change the subject and fast. “That speedboat ride out to the island was something else, wasn’t it?”
Grace whistled. “I’ll say. I was scared shitless. I had to bury my face in Charles’ chest the whole ride. It seemed to take forever too.”
Zane opened the door, allowing us all to go inside before him.
“What a gentleman you are.” It seemed he surprised me with every move he made.
“Be sure to tell my mother that. She gave up on me years ago.” He grinned and gestured to the large buffet. “This place has the best breakfast on the island. Get ready to be stuffed.”
After filling our plates, we found a table for four and sat down to eat. I wasn’t about to ask too many questions too fast, so I made small talk as we ate and was happy when Charles invited us to go snorkeling after breakfast.
Zane answered before I could. “That’s nice of you, but we can’t. Sloane has work to do.”
Charles frowned as he looked at me. “What kinda work?”
My lips parted to say that I could put it off, and we could join them. It would be perfect if we made friends with him, but again, Zane spoke for me. “She’s writing a novel while she’s here. She needs time to get some words in today. So we’re out for the morning.”
“I see.” Charles leaned back and patted his round stomach. “What ya writin’ about?”
I forced my face to relax and not give away my irritation. “It’s a romance. Nothing men care to read.” I put my napkin on top of my plate, silently fuming that Zane was speaking on my behalf. “I have to wash my hands. I’ve never managed to eat anything with syrup on it that didn’t somehow leave me sticky nearly up to my elbows. Come on, Zane, you got some of it on you too.”
He looked at his clean hands then shrugged. “If you say so.”
As soon as we got around the corner and out of their sight, I let him have it. “Zane Boyd, I can answer for myself. I want to go snorkeling.”
“But you have to work. You said so last night when you turned my invitation down. Remember?”
“Can’t a lady change her mind?” I asked, practically snarling.
He blew out an aggravated breath. “I didn’t want it to be you who blew them off, so I took the heat of that.” He smiled at me and ran his hand over my cheek. “I got your back, baby.”
I rolled my eyes heavenward, seeking guidance and patience from whatever saint helped women not to kill men. “Get off my back. I want to go. Let’s go tell them that I’ve changed my mind.”
“Nope.” He shook his head. “You have work to do.”
Who the hell did he think he was?
“Zane, I will not…” His lips touched mine, and I shut the hell up as electricity welded my lips closed.
He released my lips, leaving me under his spell. “It’s okay. I have your best interests at heart. Come on.” He took my hand and led me back out to the table. The couple looked up at us curiously. “We’ll catch you guys later.”
“Actually, darling,” I said, batting my lashes at Zane. “I think I’ll be even more creative after a swim in all of nature’s beauty.” I smiled at Smith. “I’d love to go with you.”
Grace lit up, happy to have some company. “That’s wonderful. Let’s meet on the pier in say, thirty minutes? The boat takes off in forty-five.”
I beamed back at her. “Perfect. See you soon.”
Zane didn’t say a word all the way back to my bungalow, but once we were inside, all the ones he’d bottled up came out in a rush. “Who are you? Why are you after Charles and Grace? Why in the hell are you being so cagey?”
I’d gone through interrogations as part of FBI training. They sucked. Really sucked. So you’d think the questions coming from this man wouldn’t rattle me in the least. But I was a bit rattled. What had I done or not done for him to read me so easily? This wasn’t good. Not good at all.
I crossed my arms over my chest and met his look straight on. “I’m Sloane Anderson, photojournalist and wannabe novelist.”
His nostrils flared. “If you insist.”
“It’s the truth.” I looked him straight in the eyes as I lied, ignoring the twinge of conscience the FBI hadn’t completely beaten out of me yet.
His grip tightened on my shoulders, his expression stern. This wasn’t the playboy I met yesterday. “You’ll tell me the truth about everything, or I’ll out you to Charles. I’ll let him know all about your little midnight snoopfest last night.”
I didn’t allow my face to change even as my heart sank into my gut.
I had been caught.