Absolution (5 page)

She blushed and charged for the door, but he
caught her elbow before she could make it out. Redirecting her
behind him, he drew his gun and turned his head from left to right,
checking for any unwanted visitors lurking. Two uniformed officers
stood at the end of the hallway, and Joseph nodded at them. They
approached, and he returned his pistol to the holster on his lower
back.

He seized Eva’s fingers. “Stay close to me,
no matter what.”

“Okay,” she murmured.

Her petite hand clutched his, and his heart
did an odd little flip-flop. Using his body to shield her, he
stepped out into the hallway. The hair on the back of his neck
tingled, and he threw Eva to the ground along with his belongings
and drew his gun. The officer on the right pulled his gun, aiming
at where Eva had stood mere seconds before. Rage pumped through
Joseph’s veins. The punk dared to try to kill
his
woman? Two
quick shots and the Cartel thugs crumbled to the ground. He rushed
toward them, kicked their weapons out of reach, and checked for
pulses…finding none. Each man had hidden a pistol behind their
backs, and had fresh blood on soles of their shoes.

“Son of a bitch.”

He helped Eva to her feet, grabbed their
stuff, and hurried her out of the apartment. She stumbled behind
him, her breath catching as they passed the bodies.

“Why’d you kill them?” she squeaked.

“They’re not
federales
. I’m guessing
the actual
policia
are dead somewhere in the building.” They
entered the staircase, and he halted. “Right here. You better not
look.”

The men had been shot in the head. Joseph
cringed at the carnage and continued on, releasing Eva’s hand to
grab his phone from his pocket. He hit the speed dial button and
waited for an answer.

“Oh, my God. Those poor men.”

He glanced at her to see if she was okay. Her
gaze darted between him and the dead men. She turned white followed
by an odd shade of green. Lurching to the trashcan, she threw up.
He couldn’t blame her. Two men with their brains sprayed over the
place never looked pretty.

Hugo answered, and Joseph pulled his
attention from Eva retching into the garbage. “Your officers have
been murdered. There must be a mole on the inside. For Eva’s
safety, I’m taking her somewhere even you don’t know. I’ll contact
you as soon as it’s safe. Expect my call.”

He hung up the cell without waiting for an
answer and stepped to Eva’s side to rub her back.

Wet and clammy looking, she raised her head
and stumbled back. This time, she averted her eyes from the
corpses. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. No one likes to see stuff like
this.” He motioned to the side with his head and then chucked his
phone into the trash.

“Your phone!”

“GPS. Give me your phone.”

She pulled it out of her purse, and he threw
it with his.

“Hey, I need that. It’s got everything in it.
Calendar, numbers, schedules.”

“Which will do you little good if you’re
dead. Let’s go.” Grabbing her hand, he led her down the stairs. He
held his clothes in the crook of his arm and rested his hand on his
gun. No chance in hell would he allow himself to be taken off guard
again. Thirteen shots remained in his pistol plus the extra
magazine he kept on him at all times. “I’ll buy you a new phone
when this is done.”

“No, you’re right. I’m being silly.” She
followed him without speaking.

He left her in the shadows to do a quick
surveillance of the streets. A drunken man stumbled down the
sidewalk, singing at the top of his lungs. Joseph tightened his
grip on his pistol, bracing for shots to be fired, but the man
belched and then continued on his way. Joseph led her to the
parking lot. Salsa music drifted out a nearby window, and three
children ran by, giggling and holding hands.

Joseph’s gaze darted nonstop, looking for any
threats lurking in the darkness. When they arrived at his
nondescript Ford Focus, he unlocked the door. “Get in.”

“When did you bring your car here?” Eva asked
as she slid inside.

He shut her door, stalked to the driver’s
side, and climbed in. “I left it here earlier then came looking for
you.”

“Awfully cocky of you to take a chance at
guessing I’d let you come home with me.”

“No chance or guessing about it.”

She scoffed. “Where are we going?”

“Fiesta Inn.” Joseph pulled away from the
curb but didn’t remove his fingers from the butt of his pistol. As
he wove and bobbed through traffic, he kept checking the mirror for
a tail. “Grab the hat in the backseat and put it on. I don’t want
anyone being able to describe you.”

She reached back, retrieving the baseball
cap. Scrunching her nose, she shoved it on her head. After the
thirty-minute drive—which should have taken fifteen—they entered
the hotel.

Three women sat behind the wood and cream
granite receptionist area, and Joseph approached them with a smile.
He checked to ensure Eva kept the baseball cap low over her eyes
and remained close by but not in clear sight, either.

“
Hola. Querríamos un cuarto superior, a
fines de un pasillo en el segundo piso, por favor
.”

The receptionist smiled and began the
booking. Joseph peeked over his shoulder again, jaw stiff and hand
hovering next to his lower back where his pistol remained holstered
and hidden. When a man walked in, he cursed and stepped closer to
Eva. The hotel patron didn’t even glance their way but instead
walked straight to the elevator and out of sight.

Once he had paid for the suite, Joseph led
Eva up a flight of stairs to the second floor and to the room at
the end of the hallway. Next to them stood the custodial closet, so
if he heard anyone sneaking around outside, he’d know they came
either to clean or to cause trouble. Much less traffic than, say,
the first room on the hallway.

Joseph opened the door, did a quick once-over
of the layout, and shooed Eva inside. Twisting the deadbolt behind
him, he pressed his ear against the cool metal to listen for any
suspicious activity before following Eva. The carpet was a navy
blue color, the walls one of those shades of white—ecru maybe?—and
a king-size bed rested in the middle of the room, along with a
desk. No couch, no roll-up cots. Just like he wanted.

By nightfall, he would be between those
sheets with Eva.

***

“There’s only one bed.” Eva turned to Joseph,
eyebrow raised. “We need another one.”

“You might feel the need for two. I don’t.”
He looked out the window, closed the blinds tight, and hopped onto
the mattress. “Mmm…soft. Come try it out.” He patted a spot two
inches away from him.

Is this how Eve felt when Satan offered her
an apple?
Just one bite, my dear
. She shook her head. “No,
thanks. I’ll stand.” Her stomach rumbled, and she flushed.

“Hungry? Here’s dinner.” He gestured toward
the tray on the nightstand holding someone’s room service they’d
grabbed off the cart they’d passed earlier—dropping a few dollars
in its place. “Taco or burrito?”

She chose the taco and sat down at the desk
across from him, unwrapping the paper from her taco. He remained
quiet for a while, but she kept stealing glances at him while she
ate. He looked even more handsome than she remembered. It seemed
unfair for a man to appear so hot even while stuffing his mouth.
His biceps tightened every time he raised his arms. As he took his
last bite, she sighed at the muscles bulging in front of her.

“Enjoying yourself?” He grinned and
stretched.

“Hmm? Oh, yes, it’s very good.” Her cheeks
heated, and she jumped up, tossing her half-eaten taco in the
trash. She regretted her impulsive act before the food hit the
plastic bag. It had to be one of the best tacos she’d had in
months.

“I meant your entertainment. Not your dinner.
I couldn’t help but notice you staring at me. Like what you see,
pumpkin?” He flexed his arms.

She glared.

He burst out laughing.

“I told you not to call me that. I don’t like
it.”

“You didn’t mind it before.”

“Before you cheated on me, you mean?”

His eyes narrowed, and she bit her lip. Why
did she bring up the topic she’d hoped to avoid? She tensed and
waited for the explanations and excuses to begin anew. Instead, he
surprised her by shrugging and facing away. She breathed a sigh of
relief but groaned when she saw the bottle of wine he’d grabbed
from behind him.

“No, thanks. I need all my brains around
you.”

“Suit yourself.” He strode across the room
and set the bottle on the bureau to retrieve two plastic cups. “But
I know you well enough to know you’d love some. It will help you
relax.”

“That’s what I’m scared of,” she
muttered.

He chuckled and turned earnest green eyes on
her. “In all honesty, you should have some. You saw a lot of gore
tonight. Things most people never have to see. And someone tried to
kill you. Twice.” He filled both the cups and walked toward her
with one held out. “A drink will help soothe your nerves. Trust
me.”

As she took the glass, her gaze never left
his. He held his wine up, and she clinked hers to his, ignoring the
fact they were plastic.

“To new beginnings,” he whispered.

She scrunched up her nose. “And to not
forgetting past wrongs.” She raised a salute to him and chugged the
contents. When she finished, she met his stare and flushed. “What?
I’m following your advice.”

“By all means, continue to do so. Here, have
another.” Giving her his still-full cup, he rushed across the room
to grab the bottle. Returning, Joseph poured her another full
glass.

She looked at both the cups in her hands.
“What? You have nerves of steel and don’t need help?”

“I’m on duty. Remember?”

She stuffed a cup back in his hands and
marched away. “Oh. Right. I forgot. You’re babysitting me.” She
plopped on the bed and leaned back on one arm, sipping her
beverage. The alcohol already made her brain a little fuzzy. She
didn’t often drink wine, and when she did, she sipped it with
dinner. Giggling at his confused expression, she swallowed the rest
of her drink, held out the empty glass, and smiled. “This is
good
.”

“Maybe you should cool it a bit,” he
suggested but nevertheless approached with the bottle. “It would
suck to be hanging over the toilet all night.”

“Nah. I’ll be fine,” she assured him. He
poured her more wine, but stopped when it hit the halfway mark.
“Don’t think I’m too tipsy to notice you only gave me half.”

She played with a lock of her hair and
scooted until she leaned back against the pillows. His gaze
followed her movements, his eyes darkening to an emerald green when
he sat on the edge of the bed.

“I wouldn’t dream of underestimating your
abilities.” He put the bottle on the floor and took a sip of wine.
“Tell me what you’ve been up to the past month or so. Your father
said he asked you to go home to America, but you refused.”

She shrugged. “My kids at the school need me.
Most of their parents are too busy struggling to survive to raise
them, so I’m all they’ve got. Who knows how long it would take to
find a replacement for me?”

“Your father plans on leaving town next week
when his mission is finished. I’m sure he plans on you accompanying
him.”

“He can plan all he wants. I’m not going
anywhere.” She couldn’t leave her kids and her apartment, the place
she and Joseph had shared. She couldn’t leave her friends, her
co-workers, and the life she’d built. She couldn’t leave….

Him
.

The realization hit her like a ton of bricks,
but she had to acknowledge the truth behind the thought. She’d been
able to ignore her lingering attraction for him because he had been
gone. But now that she’d seen him again, touched him, she had a
feeling he wouldn’t disappear from her mind. He’d more than likely
be in her head non-stop.

“Why won’t you leave here? I’m sure there are
some kids in America who need you as well.” His voice washed over
her, low and soothing. He set his glass on the floor—still half
full—and shifted closer. “There are ways to help which won’t
endanger your life.”

“Says the ATF agent,” she drawled.

He smiled. “I’m different. I’m not you.”

“Again with the double standards.” She shook
her head and finished her wine, slamming the empty cup on the side
table.

She scooted a bit farther from him, and he
took in her movements but didn’t show disappointment or even anger.
He looked amused, if anything. Time to wipe the smirk off his
face.

“Anyway, besides working, I’ve been having
fun with my friends. Going out at night. Picking up a few hot men
to bring home. You know. The usual.”

He growled and grabbed her ankle to drag her
over to him. She ended up flat on her back with him braced over
her. The wine made her head spin before she could focus on his
face. She giggled.

“You think it’s funny to torture me, to taunt
me with the men you’ve screwed?” His breathing grew heavier, his
anger increasing. “I spent the last few weeks trying to straighten
things out between us, and you jumped on top of the next available
dick. It’s disgusting.”

She pushed his shoulders, but he captured her
hands and pinned them to the mattress.

“Disgusting?
I’m
disgusting? Excuse
me, but you’re the one who betrayed
me
. And then you come
here and insult me, insinuate I’ve done something to wrong
you
? You’re ridiculous in your arrogance!” She struggled
against his hold, but he didn’t budge. “Get off of me!”

“No. You won’t listen to what happened, but
now you have to, because you’re stuck.”

“No, let me go! I don’t want to know your
reasons. It doesn’t matter.”