“Hey, you’re the one playing footsie! You know my feet are…sensitive,” she accused with a barely repressed smile, as she glanced toward the handsome young waiter. “He’s a decade younger than me, anyway.”
“He shows remarkable taste for his age.”
Gina smiled, flustered, her sexy persona failing her under his sexy scrutiny. She wasn’t used to being complimented this way. Men had always been attracted to Tracy, but Gina had never been a man-magnet, and said as much.
“Get used to it, hot stuff, because I’m just getting started.”
His grin was devilish and irresistible, and she found it easy to become Annette again, just for a little while. Flirting and playacting helped set Gina’s troubles aside. Another glass of wine helped, as well, she suggested, raising her glass.
“Tell me more about your family. You already know about some of mine. Tracy, anyway,” she said.
“Well, there’s my brother, Ryan. He’s four years younger, my only sibling. We’re pretty different, but we’re still close. My parents were really good at helping us be friends and not letting us fall into unhealthy competition.”
“Is he a lawyer, too?”
“No, he’s a bartender,” Mason said with a grin. “He’s a great guy. He has his MBA, actually, but he really loves being on the beach, serving drinks, and it’s just who he is. He surfs, goes on trips in the winter to Hawaii and other surfing destinations. He’s always living in the moment. I admire that,” Mason said.
“Wow. You two sound so different. Are your parents disappointed that he never used his business degree? You sound proud of him,” she said, watching him closely. He shrugged.
“He’s a good guy. Fun, reliable, smart. He knows what’s right for him, and he goes after it. Why wouldn’t we be proud of him?”
“I guess I figured you probably came from one of those high-powered families, you know, where everyone is a doctor or lawyer, that kind of thing.”
“Nope. My parents always had a ‘be who you are’ attitude, and they never really pressured us in any particular direction.”
“What do they do?”
“My mother is a high school teacher, and Dad owns a small computer software company now. He was a
consultant for years, but the travel was wearing thin, so he started the company while we were in college. It’s not a big player in the market, but it has a firm niche and does well enough to keep him happy with it.”
“How did you get into law?”
“I like to argue,” he said with a smile, winking at her and she laughed.
“Seriously.”
“It was kind of like how you became a food critic, in a way. I started out as an English major, and I really liked writing, research and heavy-duty issue papers for my classes, got on the debate team, that kind of thing. One day I realized how many of my friends’ parents had broken up, and mine had always been so close. I thought divorce law would be a good place to be. A chance to help people through a bad time in their lives. Maybe to even help them avoid it.”
“That hardly sounds like what most people think about divorce lawyers. You help people
not
get a divorce?”
“Sometimes it works out that way. I can arbitrate, as well as take care of the split,” he said, nodding. “But it’s mostly trying to make it civilized and fair. To do the right thing.”
She took a thoughtful bite of her entrée and looked at him closely. Mason was so positive in his outlook, a sensualist and a romantic. It intrigued her.
“How do you keep from getting jaded or cynical about things when you see people breaking up all the time?”
“I have good examples in my family, but I also see
people get back together, and while some divorces can be ugly, well, I just prefer to believe in love, I guess. It’s a conscious choice.”
“I don’t imagine it’s ever that easy.”
“No, but having rules to work by does help, even if they are changing all the time, and the human element complicates things, of course. Sometimes I do feel awful when I see it all fall apart, especially when there are kids involved, but then I just try to help and make it as smooth as possible. How about your parents? Are they together?”
Gina shrugged. “Oh, yeah, they’re very happy.”
“You mentioned your dad is your stepparent. So you were a child of divorce?”
She smiled. “No, I was a child of a very good marriage between two people who loved each other, my mom has made sure I knew that, but then my dad died early. I barely remember, though I have some pictures.”
“So your mom remarried?”
“Yes, and had Tracy.”
“So you are half sisters.”
“Yeah, but that’s just the biology. We were never raised that way. Always just sisters.”
“That’s nice. Sorry you lost your dad so young, though.”
“I don’t remember too much. I wasn’t even in kindergarten yet. I know my mother loved him, and she was lucky enough to find someone else she loved, too. I imagine that’s rare.”
Mason nodded. “A lot of people never even find one love in their life, let alone two.”
Gina had never really thought of it in those terms before, but as they talked, and Mason told her some stories of the past divorces he had handled—no names, of course—her appreciation of what he did and what kind of man he was blossomed.
He obviously did well in his line of work, but he seemed truly dedicated to doing the right thing, not just taking advantage of people at a low point in their lives. All of the nasty lawyer jokes she had ever heard now rang hollow.
Some of his stories were funny, as well. He had her laughing, touched her heart, and did it all within the time of their dinner.
Dangerous.
In spite of his talk about wanting more or thinking what they had was special, she kept her eye on reality, which was only a phone call away. At any second, this fantasy could end, and end horribly, depending on what the FBI discovered.
She was smarter to keep a firm check on her emotions in the meanwhile. Maybe, if she could contact Tracy, and make sure she was okay, they could end this thing sooner than later, before Gina started letting herself fall for Mason Scott.
They left the restaurant, too full for dessert, but bringing bags filled with delicate pastries and goodies from the bakery along with them. Pulling into the drive,
they spent several long, heated moments in the car kissing and Gina laughed against Mason’s lips.
“I haven’t made out in a car for many, many years,” she said.
“Me, either. Let’s see if I have any moves left,” he said, bumping his elbow on the dash of the small car, and his head on the ceiling, sending them both into more gales of laughter until the laughing was replaced with sighs and murmurs of desire.
Mason eased Gina’s seat all the way back and carefully pushed the fabric of her dress up, maneuvering his large form so that he could kiss her inner thigh. To her great delight, he proceeded to show her some things she wasn’t sure were possible in a car. His expert touch and the intimate caress of his lips against the tender folds of her sex left her wordless and limp in pleasure.
When they finally got out, breathless and eager to get inside the house for more, Gina noticed that one of their bags of goodies was flattened by her seat back. She didn’t care one bit. Mason was delicious enough.
How could life be so insane and so wonderful all at once?
T
RACY TOOK A DEEP BREATH OF
clean ocean air, standing on the balcony of the condo that Rio said belonged to a friend. Their plan was in motion. They’d called Peter, and as expected, he was insanely furious.
Rio told her not to worry. He had arranged for a boat,
and they’d be on it and gone in an hour. There was no way Peter would find them. He didn’t even know she was with Rio, and still believed Tracy was acting on her own.
Tracy couldn’t wait to be away, to put this all behind her, but she did like how protective Rio was being. It was kind of romantic, she supposed. Being with him again was wonderful. No one made her body, or her heart, sing like Rio.
Being with Rio had washed away the memory of Peter’s touch completely, and Tracy regretted her affair more than she could say. With Rio, she felt new again, like they had a second chance. Tears sprang to her eyes, as gratitude welled inside of her.
“Hey, gorgeous,” he whispered in her ear. “What are those tears for? We’re fine, you and me, together.”
“But he’s looking for me. And he’s angry. What if he wasn’t kidding before? What if he went after Gina, or my family? I should call her. I should—”
“We can’t. It’s best to keep them out of it. I don’t think Dupree will bother with them, especially not now that he knows what we have. I’ll contact Mason when the time is right and tell him to stop the divorce proceedings. Right now, we have to go. Are you ready?”
“How long?” Tracy whispered, her heart squeezing painfully. She wished she had talked to Gina, and that she had been a better sister. She was always screwing up, and Gina had always been there for her. They had their differences, but they were sisters. “I don’t think I can do this. There has to be another way.”
“It’s only for a while. Once we are safely away, we can call your lawyer, Fitzgerald, and tell him to open the package, tell him where Dupree is. They will arrest Dupree, and then we can return.”
“Why can’t we do that now?” Tracy said.
“We have to stay out of sight until they have him. I have to know you are safe,” he said, wrapping his arms tightly around her. “We have both made mistakes, but now is the time to set it all right. Are you ready?” he asked again, his voice and his touch hypnotic.
“Yes. Let’s go. The sooner we go, the sooner we get back and this is over with.”
“You’re amazing,” Rio said, smiling, taking her hand and heading to the door.
When he opened it, however, his smiled faded. Two large men blocked their path, and one struck out, hitting Rio in the head hard, dropping him to the floor. Tracy opened her mouth to scream, but all sound was robbed from her as she saw Peter step out from behind the other two.
He was smiling, but it was an ugly smile that frightened her. How could she ever have thought him handsome, sexy? It made her ill.
“Let us go, Peter. Please. If anything happens to us, my lawyer will—”
Peter’s finely shaped eyebrows rose and he grabbed her hard by the arm. “Your lawyer will what? I think we need to talk, Tracy, and you need to give me back what’s mine. You’ll come along quietly, if you don’t
want me to shoot him right now, do you understand?” he said, nodding toward Rio.
Tracy could only nod. She hadn’t meant to tell him about Fitz, her lawyer, to whom they had mailed one of their copies of the notebook.
“Let’s go back to my boat. Take him,” Dupree said, ordering the other two men to grab Rio.
They did, slinging their arms around him as if they were carrying off a drunken friend. As they hit the lobby, Tracy thought of signaling for help, but the hard push of Peter’s gun into her side made her think differently.
Hope deserted her as they got into the car, Rio being pushed in after her. Their plan had failed.
M
ASON COULDN’T REMEMBER THE
last time he’d been with a woman where work didn’t still circulate somewhere in the back of his mind, but when he was with Gina, his entire focus was on her. They’d had an almost magical evening, and now lay together, warm and satisfied.
“I wish there was something, anything, I could do,” she said against his shoulder, frustration clear in her voice.
“It’s admirable, how much you love your family, and how far you’re willing to go for them. But you also have to think about you, and where to draw lines.”
She was quiet, letting him stroke and caress away the tension, and so he was quiet, too, letting her think. Family was a touchy subject. He’d seen a lot of family issues and problems over the years, some solvable, some not. But people never appreciated being told how to feel or what to do about it. Some things you had to figure out on your own.
He could feel Gina struggling with the dilemma of how involved she should be with her sister, and while he wanted to help, ultimately only she could figure that out.
“Let’s get some sleep. You’ll feel better in the morning,” he said.
“I don’t think I can sleep. My mind just keeps spinning around, wondering if she’s okay, where she is, what’s coming next. I’m going to drive myself crazy.”
“How about a drink, then?”
She looked at him, her pale skin luminous in the moonlight coming through the window. He lifted up and reached to cup the gentle curve of her shoulders. He hadn’t anticipated it, and he would honor his promise of keeping things light, but he knew what he was experiencing wasn’t just casual sex. He couldn’t get enough of her.
She excited him beyond the telling of it, sparking his endurance and his arousal like no other woman ever had.
Buying the new, daring clothes had been a good choice, he thought, thinking of her in the goddess dress. Gina was a sexy woman, although she didn’t believe it. Still, as beautiful as she was in the dress, he could equally imagine hanging around with her no matter what she chose to wear. He could see themselves spending every night, and waking up every morning together, just like they were now.
Whoa.
He shook his head, clearing his thoughts, way too far ahead of himself.
“There are other, better ways to work off anxiety,” she said softly, pressing a kiss to his lips, her hands drifting downward to wrap around him.
“You’re insatiable,” he teased but felt desire spark nonetheless. The open emotion in her eyes pulled at his gut. He loved making love to Gina, but there was a point where he didn’t want them having sex only as a distraction. He wanted more. But he had to be patient.
He’d do whatever it took to make this happen, however ill-advised, he realized, as he stroked the inside of her thighs in a lazy way. She responded by opening herself to him further, inviting a more intimate touch, which he was happy to provide.
He propped up on his side, watching her close her eyes, her face tense with the increased pleasure his swirling fingers created as they explored the sweet area between her legs, her body stretching and arching into his touch, completely uninhibited. He loved it that she didn’t mind him watching as he brought her to the edge, drawing it out until she begged.
Gina was a woman who put so much before herself, who loved completely and without restraint. Watching her come apart in front of him was incredibly arousing. He rolled over, gently settling between those silken thighs and easing inside of her. He knew that this was what he could give her now. Worry was chased from her features as passion and pleasure replaced it. That was all he wanted.
Whatever emotion was building inside of him, it was unexpected and wonderful. Precarious, fragile and new. He had no idea what she was feeling. He could accept that she couldn’t talk about that, for now. But not forever.
Mason thrust his cock deeper into her welcoming heat, watching her breasts thrust upward as she thrust back. They had the perfect sync of longtime lovers, in spite of their short time together.
He wondered, watching her, was this just sex, just mindless pleasure, a distraction from her troubles? For him it was becoming so much more.
He pulled back slightly so that he could find the aroused pearl of her clit and tease it as he watched himself moving in and out of her lovely body. They were connected as intimately as two people could be, and yet there was so much distance between them. So many questions.
He didn’t like it, and strove to be closer, lowering and holding her, wrapping his arms completely around her as her legs encircled his waist. He took her mouth in a kiss that left no room for thought, no space between them. She kissed him back just as ravenously, stroking his back with her fingers, and he held on, loving her as long as he possibly could.
“Mason, I—I,” she stuttered breathlessly, breaking the kiss as he wondered what she was about to say, though any more words were drowned in a moan of sheer ecstasy as he felt her inner muscles coil around him again, her entire body tense.
What had he hoped to hear?
“Again, Gina. Come for me again,” he said with wicked intention, rocking against her, stroking her inside as he increased the pace of his movements. He
grabbed a pillow from the top of the bed and pushed it smoothly under her bottom so that she was angled up in such a way as her entire sex met his every thrust.
Mason was lost as desperate need took over and their cries blended as they both blindly sought their climax, giving as much as they took, moving together in perfect rhythm. He gasped as she came, hard this time, her hands clawing his back, inciting his own feral pleasure as he thrust himself into a searing wave of release.
He didn’t want it to end, this perfect connection, and continued to move against her even after the moment had passed. Her hands drifted gently up and down his back; she wanted it, too.
He lifted off of her and removed the pillow from beneath her slack form, pulling her up against him and tugging up the covers.
I love her,
he thought silently, knowing that was where his heart was leading him. Silently, he spoke the words.
It felt right, but he knew he couldn’t share his feelings. He’d waited this long to find the right woman, to say those words to her, and he could wait a little longer, because there was too much in the way right now, and when he told her, he wanted it to be only about them.
And also because he knew Gina was worth waiting for.
G
INA WAS AWAKE FOR HOURS
trying to separate her tangled thoughts and emotions in the dark of the room, Mason’s heavy, warm arm resting on her bare midriff.
She’d slept for about a half hour, sheer exhaustion catching up with her before a nightmare yanked her from sleep and left her lying there, fretting, until she wanted to scream.
Gina thought about the phone in her purse, conflicted. She’d get rid of it as soon as she talked to her sister, and maybe she’d even find out something useful, something that could help.
She looked back at the bed, watching Mason sleep. That was the problem. She was sneaking this behind his back, not telling him. What did that say about her, about them?
She pulled on an incredibly soft pair of crop pants that flared out wide around her legs and the tank top that Mason had bought her. She felt like a gypsy in the outfit, the sensual material swirling around her legs, but it was comfortable, as well. Also a perfect fit.
Mason seemed to know her extremely well. Maybe better than she did herself. She considered the outfit. Was this her? Or just how he saw her? It was getting hard to know the difference. He’d brought out hidden parts of her, but was it real? Did he only want the fantasy?
“Hey. What’s up? You okay?” Mason asked. In the dark of the room, she could only see the outline of his gorgeous body pushed up on one elbow.
What should she say? If she told him, he’d never agree. Mason was a strictly-by-the-rules kind of guy, and she wasn’t about to pull him any deeper into this than she had already.
If she didn’t tell him…well, she had to choose between lying to her lover and trying to save her sister’s life.
“No, nothing. I can’t sleep,” she said softly, hating the lie, but hoping she was convincing. “You go back to sleep. I’m going to go watch TV for a little while.”
“You want company?”
“No, thanks. I sort of want to be alone for a little bit. To think, you know?”
“If you need me, just say so.”
Bittersweet emotions washed over her. She did need him, or was coming to. Maybe far too much.
He was a good man. The solid, sexy kind of guy that didn’t often come along in life. The way he’d made love to her tonight had been…incredible.
Was chemistry just that, just sex, or evidence of something else? Tracy and Rio had great chemistry, too. Tracy had told her more than Gina ever wanted to know about that. But look where they had ended up because Tracy was forever leaping without looking. But that was Tracy, not Gina.
Mason was always amazing in bed, but the last time, he’d been almost worshipping her body with his. When he’d slid so sweetly inside of her, his hands framing her face as they’d brought each other to the peak, she’d seen emotion in his eyes that reached far beyond lust.
Or was that only wishful thinking? Her own, private fantasy?
Yet she’d lied to him so easily.
In fact, everything between them was one big lie.
She’d lied to him from the very start, when they’d met and even now, their time together was a fantasy, the clothes, the sex…it was all make-believe. Even with their incredible chemistry, that wasn’t something you could build a relationship on, she reminded herself.
Wasn’t it? Who was the real Gina? The reclusive restaurant critic who’d only slept with a few unimpressive men in her entire adult life? Or the sultry seductress in leather skirts and halter tops performing stripteases and letting her lover go down on her in the front seat of a car?
Gina was beginning to lose track herself.
She cared about him. He’d been so good to her, how could she not? It was supposed to be sex. Fun that was never, by his own invitation, meant to last more than a night. A fantasy. Still, the way he’d looked at her tonight…
Stop.
Gina couldn’t do this now. She had to focus. Her sister’s life was on the line, she reminded herself, slipping out of the room and closing the door as she heard Mason’s even breathing, evidence he’d fallen back asleep.
She turned on the television down in the living room, though she didn’t turn on a light. Taking a deep breath, she activated the phone and dialed her sister’s cell number. Someone answered almost immediately.
“Tracy? Tracy, where are you?” Gina’s knees weakened as the thought that her sister was really okay brought her huge relief.
“No,” a smooth, well-modulated male voice replied.
“Who is this?” she asked cautiously.
“You could say I am a
friend
of Tracy’s,” he answered with a short laugh that conveyed no warmth at all. “An intimate friend. Who is this?”
“Tracy’s sister,” Gina said calmly. “Is this Peter Dupree?”
“Tracy said you were the smart one. I hope that’s true for their sake.”
“
Their
sake?” Gina repeated, confused. “What do you mean? Who?”
He continued. “Your sister and her husband stole something from me that I want back. Still, she won’t tell me where it is hidden. I have to give her credit, she’s tougher than she looks. So here’s the deal—you tell me where it is, I let her live. You give it to me, you walk away from this.”
“I don’t believe you. Tracy and Rio aren’t even together.”
“Apparently they have reconciled.”
Gina was mute with surprise. He had to be lying, trying to trick her somehow. “I still don’t believe you.”
“That’s a chance you have to take. Is it worth risking your sister’s life? I want my notebook back.”
“Wait—what? I thought you wanted the pictures?” Gina asked. What notebook?
“I have those, courtesy of my contacts in the FBI. But your sister took something else, something much more important. I want it back.”
A cold chill gripped Gina. What had Tracy done
now? And was she really back together with Rio? “Let me talk to her. I have to know she’s okay.”
Dupree hesitated. “You’re on speaker. You have one minute.”
“Tracy? Tracy, are you okay?”
Her sister, when she replied, sounded like a mere wisp of the girl Gina knew, scaring her even more. “Gina?”
“I’m here, Tracy. Are you okay?”
“Not so much,” her sister said, obviously being careful with Dupree right there.
“What is he talking about, what notebook?”
“His notes…I took it as insurance, so he wouldn’t hurt us…. Not a great plan, I guess,” her sister explained.
“Where is it?”
“We sent a copy to my lawyer and hid the original. Fitzgerald is in the hospital, Gina. They almost killed him getting the second copy from his office.” Tracy sobbed, her control slipping. “He showed me pictures of what they did to him, because of me.”
“Tracy, this is not your fault. Is what he said true? Is Rio there?”
“Yes. I called him, and he was trying to help me.”
“Um, okay,” Gina said, trying to wrap her mind around that new information.
“Just tell him, Tracy. Tell him where the book is. I can get it, if he promises not to hurt you. I won’t hand it over if he does.”
“He’ll kill me, anyway, and you, too. H-he sh-shot
Rio.” Tracy’s voice strengthened, then broke. “There’s no point. He’s holding us hostage here in this old shack, like a pirate who wants his treasure,” Tracy said. It was strange, and Gina wondered if Dupree had drugged her. “Don’t let him have it, Gina, don’t—”
“
Enough
,” Dupree shouted, and Gina cried out when she heard a hard slap.
Then Dupree was back on the phone. “You find that book, and you call me when you have it. You have until this time tomorrow night. I have people in the FBI—I’ll know if you contact them. Keep that in mind.”
“Wait, I—”
The line went dead and Gina fought tears as she held on to the cell phone for dear life until she got control of herself. What would she do now? Tracy was alive, but for how long? How was she supposed to find that notebook when she was holed up here?