Dangerous (The Complete Erotic Romance Novel) (68 page)

But he wasn’t Reid Stirling at all.

Who the hell was he?

* * *

Crap.

Naomi stopped just before the subway station and checked her tote bag, already knowing it was an exercise in futility. She’d been convinced all day she’d forget her new boots at Alicia’s shop, and even though she’d been determined to remember, she had forgotten. There were shoes in the tote bag, her reusable lunch bag and thermos, and no adorably sexy new little boots.

Crap, crap, crap. She was already running late and would have to hurry to get to the restaurant on time for her date. On the other hand, there was only one chance to make a first impression, and she knew those boots suited her perfectly. She glared back down the street toward the workshop, grimacing at the distance and the inevitable delay, then pivoted and began to march back.

It was windy, although not as cold as it had been. There would probably be freezing rain tonight. Naomi could only hope her date was gallant.

Maybe he’d bring an umbrella.

Maybe he’d have a car.

Maybe he’d have a tongue stud, too. She’d seen a picture of him so she knew he was hot, but hadn’t seen his tongue yet. He did have a gorgeous tattoo of a dragon on his right arm, one she definitely wanted to check out in detail.

The arm the tattoo rode was pretty damn gorgeous too.

Naomi hurried, glad she was wearing flat boots since she was so late. What if Alicia had left and locked up already? Naomi had no keys to the shop. She could be late, and be without her fabulous boots! She broke into a run and arrived out of breath at the alley that led to the parking lot.

She caught the barest glimpse of a guy stepping into the courtyard where they parked Alicia’s van. Naomi frowned. No one walked to Alicia’s shop—well, no one except her employees who couldn’t afford cars, like Naomi.

She moved stealthily down the alley, without being able to say what prompted her caution. It was probably just a customer. She was probably being silly. But still, it couldn’t hurt to be careful. There had been robberies in the area. When she reached the courtyard, there was only Alicia’s van parked there and no sign of anyone.

Naomi took a breath, then moved quickly to the door to the workshop. She opened it a crack and listened. She could see the door on the other side of the foyer was closed, because the light from the shop shone beneath it. She slipped quickly into the foyer and shut the exterior door, then leaned closer to listen.

“You know the collar he wants,” said a man, sounding a bit more demanding than most customers.

“Maybe I don’t,” Alicia said, defiance in her tone.

There was a crack of a slap and Alicia’s gasp in reaction. Naomi’s eyes widened and she reached for the door.

The sound of the gun’s safety being removed made her freeze.

“Get the one he wants,” the man said. “Now.”

Alicia’s heels clicked as she hurried to do as she was instructed. That Naomi’s confident boss was frightened enough to be quiet told her all she needed to know. She pulled out her phone to call for help, then remembered she’d turned up the volume. It could give her away, then they’d both be in trouble. She slid it to the bottom of her purse, hoping that was enough to muffle its sound.

She had to get out of this foyer. She couldn’t abandon Alicia, but she couldn’t just stay here. He’d see her for sure when he left.

Naomi took a deep breath and opened the door a crack once more. She caught a glimpse of the two of them heading into the inventory room and closed the door almost all the way in case he glanced back. Through the crack, she could still hear their conversation.

“Pack it for delivery.”

“But it’s not being delivered...”

“Do it!”

Alicia exhaled with dissatisfaction, then Naomi heard her boss setting up a box. She seemed to be taking her time, maybe hoping to stall. Did she know this intruder? Did she know what he wanted? Naomi wished she knew. Did Alicia expect someone else to arrive?

Naomi felt completely useless—but he had a gun, plus a good foot in height over her. Surprise wasn’t going to be nearly enough to overpower a guy with shoulders like that. The best weapons in the place would be the long dressmaker’s shears they all used. There was no way she could get to hers without passing him, because she’d left them beside her favorite machine. That meant she’d never make it. Had anybody else left their shears in the open?

Naomi peeked out the door again. The intruder and Alicia were shadows now, having moved deeper into the inventory room.

“Address it to Stirling,” he commanded.

“I’ll have to look up his address,” Alicia said, her tone defiant.

There was a sound of a slap, then Alicia’s heels stumbled before there was a thump. “Liar!” he accused and Naomi caught her breath.

“What the fuck is this about?” Alicia demanded.

“Do it!”

Naomi ducked into the shop and darted down the corridor on silent feet. She stopped in the room where they stored the fabrics, because it was dark and she had to think the fabric would muffle any sound.

Even the pounding of her heart.

No shears left in the fabric room, which just figured. This would be the one night that people cleaned up after themselves. Naomi thought of her phone again, but didn’t dare risk it.

She had just opened the door again when she heard the gun shot.

“Alicia!” she cried, without meaning to do so.

Then she clapped her hand over her mouth, knowing she’d made a terrible mistake. She heard footsteps and her heart raced as she fumbled for her phone. She had nothing left to lose. Her fingers had only just closed over the phone when the door to the storage room was abruptly hauled open.

He snatched for her and she leapt back, trying to shrink against the walls so she was invisible. The phone slipped from her shaking fingers and clattered onto the floor. There was no way out, she knew it, and her date would just assume she’d chickened out if she didn’t show. No one would know anything was wrong at the shop until the next morning.

Maybe not even until noon.

Her heart stopped cold when he paused to survey her, his satisfaction clear. He was wearing a leather hood, one that left the lower part of his face exposed. He was dressed in dark clothing, all in black, but incredibly fit. He would be strong, stronger than she was, and she panicked. When he smiled with an anticipation that made her blood run cold, Naomi opened her mouth to scream but made no sound.

Because he hit her hard and fast. She stumbled, then came up fighting with her nails outstretched. He caught her and spun her around, twisting her arms painfully behind her back.

When she whimpered, her assailant laughed. “Don’t worry. You’ll get yours, too.” He leaned down to whisper in her ear. “I like the fighters.”

“Bastard!” Naomi jammed her heel upward, aiming for his nuts and hoping she killed him.

But he was faster than her. He kicked her feet out from beneath her so suddenly she fell, then struck her temple against the edge of a metal shelf. She saw stars and felt the warmth of blood flowing on her face. Naomi tried to get up, but she was shaking and dizzy and her legs wouldn’t support her weight.

“You can wait for it, bitch,” he snarled, then he was gone. The door to the storage room was slammed shut as Naomi collapsed to the floor. She started to crawl toward the door, wanting only to escape while she could.

Instead she heard the key being turned in the lock, sealing her into the dark storage room. She beat her hands on the door, but only heard his retreating footsteps. The door to the parking lot clanged shut and silence claimed the workshop.

Then Naomi passed out.

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Six

All in all, it hadn’t been that bad of a day.

In fact, it ended much better than Kendra had expected. She’d gotten quite a bit accomplished and the mood at Esperanza had been surprisingly industrious. Instead of gossiping and speculating, people had seemed determined to keep the faith, and not let Reid down.

The news at the end of the business day—from Ginger—that Reid was being released on bail was just what Kendra needed to hear. She smiled at the spontaneous cheer from the ladies when Ginger shared the news. Several of them came into the office to watch the news on Ginger’s computer.

“Justice is served,” said Mrs. Rodriguez with satisfaction and the others agreed heartily. As they chatted, Kendra started to pack up. She was more than ready to retreat to Reid’s place and celebrate his release, as well as hear more about his arrest.

The phone rang when she was almost done and she answered it, hoping it was Reid. It was another reporter, so she ended the call quickly. It was getting dark outside and starting to snow again. She locked up and turned out the lights in the office, then checked the plant on her way to the back door. She was the last to leave, again, but she didn’t mind.

Reid was free on bail.

It was all going to work out just fine.

She locked up the back door then headed for her car. The security guys were in their car, chatting to each other, and Kendra waved to them. One waved back. Her car was parked at the farthest corner of the lot and looked a bit lonely there alone.

Kendra unlocked her car door and frowned. There was a box on the front passenger seat, one that hadn’t been there when she’d parked the car. She got into the car and slammed the door, leaning over to look at the box. It was from Alicia’s shop—she could see that from the return address—and addressed to Reid.

Where had it come from?

How had it gotten into her locked car?

The passenger side door was unlocked, actually, which wasn’t how she’d left it. Not for the first time, she cursed her brother’s old car and its manual everything. She reached across the seat to lock the passenger door, then froze.

There was a man on the floor of her backseat. He was dressed in black and wearing a balaclava. All she could see was the cold blue of his eyes and the mean line of his mouth.

He smiled as he lifted the gun so she could see it.

Kendra stared. There was a man with a gun in her car. Her brain didn’t want to accept that, but there was no doubting it. The gun looked like the dangerous piece of business it was.

Even more dangerous when it was held by a stranger who’d broken into her car. Kendra tried to not panic but failed. Her heart took off at a gallop.

“Give no sign that anything’s wrong, Miss Jones,” he said softly. “Fasten your seatbelt, start the car, and drive away. Act as if nothing is wrong.”

Because he didn’t want to be discovered, not here, not when there were armed security guards so close by. Kendra figured she had one chance. She acted as if she were going to do as he said, and started the car.

“Seatbelt, Miss Jones.” His voice was cold, so cold she knew he’d never respond to any plea for mercy.

Kendra slowly pulled the belt across herself and clicked it home. She knew she could release it quickly—and she would. She moved slowly, giving every appearance of obedience, even as her thoughts flew. She heard him ease back, confident in her compliance.

This was it. Kendra leaned forward as if to release the emergency brake, but reached for the door handle instead. She reached back for the release on the seatbelt in the same moment she flung open the door.

She’d pushed the button but the seatbelt was still tight over her lap. She looked down to find he’d locked a cable tie around the seatbelt, ensuring it couldn’t be released. She tugged at it in a panic, stopping when he jammed the muzzle of the gun against her ribs.

“Shut the door, Miss Jones. We’ll stick with my plan.”

Then he removed the safety latch on the gun with his thumb. The click echoed loudly in the car and the cold weight of the gun against her side made Kendra recognize that he’d kill her now. She glanced back toward the security guards.

“If you want a chance to save Reid Stirling, you need to stay alive.”

A chill slid down Kendra’s spine. She wasn’t his real target. She would just be collateral damage if he was really after Reid.

Her only chance of survival was to figure out what was driving this guy. Maybe then, she’d be able to trick him.

“What did Reid ever do to you?” she asked, closing the car door again.

“He ruined everything,” he said with bitterness. “He ruined her and turned her against me, as well as making her into a whore.” Kendra spared a glance into the backseat, the hate in those eyes making her shiver. He smiled at her and his tone became more conversational. “And now he’s done the same to you. He has to be stopped.”

“Did you kill Alana?” she asked as she drove out of the lot. She waved at the security guys, wanting to know if anyone could see her through the tinted windows. One raised a hand, but it could have been a reflex gesture.

“I gave her freedom,” he said, biting off the words. “It was the right thing to do, the only possible thing to do.”

Kendra didn’t challenge him on that, or list the possibilities. She should try to befriend him, if she could, or make him think they were on the same side. “Because she’d been changed into someone else?”