Fatal Exposure (15 page)

His nostrils flared as she whimpered and bucked against his touch.

“Kade.” Her body grew limp, and she slumped against him in the warm water, satiated and relaxed.

Several minutes of silence passed before she looked up into his eyes.
God, what was theexpression on his face
? He was grinning, and he seemed both amused and proud at the same time. Suddenly her orgasm hadn’t seemed worth it. What had she been thinking?

Nothing, apparently.

“Have you forgiven me yet?” His grin twisted into a satisfied smirk.

Pompous ass
.

Not being able to get away from him fast enough, Ava slipped out of his grasp and pushed off him. “Not even a little,” she said, feeling her face warm.

His smile faded. “Come on, Ava. Don’t be mad. I just wanted to make you feel good, and I think I did.”

Why had she given into him so easily? How had she forgotten how he had deceived her for his own benefit?

She prepared to reach across and slap his smug face or at least cut him down to size with some

choice words, but she was startled by the alarm sounding from the speaker.

“Shit,” he muttered and quickly climbed from the tub.

“What’s going on? Is he here?”

Without answering, he pulled on his jeans, not bothering with the underwear. “Here.” He grabbed a robe off the door hook and handed it to her as she stood. “Put this on.”

****

Poppy drove her car into the gas station where Zack’s oversized SUV was parked. She’d stayed at least two cars back for most of the journey, but the road ahead entered into a mountainous region and she was sure her beat up hatchback wouldn’t hold out for much longer, especially in the snow. It was time to get creative.

Through the window of the convenience store, she could see Zack talking to the man behind the counter, paying for the gas and then taking a key attached to a wooden stick. The bathroom key. This was the perfect moment.

With the briefcase tightly clenched in hand, Zack exited the building and walked around the corner to where she assumed the men’s room was. She didn’t have much time, unless Zack was the type to sit on the toilet and grunt it out. Eww...not a nice visual.

With haste, she slid on a skirt she had stashed on the floor of the front seat of her car. Thank God she’d dropped it after the last laundry day. She hadn’t had time to go home for clothes after Zack made his mad dash from the club. With that money.

The glorious sight of all those crisp green dollars was still imprinted in her mind. Oh, the wonderful things it could do for her.

She tightened Jarred’s coat around her bare upper body. His awful body odor still lingered in the lining, making Poppy want to gag. What had she ever seen in him anyway? With the briefcase in her possession, she’d never have to ask herself that question again.

A grey-haired gentleman in overalls and a scowl watched her as she slipped from her car and made her way to the SUV. She flashed him a boob and his mouth dropped. That should keep him speechless for a while.

Both back doors were locked, but the front driver’s side wasn’t.
Idiot
. He hadn’t even removed the keys from the ignition. Anyone could have stolen the damn thing. Unfortunately, Poppy wasn’t a car thief. She had her sights on the real deal. She climbed into the SUV and lunged into the back just as Zack turned the corner and began heading toward her. Luckily, the tint was so dark, she was sure he didn’t see a thing.

The inside of the vehicle was enormous with a third row of seats perfect for her to hide out. She scrambled over and lay flat against the soft leather, waiting for him to take her to the next destination.

****

When a large man almost identical to Kade walked in the front door, Ava let out a breath. Again, relieved it wasn’t Zack but curious to know who the man was. His eyes were a mysterious dark brown, and his hair hung shaggily onto his forehead, but other than those obvious differences, he could have been Kade’s twin.

The two shook hands and muttered greetings. It was apparent they weren’t the best of friends. Ava hung near the bathroom door, mostly out of sight, as she listened to them talk.

Kade invited the man in, calling him Jax, only glancing in Ava’s direction once as he sat at the table with the stranger.

“So what are you doing here?” Kade asked with a sharp bite in his voice.

“I just came to warn you. Moreno’s on your tail, and he wants the target like you wouldn’t believe.”

Ava’s body stiffened when she heard Zack’s name come out of the stranger’s mouth.

“And?” Kade asked coolly.

“And he knows where you are so I suggest you follow through and give her over to him...or me.”

“Did you sell me out?” Kade asked with an eerie calmness.

“I just gave him what he would’ve gotten from someone else. It’s not like this shitty cabin is a secret. And in case you’ve forgotten, you have more enemies than Satan himself. Anyone would have given Moreno your whereabouts. Even Lucy.”

“Fuck you,” Kade said through clenched teeth.

“You’re my goddamn cousin. We’re blood.”

Cousins, huh? Ava squinted at the man’s profile. That explained the resemblance, but it didn’t explain why Kade was angry. Didn’t he want Zack to find them? Wasn’t that the whole point?

“That’s why I came up here,” Jax said. “To warn you.” The brown-eyed man shook his head and leaned over the table. “Why the hell are you pulling this shit anyway? He’s got the money for you.”

“Then he can bring it here. I’ve got what he wants.”

Ah, there was the Kade Ava had grown to know. Damn him. It was all about the money.

“Where is she?” Jax asked abruptly. “Got her tied up somewhere?” He grinned like a schoolboy about to perform a prank. His eyes shot across the room, and Ava stepped backward, completely out of sight.

The lump in her throat was painful as she listened on. She needed to get away before Zack showed up. And before Kade could get paid for kidnapping her. Bastard.

Maybe this guy was the ticket out. If she could get him to take her away from here, away from this man who made her heart break every second he kept her hostage, then she could get to a different location. And maybe, just maybe, she could have a chance to escape—to survive.

She peeked around the corner again and caught Jax’s amused stare.

He smiled and nodded once, his features just as handsome but darker than Kade’s. “Are you going to come out and join us?”

“No, she’s not.” Kade stood. “Ava, go to my room,” he ordered.

Screw you
. If this was her only opportunity to break away before Zack arrived, then she’d seize it and run. Whatever it took.

She walked out into the open, letting the bathrobe open as she moved.

“Mmm,” Jax rumbled. “Now, I see what all the fuss is about. Why don’t you come closer so I can have a better look at this sweet little target?”

Kade’s face paled as he strode toward her. With jerking motions, he pulled her robe closed and tightened the knot. “I know what you’re doing,” he

said under his breath. “Trust me, Ava. It’s not a good idea.” His knuckle skimmed down her cheek as he gave her one of those bogus you-mean-something-tome expressions. Ava flung his hand away and glared up at him. She wasn’t going to fall for his bull. “You can’t keep me here,” she whispered up at him.

Kade leaned down and spoke softly into her ear.

“I’m not letting you go so you can forget about whatever strategy you’ve got rattling around in that foolish head of yours.”

“Foolish?” She lifted her chin defiantly. He crossed his arms. “If you’re considering leaving here with him, then yes.”

“Besides,” she said loud enough for Jax to hear and walked around Kade’s large frame. She took bold strides and stood in front of the stranger. “This looks like fun.” She ran her hand through the man’s hair.

“Could be.” Jax swept his dark gaze up her body and tugged at the terry cloth belt. “I like this girl, Kade.” The robe opened, and he slid his hand across her bare belly.

Ava swallowed and tried not to think of what Kade could be thinking of her at that moment. And hated herself for caring. She peeked at him. He hadn’t moved, and he wasn’t looking. But his fists were clenched white at his sides, still standing where she had left him.

It didn’t matter. This was her only chance, and she had to take it.

Just like any other time at the club, she lifted her leg and set it on the man’s thigh. But unlike any other time, he responded by holding her close, his large hands firmly gripping her hips.

She tried not to think, letting her attention go to Kade, who turned around and looked sickened.

“Ava,” he gulped out. “Don’t let him do that to you. You’re more than that.”

Jax chuckled and slid his grip over her ass.

“Lighten up, cuz. We’re just having a little fun.”

“Let’s leave,” she gathered the courage to whisper into his ear. “Take me with you and we can finish this without an audience.” Without Kade staring at her, making her ill. She had to do this. She needed to survive.

“Mmm...that sounds tempting.” He shoved the robe off her shoulders, and it landed at her feet.

“Kiss me in front of him,” he said in a low voice and forcefully squeezed her butt cheek. “And we’ll go.”

Ava attempted to empty her mind. It was just a kiss. She closed her eyes and lowered her lips. His mouth crushed hers while his tongue slid between her lips. It was like Kade’s kiss, she told herself, but without the passion and enticing taste.

“Fuck this,” Kade’s angry voice said from behind her and suddenly she was being yanked from Jax’s hold and into Kade’s strong arms.

He didn’t look happy as he rushed her into his bedroom and slammed the door shut with his foot.

“Kade,” she breathed out, feeling unwanted guilt and anxiety.

He dropped her on the bed and climbed on top of her, unbuttoning his pants in the process. “What?

Did you want me to just stand there and let him have you?” He tore off his shirt, making the buttons fly, and threw it on the floor. “Do you think I’m that kind of a man?”

“I just wanted a way out,” she whispered.

His eyes were distant and avoiding her stare. It was upsetting to see him hurt. She cared about him. And even after all that had happened she still wanted him.

“
I’m
your way out, Ava. Not him.” He reached over her and grabbed a condom from his dresser. Quickly, he pushed his pants down and rolled the rubber over his thick, long hardness, making her mouth water with anticipation. “
I’m
the man you need.”

Ava nodded. It had taken another man’s touch for her to realize how her feelings for Kade had grown...whether she wanted them to or not. What was wrong with her? How did he get under her skin?

How did he make her desire him?

“Fuck me,” she heard herself say and spread her legs wide for him.
Love me
.
Never let me go
. Kade wedged her thighs farther apart and only let her have one passing glance before he drove his cock deep.

She gasped at how he quickly filled her and with enough force to inch her up the mattress. He pulled out halfway and repeated the thrust. Like a man on a mission, he pumped faster and harder through each pass. So much so the bed shook and rattled beneath her. She’d never felt anything so powerful. Pain and pleasure. How that combination kept arising.

She cradled his face while one of his hands reached down and grabbed her ass. He hauled her bottom up toward him as he continued to slam his full length into her. Almost as if he couldn’t get in far enough.

Ava felt the heat rising and buried her head into his neck, licking at his pulse.

“You feel so good, Kade.” Tears burned her eyes as she lifted her hips to meet his thrusts. Skin slapping together and panting breaths were the only sounds in the room, and it made her even hotter. She hoped Jax could hear it. She hoped he would walk in the room to see Kade pleasing her like no man could.

The door pushed open, and she got her wish. Jax leaned against the jam with a grin on his face. Thankfully, Kade didn’t appear to notice. His full attention seemed to be on their two bodies colliding together.

Jax stared at her breasts with a predator’s eye as they bounced every time Kade glided into her. To show the wicked man who she really wanted, she wrapped her legs around Kade’s body and began moving with him, matching his thrusts, letting him go deeper than ever before.

His cock was agonizingly delicious and, as she stared up into his eyes, she allowed herself to pretend she saw love and devotion. Was it really there? Could he love her? Her heart wanted to believe. It stuttered and flurried as the words tingled at the tip of her tongue.
I love you, Kade.

“Come, Ava.” He tore her from her foolish thoughts as he tugged her earlobe through his teeth.

“I’m the only man who’ll ever fuck you this hard, this good. Scream for me.”

“Oh, God, Kade!” she cried out. Her mind and body ached with pleasure, and she forgot all about Jax’s presence, focusing only on the man she was falling in love with.