Secret Obsession (romantic suspense) (Red Stone Security Series Book 12) (3 page)

“I’m gonna grab a water,” she murmured, not sure if they’d heard her, and at this point she didn’t really care.

The huge bar was half inside and half outside the building. But she knew there was also a small tiki bar on the other side of the expansive dance floor overlooking the beach and ocean.

It seemed to take forever to get to the edge of the dance floor where larger seating like couches and plush lounge chairs were set up. She knew this place was popular for beachgoers and transitioned to more of a club at night. According to Julieta it was one of the top-rated clubs in Miami because of the fun atmosphere and celebrity sightings.

Not that Raegan had seen anyone famous. Or she didn’t think she had. And right now, she didn’t care. She just needed water and a cool blast of air.

As she continued on through a throng of people, another wave of nausea combined with dizziness assaulted her.

She blinked, clutching on to a high top table. The occupants, three college-age-looking guys grinned at her.

“Buy you a drink?” one of them asked.

She couldn’t even shake her head, couldn’t say much of anything. Instead she dropped her hand and continued walking. Her body felt numb, and the floor was beginning to tilt, but she knew she didn’t want to sit there with a bunch of frat boys.

Something was wrong with her, she wasn’t sure what, but it was getting worse and she was getting worried. Instead of continuing toward the tiki bar she turned back around.

She needed to find her friends. And go home.

“You okay?” A man wearing a hoodie and jeans sidled up to her, put his arm around her waist to steady her.

She tried to answer but struggled to find her voice. The scent of his cologne turned her stomach even more. She shook her head. Or tried to.

“Let’s get you some fresh air,” he said, guiding her back through the thick mass of people.

The bright lights above suddenly seemed like a manic kaleidoscope of colors, flashing and hurting her eyes. She was barely aware of moving, but when he shoved open a big door that opened up onto a short set of stairs that led to the sandy beach, she tried to pull back.

She didn’t want to go to the beach or anywhere with this stranger. “Leave me alone,” she said. Or tried to. Her words came out slurred.

His grip on her upper arm tightened as he shoved her through the door.

She cried out and tried to turn back around but he slammed the door shut.

Iciness invaded her veins as she tripped and fell into the sand. This was not good. She needed to call her friends. Get help. Waves crashed in the distance and she could hear the thrum of laughter, voices and music through the big wall behind her, but she knew that no one could help her now. Even if she screamed. And she couldn’t find her voice. Everything was all screwed up. God, what was wrong with her?

Before she could push up, strong arms yanked her to her feet.

“Don’t know why you’re wearing these stupid heels,” the guy muttered, tugging her close. As if he had a right to touch her at all. He wrapped an arm around her waist but she shoved at him.

Or, again, tried. Panic punched through her, but her fingers wouldn’t obey as he dragged her across the sand. She lost one of her shoes in her struggle. “Let…me go.” Her words didn’t come out as strong as she’d intended.

“Hey!” A deep, vaguely familiar male voice from behind seemed as if it was coming from a long way away. “What the fuck are you doing?” He was angry.

“No, no, no,” the guy holding her muttered.

Suddenly she was falling, her knees and hands hitting the soft sand. The grains rolled across her knees and palms. She tried to push up, but another wave of dizziness swelled through her.

She was aware of someone calling her name. Someone…familiar. She couldn’t place the voice, could barely remember her own name, as callused, strong hands gripped her upper arms and pulled her to her feet.

Chapter 3

Ford pulled Raegan to her feet as gently as he could. “Are you okay, sweetheart?” The term of endearment just slipped out, but she didn’t seem to notice.

She blinked at him with big, blue eyes. “Ford?”

He held onto her upper arms. “Did you know that guy?” Right about now he wanted to race after the asshole who’d shoved her and run, but no way was he leaving Raegan to fend for herself. Not when she could barely stand.

“What guy?” She blinked again, swaying in his arms now.

Cursing, he glanced over his shoulder as the side door to the beach club opened. A giggling group of three women stumbled out. Instead of heading their way, they turned and started for what he knew was the parking lot. He turned back to Raegan, who was beginning to fade fast.

He cupped her cheek, shook her a little. Her eyes were glazed. “How much have you had to drink?”

“What…you doing here?”

Damn it, she was drunk. Or…worse. “Who did you come with?” Because it sure as hell hadn’t been that guy.

Instead of answering, she wrapped her arms around him, pressing her very full breasts against his chest as she practically nuzzled his neck. “You smell good,” she murmured.

He groaned at the feel of her pressed up against him, felt like a dick for liking it so much. “Listen, sweetheart, we need to get you out of here.” Without pause, he lifted her into his arms, holding her close. She had one of those slim wallet-sized purses with the strap securely around her wrist. He scooped up her fallen shoe as they passed it, tried not to notice the soft swell of her breasts peeking out of her halter dress as she cuddled against him. Or the way she was rubbing his chest and nuzzling his neck.

“Who did you come with, Raegan?” he asked as he carried her along the exterior of the club. It was just chance he’d seen her stumbling out the side door with some shady-looking guy. He’d come here tonight because a detective friend had needed a favor. A suspect they were trying to bring in was known to frequent this place and half a dozen others. This was the club he’d been chosen to stake out.

“Friends. Who’d you come with? Your…girlfriend?” Her words were still slurred, uneven.

“Don’t have one,” he muttered. Because the only woman he wanted was currently in his arms. And she wouldn’t be acting like this if she were sober. That much he knew.

The music faded as he made his way past the door they’d come out of. As he rounded the building, he noticed two security guys talking and smoking. They didn’t even give him a second glance as he carried a practically unconscious woman into the parking lot. Not doing their damn job. He knew who the owner of this place was and he’d be making a call to him very soon.

But Raegan was his priority. When they reached his truck, he got her into the passenger-side seat.

“You smell good,” she said again, this time nipping his earlobe. Her voice was sensual, her eyes heavy-lidded as she looked at him.

Inches separated them as he stared into blue, blue eyes. Eyes he could drown in. Looking at her now, however, he wondered if she’d been drugged. “So do you,” he said quietly. “I need you to focus for a second. I’m going to take you to see a friend of mine.” Because Ford was pretty sure she’d been drugged, and that guy who’d ditched her had clearly had something bad planned. “He’s a doctor—”

She listed forward suddenly but when he went to steady her, she grabbed onto his shirt and tugged him down to her. Her mouth skated over his, her lips soft and pliable.

He needed to pull back. To stop this. Right now. She wasn’t herself, wasn’t thinking.

But when she moaned against him and bit his bottom lip, he lost the ability to think. Almost.

“Raegan, no.” He withdrew from her, strapped her in, slid back and shut the door as she made a protesting sound.

Cursing, he leaned against the side of the door, scrubbed a hand over his face. Raegan was not for him and she wouldn’t even remember the kiss anyway. He shouldn’t have let it go that far. Continuing to curse himself, he rounded the truck and slid into the front seat.

“Do you remember how much you had to drink?” he asked, starting the ignition.

“Um…two. Maybe one and a half. I started to feel…dizzy though. Why are you here again?” She closed her eyes, let her head fall back.

Damn it. Drugs.
He decided then and there that he would make it his personal mission to find out who the hell had drugged her. Because this clearly wasn’t a case of her drinking too much. “Open your eyes,” he said sharply, rolling down her window to get a burst of air rolling over her.

Her phone started to ring in her purse and he guessed it might be one of her friends wondering where she was. “You want to check who that is?”

“Um…hold on.” It took her a few tries to get her small purse unzipped and when she did she squinted at the screen. “It’s Jules.”

“Is that who you came with?”

“Yesh,” she slurred out, her eyes starting to droop again.

He plucked it from her hand, not bothering to ask for permission as he swiped his thumb across the screen. “This is Ford Burke. I’m with the Miami PD and I’m taking Raegan to a doctor.”

“Oh my God! Is she okay?” the woman named Jules shouted. He could hear music and other voices in the background.

“She’s fine.” Or she would be. He wouldn’t let anything happen to her.

“What’s going on, then? Why are you taking her to a doctor?” Her voice was bordering on panic.

“I found some guy trying to take her out of the club and realized it’s likely she’s been drugged. I’m friends with her cousins, Grant, Porter and Harrison. I used to work with Grant. Please call him and confirm.”

“What hospital are you taking her to? We’ll meet you there.”

“Not taking her to a hospital.” Because the ER on a Friday night was a nightmare. Didn’t matter that he was a cop. That would only get him so far in the favor department. She’d still have to wait hours to be looked at. They’d check her vitals, stick her in a room with three other people and come back and check on her when they could—and that was only after they finally got her to a damn room. No way was he going to put her through that when he could get her looked at immediately.

“I’m taking her to a local clinic. Friend of mine runs it. Call Grant and confirm who I am. You know his number?”

“Uh, yeah. Well, my fiancé does. He’s with me. He works with Grant.”

“Good. She’s fine. I’ve got her phone and she doesn’t need to deal with a bunch of people down at the clinic.”

“I don’t know how this happened. We were all together, then when I turned around she was just gone. I thought maybe she’d gone to the bathroom or to grab another drink, but then none of us could find her. Is she really okay?”

“Yeah. I think…someone slipped her Rohypnol.” He didn’t want her friend to freak out even more, but decided to be honest. It was also known as a date rape drug, something he guessed her friend knew by her worried gasp.

“There’s no way!”

He turned on his blinker as he neared the turnoff to his friend’s clinic. The neighborhood bordered a sketchy area of town, but that was sorta the point of the clinic’s location. People who needed medical care the most often couldn’t get it. His friend tried to combat that problem by providing affordable medical care. In some cases, free. And he was better equipped to give Raegan his complete attention as opposed to the harried, Friday night ER staff at a hospital. If Ford had been worried she’d overdosed he’d have taken her straight there.

“Well it happened. Look, I gotta go. Gotta get her inside now. Call Grant, confirm to make yourself feel better. I’m sure she’ll call you in the morning. She’s safe, I swear.” He cut her off before she could respond. He didn’t care if it was rude. Being polite wasn’t a concern right now. Raegan was his only concern.

“I’ve never heard you talk so much at once.” Raegan giggled a little as she watched him.

He was glad she was awake, but having all her focus on him was jarring. “How’re you feeling?”

“Funny. You think I was drugged?” She giggled again, softer this time.

“Maybe.”

“I’ve never done drugs. And I’m not saying that because you’re a cop. A very sexy cop.” She laughed at that, seeming to think it was hilarious.

“We’re going inside here,” he said, nodding at the darkened clinic. It was late but he knew his friend was still here in the back. He always stayed until midnight even though he locked the doors—to keep out would-be thieves and junkies looking for a fix.

“You sure it’s open?”

“Yeah.” He was out and to her side in seconds. He hated that someone had done this to her, but he’d worry about finding the guilty party later. Right now he just needed to make sure she was safe.

* * *

Montez frowned, listening to Ivan talking to Grant Caldwell on the phone. They’d all left the club after his sister Julieta had talked to some guy on Raegan’s phone. Some guy who claimed he was a cop and was allegedly taking her to a clinic.

Now they were in the parking lot, waiting while Ivan talked to Grant, confirming whether this was true. He hated the thought of anything happening to Raegan. Hell, any woman. But Raegan was a sweet girl and a little naïve in general. It was hard not to like her.

After a lot of one-word answers and short questions, Ivan finally hung up the phone. “She’s okay as far as Grant knows. He said he’ll keep me updated.”