Tijuana Nights (The Nights Series Book 1) (13 page)

And the cheek of him involving lawyers!

I grabbed the bag as it swung back at me, and leaned against it. I refused to cry. I didn't want that bastard having any more of my tears.

If I was going to cry, it was for those poor women who had lost their lives because of me. It was for their families and friends. And I guess also for myself. I was getting deeper and deeper into a dire situation, and right now, I had no way out of it.

I sat down on the floor, and lay back like a starfish, waiting for my heart to regulate after my physical exertion.

I started making a list of stuff that I had to do in my head as I stared up at the ceiling, littered with halogen lights.

1.  Contact my lawyer, and see if there was any way we could delay the whole potential court thing until I got back. I had the money - well - River and Chase had it. Well, most of it.

2.               Pay Luke back a shitload of money.

3.               Get my arse out of Mexico, preferably alive. If that meant killing Carmen, then so be it. I didn't really want to kill anyone, but at least if she was dead then it would go some way towards me feeling better about all of those women who'd died because of me.

4.               Have a holiday. I really needed a break, without any drama. God knows how I would pay for it, but hopefully my lawyer could work out some way to maybe bring the 'Luke Debt Level' down a bit so I could disappear somewhere and have some time out.

Chase walked through the door of the training room, and stopped when he saw me.

"I've been looking for you everywhere," he said, crossing the room towards me.

I didn't want him to see me like this. I was all red faced, puffy, and my body was soaked in sweat. I needed to hit the shower, and wash all of the negativity off me.

But that wasn't going to happen.

Chase sat down beside me. He was wearing long shorts, and a white linen shirt with the sleeves rolled up which showed his tanned forearms. He obviously had contacts in, and his hair looked as though it had been a bit compressed by a hat. I mentally licked my lips as I looked back at his muscly forearms, one of which was sporting a Rolex. I closed my eyes.

"What?" I mumbled. "What do you want?"

"It's just you and me here tonight. Gabe is off to meet with Carmen again... seems she likes him." Chase laughed. "And River is tracking Alicio Mendoza for me."

Poor Gabe. "Ugh," I said, opening my eyes and rising up on my elbows. "You do realise that she's going to try her best to sleep with Gabe, don't you?"

Chase shrugged. "Yeah. Probably. But we’ve all slept with people we didn't want to for the sake of the job. Besides... if Carmen is occupied with him, then she's not thinking about you, now, is she?"

I stayed silent. He had a point.

Chase got to his feet, and extended a hand to me. "So, my lady, what would you like for dinner?"

* * *

When I walked out of my bedroom, after having a long shower and scrubbing all signs of stress and exertion from my body, I found the dining room lit up like something out of a fairy tale. Candles were everywhere, the fireplace was blazing away, and chilled wine sat on the table with two glasses ready. There were two places set with silver cutlery, and linen napkins.

I turned to find Chase leaning against the doorframe, confidently smiling at me.

"Is this some sort of special occasion?" I asked.

He shook his head. "Not really. Some days just need it though, right?" He held a finger up in the air. "Be right back."

I nodded, turning back to survey the room. He'd obviously gone to a lot of effort. The ambience was gorgeous. I never could have pulled off anything like this in my house in England. I didn't have near the amount of candle holders, nor a real dining room. And my silver cutlery was badly in need of a polish.

Chase nudged my arm when he came back in, and handed me an icy margarita. "River said you're quite partial to these." He smiled.

"Thanks," I murmured, taking a sip. Icy coolness mixed with the tang of lemon, tequila, and salt slithered down my throat, and I smiled, savouring the taste.

"Good?"

I laughed. "Yes. But seriously." I waved my hand around the room. "I feel underdressed for this," I commented, looking down at my lightweight wrap dress and bare feet.

"Not at all," Chase said warmly. "I told you - this isn't a special occasion, I just wanted to have a little fun."

This is what he classed as fun? New light started to dawn on me as I considered him. "Well, it's certainly something."

"Just relax, Mack. Please. We have the night to ourselves. No jobs, no other stressors, really. And we are both in good company." He eyed me suspiciously. "I think?"

I couldn't help it, I laughed. I pushed away any thoughts of Luke or Carmen, or even Alvarez from my mind, and hit Chase playfully on the arm. "Good company, indeed."

"Good. Now, go and have a cigarette or something. Dinner is about an hour away. Sit down, put your feet up, and relax a little. I'm going to put on some music, and enjoy my drink."

He walked from the dining room into the living area, and fiddled with the sound system. Chase was so confident in any environment.

I couldn't help but compare Gabe, Chase, and River to Luke. Luke was an uptight, constantly strung-out workaholic, who had always obsessed about money. Really, it shouldn't be a surprise that he was being a prick about me paying him out. For all I knew he’d probably kept a spreadsheet about how much I had spent over the years while he was the main income earner.

I lit a cigarette and stepped outside onto the terrace. Luke had always come home to a clean and loving house though, not to mention most of the time he had home cooked meals made by yours truly. It wasn't as if he couldn't afford to keep me. But obviously he preferred to keep Nicole more.

When it came to River, Chase, and Gabe - they were all so different in comparison. They lived well, killed well, and they relaxed in the moments when they could. Like now, with Chase.

I heard music start up in the living area, and Chase stepped out into the night air with me, carrying both of our drinks. The music was more up my alley than the jazzy Latino stuff he was playing earlier. I felt myself starting to move a bit to the music, and Chase laughed.

"I knew you were a partier from way back," he mused as he eyed me.

I smiled, and licked my lips. "I was known to visit places like Ibiza in my youth. But to be honest, I prefer my own company. Doesn't mean I don't listen to music though," I added.

"Yeah?" Chase chuckled. "Tell me, what’s your favourite music?"

"Drum and Bass," I said without missing a beat. Surprise filled Chase's features, and I laughed. "Don't act so shocked! You'd be surprised to discover how much writing and research can be done with music playing. I love it."

"You're right, I would be surprised. You are an anomaly, Mack."

I shook my head. "No. I'm just plain old boring. No anomaly here." I stubbed my cigarette out, and Chase took my hand, leading me back inside. My nerves tripped and stumbled over themselves, as he led me to the sofa, his leg brushing against mine as we sat.

"Actually, I beg to differ," he stated. "There is nothing boring or plain about you. Why do you think we asked you out here?"

I shrugged. "I was a good distraction?"

He threw back his head and laughed. "No. No, that's not it." He chuckled some more, and then leaned forward and tucked some of my hair behind my ear. I stilled, breath hitched, and stared at him. "It was because River saw a rare fire in you. There you were, trying to make ends meet, any way you could, and you were prepared to put yourself out there. While you couldn’t see it for yourself, we could."

He was sitting close to me, and I didn't know what to make of him. "Really?"

Chase nodded. "Yes. River saw it, I saw it, and Gabe saw it. There is something special about you. And look at you now. You are lovely and tall, your skin is getting a bit of sun - as opposed to all of that conditioned air and artificial light you've been under for years, and you no longer hide behind your glasses."

I shrugged off his comments. "I'm an historian, Chase, I’m supposed to be like that."

He leaned back, and relaxed into the sofa cushions. "Not all people are cut out to be stereotypes." He took a sip of his drink, looking thoughtful, and then turned his piercing blue gaze to lock with mine.

I stared at him. I didn't know what to say in response. "And on that note," he said after a few moments of silence, "I need to go check on dinner."

I watched as he stood and made his way to the kitchen. I'd come to realise that Chase was nothing like I had imagined. I had always been a bit wary of his smooth good looks and persona, but now, I wasn't so much.

There was a lot more depth to this man whom I hardly knew. A deeper level of loyalty than I guessed was there. I had the impression when I first met him that he was all about business, and nothing else. It couldn't be further from the truth though. He was sensitive, had built his business from the ground up, and he had lost a lot in his life. If anyone was going to understand my situation, it was Chase.

I drained my margarita, and nestled back into the soft cushions of the sofa, closing my eyes. This truly was relaxing. Dinner being cooked, I was being plied with booze, and then there was the company. My stomach somersaulted, and I smiled.

I realised I actually liked Chase.

Nothing would ever happen between us though. Especially not at the moment; I was running from a mad woman, and had my own issues to deal with - Luke in particular. There was no way I could even entertain the idea of getting into a relationship at the moment. Ugh. And apparently Alvarez needed dealing with as well.

Chase sat back down, the movement caused me to open my eyes and watch him. He held out a wrapped present to me.

"For you," he stated.

I gave him a wary look. "What on earth for? It's not my birthday."

Chase grinned. "Go on … open it."

I sat up properly, and started to undo the yellow ribbon. When that fell away, I carefully undid the purple wrapping paper. Peeling back the paper, I saw a cheery oak box with the Apple logo on it. "Oh my god," I muttered. "You didn't."

"I did." He laughed. "And it's all yours. Latest generation iPhone 5. A Gold Elite."

I almost choked as I opened the box and pulled the phone out. "Oh my god, Chase, this is 24 carat gold." I turned the phone over in my hands. "What on earth compelled you to get me this?"

He shrugged. "I got it as a replacement for your phone while I was in the States. Gabe cloned your old phone, so it's already loaded with all your apps, contacts, music and photos.” He ran his hand through his hair almost nervously. “They didn’t have a bullet-proof model in stock, so I went for the gold one instead. So… do you like it?”

Then I did something completely unlike me. I threw myself on him, wrapped my arms around his neck, and I kissed him. I pulled back. "Thank you." I stilled at the closeness of us, and then realised what I'd done. Chase was rigid as he stared at me. I started to move off him, mumbling. "I'm sorry, that was uncalled for."

He grabbed my arm, and pulled me back onto his lap. "You're welcome." He smiled.

I stopped breathing as his lips inched closer. His mouth met mine, and time stood still. The kiss was slow, deliberate, precise. Like everything he did.

Chase's phone started to ring, and I pulled away from him, jarred back into reality. Chase smiled, his eyes dilating as they met mine. "Ignore it," he whispered as he pulled me towards him again.

But then I thought of River and Gabe somewhere out there in trouble, and I shook my head. "No. You better answer it." I slid off his lap, my heart thundering as Chase pulled the phone from his pocket.

"Yes?" Chase answered.

I looked down at the new phone sitting in my palm and turned it on. I couldn't believe that I had kissed him, or that he'd kissed me. What the hell was going on? I was short of air, and I didn't want to look at him. I shouldn't have done that. No... WE shouldn't have done that. If anything happened between us, it would just complicate life so much more than it already was.

"You're where?"

Chase was dangerously quiet, and fear sliced through me. I didn't know who it was, but it sounded like trouble.

"Okay. Sit tight, I'll figure something out."

He hung up the phone and turned to me. "Shit," he muttered. "Gabe's down in Cabo San Lucas. He said Carmen flew him down there to her holiday home."

"What? That's miles away isn't it?"

Chase nodded, and drummed his phone against his leg as he stared off into space. "It is."

He stood up and swore again, and then he walked towards the kitchen. "Dinner's cancelled. Go get ready; we'll have to intercept River."

* * *

It couldn't have happened at a worse moment. Not only was I starving, but the last thing I felt like doing was going out in the middle of the night on a rescue mission.

Chase's personality had instantly switched into business mode as he blew out the candles in the dining room and turned dinner off on the stove. A part of me desperately wanted to take some food with us, but instead I was jostled towards my room, and told to dress in 'comfortable clothing'.