Undertow (12 page)

He looked like a fal en angel, or a sexy underwear model, Teal thought sourly.

Real y. He should wear a warning sign around his neck. A big, red, stop -sign-sized warning sign.

His startling eyes, clear, sharp, and intrusive, inspected her bare legs before slowly returning to her face. She felt that sweep of his eyes as if he was touching her skin. Lightly. She shivered, and his lips twitched.

Flirting was Zane·s stock in trade. His weapon of choice. It wasn·t personal, he was just in constant training. God help the woman whom he considered the main event. She tried not to be charmed by him and lost the battle.

She took a step back. She·d entirely lost the thread of conversation and had to mental y scramble to connect the dots. ´You
really
should wear long sleeves and pants in here. There are al sorts of dangers in an engine room.µ Zane freaking Cutter being one of them.

He looked at her tank top and plaid shorts. ´Yes, Pot. By the way. I want my T -shirt back.

It·s my favorite.µ

She·d slept with it covering her pil ow. Thank God she hadn·t slept
in
it. The shirt was tucked in her bedrol . Śorry. I had to use it for cleanup when I got grease on my hands. It went in the incinerator.µ Teal leaned her hip on the smal built -in table as far away from him as she could get.

Ít wasn·t a gift,µ he said, absently prowling around her engine room like a hungry panther.

Ít was a loan. You can buy me a new one next time we·re in port.µ

He strol ed farther into the room, which wasn·t nearly big enough for two of them. He looked around. There wasn·t that much floor space; two engines and two people, plus al the other stuff, like the generator and spare batteries. A chair and a lamp. And her bedrol , which he pul ed out from behind the chair. He dumped it on the seat cushion, and raised a brow. ´Don·t sweat the smal stuff.µ

Śomebody has to.µ Damn him, he was invading her personal space. Did the freaking man have no boundaries? The smel of soap on his skin made her dizzy, but she wasn·t going to back up. She lifted her chin and gave him a bland look. Íf you·ve or dered the new engine, you·d better get a bigger generator while you·re at it. I·m not going to be part of you trying to weasel through inspection to have this one re-rated.µ

He grinned, the insult bouncing off his broad shoulders. The way Zane was looking at her heated her skin and made her³Nothing. It made her
nothing
.

´Why are you sacked out in here? You have a perfectly good cabin, and I think we discussed this before³a very comfortable queen-sized bed.µ

´How do you know how comfortable the bed is? Did you sleep there with one of your too-numerous-to-count girlfriends?µ More than likely, she thought. She was
ecstatic
she wasn·t sleeping on that skanky mattress.

Í bought the mattress. The only bouncing I did on it was at the store.µ

Í prefer sleeping on the floor. I like to listen to my engines at night when it·s quiet. Consider my sleeping arrangements a diagnostic tool. I won·t even charge you overtime.µ

´Good of you.µ

Í fixed the electronic sensor that someone,µ³she gave him a pointed look ³ńo names mentioned, jerry-rigged.µ

She, better than anyone, knew that what one saw wasn·t always what was hidden underneath. The
Decrepit
looked like a piece of crap. But, while the engines were past their prime, they·d been kept in tip -top condition.

Í·m not asking for a report. I know how hard you work. You·re doing a fantastic job. No complaints from me.µ

´Then what
are
you doing here?µ

There was a dangerous gleam in his eyes as he reached out and casual y tucked her hair behind one ear. The shiver
that
elicited went from her ear al the way to her toes, and paused to tingle at several strategic points in between. He was good at the subtle touches, and little flirtations that lul ed a woman into letting down her guard.

´To ask you to be my partner on the first official
Vrijheid
dive.µ He gave her one of his devastatingly effective, boyish grins that instinctively made her smile back.

Í don·t want to wait until next week. People wil eventual y fol ow us anyway.

Might as wel official y start the show. We·re going to do it, Wil iams. See what bounty she·s wil ing to relinquish to us after al these years. I want you there with me.µ

Already disoriented by the light brush of his fingers against her cheek, the comment stopped Teal in her tracks. Her heart did a little tap dance in her chest.

She blinked him into focus. ´You·re asking me to partner you on the first official dive?µ His happiness was contagious.

His teeth flashed white. ´Yeah.µ

She had no idea how he·d gotten so close. She smel ed toothpaste on his breath. She wanted to place her hand on his face, to feel the soft prickle of his unshaven jaw under her fingertips. She had the crazy need to run her hands down his strong throat until she got to his chest « She felt the insane urge to lean into h im. Her heartbeat thudded in her chest and in al her pulse points. She wanted to lean into him, just to feel the heat of his body against hers.

Kiss me. Get the hell out of my space. Kiss me.

His blue, blue eyes moved over her, a slow hot lick that strip ped her bare.

´Teal³µ

Her skin hummed. A vibration that had started between her legs and spread outward from the epicenter. She put out her arm to keep him away, but somehow her palm flattened on his chest and she ended up with her fingers splayed over h is heart. Lightning zinged up her arm from the contact, sparking a darker need that she had to « put « a « stop « to «

His heart beat with an unsteady rhythm exactly like her own. The blasted man had his own gravitation field and it just pul ed her right i n, wil y-nil y.

Time to put a stop to this. She sucked a breath into constricted lungs and had to wet her lips with her tongue to push the words out. ´Do
not
think you can just strol in here whenever you like, and kiss m³µ

´Haven·t kissed you.µ His voice was low and velvety, his eyes seemed to glow demonical y in the dim light. ´Yet.µ He cupped her face between his palms and pul ed her mouth up to meet his. This kiss wasn·t suggestive, or insidious. He went from zero to a hu ndred in point zero seconds.

Heat scalded her body as he plundered her mouth in a ravishing kiss that curled her toes and set her entire body on fire.

She yielded with a smal whimper, wrapping her arms around his neck and standing on her toes to give him better access. He was ful y aroused, but, God, so was she. His tongue swept against hers and she was nothing more than pure sensation³

Źane? Hey buddy, you in here?µ

Zane reluctantly released Teal, hyperaware of her beside him as Ryan swung his body int o the engine room at warp speed. ´
Sea Witch
just arrived,µ he said, out of breath and annoyed.

His sun-bleached hair stood on end, and he stil held a flipper in one hand.

It took Zane a minute to come out of the sensual haze brought on by Teal·s kiss. ´Yo u·ve got to be shitting me.µ He ran a hand through his hair ´How close?µ

The last time,
Sea Witch
had dropped anchor a hundred feet off the
Decrepit,
crossing anchor lines in the process. If that was again the case, then Zane and the redhead were about to have words. Again.

´The required mile,µ Ryan answered. Śhe seems to be staying put. For now.µ

Tolerable
. ´We·l keep an eye on her.µ The captain of the
Sea Witch
always seemed to know where the Cutter brothers were. Her boat had been bobbing a mile away at the last three of Zane·s salvages, and he knew she·d fol owed both Nick and Logan on several occasions over the last few years. She was a royal pain in the ass. Worse, she·d stolen thousands of dol ars·

worth of treasure from right under their noses.

He thought of the damaged rudder. Was she trying to up the ante with the attempted sabotage? He wouldn·t put it past her to try and get him out of the way long enough to harvest even more of his loot.

Or, hel . What if Teal·s ex
had
decided to come pee in his pond as Nick had suggested?

Teal crossed to the laptop computer on the smal table near the engines. Once again al business, she·d opened the Cat ET, Caterpil ar·s Electronic Technician diagnostic tool.

Trying to pretend that kiss hadn·t happened? Ni ce try sweetheart, Zane thought, seeing the flush riding her cheeks. Jesus, she had a pretty mouth, and if Ryan hadn·t blasted in like the hounds of hel were on his ass, Zane would be finished kissing his mechanic within an inch of her life right about now. He pul ed his gaze back to Ryan.

´The
Sea Witch
is one of the vultures we·ve been trying to throw off with our decoy sites.

She·s a major thorn in our side,µ Ryan expained to Teal. Then he turned back to Zane. Í·ve told you before, that freaking woman has it in for you, buddy. Mark my words. She·s a bottom-feeder. I wouldn·t put it past her to have messed with the rudder herself. We·d al be smart to keep our eyes on her flaunty little ass. If we turn our backs, she·s going to be in our wreck, helping herself again.µ

Teal turned to Zane. Ćan she do that?µ

Ímpossible to find a wreck and
not
to have some friendly competition. So yeah. To a point.

And whatever she retrieves, she has to cough up our percentage.

If
we know about it.µ

Ísn·t there anything you can do?µ

Ńot unless she does something il egal, which she hasn·t so far.µ Unless he could prove it. If she
had
messed with his boat, her ass was going to be toast. ´But Ryan·s right, she·s like a damned pilot fish, feeding off our ectoparasites and leftovers.µ

µI·m guessing she isn·t old and homely?µ Teal addressed Ryan.

Ĺate twenty-something, stacked, redhead.µ

Áhh. Some girlfriend whose name you inconveniently forgot?µ Teal asked Zane sweetly, folding the towel she·d flung on the chair. It le ft a damp mark on the upholstery. ´Did you try honey, or sweetheart?µ

Í don·t know her personal y, nor do I want to. She·s nothing more than a modern -day pirate.µ He turned to Ryan. Ĺet·s increase security and take al precautions. And just to be on the safe side, get a couple of guys in from St.

Maarten to beef up security for the duration.µ

Áye, aye, Captain.µ Ryan gave him a mock salute. Í·l take care of that right away.µ He glanced from Zane to Teal and back again, hummed, ´Hmm.µ And walked out.

´This woman sounds dangerous.µ

Úp to now she·s been a pain in the ass, but dangerous? Nah. Doesn·t mean she couldn·t be.

Once she knows the value of the treasure, and if she·s as smart as I believe she is, al bets might be off. Money, the kind of money I know is down there, can make people greedy.µ

´But she doesn·t know what the
Vrijheid
carried or the value, does she?

Śhe doesn·t give a rat·s ass. She·s ripped off artifacts from us valued at a couple of dol ars, and shit worth several thousand dol ars. No rhyme or reason, she just wants it, so she
takes
it. She·s made it her business to know where al Cutter Salvage boats are at any given time.

Just my bad luck that I·m her target this week.

As to the how: Anyone with a computer can find out simply enough where a ship is at any moment,µ he told her grimly.

´What do we do now?µ

´We·re going to drop anchor and start hauling ass.µ

* * *

Solitary. And as clear a blue as Zane·s eyes. The water felt like warm silk against her exposed skin. The BC strapped around her chest had nothing to do with how buoyant she felt. She and Zane swam side by side. Close enough to touch, but not.

Their limbs were in perfect sync as they seemed to fly in slow -mo through the crystal ine water in a lazy descent. They carried metal detectors and each had a goody basket.

Above them, the shadow of the
Decrepit
·s keel cut a dark footprint out of the early morning sunlight filtering through the water. Schools of brightly colored fish moved as one, their tiny bodies neon red as they darted and twisted in perfectly choreograp hed unison.

Zane put a hand on her shoulder and pointed at the blacktip shark passing them in the fast lane. Teal held her breath as the streamlined body swam within ten feet of them. Zane shook his head, indicating that she inhale. Exhale. Holding one·s breath on a dive was dangerous.

She knew better.

He glanced at her to make sure she was breathing normal y, observing the little bubbles streaming from her regulator. After she gave him the OK signal, he went back to keeping an eye on the shark. He·d drawn his diving knife from the scabbard on his thigh before he·d stopped her. A precaution. The shark didn·t look interested in them. Brown on top and a dirty white below, with a white racing stripe down its side, the shark was almost as long as Teal was tal .

They hung suspended, hands and flippers barely moving as it turned to look at them. Beady blinkless eyes seemed to calculate their body weight and caloric value before it swam off.

Noted and ignored.

Teal raised her brows behind the mask and pantomimed eating. Zane pointed at her, then to the retreating shark. She shook her head. She didn·t want to eat
it
.

He grinned around his regulator and rocked his hand back and forth, then pointed down.

Below, in bits and pieces, and buried under white sand and l umps of coral, lay the
Vrijheid.

The sand rippled with currents like a veil. In her mind·s eye, Teal saw the broken frigate whole and glorious as she sailed halfway around the world to plunder priceless treasures from wel -armed gal eons, and thumb her nose at the Spanish.

There was very little to identify her now. Just a few indistinguishable lumps and bumps on the ocean floor. Any one of those lumps and bumps and intriguing shapes could be disguising a cache of pirate gold or a trunk -ful of jewelry fit for a queen.

Even though she·d seen the
Vrijheid
in her final resting place the week before, seeing the frigate again made Teal·s heart dance and her pulse race.