Chapter 8
Harlan checked the news on his phone. The sun wasn’t up yet, but he was already outside and covered in sweat from a run. The air quality at the resort was fine, but the volcano still erupted. The lava flow continued and the Kanawao Estates, where Storm had stayed, was being eaten alive.
First responders were coming in from the other islands to help out with shelters, food and water, and whatever necessities the evacuees needed. Already this morning, flights were delayed off the big island. He had no idea if he would get out of here today.
Storm was still asleep when he woke. He had found her wrapped around him. He wasn’t complaining—not at all. A beautiful, smart woman had tucked herself against his back with one arm around his waist. Her citrusy smell lingered around him. Along with the heat of her body pressed against his, she excited him in a way he didn’t remember ever feeling.
He wanted to protect her because her eyes had shown a vulnerability even when she had forced her spine straight. But that wasn’t all. When she looked up at him and wrinkled her nose in that cute way or when his name spilled over her lips like sun-kissed water, he wanted her underneath him, wrapped around him, staking a claim on him.
The need to slip out of bed before he did something he would regret shook him. He had left the room for a run without saying a word.
The run was supposed to get her out of his system. He did not do one-nighters. He left that for friends of his who had no problem with it. He wanted a woman he could come home to every night. That couldn’t be Storm. They were from different worlds. He didn’t even know where she lived. Or if she was lying to him. And did he really want to get involved with a woman someone else wanted murdered?
He really needed to get to the bottom of that one. And fast. He shot a text off to his team.
All good?
Each of them shot back a version of yes. Harlan had suspected they would all be up or awake in some stage.
Raider didn’t respond through the group, but sent a reply to Harlan only. You okay?
He and Raider were always on the same page even when the others had ways of doing things he scratched his head about. They were all great men, and he had been honored to serve with them, but Raider was… well, just Raider.
All good.For now. When he had more information from Storm, then he might ask Raider or all the guys what they thought about her problem.
You’re never going to believe who’s here. Raider sent back.
Who?As if he could guess.
Her.
The her?Harlan couldn’t imagine that was who Raider meant.
Yes. Her.
‘Of all the gin joints…’ Raider could be in over his head. Do you need backup?
Not yet.
Shout if you do.
Copy that.
Harlan purchased two coffees and went back to the room. The bed was made, but Storm wasn’t in the room. He turned and stopped at the sound of water running. He knocked on the bathroom door, but she didn’t answer.
He put the coffees down, then eased open the door. “Storm?”
She screamed. “My God, Harlan. You scared me to death. Don’t you knock?”
He stifled his laughter. “I did knock. You didn’t hear me. Sorry that I scared you.”
“Do I need to state the obvious?”
“I promise I can’t see anything.” The shower curtain did a good job of keeping her covered. He couldn’t see a thing through it. Too bad.
“Is there something that can’t wait?”
“Just making sure you’re okay or didn’t run off without saying goodbye.”
“You mean like you?” The water turned off. Her arm slipped out from behind the curtain, and she swiped a towel without revealing anything else.
He tried not to picture the water droplets running down her skin or the way she would wipe the towel over her body and failed. If he didn’t quit it, his arousal would give him away.
“I’m sorry about that too. I needed some air and I didn’t want to wake you.”
“You could have left a note.” She shoved the curtain aside and was wrapped in that white towel. The bathroom light reflected off her wet skin.
He swallowed hard. “You’re right.”
“I didn’t know what to make of your disappearance. If you’re going to leave me high and dry, I’d prefer some notice, please.”
“Yes, of course.” Heat burned his cheeks. This woman had his head messed up. He better get it together for his sake and hers.
“Do you mind? You’re letting out all the heat and I need to get dressed.” She arched her brows.
“Sorry. I’ll wait out here.” He started to back out, then stopped. “Oh, I got coffee.”
“Excellent. Now go.” She waved him away.
He closed the door with some reluctancy and waited on the other side of the room. She had pulled open the curtains and allowed the sunshine and view of the beach in. The coffee was hot and bitter on his tongue.
She emerged in a t-shirt and a pair of loose-fitting pants. Her hair was still wet and just as wild as when it was dry.
He handed her the coffee. Their fingers grazed and the desire to be closer pulled him. Their bodies were close enough the heat from her showered skin rolled into him and the scent of coffee and strawberry shampoo mingled like an elixir.
She stared up at him. Fire flashed in her eyes, then disappeared. She cleared her throat and stepped around him. “Thank you for the coffee. I can’t get my day started without a large cup. You, on the other hand, look as if you’re one of those morning people who jump out of bed, ready to climb a mountain.”
“Guilty. Navy life.”
“Lots of discipline.”
“Something like that.” He was relying on that discipline now to keep from kissing her. Storm did not want that. That would be crazy.
“You won’t have to babysit much longer. In a few hours, you’ll be free of me.”
“What happens in a few hours?” He wasn’t ready to be done with her.
“My assistant should be here.” She held the cup in both hands by her chin like a shield.
For once, he wished he didn’t know so much about body language. He couldn’t stop studying the way she moved and guessing at what each gesture meant. To anyone else, that cup would mean nothing except that she liked the way the coffee smelled or her hands were cold, but to him it could mean any of those things and a list of others that would keep him trying to find the place where she wasn’t telling the truth.
“Is your assistant qualified to protect you?”
“Safety in numbers and all that. Didn’t you mention you had a plane to catch anyway?”
“The flights are all delayed. I’m happy to stick around and keep an eye on things for you.”
“Honestly, I would like that. I haven’t felt this safe in a long time.” Her cheeks bloomed red and the blood drained from his head.
“I’d like to help you figure out who tried to hurt you.” He wasn’t certain of that until this instant. All the going back and forth came to an end when she stood before him in the shower, petite and exposed.
“So, you do believe me.”
“You haven’t given me a reason not to.” At least not yet. He would still keep his guard up as much as possible, but that was proving harder and harder every minute. If he was walking into a black widow’s spiderweb, he had no idea. And part of him almost didn’t care. He was attracted to this woman, wanted to know her more, to touch her.
“May I use your phone?”
“What’s the matter with yours?” He hadn’t seen her use one this whole time which was unusual. There had to be people trying to reach her.
“I don’t want to keep it on very long and give my location away.”
“Smart. We need to get to the bottom of a few things. Like who and why would someone want to kill you?”
“I don’t know who. But I think it’s someone I work with. I upset several people with my promotion to president.” She put the coffee down on the desk and sat on the edge of the bed. Her shoulders slumped.
“Enough to kill you?”
“People have killed for less.”
“True, I suppose. But why kill you? Are you saying they think they’d get the position if you were out of the picture?”
“There would be an extensive interview process to replace a president. No, whoever was angry enough to try and kill me, only wants me gone. Someone hates me.”
“Unless your attempted killer doesn’t realize that he or she can’t simply step into the role.” This person, whoever it was, might not be very intelligent. Storm had been able to taste the poison. That would indicate it was administered incorrectly or the wrong type had been chosen. This killer might not understand the interview process for Storm’s position. Or it’s an old lover. People are often killed by someone close to them.
She stood and tugged on the hem of her t-shirt. “Can we get out of here? This room is too small with your large stature and my problems.”
He stifled another laugh. She was a feisty one, but he would have suspected her to behave in a nervous or excitable manner.
“I have to say, you’re very calm about all of this.” Since he met her last night, she had barely raised her voice and hadn’t shed a single tear.
“I’m not someone who overreacts, Harlan. Never during a crisis. It’s a skill I’ve developed as I would assume you have as well, considering your line of work.”
“This isn’t a work problem. This is personal.”
“Oh, I suppose it is. I don’t know. What do you say? Can we leave this room?” She tugged on her shirt again.
“I’ll find a place to hide you out, but tell me first who was passed up for the position?”
“I don’t know everyone interviewed. The vice president of advancement was in line as well. He believed I was only given the position because my father is on the board of trustees.”
A knock at the door interrupted them. Storm’s eyes grew wide. She looked around the room and then ran into the bathroom. Clearly, she was not as calm as she said. She definitely believed someone wanted to hurt her.
He peered through the peephole. A man dressed in a resort uniform stood by a room service cart filled with silver covered trays, glasses, and a carafe. Harlan opened the door.
“Can I help you?” He wished he had grabbed his gun out of the safe. Normally, he carried it with him all the time, but in his haste this morning to untangle from Storm, he didn’t think about taking it.
“Room service, sir.” The waiter waved over the table. His name tag read Carl. A bad case of acne pocked Carl’s face. But the smile seemed sincere, and Carl made no move to enter.
“I didn’t order room service.” One of his teammates could be playing a joke on him, but considering all of them had been busy helping out with the volcano most of the night and could still be at it this morning, he doubted it was one of the guys.
Carl’s face morphed into confusion. He pulled the receipt from under one of the dishes and read it over. “It says right here.” He held out the paper.
“One second.” Harlan disengaged the chain. He took the receipt out of courtesy, glanced at it, and handed it back. “Not me. Sorry.”
“Strange. I was told this was urgent. That the guest in your room needed his food immediately. Are you here with someone else?”
“That, Carl, is none of your business. This room is registered to me. I did not order the food. You can take it back to the kitchen.”
“Yes, sir. Of course. I apologize for the inconvenience.” Carl stuck his fingers in his collar and pulled.
“No apologies needed. But, Carl, what happens to that food once it’s returned?” If this was what he thought it might be, and he could be overthinking, but he did not want someone else touching that food.
“We have to dispose of it. I wish we could give it to the people who have been displaced from their homes. Our food is fantastic and a shame to waste.”
“Don’t let anyone eat from that tray.” The sharp tone of his voice made Carl flinch.
“Sir?”
“Just a hunch, Carl. But my hunches are rarely wrong.”
He closed the door and banged on the one to the bathroom. “Storm, it’s me. Open up.”
The door swung in, and Storm stood before him. The color had left her face. Her lips were gray.
“Who was it?” she said.
“Room service.”
“I didn’t order room service.”
“I didn’t think you did. And neither did I. I want you to pack your things. We need to get out of here.”
“Wait a second. You mean for good?”
“I have a sinking feeling that whoever is after you, might have followed you here.”
“You do?”
“We need to go. I don’t know where yet. I also need a list of the people whom you think might be after you. We’ll need to do a background check on them. We’ll need to go to the police too.”
“We can’t do that.” She gripped his arm and dug her nails in.
“I’m not a detective. The police will help us.”
“I don’t trust them. I don’t trust anyone.”
“Storm…”
“Please, Harlan. You’re strong and fierce. Just keep me safe for a few days. I can figure this out on my own. The police already didn’t believe me. They won’t in this state either. And they have their hands full with the volcano. No one will give a hysterical tourist any attention.”
The color was still gone from her face. Fear had taken up residence in her blue eyes, turning them gray. His attraction to her took hold again. He might be in over his head.
“Twenty-four hours. But if we can’t get some answers by then, we need help.”
“Perfect. Thank you.” She threw her clothes into her suitcase.
He needed to reach his sister and explain he would be delayed longer. Whoever had figured out where Storm was would know he was involved too. He wasn’t just helping her. He didn’t like the idea that this so-called killer would take Harlan down with him. Not on his watch.
He swapped his running shorts for a pair of cargos. A shower would have to wait. He shot off a text to Raider.
Checking out of my room. Not leaving yet. I’ll be in touch.
Raider didn’t reply right away, but that was fine. Someone knew what he was up to at the moment and there would be a digital footprint of his most recent whereabouts. Storm might want to stay incognito, but if anything went south, he wanted his team to know his last location.
He grabbed his gun from the safe.
“You have a gun?” Storm’s hands stopped midair, her clothes a big ball in her hand.
“Of course, I do. I guess you didn’t notice earlier. Does it bother you?” He hoped not.
“I don’t think so. I’ve actually never seen one up close.”
“Really?”
“Not exactly something I need on a college campus.”
“I’ll show you how to use one someday. It’s good to know how to handle a firearm.”
“I’d like that.”
So would he.