Chapter 31
Barry wanted to immediately deny Mac’s request. It was far too dangerous for her to be so near Miles.
Barry didn’t even know if there were guards watching the property or just Miles.
He was unprepared for this mission, and to add a civilian spelled trouble.
And yet as he looked down at Mac’s hopeful face and her big brown eyes, he realized he couldn’t deny her. He was pussy-whipped.
“Alright, but—” he quickly added before she could get too excited. “You do what I say, no arguing.”
Mac pinched her lips together and made a cross over her heart.
“Fine, go back to your place so you can shower and change into something all black, then meet me back here.” He’d use that time to change clothes and get some gear together.
Mac rose to her tiptoes and gave him a quick peck on the lips. It was all too brief after not seeing her all day, but it was probably for the best. “Thank you,” she said, looking up at him as if he had hung the moon and stars.
“You’re welcome.”
“I’ll hurry back.” She practically bounced on her heels as she raced out the door. She was a far cry from the woman who’d come to his door not long ago.
Barry changed into black pants and shoes and a black short-sleeved shirt. He hadn’t packed a long-sleeve, not realizing he might be going on a scouting mission. He loaded up his backpack with cameras and motion sensors.
No sense not taking advantage of this opportunity to scout the property if no one was around. Lastly, he tucked his knife into his boot.
If it had been a real mission, he could have taken his pistol, but not on a commercial flight. He would just have to do without. This was a quick in-and-out stealth mission, he shouldn’t need one anyway.
Barry finished zipping up his bag when there was a soft knock on the door before Mac let herself in.
Her hair was tied back into a ponytail, and she wore a black short-sleeved shirt and skin tight stretchy yoga pants with white shoes.
He rose an arched eyebrow at her footwear choice. “I don’t have black shoes,” she explained.
This wouldn’t do. White shoes would stand out like a beacon.
“Take them off,” he ordered instead of asking.
Mac looked like she wanted to protest, then seemed to remember he’d stipulated not to argue.
Mac toed off the shoes and bent over to pick them up.
Barry diverted his gaze lest he get distracted by her slim legs and want to drag the material off and bury himself deep inside of her until she screamed his name in pleasure.
Mac held them out pinched between her finger and thumb. Barry grabbed them and went to the bathroom, filling up a cup of water and heading outside. He found a small dirt patch and poured the water onto the ground, making it muddy.
He rubbed her shoes in it and smeared it with his hand until they were caked in mud and hardly any white could be seen. He turned around to see Mac standing in the doorway, staring at him in horror.
“Now no one will see us,” he told her, handing them back to her before walking past her to grab his bag. He turned around; Mac was still standing there in shock, holding her shoes.
“If I knew you were going to do that, I would have worn my brown shoes.”
Well, she should have done that instead of bringing white. Or called and asked. “It’s mud. It will wash off. Let’s go.”
Barry didn’t acknowledge her scowl as he walked past her. She hastily put her shoes on as she followed him to the car.
“So how are you planning on breaking the window?”
Being on the eighth floor, it wasn’t going to be easy to get to the window, but Barry had a plan. “Very carefully.”
Barry could feel Mac rolling eyes. “There’s a grove of palm trees near that side of the building where Miles’s office is. I’m going to get a coconut and hit the window with it.”
“Is that enough to shatter it?”
“Tempered glass is built to break not shatter.”
“You seem to know a lot about glass,” she mumbled under her breath.
He had shot through a number of windows over the years. One or two had been at a hotel, so he knew how they were built. “Regardless, if the window is broken, he’ll have to replace it. We need something to break it but not enough to let on it was done on purpose.”
Barry pulled over before the turn off into the hotel entrance instead of past it, just in case someone was watching the road.
Barry shut off the engine and half turned in the seat to look at Mac.
“Remember what I said.” Barry felt the necessity to repeat himself because this was important; once they were out of the car, any mistakes could be fatal.
“Listen to you, don’t argue,” she parroted. Barry pulled the keys from the ignition and handed them to her. “What’s this for?” she asked but didn’t take them.
“Just in case something goes wrong, I want you to leave. Get in the car and drive.”
“And leave you behind?” she questioned, her voice filled with horror.
“Yes, I’d rather be caught than you.” He would gladly sacrifice himself for her. He could easily get away too if captured, but not if he was worried about Mac. He’d rather her safe and able to continue saving her sharks then in the hands of these people.
“I’d rather none of us get caught.”
“I’m not planning on it, but I want you to be prepared to run if you have to. I need you to be okay to do that, Mac, or you’re waiting in the car here.”
“We couldn’t have had this conversation at the hotel,” she muttered under her breath.
“Your promise, Mac.” He wasn’t willing to let her out of the car until he had it.
Mac took a deep breath and looked forlornly into his eyes. “I promise.”
“Good, no more talking from here on out. If you need to get my attention, tap me on the shoulder. If you see anything, tap three times on the side you see them. And like I said, you see trouble, just go.”
Mac looked like she wanted to say something else, and he wished he could think of something to say to ease her anxiety. Something inspirational, but that was Luke’s department not his.
Instead, he took her hand in his, kissed the back of her knuckles, and gave her hand a squeeze. “It’s going to be fine.”
Mac nodded.
“Let’s go.” Barry didn’t want to linger longer than necessary.
They got out of the car, and Barry grabbed his bag before they softly closed their doors. They walked single file up the hill alongside the road. As soon as they entered the tree line, Barry got out his motion sensor and angled it toward the driveway. He didn’t want anyone sneaking up on them.
Barry stopped every few feet, using the trees as cover, and would watch and listen to see if anyone was nearby. Barry had already checked the GPS on Miles’s car, and it was on the north end of the island.
So, Miles and his guards should be gone, but Barry wanted to err on the side of caution in case there was security on the premises.
He could hear Mac breathing behind him, so he knew she was staying close.
He was proud of how silent she was being.
Carefully picking her way through the foliage, avoiding dried palm leaves and twigs.
The front of the hotel was silent. All the workers were long gone. The light over the hotel entrance was on, but beyond that, it was pitch black. Even the hotel’s interior lights were off.
Maybe he could just walk right in. Barry started to step forward when he heard male voices. Barry froze and watched as two men stepped out from the hotel entrance. They wore suits like Miles’s normal guards. They also wore machine guns strapped over their shoulders, resting on their sides.
Barry head Mac’s quick inhale of breath. He grabbed her hand and pulled her deeper into the tree line and further away from the guards. He signaled her to stay put as he went back toward the hotel.
Barry set up a camera on the tree and angled it toward the front entrance to see who came and went. He checked his phone to make sure it was working before moving back to where he’d left Mac.
They continued to walk through the brush along the side of the hotel toward the back where Barry knew Miles’s office was. He set up another camera before they moved around the back.
Barry stopped and turned toward Mac, signaling her to stop and wait. He pointed toward the building then at himself, telling her he was going forward on his own. At least he hoped she understood his hand signals.
They weren’t the normal ones he used with his team, but he didn’t want to have to say anything. Mac nodded in understanding and squatted down next to the palm tree, making herself next to invisible. Smart girl.
Barry stuck within the tree line and hurried as fast as he could along the back of the hotel until he was close to Miles’s windows. The lights were on and the curtains were drawn. Barry could only see one light on.
Barry was wondering how he was going to reach it when he noticed a yellow mobile crane parked with the crane lifted along the side of the building.
How fortuitous; it was high enough for Barry to reach Miles’s office and close enough to the building he wasn’t in danger of hurling himself off the ladder with his forward momentum.
Barry picked up a coconut and made his way to the crane.
He set down his bag and hefted the coconut under his arm before climbed on top of the machine and making his way up the ladder.
As soon as he was several feet above the window, Barry hooked the front of his foot into the rung and braced his chest against the side of the ladder, leaning over.
He hoped this worked because he hadn’t brought a spare, and any sound may alert the guards out front.
Barry lifted the coconut over his head and hurled it with all of his might at the window. It smacked against the top corner of the window and fell to the ground with an audible thud. It left behind a webbing of cracks two feet down. That should get it replaced for sure.
Barry hurried back down and collected his bag, then ducked back into the tree line. He braced himself against a tree, trying to catch his breath and listening to see if the guards were coming. He didn’t hear a cry of alarm go up.
Barry made his way back to Mac who was still crouched down next to the trunk where he had left her.
He clamped a hand over her mouth to silence her scream while his other hand wrapped around her chest and pulled her close to stop her thrashing.
He whispered in her ear, “It’s me.” Mac instantly stilled and fell forward.
She pushed out of his arms and whirled to face him. Barry held a finger to his lips to remind her to be silent. He could see in her eyes there would be retribution. He took her hand and guided them back to the car.
Mac waited until the door shut, sealing them into the car before she went off. “You scared the daylights out of me.” She smacked him in the arm with her fist. It didn’t hurt, but if it made her feel better, he’d let her do it.
“I didn’t want you to scream if I tapped you on the shoulder.” That would have alerted the guards and anyone who was inside the hotel.
“You couldn’t make a bird noise or something?”
“As if that would have told you it was me.”
“You’re lucky I didn’t kick your—” Tired of listening to her argue and worried it might draw attention, Barry gripped the front of her shirt and pulled her over the console, sealing his lips over hers.
“Hmm,” Mac started to protest before melting into the kiss like hot butter. Her tongue licked against the seam of his lips, and he eagerly opened for her. He liked this aggressive side of her, taking what she wanted from him.
Mac leaned further over the middle console, as if seeking to get closer to him, though he didn’t know how they could get any closer without her straddling him.
Barry felt Mac reaching for the button of his pants. Barry wasn’t one for car sex. He was a big man, and the car wasn’t large enough for all of the things he wanted to do to her body.
Barry pulled back from the kiss and slid as far into the corner of the driver’s door as he could. Mac was hovering over the console, her mouth opened, slightly panting. He couldn’t miss the hunger in her eyes as she stared at him. “Who knew recon missions were a turn on for you?”
Some people were adrenaline junkies, and the thrill of the chase or getting caught turned them on. For some reason, he didn’t think Mac was one of them. He couldn’t see the adrenaline of swimming with sharks as a turn on. Who knew breaking Miles’s window would be?
“I never would have guessed,” Mac husked; her gaze fixated on his lips. She started swaying forward. If he let her touch him again, he wasn’t sure he’d have the willpower to deny her.
“Hold that thought. We’ll be back at the hotel shortly, or do you want to go to your place?” She had to work in the morning, and all of her things were there. He didn’t care where they went so long as he got her on a flat surface.
“My place.”
“Hold tight then.” Barry reached for the keys in his pocket only to remember he had given them to Mac. She held them up, dangling between her finger and thumb, with a siren grin on her lips.
“Looking for these.” She shook the keys. The metallic clanging echoing in the small, confined space of the car.
Barry took them and started the engine. Mac settled into her seat and reached over the console, stroking her hand from his knee up toward his crotch.
Barry captured her wayward hand in his and interlaced their fingers as he took off, speeding onto the dark road with only the headlights to guide them. It was going to be the longest ride back to her house, if she didn’t cause him to crash first.