Chapter 11
Chapter Eleven
As soon as the train stopped, Brock steered Dani down the aisle with his hand between her shoulder blades, pushing past the other passengers.
Someone yelped and made a sound of annoyance.
Dani’s hushed apology reached his ears, but he urged her on.
He threw a glance over his shoulder and the woman Dani had spotted watching them stood. Shit.
They stepped off the train and he led Dani into the station and to a small nook where a wall of vending machines waited. He pressed her back to one of the tall boxes and yanked some items from his bag.
“Here, put this over your hair,” he said, passing her a light blue beany.
She fit the material over her head and combed her hair to the side.
He yanked a navy-blue shirt overtop of the one he wore and swapped his hat for the brown fedora he’d bought at the last depot.
He watched while Dani fit her arms into a white zip-up hoodie.
“I’m glad we thought to buy a change of clothes just in case. We should get to our terminal. If we’re quick enough she might not catch us.”
Brock firmed his mouth and kept his body pressed to Dani’s while he peered around the edge of the vending machine. “No. That’s what they’d expect us to do. We’re better off letting them think we left already. We can catch a later train.”
She huffed, and he didn’t need to look at her face to know she’d rolled her eyes. “Maybe I misread her. I mean, I don’t think paranoia is uncommon in this situation.”
Brock had gotten a good look at the woman’s face after Dani had whispered her warning on the train.
Shoulder-length bleached-blonde hair curled up at the ends, brown eyes, stalky build, no older than forty-five.
He searched the crowd for her black peacoat, but it was like spotting a spec of pepper on asphalt—almost everyone wore black.
“Never second-guess your gut instinct,” he said next to her ear, keeping his eyes on the crowd.
She pushed her fists against his chest, but he didn’t move. “Brock, I want to see.”
“Uh-uh.”
She huffed and shifted her hips against his.
Desire pounded through his veins, and he dragged his attention from the milling people to meet her impatient glare.
Her lips puckered, tinting the pouty flesh to a deep pink.
She wet her bottom lip and his cock throbbed.
God, she had the most kissable, fuckable mouth.
She must have read his mind because her breasts thrust forward against his chest. Too much material shielded her nipples from him, but he’d bet dollars to donuts they were hard little buds.
Heat swirled below his belt. Jesus Christ, if he didn’t get a lid on his lust he’d rip off her clothes and fuck her against the damn vending machines. Hell, given the blazing blues in her eyes, she probably wouldn’t protest.
The shrill ring of a phone snapped his gaze to the bustling depot. In the middle of the crowd stood the woman. She stared down at her phone and then looked up at the chairs lining the wall adjacent to the vending machines.
Brock ducked his head and sealed his lips over Dani’s, shielding their faces.
“Mmm,” Dani squeaked, surging to her toes.
Her belly crushed against his dick and the aroma of peppermint mixed with that of fresh hair dye tingled his senses.
He moved his tongue into the cavern of her mouth.
She flicked hers in an erotic dance and he coaxed hers to slide between his teeth.
He sucked on her delicate flesh and a deep, primitive moan rolled out of her throat.
She curled her hands into the front of his shirt, anchoring him to her.
He moved his hand to cup her thigh then slid it around the curve of her leg to weigh her perfect ass cheek in his palm.
Bringing her tighter against his shaft he licked deeper into her mouth.
She broke away from his kiss but kept her lips pressed lightly against his.
“What was that for?”
“She was about to look in our direction.” The words fell from his tongue before he could stop them.
Hell, it was an excuse at best. He’d wanted to kiss her—needed to.
She cleared her throat and rubbed her finger beneath her chin but didn’t pull too far away.
No one would see her face unless he drew back.
“Is she still there?”
“Let me check.” Brock dropped his mouth to her neck and kissed the column of her throat.
Her hands clamped around his uninjured arm as the taste of vanilla and peppermint hit his tongue.
He angled his head back and looked over her shoulder.
The woman’s blonde head and black coat bobbed through the crowd. She had her phone pressed to her ear.
He lifted his head. “She just left.”
Dani’s cheeks were a vibrant red, which was accentuated by her dark hair. Her eyes had deepened to an indigo blue, a shade he’d never seen in her irises. Damn, he loved that he had that effect on her.
“We should wait,” he said.
She cleared her throat, moved her hands to his chest, and inched him away from hers. “No. We need to get out of here. The cops will be crawling all over the station in minutes.” She lifted her bag and accepted his elbow when he offered it.
“I suppose you’re right. We’ll need to hurry so we don’t miss our train. Strange the cops aren’t here already.”
“Maybe she wanted to be sure first.”
“Yeah, but I don’t like this. I also find it strange a woman is tailing us now.”
Dani furrowed her brow and braced her hand on her hip. “What are you saying, a woman can’t be a cop?”
He looked down at her. “Of course not. But maybe she’s not with the police.
Maybe she was working with Sven’s killer.
Up to this point, it’s been men after us.
Doesn’t it strike you as weird that suddenly a woman pops up?
” He scanned the crowd one more time then led her away from the vending machines and in the direction of their terminal.
Boarding would start in ten minutes, so at least they wouldn’t need to hang around much longer.
“Yeah, I guess so. She could have been a concerned citizen and had nothing to do with either party.” A beat passed and Dani nodded. “Actually, I like that theory much better.”
He nudged her with his elbow. “Just because you like it better doesn’t make it true.”
She made a face and leaned forward as the train chugged to a stop.
Once it cleared, they got in line to board.
Four hours and two stops later, they disembarked in Paris.
Dani had slept on his shoulder for the last ride, and now it was after 10:00 p.m. They got into a cab and rode to the hotel he’d arranged.
At the last stop he’d called several hotels in Paris and with great difficulty had found one that would honor their stay with cash as a security deposit rather than a credit card.
He’d made up a story about his card being compromised while on their trip.
He still had to use his ID, but the odds of them tracing that without the use of a credit card were slim.
Even though he’d yet to hear his name on the news, it was possible the library had footage of his face and would make a connection. He’d been wearing a hat, so he hoped to god they hadn’t identified him, but he sure as hell wasn’t taking any chances.
Dani pretended to talk on the phone away from the front desk while he checked them in. He caught her arm and led her to the elevators and she dutifully kept her head down. She pocketed the phone when the elevator door closed.
“You okay?”
She nodded. “I should be exhausted, but I’m wired. And starving.”
He chuckled and took her bag from her shoulder then handed her their room key. “It was all that sleeping you did on the train. Must be nice. I was too busy investigating.”
“Ha. You investigated one photo. I was thinking with my eyes closed.” The elevator dinged and she pushed off the wall and into the hallway. He fell into step behind her and his eyes fell to her ass, wrapped nicely in denim, as she sashayed down the hall. Goddamn, she had the most perfect butt.
She stopped at their room, inserted the key, and bumped open the door with her hip.
He set their bags by the door and followed her into the suite.
A king-sized bed covered in a lush gold-trimmed duvet took up the center of the room, and a tufted cream-colored chaise sat near the window.
He removed his weapon from his pants and set it on the dresser that held the TV.
A pocket door opened to a sitting room beyond the bedroom.
He dropped on the mattress and lay back on the bed.
His body ached for a shower, sleep, and food.
“Wow, this is gorgeous.” Dani drifted to the window and parted the curtains. “And this is even better. Ah, I can’t believe we’re in Paris.” She laughed darkly. “I never imagined I’d be here fleeing for my life.”
“What did you imagine?” He tucked his hands beneath his head and shifted his gaze to her. She stood at the window, her dark locks trailing over her shoulder, her profile delicate and full of . . . regret? Something was softening the plains of her face.
“I don’t know. Paris is so . . . romantic. I always imagined coming here on my honeymoon.” Her voice grew distant and she exhaled.
His chest cramped. Had she envisioned their honeymoon? Guilt took hold of his heart and once again, he thought back to that day, that stupid, stupid day, where he’d let her go. He sat up and rolled his tongue along the backs of his teeth, searching for something to say.
“I’m going to order room service. What do you want?” She turned to the menu at the desk. The moment had passed, but he still ached to broach the subject. One day they had to talk about it—about the past. Maybe today. “Mmm, this sounds good,” she said. “You like chicken cordon bleu?”
“Sure. I’ll have what you’re having.”
She laughed. “Oh, I’m having everything.”