Chapter 8
Lena hopped back into the SUV with Nutmeg and shut her door. "I didn’t plan that."
Nash started the engine and reached for his seatbelt. "I know."
"I really didn’t. Nutmeg needed to get out. He needed to walk around in the grass. It was an emergency. As soon as he was finished, I was about to—"
Instead of driving off, Nash leaned back in his seat and rubbed his temples. He wished he could unsee the way Emil ogled Lena. "I know. I believe you."
"Then why do you look mad?"
"Not mad at you. Emil is a creep. That's all." Thief or not, Nash wanted to drop-kick the billionaire into the ocean for staring at her like a piece of meat. Good thing he didn't try to touch her. Nash would've come unglued. And blown his cover.
Steady, Stone. Don't get too protective. That doesn't lead to anything good.
She unclipped Nutmeg's leash. "You know, this isn’t a bad thing. He invited us to a party. Cassidy will be there. Right? Did . . . did you see Cassidy on the boat?"
The desperate hope glistening in her eyes nicked his heart. Painfully.
"No. I only talked to Emil. But I was able to plant two bugs. They'll pick up speech on the main deck. That’s the best I could do for now. I’ll go back and listen to what the bugs pick up. If I hear Cassidy’s voice, I’ll let you know."
She pulled Nutmeg to her chest. The dog was clearly comforting her more than he could.
She twisted in her seat to face him. "But the party, we’re going to go, aren’t we? I mean, if you don't find Cassidy sooner? If it’s a party, Cassidy will have to be there. If she’s not . . ."
Her worries flooded out of her mouth, faster and faster, volume and pitch rising with the flow.
"If she’s not at that party, then something’s very, very wrong.
If Emil’s vacationing on his superyacht in the Caribbean with his girlfriend, then she’s on the yacht.
She has to be there, Nash. She has to be. "
Her voice cracked on the last word.
She turned and faced her window. He guessed she was trying to hide the emotion he could plainly hear in her voice. "Actually, it really doesn’t make sense for me not to go down there right now."
He readied himself to pull her back into the car if she opened her door. He cared—maybe more than he should—about her feelings for her cousin, but he wouldn't let her run onto that boat and put herself in danger. Marshaling empathy and firmness into his words, he leaned toward her. "Yes, it does."
She didn't reach for the door handle. Small victory.
He tugged her arm. And spoke to the back of her head. "Lena, he’s hiding Cassidy from your family. I’m sure he’s convinced her it’s for her own protection since she’s a suspect in the theft, but really he’s protecting himself, which makes crossing him dangerous."
She turned from the window, but Nutmeg—not reading the room, or maybe he was—planted his paws on her chest and licked her face. Some of the fight left her spine. Maybe the furball knew what he was doing.
His fingers brushed her arm. "Lena, that’s a big boat. We can't run in blind. I counted three security guards on board when I talked to Emil. I don't know who else is on board. We need to play this smart. I know you're anxious to see Cassidy, but I won't risk your safety by rushing this."
Her lower lip trembled.
And it took a considerable amount of self-control not to wrap her in his arms. Which wasn't okay. He needed to check himself. Yes, she was a beautiful woman with a list of qualities he admired, but she also reminded him of the woman who taught him that love wasn't enough.
He'd keep Lena safe. He'd do his best for Cassidy. And that was all.
Needing something to do besides reaching for Lena, he pointlessly fiddled with the rearview mirror. "I need you to wait another forty-eight hours. I’ll come back for the party. You're right. Cassidy should be at the party. And if she's not, my team will refocus its search."
Raising a finger to silence her inevitable complaint, he continued.
"You going to the party isn't a good idea.
" For more reasons than he cared to explain.
"I'm glad Emil thinks you're coming, though.
We need to keep our covers for now. Go ahead and try on the dresses or whatever Delphine brings you.
Act like you're excited about the party, but that night you can fake a migraine or something. "
The steel in her eyes forewarned the sharp rebuttal about to deploy.
He should shield himself.
Instead, he took off his sunglasses. He needed her to see the sincerity in his eyes. And he prayed she didn't see any of the other feelings he was tamping down.
"Emil is dangerous. I'm going to keep you safe. I'm going to find Cassidy. Trust me. Give me two more days. Okay?"
Waiting for her response, he realized he was holding his breath.
Her lips rolled into her mouth. She blinked moisture from her eyes with a quick nod.
"Two more days. Okay. But . . ." The fight in her tone dissipated.
Her next somber words barely rose above a whisper.
"I do have to go with you to the party. You won't be able to talk Cassidy into leaving on your own.
She won't listen to you. I'm not even sure she'll listen to me, but I have to try. "
He hated to admit that made sense. If Cassidy was half as stubborn as Lena, he'd probably have to incapacitate her to remove her from Emil's yacht. And that wasn't a good plan. Possible, but far from ideal.
He sifted through the pros and cons of Lena attending the party. Short list.
"Okay," he said. "You have a point. You can come with me to the party, but you need to stay with me the entire time. No snooping around on your own."
She grabbed his arm and squeezed. "Thank you."
Nutmeg did his part to ease the tension in the SUV for the rest of the ride to the ferry. He hopped around Lena's lap with so much excitement that she couldn't help but smile.
Even though her smile was for the hyper furball, seeing Lena happy lit something inside Nash—something he shouldn't act on, but it provided him even more motivation to keep Lena Ashworth safe.
Which might be difficult at Emil's party.
He prayed he hadn't made a mistake in promising she could go.
If Lena were a trained intelligence agent or had any experience undercover whatsoever prior to the past twenty-four hours, this party would be an ideal plan.
He wouldn't have to sneak aboard. Emil had invited them. Unbelievable. Maybe too unbelievable.
Something felt off about the invitation, though—besides Emil's inappropriate attraction to Lena.
Nash doubted Emil Van Horn invited his employees to parties often. If he'd only invited Lena, that would make enough sense, given his obvious interest in her. But to invite him as well?
If he wanted them both at the party, it could mean he was onto them, or that he wanted to ensure no one would be at the house that evening. With Lena and himself both at the yacht, the estate would be empty, except for the guards, Frank and Manny.
Maybe he just wanted to keep an eye on them. Frank and Manny may have told Emil that Lena was peeking in windows. And he and Lena were both very new employees—employees he may not completely trust yet. The more he thought about it, that made the most sense.
Either way, attending the party could be extremely helpful. He could learn a lot from Emil's yacht in a couple of hours.
But Lena wasn't an agent. She wasn’t trained. She could blow their covers if she wasn't careful. Or worse, she could get hurt.
Emil was dangerous on several levels—and his physical attraction to Lena gave Nash even more to worry about. He knew in his bones that Lena wouldn't be safe alone with Emil—he'd never let that happen.
Maybe he shouldn’t let her go to the party at all. She'd complain, but he'd rather her be mad at him than live with regrets.
Like the kind that scalded his insides every time he thought about Heather. Why hadn't she listened? Why hadn't she trusted him to protect her?
He had a little over forty-eight hours to decide if taking Lena was worth the risks. He'd table it for now. No point in arguing about it for the next two days.
He was glad for the excuse to drive to Morghana City. He wanted to keep Lena out of the house for most of the day since he no longer trusted Delphine. And the SUV was low on oil and legitimately needed to be serviced.
The ferry wasn't crowded. He was thankful for that, and the clear weather. At least the ocean was calm today. Unlike the worries battling in his mind. He found a parking spot near the front of the ferry and cut the engine.
Lena hadn't spoken in fifteen minutes. He hoped she wasn't frustrated with him. “You’ve been quiet."
“Sorry. Just thinking."
He could relate.
She clipped Nutmeg's leash onto his collar. “I feel like we’ve argued a lot in the last twenty-four hours. I’m sorry. I know you’re trying to do your job and you didn’t count on me showing up. But I’m not sorry I came to find Cassidy, and I'm not sorry I went to the marina today.”
“I understand,” he said. “No need to apologize.”
She eyed him like she was trying to figure out if he meant it or if he was only being polite.
“I’m going to get us some ice cream."
"What?"
"Ice cream." She over-enunciated the words, a new playfulness dancing in her eyes. “There’s a place on the ferry, on the top deck, where they sell ice cream. I saw it yesterday on my way over. What flavor do you want?”
He was relieved to see her in a better mood. “Surprise me."
She grinned. “Okay. I’m leaving Nutmeg with you."
"I can handle him. We’ll take a short walk. Meet us on the starboard side.”
She rubbed Nutmeg behind his ears. "Okay, meet you there."
A few minutes later, she joined him and Nutmeg, with two ice cream cones. “They didn’t have many choices,” she said. “Vanilla or chocolate?” She’d bought one of each.
“Either one. You choose."
She cocked her head. “Okay.” She kept the vanilla and handed him the chocolate. She took a few petite bites and grinned. “It’s good."