Read Online Make Her Pay by Roxanne St. Claire - Free Book Online Page A

shuffled foot and a tap that pushed open the entry that he’d left ajar.
    Lizzie stood there, a knowing smile on her face. “That didn’t take long.”
    For a moment, he just looked at her, a sensation kicking him that was exactly the opposite of what he’d felt five minutes ago when Alita arrived.
    “As you know so well,” he said, closing and locking the cabinet door, “things aren’t always what they seem.”
    “Well, I seem to be intruding, so see ya later.” She nodded at Alita and turned to leave, but he reached her in two steps, getting hold of her elbow as she stepped into the hall.
    “Wait.”
    Surprise darkened her amber eyes. “What?”
    “How was your excursion?” Dumb question, but he didn’t want her to leave.
    She smiled, almost as though she got that, but behind him Alita cleared her throat and Lizzie’s gaze slid past his shoulder.
    “We’re just about done,” he said softly.
    She flicked a playful finger at his unbuttoned shirt. “I see that.”
    “Don’t leave.” He still held her elbow and gave it a squeeze. “I want to talk to you.”
    She slipped out of his grip, her gaze skimming his face, stopping at his mouth, then going back to his eyes. “Stop by later.”
    “I will.”
    “On one condition,” she added. “Bring your phone.” She mouthed the last three words so Alita didn’t hear.
    She headed away slow enough that he could watch the sway of her faded jeans, a siren call of a backside he’d already seen in the flesh, and wanted to see more.
    He turned his attention to Alita, wondering how quickly he could get rid of her.
    She was on his makeshift cot, thumbing through The Odyssey .
    “Color me impressed, Constantine.”
    “Don’t be.”
    She laughed, leaning back on two hands, letting her sizable rack jut forward, a toss of thick black hair completing the come-on.
    He reached for Alita’s hand and her eyes sparked, but then she realized he was helping her up from the cot. “And I need to get back to reading.”
    “You’re kicking me out.” There was a note of surprise in her voice. She probably didn’t get turned down too often.
    “Thanks for the cake.”
    She gave his hand a little squeeze and sent a regretful look at the closet where he’d locked the medallion, confirming that she wanted it, or a picture of it, as much or more than she wanted him.
    Could she be the traitor?
    “Hope you’re just as lucky tomorrow,” she said as she headed out. “Brady said he’ll make strawberry cheesecake.”
    “I’ll do my best, but Lizzie found that medallion.”
    “Yeah, right.”
    “You don’t believe me?”
    “Lizzie never finds anything,” she said, stepping out into the hall. “Since we’ve been on this dive, she comes up empty-handed every time. Then she goes down with you and, bam, she brings up the best recovery of the trip so far. You were a sweetheart to let her have credit for it.”
    “Maybe I’m good luck.”
    Or maybe she wasn’t showing her finds to the crew. Maybe she was slipping them into her weight belt when no one was watching. And then maybe she was contacting someone who secretly met her at night and she handed them off. Maybe he’d better get up to her bunk, now.
    “Well, I’d like to dive with you tomorrow,” Alita said. “So I can rub up against some of your luck.”
    “That’s up to Dave, I suppose.”
    Even after he closed the door, he could hear her footsteps on the stairs. He waited long enough for the sound to disappear, for Alita to go into her bunk, or maybe up to the main deck where some of the crew was watching a movie and eating cake.
    He retrieved Lizzie’s phone from the hiding place, then slid it into the pocket of his jeans next to his own.
    Locking the entry with a new dead bolt he’d installed, not bothering with shoes, he moved soundlessly up the stairs to the quarters deck, paused to make sure the hall was empty, then took a few long strides to her door.
    One tap, and it was open.
    “That was fast,”