Read Online SeaChange by Cindy Spencer Pape - Free Book Online

least bit
jealous or possessive, and he didn’t like it one bit.
    “How could you tell?”
    “Well, he didn’t shoot you.” He wasn’t being sarcastic, not
entirely. As far as Jake knew, Wen had absolutely no conscience whatsoever. If
he’d thought Heidi’s presence was any sort of risk, there’s no telling what he
might have done. If Jake didn’t like feeling possessive, he flat-out hated
feeling scared.
    Heidi laughed. “Good to know I passed the test.” She
followed him down the steps to the cabin, pausing in the galley for a bottle of
water. She uncapped it, took a long swallow, then paused. “Any reason we can’t
go back to sleep now?”
    “You mean other than the drug runners who could be on your
tail?” Which was exactly where he wanted to be, Jake thought darkly. All over
that sweet little ass.
    “Yeah, other than that.”
    “That’s not enough?”
    “They’ve had plenty of time to find us here, if they were
looking.”
    “Marinucci was going to keep my name out of things as much
as possible, but you never know. If our guy has contacts in U.S. law
enforcement, I’m sure he got wind of who I am and where you’re staying.”
    “So what do you think we should do?” She gave him that evil
little feminine smile that said “you’re being a silly male, but I’ll humor you
for the moment, ‘til you figure it out for yourself.” His sister Leta had
always excelled at that look, and Jake had always hated it.
    “We should leave the dock, anchor offshore somewhere.”
    “So the guys who may be looking for us don’t have boats? Or
planes? We know they have both. We’re probably just as vulnerable in the open
ocean.” She walked past him into the doorway of the master cabin and shook her
head. “Come to bed, Jake. It’s four-thirty in the morning. We need some sleep.”
    She had a point. He studied her carefully in the lamplight.
They were both exhausted, and the dark circles beneath Heidi’s eyes pretty much
matched the bruises that had surfaced up and down her arms and legs. He felt a
moment of guilt for the desire that filled him. What kind of animal was he to
think about jumping all over a woman who had to be in serious pain?
    “C’mon, Jake.” Her voice had gone low and sultry, then she
hooked one finger through the belt loop on his shorts and tugged. “Let’s sleep
for a couple hours, then figure out what to do next.”
    A horny animal, that’s what kind. Then his jaw almost tore
itself off the hinges with the force of his own yawn. And a tired one. She was
right, of course; if the bad guys tried hard enough, they were going to find
them wherever they went. Jake had rented the slip in another name. Only
Marinucci knew where they were docked. The Siren ’s registry was
Panamanian at the moment, so it wouldn’t be an easy trail to follow. Besides,
maybe sleep would help untangle the mess in his brain, give him the chance to
figure out what the hell he was doing.
    He followed her to bed.
    ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
    She was back there again, in the Zodiac. Brad’s smiling face
looked at her as they waved to the gorgeous dark-haired man on the
Depression-era wooden boat.
    “He wants me,” Brad had teased, almost purring his
appreciation over the broad chest and six-pack abs. “Definitely plays for my
team.”
    It was an old game and one with no real malice or, for that
matter, intent to even meet the subject of their argument. Neither of them was
into bar pick-ups or one-night stands. But this time Heidi was really
attracted, and she was sure she could feel a magnetic pull from the big man’s
lazy smile.
    “No,” she replied, feeling his eyes on her. She was sure
they were dark and mysterious, even though he wore sunglasses. “Not this time.
This one’s looking at me.” And she shivered at the thought of all the dark and
sexy things he might do to her if it weren’t for the hundred yards of ocean
between them.
    Then the sky grew dark, instantly, like a scene change in a
movie. Clouds formed