Cade
Having friends in D.C. paid off when you needed a direct flight to Cancun, Mexico on short notice. It was impossible to fly commercial with the amount of gun power we’d be bringing with us, but the US Government had ways to circumvent the usual laws that surrounded flying with weapons on board, and fortunately we had the right connections to make that happen.
The entire Shadow Force team had joined this mission, minus Jolie—who was not at all happy with being left behind. Ryder sat next to Levi, typing away on his computer. The only time I saw him without a computer attached to his hands was when he was fighting.
Levi had papers strewn across the pop-up table. Oscar and Cruz were busy talking in their native tongue, and I’d only catch a word here and there that I completely understood.
Piper sat next to me, her legs bouncing up and down—whether due to nerves or anticipation, it was hard to say. We were all grateful for the lead on Varga, and frankly, I was hopeful this thing would be behind us soon. Piper needed closure, and I was certain she’d be unable to move forward with her life until she got it.
When Ryder had informed us that he’d found Julio Varga in a small fishing village turned tourist destination about two hours south of Cancun, we’d called in every favor from every contact we’d ever made both through Shadow Force and through our personal careers before we joined the team. We had six independent contractors on standby just in case things got dicey in Mahahual, Mexico, and two would be meeting us at the airport to escort us to the quaint fishing village. It wouldn’t do for us to be pulled over by local authorities with enough firepower in our trunks to blow up a small town.
Fortunately, the plan we’d set forth should be efficient to bring in a lone operator. As long as he was still alone. And everything Ryder had been able to decipher before we’d left indicated that that was indeed the case.
A small inn had been Varga’s home for the last two months. He’d paid for several months in advance, so it was unlikely he was going anywhere. It appeared that Varga had thought he was safe—and had any usual computer hacker tried to find him, it would have been virtually impossible.
But Ryder was the best of the best and had picked up on a lone phone call Varga had placed a few days ago. It appeared to be innocuous at first, until he’d made the one mistake of mentioning El Guapo, and Ryder had latched onto that nugget and traced the call to the cruise-line-made tourist destination Costa Maya. It wasn’t difficult to find him from there.
“Are you okay with the plan?”
Piper jumped at the sound of my voice and took a deep breath to calm her nerves. She turned in the seat to face me, leaning slightly closer, the smell of her vanilla scent mixed with something sweet and floral floating around me. “I’m part of this team. Whatever that requires of me.” She tried to look nonchalant, but I knew that playing newlyweds with me brought out all kinds of emotions—sadness at her lost future with Jake, wistfulness at what we could have had, had Will not deceived me, and maybe even a little fear of hoping for this possible future for us still. It hit a little close to home, but with Piper being the only female operator, and us already having a romantic connection, it made the most sense for us to play the part.
“If you’re more comfortable playing the role with Levi or Oscar, I could take a step back.” She didn’t miss the teasing in my eyes and seemed to welcome the distraction.
“Yeah, maybe it would be easier to play newlyweds with Oscar. Do you think he’d mind?”
It was fine when I joked about it, but the minute I let myself think of Oscar’s arms around her or his mouth on hers, I wanted to rip his head off.
Piper’s warm laugh reverberated throughout the plane, and Levi and the guys lifted their heads to look over at us. Piper ducked down, trying to control her laughter.
“You should have seen your face.” Her voice was a raised whisper as she covered her mouth with her hands.
“It’s not funny.”
“You started it.”
“Yeah, I know. I regret it now.”
Piper’s hand covered mine, and she squeezed it, sitting up in her seat. “If I have to be intimate with someone, it’s probably easiest to play the role with someone I’ve already practiced being intimate with.” Her smile hit me right in the gut, and I knew there was no way I’d ever let her go. She was mine, even if she was denying it. I just had to convince her to embrace what we had, rather than run from it.
I took her hand in mine and leaned my head back against the headrest, closing my eyes. I felt Piper’s gaze on me, the uncertainty she felt just holding my hand, and then her acceptance, as she relaxed into her seat. I peeked over at her and saw she’d mirrored my pose, head against the back of the seat, eyes closed. Contentment fell over me, and I allowed myself to rest for just a few minutes.
The jarring of the plane as we landed jolted me awake. Piper’s hand was still in mine, but she was awake and watching me.
“Sleep well?”
I rubbed a hand over my face. “Yeah… I hadn’t planned to fall asleep. We’re here?”
“Looks like it.” She removed her hand from mine as she dug through her purse to find some lotion. She slathered it over her hands, and I recognized the floral, vanilla smell.
We deplaned on the runway of a private tarmac, while a sole customs agent came out to check our IDs. Once again, Washington connections had paved our way. The two operators in the area who’d agreed to help us began offloading the weapons we’d brought with us. They’d secured two Hummers that sat ready for us, while we loaded the backs of the vehicles with our luggage and artillery. Splitting into pairs of three, Levi joined Piper and me for the two-hour trek to Mahahual.
We’d been driving for a little over an hour when flashing lights appeared behind us. Our guides were in front, Oscar, Cruz, and Ryder behind them, and I drove the Hummer in the rear of the parade.
“Levi, call Cruz and have him let our friends know that we have company.”
Levi looked up from the small computer he had on his lap and glanced behind him.
“Dammit!”
He pulled out his cell phone and dialed Cruz.
“Company. Two cars. Lights flashing. Tell our friends.” He hung up the phone and sat forward in his seat. “Don’t stop until the other guys do. Your Spanish is worse than mine, and I don’t think either of us can stall long enough for the rest of the team to double back.”
I grinned despite the danger of the situation. It was true. My Spanish was pretty bad, but I usually could understand enough and manage a few words that were intelligible enough to get through a conversation.
The policiá behind us honked the horns of their cars, swerving left and right on the road to get our attention. I didn’t think they’d wait very much longer before becoming more aggressive. Fortunately, Ramos and Guerra, our local contacts, stopped the car, and the rest of us followed suit.
“Keep your hands where they can see them, and don’t make any sudden movements, okay?” I nodded at Piper’s hands that she was wringing in her lap. She stopped and placed them palms down on her thighs. Levi mimicked her stance as I lowered the window.
“Identificación?” The Mexican police officer asked.
“Si.” I showed him both my hands before reaching behind me in my pocket to procure my passport and handed it to him. Two other officers were doing the same thing to the cars in front of us, and I wondered why we’d put both our native speakers in one car. It would have made more sense to have had Oscar or Cruz ride with us.
“Americáno?”
“Si.”
“Hablá Español?”
“Un poco.”
“Ah.”
“Mi amigos—” I motioned to the cars ahead of us. “Hablán Español muy bien.”
The policeman nodded and walked to Cruz and Oscar’s car. Cruz stepped out of the car, waving his hands wildly. It appeared the conversation wasn’t going very well. I could hear his voice rising in volume, when the officers took two steps back and their hands went to their guns. Cruz’s hands shot straight up, and Ramos rushed over. He pulled out his wallet and took out several bills. He placed them in the officers’ hands, and they smiled wildly, nodding as they made their way back to the cars. The one who’d approached our window handed my passport back to me through the window and nodded.
Without a word, he got back in his car and spun out, kicking gravel up behind him. They took off in the direction they’d come, and I breathed a sigh of relief.
“Wonder what happened up there?” Levi asked as he pulled out his phone and dialed Cruz.
“What happened, man? Oh… right. Yeah, well, next time try to keep your temper under control… Me too.”
“What did he say?”
“Said the guy hadn’t realized he spoke Spanish, and Cruz had overheard him telling his friend that we were easy prey. Then he’d started talking about searching the vehicles to trump up bogus charges, not realizing they wouldn’t have to make up any charges once they got a peek at what we had in the back. So Cruz got out of the car to distract them and almost got himself shot in the process. Fortunately, Ramos knew one of the guys and bribed him with a hundred a piece. They took it and left.”
“We need to get Varga and get the hell out of here.”
“Pretty much.”
“You okay?” I directed the question to Piper, who looked white as a ghost. She just nodded, her chin raised in defiance.
“Are you sure?”
Piper sighed and faced me. “I’m fine. I’m just not used to dealing with foreign governments. I’m FBI not CIA.”
“Not all of them are corrupt. We just got lucky.”
She snorted, and we pulled out onto the street behind the lead cars. Forty-five minutes later, we approached the small fishing village, a dirt road lining the coast with beach on one side, with the occasional bar or taco hut, and houses, small hotels, and shops on the other. The crystal-blue water was a beacon calling my name, and I wished I was here with Piper on vacation instead of on a mission to find a murderer. Maybe one day we could come back and spend our days relaxing on the beach, eating fish tacos, and drinking Mexican beer.
We stopped at the edge of town, parking one of the Hummers so we wouldn’t draw attention to ourselves. Ramos and Guerra planned to stay just outside of town in case we needed them, while Levi jumped in the car with Cruz, Oscar, and Ryder where they’d drive down to the small home/inn where they would be staying. Piper and I walked, hand in hand, down the dirt path, taking in the beauty of the beach and water. We had our carry-ons strapped across our chests and our guns safely tucked inside. For all intents and purposes, we were two newlyweds hopping across the Mexican coast, stopping in small authentic villages versus the more touristy locations.
The Bali inn was breathtaking with its white cylinder-like-shaped buildings—palapa-style—and thatched roofs. Piper and I had reserved a two-story palapa that overlooked the Caribbean Sea. Varga was staying there somewhere, but we weren’t sure where exactly. There were two square buildings with multiple rooms as well as a couple more two-story palapas and four single-story palapas. My gut said he was in one of the palapas vs. the multi-room buildings.
We checked in and were taken to our housing, which was known more for its views and style than its luxuriousness. Simple décor graced the rooms, nothing overly extravagant, but cozy and clean. Once we put our things down, we changed into swimsuits and took off to the beach.
The sitting-and-waiting game had begun, and Piper and I had a part to play. If we played it well, tipping generously and endearing the locals, they would help us out, perhaps providing information they weren’t usually quick to share.
Piper emerged from the bathroom, dressed in a white bikini and an orange and teal sarong that wrapped around her hips. Her swimsuit was tasteful, a halter style that tied behind her neck, but my mouth watered all the same. She was an angel come to earth to torture me.
“What?” she asked, glancing down self-consciously. “Is this okay?”
“Absolutely.” I reveled in the blush that touched her cheeks at my words. I moved in closer, my hands coming to rest on the bare skin of her waist. “I think maybe we should practice a little before we go out.”
Piper opened her mouth to protest, but I took advantage of her surprise and dove in for a kiss, not taking the time to ease into things. This time, I took what I wanted, showing her how it could be with us—how it was with us. I wasn’t the only one caught up in the moment, though. Piper’s moan only fueled my fire, and I dragged her body closer to mine, feeling her skin with my hands, then dipping lower to her collarbone to brush kisses there.
“We should probably get going—right?” The uncertainty in Piper’s voice was almost my undoing as she leaned her head back to give me better access to her neck. It was almost as if she were asking permission to keep right on kissing, worshiping each other’s bodies. But I wanted more than just a moment with her. I wanted forever. And if I was going to accomplish that, we had to catch Varga and end this once and for all.
“Probably.” I let her go, releasing her against my wishes but knowing it was for the best.
A shy smile crossed her face, as she gathered her beach hat and bag from off the bed. The king-sized bed that we would be sharing once again. I could definitely get used to that arrangement every night.
We walked down to the beach, stopping by the taco hut and getting a couple orders of fish tacos and beers, and then set up under the palapa huts spread out across the beach.
Piper took a bite of her taco and moaned, the sound doing all kinds of things to my insides. “These are amazing.”
“Nothing like authentic tacos and beer, huh?”
She closed her eyes as she took another bite. After a minute or two of watching her enjoy her food, I felt like a creeper and finished mine off in record time.
Piper put her feet up on her chair, leaning back with sunglasses blocking her eyes from mine. “So, we need to find out Varga’s room. Then Ryder and Levi will go in and set up listening devices—right?”
“That’s the plan.”
“I bet he’s in one of the palapas.”
“Yeah, that’s my guess as well. There aren’t many of them, so we’ll try to catch him coming or going. But first, we need to make a name for ourselves.” I lifted my hand as a waiter walked by with a tray. “Two margaritas, please. Frozen.”
The man nodded and rushed off to get our drinks.
“Is your plan to get plastered?”
I chuckled lowly. “No. Just wait.”
A few minutes later, the waiter returned with our drinks, and I slipped him a heavy tip. The man bowed to me, thanking me repeatedly, and skittered off.
“So, your plan is to tip your way to the information.”
“In some ways. When the staff hears that we tip well, they’ll be jumping over each other to serve us. Throw in a heavy dose of kindness, and you’ve got people fighting to give you the information you want.”
“Not a bad plan.”
“Did you doubt me?”
Piper laughed, her face lighting up when she did, making it hard to resist her charms. “Not for a moment.”
I watched people from behind my sunglasses, casually taking in those sitting in chairs around us as well as the ones walking by. Rumor had it a certain beer company filmed their commercials from this stretch of beach, and it was easy to see why. The turquoise waters sparkled in the sun, prisms of light dancing on the waves. The white sandy beaches stretched for miles, warm and inviting against the blue of the water and sky.
“Excuse me, miss.” I’d somehow missed the waiter who now stood next to Piper. She lowered her glasses and looked at him.
“Yes?”
“The man over there asked me to bring you this drink.” The waiter motioned to an older gentleman with salt-and-pepper hair and a fit physique. His guayabera hung open revealing tanned skin and a gold chain with a round pendant dangling around his neck.
“Tell him that I said thank you.” Piper lifted the drink, toasting the man.
“That’s just going to make him come over here.” I could hear the growl in my voice, but I didn’t care.
“And that’s one more person we can use in our search for Varga.” Piper’s voice was sugary sweet, and it was clear she knew that she was getting to me. I tried to feign nonchalance and failed miserably—especially when the old fart made his way over.
“Such a beautiful woman. What is your name?” Piper gave the man her hand, and he placed a kiss on her knuckles. She giggled, and I rolled my eyes behind the glasses. Even though I knew she was playing a part, seeing another man’s lips touch her skin made me crazy.
“Piper Jenkins. And this is my new husband, Cade Jenkins.”
The man turned his attention to me, sizing me up. When he saw the tattoos, the muscles, and the pissed-off attitude, he stiffened slightly before nodding.
“Newlyweds?” He directed the question to me, and I nodded, barely containing the fury that was threatening to take over.
“I see. I hope you enjoy our small town. I’m Mario. I own several of the establishments here. If you need anything at all, please don’t hesitate to ask.”
“That’s so sweet, Mario.” Piper was laying on the southern accent pretty thick, her glasses pulled down on her nose, and her eyelashes batting a mile a minute. “If we think of anything, we’ll be sure to let you know.”
Mario smiled politely. “Please do. Enjoy.”
He sauntered off, taking a seat back at the bar and raising his hand for another drink. Piper’s laughter got my attention, and I glanced over at her. She was shaking her head, covering her mouth with her hand to keep from sputtering.
“What?”
“You. Did you really think I was going to run off with him?”
“No. I just don’t like men who think they can pick up another man’s woman right in front of him.”
“Maybe he didn’t know we were together. Or maybe he thought you were my brother.”
That did it. I stood, picking her up from her chair and tossing her over my shoulder. She squealed loudly, pounding on my back.
“Put me down!” The words were hard to discern over the laughter that kept robbing her of breath. “I said put me down!”
Instead I slapped her ass, and crashed into the sea, letting her fall under the waves. She came up sputtering, and I crushed my mouth over hers. The warm water, the warm woman in my arms, her wet lips moving under mine—it was all so intoxicating. When I pulled away, I nuzzled my face into the crook of her neck.
“I don’t know any brother who would do that to his sister, do you?”
I waited for Piper’s laughter, or a playful slap against my chest. When she said nothing and stood stiffly in my arms, I lifted my head, taking in her pale complexion. She looked as if she’d seen a ghost.
“What is it, Piper?”
As if she’d forgotten I was there, she blinked rapidly and shook her head. Inhaling deeply, she stood straighter, as if gathering her courage. She nodded in the direction she’d been staring, and I turned to look. A man stood on the edge of the sea, looking out into the distance. He had a woman with him, a curvy brunette, who had her arms thrown around his neck. He kissed her passionately, then looked over his shoulder, left and right. As if satisfied no one was watching him, he led the woman back towards the inn.
“Julio Varga.”