Katerina Johansen raced up the stairs of the two-story walk-up she shared with her friend Melanie Bowen. She’d just dropped off her cat to her parents. She and Mel were leaving for Key West this afternoon for a week of sunshine and fun, and her mother had volunteered to keep Oreo while they were gone.
Kat was already packed and couldn’t wait to start her much needed vacation. She only wished she could afford to stay in the Keys for two weeks rather than one. Oh well. Maybe next year, and only if she got serious about saving money.
She opened the door to the apartment and called out to Mel. “Let’s get this show on the road. I bet there are a couple Margaritas and two hot guys waiting for us at the hotel bar.”
No answer. She wandered down the hall and saw that Mel’s bedroom door was shut. Odd. Her roommate only shut her door when she had a guy inside. Kat knocked once then a second time before twisting the doorknob. It was locked. “Mel, what are you doing in there? We need to go.”
The door opened slowly and Mel stuck her blond head out. “Dillon’s here,” she said quietly.
“What!” Mel had called things off with him just last week when he admitted he wasn’t willing to give up his wife for her. “Let me guess. He and Ann had a fight.”
“Shhh,” Mel whispered and stepped out into the hall wearing a robe over her naked body. She closed the door behind her, took Kat’s arm and walked her across the hall to Kat’s room.
“Mel, I thought we made a New Year’s resolution not to sleep with married men anymore.”
“Dillon’s leaving Ann.”
“Bullshit! How many times has he said that in the past year?”
“Kat, can you keep your voice down?”
“Oh, my God,” she whined. “I don’t believe you. He came over here and fed you a line of crap. And then you just hopped into bed with him?”
“I believe him. I love Dillon and he said he loves me.”
“Gag me.” She made a face to go with the comment.
“Kat, you’re supposed to be my friend. How about a little support here?”
She sighed. She didn’t have any right to judge her friend after all the mistakes she’d made with men over the years. The last one being her affair with Jeremy Matthews. “Sorry. Does he know we’re supposed to be leaving right now if we want to catch our plane?”
Mel lowered her gaze.
Kat knew that look. “Oh, come on.” She stomped her foot on the floor. “Please tell me you’re not canceling on me. I could have gone with Macy on a private plane to the Bahamas and stayed for free at her place, but instead I drained my savings so I could spend my vacation with you.”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t leave Dillon like this.” She shrugged her shoulders. “He’s really upset and he needs me right now. I’ll try to make it up to you.”
Kat swore and ran her hands through her hair. “Yeah, right.”
“Oh, and, Kat, I hope you don’t mind but Dillon’s going to stay here at the apartment with us for a few weeks.” She raised a hand in front of her when Kat’s mouth dropped open in protest. “Just until he finds a place of his own.”
That was just fucking great. Mel knew she couldn’t stand Dillon. “Whatever,” Kat snapped. She went to the bed, picked up her suitcase. Without another word, she headed for the front door, dragging her bag behind her. What a way to get screwed over by a friend.
But on the drive to the airport Kat started having second thoughts about vacationing alone. What fun would it be going to the Keys without Mel? Surely she would just end up in bed with a stranger, to cure the boredom if nothing else. Plus how pathetic would that be? Lying by the pool with no one to talk to. Dining alone. She wondered if she could get any of her money back if she called the travel agent and cancelled.
She turned her car around at the next intersection and headed back toward town. What was she going to do with herself for the next two weeks while the show was on hiatus? She dreaded going back to the apartment and seeing Mel make a fool of herself with Dillon. Because Kat knew he was never going to divorce Ann no matter what he said.
Married men who fooled around behind their wives’ backs were nothing but liars. They all had the same lines. “My wife and I haven’t had sex in months. I don’t love her anymore. The only reason we stay together is because of the kids.” Yada, yada, yada. Whatever.
As she drove she thought about Macy’s downtown apartment sitting empty while she was in the Bahamas. Kat had a key buried in her purse somewhere. Macy had given it to her last year when Kat was having problems with an ex-boyfriend who was stalking her. Macy had told Kat she was welcome to stay with her whenever she wanted.
Macy would understand her situation, and besides she was in the Bahamas with that sexy cousin of hers. So why would she care if Kat stayed over? She’d just spend one night. Or maybe she’d call Macy and ask if it was okay to stay a little longer, just until she and her cousin Finn got back to town.
Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad that she didn’t get to go to the Keys. Macy’s place was quadruple in size compared to her own apartment. Everything was white and expensive. Plus Macy had the coolest clothes. They wore the same size too. Both were a perfect four. She could try on Macy’s designer wardrobe, maybe go out for a night on the town and pretend to be somebody famous. That sounded like so much fun. If she wasn’t driving she would have jumped up and down. She could catch up on her reading too. Yep, that was the plan. She took the next right and headed for Macy’s apartment.
Macy had left town and she hadn’t bothered to mention where she was going to anyone. That really pissed him off. How hard would it have been to say where she was going and for how long? And did she have that guy Finn with her? Probably. What a fucking slut she was. She wasn’t fooling anyone with her Miss Innocent routine. Certainly not him. She was a liar. He’d known it for quite a while now, thanks to Kat Johansen.
Just that morning the guy she claimed was her cousin had gone around talking to practically everyone who worked on the show. Finn had tried to play it cool by asking questions about the TV business first and then he’d ease into a few personal questions. Who was this guy?
The man wasn’t a cop. Or at least he didn’t think so. He would have shown a badge if he was. And was that even his real name? If he had to guess he would say Macy had probably hired him to protect her. He laughed. So she was scared, and she should be. Soon, Macy, soon.
He paced the living room floor of her apartment, wondering where she could be. He’d helped himself to the key fob and door key that hung from the hook at the TV studio. If you asked him the apartment complex needed better security. He’d walked right inside the building, and the dude who sat behind the desk in the lobby was so busy playing on his phone he hadn’t bothered to even look up at him. Of course, he had worn a disguise, just in case.
“Macy, where are you?” he said under his breath. Someone had to know her whereabouts. But he did not want to raise suspicion by asking too many questions. He’d already talked to the people closest to her and they’d had no idea, or they weren’t saying if they did. He’d yet to ask Kat, but she was in the Keys. She probably wouldn’t answer her phone if he called anyway. She didn’t like him much and the feeling was mutual. What a bitch!
His palms sweat as he paced while taxing his brain. He needed to calm down and he needed a drink. He filled a glass with Macy’s expensive bourbon and downed it in two swallows, loving the burn in his throat. That felt better.
Maybe she had gone to visit her parents. Didn’t they live in Florida somewhere? He supposed he could call Macy’s cell and simply ask her where she was, but that would be too obvious. Even though he could have used the burner phone he’d bought so he could make those calls to the studio. No, he liked this little game of cat and mouse. He could wait. But she couldn’t hide from him forever. He smiled wickedly and went down the hall to her bedroom.
Opening a dresser drawer he fingered a pair of her black silk panties. Smooth, classy. Just like her. So opposite of Candy. But still they were both sluts.
“Soon, Macy. Soon you’ll pay for your mistake and what it cost me.” Because no one was better in bed than Candy. He kind of missed her. Grinning, he went back to the living room and poured himself another bourbon.
After dinner, Finn checked in with Luke. Of the list of male guests on the show over the past five years there were dozens of them who were married. Those guys were eliminated from the list since the guy they were looking for had had a live-in girlfriend. Luke was running background checks on all the rest. So far four of the men were dead, three were out of the country, two were in prison, and one was unaccounted for. Three had been arrested for DUIs but nothing more serious than that.
Then they touched on Macy’s husband. “Can’t find anything on Antonio Cavoletti,” Luke Remington reported. “If he’s CIA he’s buried deep, man.”
Great. Finn was starting to think the guy didn’t exist, which was stupid. Of course he existed. “What about the staff and crew?”
“Still working on them as well. So far nothing out of the ordinary.” Luke cleared his throat. “The executive producer, Jeremy Matthews, went through a nasty divorce recently. His ex-wife accused him of cheating on her. And not just once. Says he was unfaithful throughout their entire marriage. Thinks he was having an affair not too long ago with someone at the show.”
Finn wasn’t surprised to hear about Matthews. He didn’t trust that guy. The fucking cockroach. “Keep digging.”
“Will do. Where are you, anyway?”
“I’m in the Bahamas.”
“Must be nice.”
Yep, it sure was, but Finn didn’t bother saying so. “I’ll talk to you soon.” He disconnected, thought about calling Ryder then changed his mind. He didn’t feel like getting the third degree from his best friend. Besides, he had nothing to report yet. No news was good news, right?
He left his room, went to the living room where he settled into an oversized stuffed chair and slid through the TV channels with the remote. Most were reruns of sitcoms that were popular in the states. He wasn’t really interested, but he paused when he landed on the Dr. Macy show and turned up the volume.
“He doesn’t do anything around the house to help me,” a woman in her mid-to-late-thirties with a pinched face complained. “And I work just as many hours as he does.”
“That’s not true,” the man sitting beside her said. Finn assumed it was the woman’s husband. “Didn’t I watch the kids for you the other night? And what kind of thanks did I get?” Asshole.
Was this really all married couples had to fight about? Weren’t they concerned about terrorist plots, global warming or a third world war developing?
“First of all, Sam, they are not my kids. They’re our kids.” You tell him, lady. “And secondly, I went to the grocery store. You act like I went out to dinner with my friends.”
The audience clapped and yelled, “Man disease!”
The camera zoomed in on Macy and her blue eyes sparkled. “Sam, tell us why you feel you were doing Susan a favor by watching your kids so she could go to the store and get food for your family.”
“I . . . I don’t know. Because,” he said as if that answer was good enough. He didn’t add anything else. Jerk. This was trash TV at its finest. Finn settled back and got into it, rooting for neither of them. They both seemed like miserable people. Why didn’t they just end things already?
He looked up just as Macy came into the room. She’d twisted her hair atop her head, showing off the expanse of her neck. He’d left his mark on that neck from his rough jawline.
She’d changed into a stretchy tank top and loose fitting boxers. He patted the top of his thigh and she came over and crawled into his lap.
“What are you watching?”
“You. Here on my lap and on the television.” He nuzzled her neck and placed a tiny kiss there.
She turned her head away from his and stared at the big screen mounted above the fireplace before facing him again. “Learning anything?”
“Yes, I learned that women seem to think men have shortfalls.”
“Sometimes. But oftentimes women focus on what their men do wrong instead of all the things they do right. People tend to forget to show their spouses how much they’re appreciated, how much they’re loved.”
“Sounds like you know what you’re talking about.”
“I do.” She leaned back against him and turned a little to get more comfortable in his arms. Her butt was very close to his crotch and he was already growing hard.
Finn stared at the screen as the TV Macy spoke to the camera. “Okay, we’re going to take a quick break and while we’re gone I’m going to ask Sam and Susan to make a list of ten things they love about each other and ten things their spouse does they appreciate. We’ll be back in a few.”
Finn muted the volume, set the remote on the arm of the chair and breathed in Macy’s clean scent. “You smell sexy.”
She smiled shyly. “I’m not even wearing any perfume.”
“You don’t need any.” He lifted her arm, left a trail of kisses on the underside. “You smell good all over.”
She giggled then jumped from his lap. “I think that’s my cell ringing. I left it in the bedroom.”
Tugging at her wrist so she couldn’t leave, he said, “Ignore it.”
“Don’t be so needy, Finn. I’ll be right back.”
But she didn’t come back. He glanced at his watch. Although what had seemed like twenty minutes had only been six. His erection still throbbed beneath his sweat pants. He wanted her. Plus she had yet to do that sexy thing he’d whispered to her. Although she’d promised to fulfill that request after dinner. He’d already checked the fridge and there was a can of whipped cream inside. Yes! His fantasy was about to come true tonight.
He pushed to his feet and started down the hall to her bedroom where he heard her voice coming through the doorway.
“I miss you, too, honey.”
Fuck. Not wanting to eavesdrop he froze in his tracks then switched course and headed to his own room. She had to be talking to her husband. Who else could it be? And if they were separated, why was she calling him “honey” and saying that she missed him? Did she miss him? Did she not want the divorce?
He closed the door to his room and sat down on the edge of his bed. So much for his whipped cream fantasy coming true tonight. Hearing her talking to her husband like that was like he had stuck his dick in a bucket of ice water.
He heard Macy laugh a couple times but couldn’t make out what she was saying. Whatever it was it sounded devious, sexy. He got up and went to the door, pressed his ear closer. More laughing. Quietly, he pulled the door open so he could hear better. Because now he didn’t give a shit about being polite and giving her space. He wanted to know what was going through that pretty little head of hers.
“Stop! I’m blushing. We shouldn’t be talking like this. I have to go. I’ll call you tomorrow. Promise. Love you.”
Hurrying back to the bed, he flipped the covers down and crawled between the sheets.
“Finn?” Macy stood just outside his room, looking at him from the doorway.
“Yeah?”
“I . . . thought maybe we’d sleep . . . together tonight.”
“Sorry, baby. I’m exhausted after our fuck fest this afternoon.” Although the truth was he was too big of a pussy to ask her about that phone call. Probably because he didn’t want to hear that she still loved that asshole she was married to.
Her eyes widened and her lips tightened into a thin line. He’d pissed her off. Good. Because he was pissed too. If she was still in love with her husband she’d had no business seducing him today. What the fuck was the matter with her?
No. What the fuck was the matter with him? He’d just gotten used by her. Either because she was lonely or because her asshole, traveling, secret agent husband wasn’t satisfying her the way he should be. Probably both. Hadn’t she admitted earlier she rarely climaxed during sex? He should have seen it coming. He should have turned her down flat.
“Is something wrong, Finn?”
“Nope. Not at all. Good night, Macy.” He yawned, pretending to be exhausted.
She backed away from the door without saying a word. She didn’t have to say anything. Her face said it all. Yep, she was pissed all right.
Macy felt like the biggest idiot ever. More than that, she felt like a slut. He’d used her, and yet she could hardly blame him. She’d teased him with that swimsuit, and then asked him to put sunscreen on her back. Then when that hadn’t done the trick she’d stripped off her clothes and surprised him in the hall when he’d come back from his swim.
If only that was the worst of it. To top it off she’d behaved like a horny she-devil, making him do a repeat performance of all the magic he had done to her six months ago. She’d practically begged him to fuck her. “Ugh!” How embarrassing and how pathetic he must think she was.
Honestly, she was pathetic. It had been so long since she’d had sex she’d worried her female parts had dried up and shriveled away to nothing. But Finn had awakened every nerve in her body and she’d totally let go of her shyness and restraints and just let it all happen.
She’d been looking forward to surprising him tonight by doing those things he’d wanted her to do with her mouth. Those naughty things she’d done in her hotel room the night of Caroline and Ryder’s wedding. Thank God she hadn’t gone that far today! There was no way she would be able to look him in the eye afterward if she knew he was only using her.
She’d planned to cuddle with him in her bed tonight. All night long.
Well, that was never going to happen. She shut her door and turned the lock, just in case he got his strength back in the middle of the night and decided to take advantage of her shamelessness. She was no longer in the mood to service him or do those audacious things he’d whispered to her. What an asshole!
The next morning was awkward to say the least. Macy started the coffee. She’d thought about making just enough for her, but that would have been childish. Maybe Finn really had been tired last night. Maybe he was embarrassed because he worried he wouldn’t be able to get an erection.
Oh, who was she kidding? The guy was made of iron. He was constantly aroused. In fact he had been aroused when she was sitting on his lap right before Caroline had called her.
Since she didn’t feel right talking about Finn while he was in the next room where he might possibly hear her, she had promised to call her friend today and fill her in with all the juicy details. Well not all of them, of course. Although she had already confided to Caroline that she had seduced Finn.
But his mood was totally off when she’d walked into his room last night. So if he had just been using her, why not take her up on her offer to sleep with her again? Whatever had happened he wasn’t saying. And she still wasn’t pleased over his fuck fest comment. What was up with that? She tried to tell herself he had a dirty mouth. That he couldn’t help himself. He had sex on the brain, and he just didn’t think before he opened the gate and let the words fly off his tongue. He had man disease.
Was she making excuses for him? Maybe.
Speaking of the devil, Finn came into the kitchen wearing a t-shirt and shorts. “Good morning,” he mumbled as if he didn’t care whether she’d heard him or not.
“Good morning,” she said, her bottom lip pressed against her coffee mug.
“What’s the plan for today?” he asked, joining her at the kitchen table.
She shrugged, set her mug aside. We could go into my room and make some new memories. Oh, God, she had it bad for him. “I didn’t make a plan.”
“You mentioned zip lining. That sounds like it would be fun.”
“You want to go zip lining?”
“Sure. What else is there to do all day?”
“We could lie out at the pool. Go for a walk on the beach.” We could have sex. A few more orgasms.
“No, I need to get away from here for a little bit.”
“Okay. Zip lining it is. Just let me change.” She got up from the table and walked down the hallway to her bedroom. Just why did he need to get away from here? Did he not want to be alone with her? Was that it? Was he afraid she might ask him to satisfy her again? And if she did, would that be so awful? Apparently so.
“Maybe I should go first,” Finn suggested to Macy. Her face had drained of all color as she stood at the edge of the rickety wood platform overlooking a pine forest nearly five hundred feet below.
“No. If you go first, I may change my mind.”
“Okay, if you’re sure.” Finn stood back, let their guide fit her with a seat and chest harness. “I thought you said you and Caroline did this before.”
“No. We parasailed, but that was as brave as we got. I only mentioned zip lining because it sounded like something you might want to do.” Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail per the zip operator’s instructions and tucked beneath a helmet. He watched as she tugged a pair of gloves over her small hands.
Finn really didn’t care if they zip lined or not. He had done way more thrilling things as a Marine, way more terrifying things as well. He’d only suggested the activity because he needed to get away from the villa. He knew if they stayed there all day he wouldn’t be able to keep his hands off Macy. And he didn’t feel like having sex with a woman who was still in love with her husband. So he’d needed a distraction.
“If you don’t want to do this, then let’s do something else. There’s a rope bridge and cargo nets we can try instead.”
“Nope. I’m going to be brave. I decided before coming on this vacation I was going to do all kinds of things I’d never done before.”
Suddenly her face colored as she must have been thinking the same thing he was. Those four orgasms she’d had yesterday, with his help, of course. And maybe the thing he’d whispered to her.
He’d yet to ask her about the phone call from last night. He’d been hoping she would bring it up on her own. Who was he kidding? Like she was really going to say, “Oh, by the way, my husband called last night. And I told him I missed him and loved him.”
Yeah, right.
“Finn, you promise I won’t fall from this thing?”
“It looks safe enough. You’ll be fine. I’d tell you to close your eyes, but then you’d miss all the scenery and the fun of knowing you’re soaring five hundred feet in the air.”
“Five hundred feet?”
He supposed he shouldn’t have said that. “Maybe I was exaggerating. Just hang on. It will all be over before you know it. Then you’ll probably want to do it again.”
“Somehow I don’t think so. Kiss for luck?”
What? She wanted a kiss? “Sure.” He stepped closer and gave her a peck on her mouth. “Good luck.”
And off she went. He heard her scream the whole way across to the next platform. But that wasn’t the only thing that stayed with him as he was being fitted into his own harness. It was the taste of her lips on his. How the hell was he ever going to get over her?
Finn saw Macy standing on the other side of the hill, watching as he sailed across the rope and came to rest beside her.
“Oh, Finn, you were right!” she squealed. “That was so much fun.” Once his harness was off, she hugged him. “Let’s do it again.”
He laughed. “Are you serious?”
“Yes!”
“Okay, if you’re sure.”
“I’m sure but I need to catch my breath first. Can we sit down for a minute?”
Finn led her to a wooden bench and they sat, gazing out at the scenic view. “I’m proud of you for trying something that terrified you.”
She smiled. “Me, too.” She looked away, ran her tongue over her lips then faced him again. “Can I ask you something?”
He shrugged. “Shoot.”
“Are you mad at me for some reason?”
He wasn’t mad exactly. He was pissed. “No. Why?”
“I probably shouldn’t even bring it up, but I try to be honest. And I always encourage people to confront their partners when something is bothering them. Holding things inside can destroy a relationship. You need to get everything out in the open. It’s sort of like detoxing.”
Finn ran a hand through his hair. Here it comes. She’s going to tell me about the phone call.
“I was hurt last night when you didn’t want to sleep in the same bed as me.”
He blinked at her. “Yeah?” Maybe he should do a little detoxing himself. “Well, to tell you the truth, baby, I was a little annoyed after that phone call. I heard you talking and laughing. And I gotta tell you, I was pissed by some of the things that came out of your mouth.”
Her bottom lip dropped and she managed to look guilty. “I am so sorry. I didn’t mean for you to hear any of that.”
Obviously. “Why, Macy? Tell me what you’re feeling. Tell me the truth. Are you still in love with him?”
“What?” Her eyes widened. “I’m confused. What are you talking about? In love with who?”
“Your husband.”