Accidentally Hooked (The Naked Truth Series Book 1) (17 page)

“That’s it, cry. Let the tears soak your tape. Don’t make any noise, don’t move.”

Tears streamed down her sister’s face, rolling down her flushed cheeks and over the tape.

“Scoot toward me as much as you can.”

Kika leaned toward her sister, stretching her neck to find Luna’s mouth. With her teeth, Kika grasped the damp corner of the tape and ripped it out. The pain made Luna jerk back, gasp, and sob.

“Luna, it’s okay. I’ll find a way.”

“I think he saw me at the hotel. After I called you, I was leaving the property when he got me, and made me tell him where you were,” she said, her voice strained. “I’m sorry, Kika.”

“No need to be sorry. Look, I wasn’t there for Freddy but I’m here for you. You have to believe me.”

Luna’s big eyes twinkled. “I think he had our apartment bugged.”

“That’s how he found out.” Kika nodded to herself.
He agreed to me finding my own client too easily. Damn.

A sob made her gaze at Luna. Tears rolled down her flushed cheeks, the pain in her twin’s face clenching her heart tighter. She parted her lips to toss encouraging words she knew she couldn’t back up, when Luna shook her head, and stopped trembling. “Kika, I don’t know what’s going to happen. I don’t want you to think you weren’t there for Freddy. You were. The night when he died, I was supposed to clear the second bathroom, remember?” Luna dipped her face down to wipe the dampness of her cheeks on her sleeved shoulder. “I was so upset at you for not listening, envious of the close relationship you had with him… I forgot to double check the trash can.”

An upsurge of confusion sent her pulse spinning. She wished she could move, or kick, to deal with the emotions stealing the air from her lungs. “The trash can?” Kika pushed the words out of her dry throat.

Luna nodded, a glint of guilt in her eyes. “See, he never left the place to find drugs. He used to hide them under the trash bag lining. It was my fault.”

Her fault… Kika shifted in silence, wishing her beating heart had the power to unchain her and set her free. Shouldn’t her lack of blame set her free? “Why didn’t you ever tell me?”

“I thought the truth would go away if I didn’t admit to it out loud. When you told me you wanted to travel after his death, I was so bitter, I let you take the blame as punishment.”

“All this time…” All the time she’d lost. All the time her sister lost.

“I’m sorry. You can hate me, but I had to tell you in case something happens to us.”

The image of Ryan unfolded in front of her. He’d forgiven his mother, and himself.
I’m not as brave as you,
she had told him. Her heart shrank, the beating coming to a halt for a stretching second.

I can be.
What point was it to blame her sister for all the guilt she’d nourished all that time? It’d been her choice to go away. To deal with her feelings like that—what right did she have to judge Luna? By the tormented stance on her sister’s face, Luna had a lot of guilt of her own.

“I don’t hate you. You’re all I have left.”

A thump rocked the van, and they both slammed against the metal. She scooted closer to her sister. She shifted like a caged animal, and suddenly the doors swung open.

Ryan.

Chapter Fourteen

“You okay?” The concern in Ryan’s voice shifted to a melody in her ears. He gave them a quick glance, and still dressed with the suit from the dinner party, kneeled down in front of her to unchain her.

“Ryan, I’m so happy you’re here,” Kika didn’t fight the urge stemming through her, the fire starting in her belly and snaking up her spine. “How did you find us?”

“I remembered what your sister said, about the people who worked the surveillance cameras. The guy I talked to may need a new jaw. But it got me here.” He winked at her with that easy charm, like he did this every day, although the spark in his eye told her he’d been worried, too.

Leaning down, he reached for the tools to set her feet free. Freedom. She threw her head against the metal, allowing relief to flow out of her lips.

A sudden thumping sound had her jerking forward. Oh no. Behind Ryan, Omar stood. In a split of a second, she spotted the shining bald head, and was about to open her mouth to warn Ryan, when Omar hauled him out of the van. She looked at her sister, the terrified expression on Luna’s face confirming this was it.

Scooting on the van floor, she pushed herself out. In the middle of an empty parking space, Ryan and Omar fought, and her gaze ping ponged between them. Ryan punched Omar on the chin.

“Motherfucker.” Omar groaned, and his hand rubbing his jaw. Then, he pulled a small gun from his inside pocket, and aimed it at Ryan. “That’s it, lover boy. You’re done.” Omar’s fingers rolled on the trigger.

“No,” she screamed, and Omar turned his attention to her, his eyes narrowing with discontent. Ryan took advantage of the quick distraction and kicked the gun from his hand, making it fly and land a couple of inches from her.

With trembling fingers, she scrambled for the weapon, grabbed it and aimed it at Omar. “You’d better not move.”

***

“You’re okay?” Luna asked her sister, joining at the wooden bench and handing her a cup of coffee.

“Yeah. Sorry they needed to talk to us separately.” Kika took a sip of the drink, the strong flavor rolling down her tongue. She supposed after the past few hours, drinking something should hydrate her.

The police had come soon after, and Charlotte and Blake had left their own wedding rehearsal to talk to the authorities as well as bring a lawyer over. Omar was arrested, and Blake had offered to help the authorities with whatever they needed, as a couple employees had come forward and explained it was a secret operation. The owner of another hotel on the Strip, Wayne McCall, was the accused headmaster.

“I helped them, so they won’t press charges. It turns out the woman who tipped Ryan had an affair with Blake in the past, and didn’t want him to marry Charlotte.”

“No shit.”

“What about Ryan?”

“He was talking to a detective when I last saw him. He might have been let go.”

Luna tilted her head at the glass window and pointed at Ryan, who waited outside, playing with some keys. She could see him but doubted he could see her. Her heart sang. With the surrounding commotion they hadn’t had time to talk or be alone the past few hours.
Does that change anything?

“He really cares about you, Kika. And he’s leaving.”

“Yeah.”

Luna nudged her arm. “You should go with him.”

“I can’t. I promised you I’d be with you. The two of us in New York, remember? After all we’ve been through—”

“After all we’ve been through I will demand a daily phone call from you. A visit from you, every Christmas. We’ll be real sisters again,” Luna spoke softly. “But now I’ve come clean about Freddy’s death, I can’t let you sacrifice your well-being for me. Let’s be happy. That’s what Freddy would have wanted.”

“You said—”

Luna shrugged. “Aunt Rosa wants me to visit her in Florida. I might go for a while. I miss her, and she’s not getting any younger. It’s time you took care of yourself, Kika. For real this time. New York is your idea, your dream. Not mine.” She pointed at Ryan again. A cab pulled up and parked in front of him. He opened the door. “Go get him.”

Get him.
She sprinted out of the station, her legs barely keeping up with the thudding of her heart. She reached the parking lot. “Ryan, wait!” She ran, screaming from the top of her lungs, hoping she could eat up the corner of a mile between them. If he took that cab…

The cab came to a halt, and he opened the door. He was about to get in, then stood up, assessing her with a flicker of hidden emotion in his eyes. Her heart stilled. What did that mean?

“You can’t leave.” She stalked toward him.

“Why not?”

“Because I fell in love with you.”

With hands perched on his waist, he glanced at both sides of the street before returning his attention to her. “How am I supposed to trust you? You told me not to.”

“You said it was too late.” She continued to stroll in his direction, stopping a couple of feet from him, giving her enough room to stare deep into his eyes.

A gleam in his baby blues made hope well inside her. With a small nod, he held her gaze, no easy charm this time. Her stomach curled. “How do I know you mean that and you aren’t just shaken up because of what happened?”

“I had a lot of guilt and resentment. Tonight my sister showed me I’d been wrong. Freddy’s death hadn’t been my fault. She thought it’d been hers. I ran from my past. I don’t want to run from the future. I wanna chase my dreams, and I don’t wanna cut them short because I’m scared.”

She reached him, his body within a brush from hers. Energy zinged between them, standing up the hairs on his arm. She bit back a smile, unsure, her happiness liquefying heat in the pit of her stomach.

He murmured something to the driver, got a couple of bills out from his wallet, and turned to her.

“You’d better mean what you said, because I’m not letting you run from me.”

“I don’t want you to. New York—

“I say you deserve your shot at being the next big jeweler. You should move to New York.”

“How about you?”

“I’m interested in checking the real estate market there. I love you, Kika Martinez.” Honesty dripped from his words, clinging to each letter. A smile softened his features; along with the spark of exposure and strength she’d come to love. “You’re not getting rid of me.”

A jolt of happiness spread through her. Was this really happening? Oh, yes. It was. It was! “I love you too, Aussie Boy. Are you serious about joining me in New York?”

“Yes. Remember… I know a good investment when I see one.” He snatched her in his arms and captured her lips with his, his tongue searching, demanding, claiming what had been his since their first meeting.

The End

Acknowledgements

Wow! Where do I start? To my husband, for giving me time to write and watching the kids even when they are super cranky. I appreciate you and all that you do. To my kids, thanks for understanding mommy when it takes asking me the same question three times because I was away in dreamland, even though I’m physically right there.

Thank you to my street team, Carmen’s Crew, for always being there for me. I love you so much!

My Austin friends, I love you so! Marci, Kristina, Nicki, Angela, Yvette, Dina, EJ, Tiffany. Y’all rock and I super appreciate your support. Thank you.

All the fabulous souls involved in my authorsphere: Michele de Winton, Jodi Linton, Christine Glover.

To Deadra Krieger, for stepping in and editing this puppy! Yay! You rock!

I’m sure I’m forgetting someone. Sorry! My mind isn’t what it used to be before I had kids (and it wasn’t that great to begin with).

About the Author

Carmen Falcone learned at an early age that fantasizing about fictional characters beats doing math homework any day. Brazilian by birth and traveler by nature, she moved to Central Texas after college and met her broody Swiss husband—living proof that opposites attract. She found in writing her passion and the best excuse to avoid the healthy lifestyle everyone keeps bragging about. When she’s not lost in the word of romance, she enjoys spending time with her two kids, being walked by her three crazy pugs, reading, catching up with friends, and chatting with random people in the checkout line.

She loves to procrastinate, so please indulge her and drop her a line @
[email protected]
. For more info, visit her website:
http://www.carmenfalcone.com

Other Books by Carmen Falcone
Red Hot Christmas
Kidnapping the Brazilian Tycoon
A Night of Misbehaving
Heating Up Hawaii
A Vengeful Affair
Coming in April ACCIDENTALLY STILL MARRIED
Coming in July ACCIDENTALLY SEDUCED
Coming in November A WEEKEND OF MISBEHAVING