Danger in Paradise (9 page)

The calm waves—both figurative and literal—washed over her. The orgasm wasn’t like anything she’d experienced before. It wasn’t mind-blowing but it was sweet, perfect, and everything she hadn’t realized she’d been missing. Something told her he’d been holding back for her, giving her exactly what she needed at that moment. If he’d pushed her too far, too fast and made her feel too out of control she wouldn’t have been able to handle it. But this…she wanted more of him and what he could give her. She’d had no idea things could be like that between two people.

Such pleasure at the hands of a man was an odd, but liberating experience. Somehow she knew this was just the beginning. If he could do that with just his mouth and a bare rub of his finger, then what would he do when they finally got to the part where they were both actually naked?

As she came down from her high, he held her steady. Thankfully, his breathing was just as labored as hers. She should feel some semblance of modesty, but for the life of her, she didn’t care that she was still partially exposed. She was comfortable with her body, but being naked around men was unusual. And in the daylight? That was a new experience altogether.

“Wow.” The word didn’t come close to describing how she felt, but it was all she could manage.

“Wow is right.” His face broke into a grin. A satisfied, pure male grin.

“I hope that’s only a preview of what’s to come.” The words were out before she could censor herself.
Holy shit, where had that come from?

His eyes widened slightly, but he sighed in relief.

“What?”

“I was hoping you’d say something like that.” His grip tightened on her hips and his eyes darkened.

She pulled up her bathing suit straps but stayed in his lap, comfortable enough to stay there all afternoon. “As opposed to what?”

He shrugged, but kept his arms around. “I thought you might say something about this being a mistake.”

She chuckled, enjoying the way he held her. His embrace was almost protective, and though it surprised her, she didn’t want to move. “This probably
is
a mistake, but it’s one I’d make again.”

“Good.” After what felt like an eternity, he finally disentangled himself and helped her to her feet.

She wasn’t quite sure what to say. It wasn’t that she was embarrassed, but she did feel a little awkward. Where would they go from here? They certainly couldn’t go back in time and change things. And she didn’t want to. Still, with everything going on, she wasn’t sure if she could handle anything else.

“Are you hungry?” he asked as they picked up their towels and clothes.

“A little,” she admitted. “But, what about…what about you?” She didn’t have the guts to voice what she meant explicitly, but he seemed to understand.

“We’ll worry about that later. I’m in no rush,” he murmured before planting a kiss on her forehead. He casually wrapped his arm around her shoulders as they walked back to the house.

Her experience was limited, but as far as men went, they normally couldn’t wait to get to the next part. And he wanted to wait? She’d thought for sure she had his type pegged.

For once, Hope didn’t mind being wrong.

* * * * *

Mac tossed his suitcase onto one of the double beds in his hotel room. Now that he was checked into a hotel in Miami, he had to make the call he’d been dreading. Before he told Hope his suspicions, he was going to meet the Santiago family face to face. Instead of using his cell phone he used the hotel phone. The only number that would come up on caller ID would be the main line. And he wanted them to know he was in town.

Someone picked up on the second ring. “Santiago residence.”

His throat clenched, and he wiped a sweaty palm on his jeans. What the hell? He’d been in tougher situations than this.

“Hello?” The woman on the other line sounded annoyed.

He cleared his throat. “Hi, is Mrs. Santiago in?”

“May I ask who is calling?”

She had no idea who he was, so he doubted the woman would even relay the message, but he didn’t have a choice in giving his name. “My name is Mac Jennings.”

The response was automatic. “I’m sorry Mr. Jennings, she’s unavailable—” Muffled, indistinct voices traveled through the line.

Seconds later, another woman was on the phone. “This is Sonja Santiago. How can I help you?” Her voice was soft, almost reserved, but he didn’t miss her anxiety.

He swallowed hard. This was more difficult than he’d imagined. “Hi, my name is Mac Jennings. You hired my daughter for the month…I don’t even know where to start.”

“I think I have an idea why you’re calling. Would you like to do this in person?”

His heart pounded against his ribcage at hurricane speeds. The fact that she wasn’t surprised by his call spoke volumes. “Name the place.”

“I’ll send a car to pick you up. You’re staying at the Hyatt, correct?”

“Yes. When would you like to meet?” He clutched the phone tighter.

“Can you be ready in twenty minutes?”

“I’ll be down in the lobby in ten.”

“Perfect.” She disconnected before he could ask how he’d know who to look for.

A little over twenty minutes later, he sat in the back of a Lincoln Town car, on his way to the Santiagos’ house. Never before in his life had he felt so lost. Mac took life in stride. He always had. When he’d lost his wife and daughter, his ability to compartmentalize things had saved his sanity. Now things were different. Hope had saved his life more than he’d ever admitted. She was more than just a girl he’d helped raise, she was his family. Closer to him than any blood relatives he had left.

He didn’t know anything about this other family other than what he’d read in a few files, but if they were Hope’s blood relations, she had a right to know. He just prayed she still wanted him in her life if they turned out to be who he thought they were.

Palm trees, people, and colorful buildings flew by at normal speeds, but Mac felt as if his insides were actually shaking. After ten minutes in the car, the driver pulled into a private, gated community, right on the bay. Of course they pulled into the driveway of the biggest house in the secluded neighborhood. When the car pulled to a stop in front of a Tuscan-style villa, he got out before the driver could come around and open his door.

Almost immediately, the intricately carved wooden front door opened and a woman with a startling resemblance to Hope stepped out. Right behind her were two men with holstered guns. He instantly went on alert. Maybe this wasn’t the friendly visit he’d expected.

She made the first move and walked the few feet toward him. She held out a delicate hand. “Hi, I’m Sonja. Welcome to my home.”

He nodded and took her hand in his own. “Mac. Pleased to meet you.”

“Would you like to speak out on the lanai? It’s much more comfortable.” Her words sounded sincere, but stress lines etched deep into her fair face.

The two men disappeared back inside, but he knew they weren’t far away. He guessed they’d only wanted to make their presence known.

As they walked through the foyer, he paused at a display of pictures and picked one up. “Shit.” The word was out before he could think. He had the pictures from Howard, but looking at the massive display of photographs of the Santiagos’ daughter Maria, the resemblance was unmistakable. And terrifying.

Sonja looked at him with eyebrows raised, but didn’t say anything. Her pale blue eyes were so much like Hope’s his heart twisted.

He put the picture back on the table and followed her down a long hallway lined with other, similar photos. They exited out a back door and settled across from each other at a rectangular glass patio table.

For a moment they stared at each other, and he wasn’t sure if he should start talking first.

She beat him to it and her question surprised him. “What is she like?”

“She’s…she’s like sunshine.” It sounded cheesy, but it was the only word he could think to describe Hope. She’d been a handful that first year. So angry at everyone, but she’d learned to defend herself and had developed a steel backbone. Sometimes he worried he’d been too tough on her, but as she’d seen, the world was a shitty place and he’d wanted her to be able to take care of herself.

There was another moment of extended silence. An older gentleman delivering a tray of iced tea and lemonade interrupted them, but a few minutes later they were alone again.

“What…how…” She raked a shaky hand through her long hair and expelled a sigh. “I’m sorry, I don’t know where to start.”

“You’re not alone.” He took one of the glasses to keep his hands busy.

“Where did you adopt her? On the black market?” Her quiet question sliced through the air with the subtlety of a grenade.

“What? I think you have the wrong idea. I
found
Hope when she was fifteen. She had nowhere to go.” He left it at that for the moment.

Waves of almost visible relief poured off the other woman. “I had to ask. Luke ran your information and it didn’t seem likely, but we haven’t been able to find out much about you. And Hope Jennings didn’t exist until twelve years ago. Is she…was she a runaway?”

“Not exactly.” He risked everything he’d struggled to hide for over a decade, but it was a choice he had to make. Mac decided not to edge around the truth. “Twelve years ago I found a fifteen year old girl floating just off the coast.”

“Floating?” Sonja’s hand flew to her neck, and her forehead furrowed in confusion.

He nodded and forced himself to continue. If this was Hope’s mother, nothing about this was going to be easy. “She’d been shot twice and was barely alive.” His words dropped like deadly bombs, and all he could do was wait for the reaction.

A mix between a sob and a shriek exploded from the other woman. A man with a gun stormed out one of the French doors, but she shooed him away without glancing in his direction. She clutched the side of her chair, her pale eyes boring into him. “I don’t understand.”

Mac inwardly cursed. Maybe he should have left that part out. It had happened so long ago and he sometimes lacked the sensitive gene. “Do you want to get a real drink?”

She abruptly stood, though her entire body shook. “Yes, this calls for vodka.”

Considering how much more he had to tell her, she was definitely going to need it.

Hell, he was too.

He watched as she walked over to the mini bar on the other side of the lanai. Her hands were unsteady as she added cubes of ice to two glasses. Normally he’d offer to help a woman, but he guessed she needed to gain some control.

She glanced over at him as she pulled out a bottle of vodka. “Is tonic as a mixer okay?”

“Yes.” At this point, he didn’t care what he drank, as long as it was wet.

Moments later, she handed him a glass and sat back down across from him.

He took a swig, then placed the drink on the table. “Some of the things I have to say will be unpleasant. Do you want—”

“I want to know
everything
about her.”

Mac mentally steeled himself to deal with a crying woman. No parent should have to hear what she was about to. “According to Hope, she’d been in the foster system since she was seven. When she was fifteen, one of her foster father’s basically sold her to cover some debts. He reported her as a runaway.”

“Sold? I don’t understand.”

Fuck.
How could he tell her this? He cleared his throat. “She was sold into…sexual slavery.”

Despite the woman’s gasp, he continued. If he didn’t tell her now, he didn’t think he’d ever get it out. “There is no good way to say this. The first man she was…sold to, had a yacht. That’s all she knows about him. He raped her, but she fought back and he shot her in the process. She fell overboard and was no doubt assumed dead. I found her and adopted her.”

“Why didn’t you call the police?”

“I had to make a quick decision that night. I wasn’t going to put her back into the system that had already failed her.” The truth was, Hope had begged him not to call the police. If Mac could go back, he didn’t know that he’d do things any differently. She’d been an abused, terrorized kid and he’d have sold his soul to help her that night.

“How did you manage to adopt her and change her identity?” Sonja set her drink down and laced her fingers tightly in her lap.

This was the tricky part. Figuring out how much to admit to this virtual stranger. “To make a long story short, I called in some favors.” A hell of a lot of them.

“Those are some pretty big favors.”

He shrugged, unwilling to divulge any more at the moment.

“Fair enough,” she murmured. After a long beat, she spoke again. “If you’re willing, I’d like you to stay and have dinner with me. I understand if you can’t answer them all, but I have so many questions.”

“Okay.” He sighed and took another sip of his drink. If this was Hope’s family, she deserved to meet them. Years before he’d found Hope he’d lost a wife and daughter. The grief had nearly killed him. He knew his thoughts were selfish, but he couldn’t help and wonder what would happen if she met the Santiagos’ and didn’t need him anymore.

Mac didn’t know if he’d survive losing Hope.