Guilty Pleasures (32 page)

“Not opening.” He repeated the steps, making sure the card and the magnetic strip were lined up properly. The lock clicked. He tried the handle.

“Shit,” he spat. He shook the handle again. No luck.

“Come on. We better go before someone sees us,” Eva urged.

Jake stuck the device and card back in his pocket and followed Eva down the hallway to the elevator. “If I can't get this to work, we're going to have to get the key from Suarez.”

“That's not the only problem we have,” Eva said, pushing the
DOWN
button for the elevator.

Jake groaned. “I'm not sure I want to know.”

She folded her arms to keep from punching him. “Well, that's just too damned bad.”

The elevator door opened, and they stepped inside. The only thing keeping her from slapping him in the back of the head was the old wrinkled couple that was already on board.

They walked in silence to their cabin.

“All right, so what is it
” Jake asked, shutting the door and tossing the gadget on the bed in almost the same movement.

Eva spun toward him. “Traci is on the ship.”

Jake figured it must be some woman thing. 'Cause he just didn't get it. “Who is Traci
” he breathed in frustration.

Eva planted her fists at her waist. “Traci Jennings!”
You idiot
is what it sounded like to Jake. His brow creased in concentration. For the life of him, he couldn't recall a Traci anybody.

Eva's chest rose and fell hard. She pulled the wig from her head and tossed it on the bed, eyeing him with fury. Jake knew she was about to lose it, and his
Jeopardy!
minute was running out.

He threw his hands up in the air. “I give up. You gotta tell me who Traci Jennings is.”

“Traci Jennings is Sebastian's ex-girlfriend. And if you recall, Sebastian is my
boss.
” Her eyes widened to emphasize her point.

Jake's face went through a short series of contortions as the information sank in. “Shit,” he finally sputtered.

“Yeah, my sentiments exactly.”

They sat down on the bed like synchronized swimmers, in perfect unison.

“Maybe we should just jump overboard, cut our losses, and hope to be rescued by a friendly pirate,” Eva said without a stitch of humor in her voice.

Jake leaned forward, rested his chin in his palm. “Did she recognize you
”

Eva nodded. “She called me by name.”

Jake turned to her. “What did you do
”

“Ignored her. She was getting off the elevator while I was getting on to come and meet you.”

“Not something we bargained on,” he said absently.

“I have two choices. I can either stay cooped up in this room until we dock or I can do what I came here to do. We're already shorthanded, so item number one is not an option.”

“We can't afford to have this Traci chick cause us any problem.”

“I'll take care of her if I run into her again.”

“Do you think she'll say something to Sebastian
”

Eva sighed heavily. “No. Yes. I don't know. If she does, I'll just have to deal with it when the time comes.” She ran her hand across her head and pulled off the stocking cap that held her hair in place. She tossed it down on the bed with the wig.

She jerked her chin toward the decoder. “What happened
”

Jake shook his head. “Something I missed in the program.”

“Is that going to be the same problem we have getting into the safe
” She didn't mean for it to sound facetious. Well, maybe she did.

Jake cut his eyes in her direction. “That's not the plan.” He stood up, went to the minibar, and fixed a quick drink. “Want one
” he asked with his back to her.

“No. Thanks.” She braced her arms on her thighs and entwined her fingers. “We've gone through too much to prepare for this to get screwed by some fluke coincidence,” she said.

Jake turned, leaned against the bar, and took a sip from his drink. “What are you thinking
”

“I'm thinking…” Her voice suddenly broke. She looked up at Jake, and her eyes filled. She sniffed. “I'm thinking that I want this to be over, Jake. I want to go home. I don't want to do this anymore.” She jumped up. “The hell with the sting. When we dock in Mexico, let's just keep going.” Her eyes ran over his face.

He'd never seen her like this before. Eva may be tempermental at times, but it was always only directed at him. No job had ever rattled her. Eva was always cool—indifferent almost—when she executed a plan. More than just a few glitches in the plan were eating at her.

He crossed the room and sat down next to her. She was holding her body so tight, he was afraid if he held her she would snap.

“Talk to me,” he said gently.

“It's … just all wrong,” she sputtered, sniffing and wiping her eyes. “Everything. This whole thing has been a problem from day one, and it's only getting worse.”

“We've been in fixes before. You never even blinked. Why now
”