Last Chance To Run (9 page)

Even as he sheathed his face in a calm expression, pain trickled into his eyes. “I went into the Air Force when she turned nine. My parents pawned her off on friends and relatives so they could...” He paused to make air quotes. “‘Enjoy their life.’ Almost like they knew they’d die in a car crash before they reached fifty.”

“I’m sorry, Zane.”

He lifted his head as if hearing his name drew him. Standing away from the wall, he moved forward, slowly consuming her personal space.

She should back away and make her boundaries clear.

But she didn’t. The only reason to withdraw would be out of fear and she wasn’t afraid of him.

She’d lived her life in tiny moments for a long time and didn’t want this one to end. Not yet. Probably exhaustion talking, but she wasn’t up for arguing.

When he stood in front of her, Zane bent his head forward, focusing all that intense scrutiny on her. A formidable power swirled around him. He was rugged and confident and sexy as hell. Mere inches separated his face from hers. That urge was back. The one that had her holding her breath, wishing he’d follow through on the offer in his eyes.
Just a kiss.

Where would be the harm? 

But she couldn’t instigate it.

She had so little experience with men she’d make a fool of herself.

He asked in low voice, “Now that we’ve cleared up Trish’s history, what’s yours ...
Angel
?”

When he said her name like that, as if it were a pet name, his voice reached inside her and stroked her heart.

She couldn’t breathe for fighting this wild craving he brought on. A tornado churned behind the dark eyes drilling straight into her soul. Balmy ocean air ruffled his T-shirt and lifted fine hairs across her face.

He used a finger to brush the hairs away from her cheek. “Talk to me, Angel.”

The softer he spoke the more he hypnotized her, but she didn’t want to talk. Clouds diffused the late afternoon sun sweeping her along in the moment.

His aftershave teased her senses, blended with the salt air to draw her towards him. She wanted to erase the stern line of his wonderful mouth.

Angel raised her hand then lost the nerve to touch his lips.

He caught her hand, wrapping it in his long fingers. “You said I couldn’t help. What can someone else do that I can’t?” 

His deep voice kept reeling her in closer and closer.

“Nothing,” she whispered, not thinking about her answer beyond mumbling a response born of fatigue. If she curled up in the safety of his arms, would she finally sleep through the night? She couldn’t think clearly. His large, warm hands had moved to her arms where he stroked slowly up and down, waking up her skin.

One kiss.
She’d never wanted to kiss a man more than right now.

He leaned forward a tiny bit, their faces only a whisper apart. She softened her lips, anticipating.

“The truth, Angel, just tell me the truth so I can help you. Why are you avoiding the law?”

That broke the spell.

She flinched and backed away, cursing
herself
for letting her guard down when she should be vigilant. He still thought she’d committed a crime and had tried to seduce her into saying something she shouldn’t. She managed to keep her temper in check. Only it wasn’t just temper this time. It hurt.

So much for trusting men.

He asked, “What’s wrong?” 

Did he really expect her to believe he hadn’t been trying to pull something?
“Nothing.”

“
Nothing
is female talk for something. I don’t understand what I did wrong.”

He was kidding, right? “Other than making me feel like a fool?”

“How’d I do that?”  His surprise was too sincere to be faked.

Now she’d talked herself into a corner.
“Never mind.”

He lifted his hands. “Never mind is like nothing.
Loaded with hidden meaning.
Why’re
you angry?”

She’d wanted someone to ask her that for years so she could rant about all the injustices she’d suffered in silence. Maybe it was time to speak her mind. “You were trying to trick me.”

“How?”

“By acting like you wanted to kiss me when that wasn’t what you wanted at all.”

“Like hell. I do want to kiss you.”

She’d have enjoyed a moment of thrill over that admission if he hadn’t shouted it.
“Really?
Does the idea of kissing a woman always make you this angry?”

“No, just you.”
 

She couldn’t think what to say to that. Well, the hell with him. She would not let him see how that had stuck a splinter in her heart. “Glad we got that straight.”

He lifted his fist and
thunked
his head. “That didn’t come out right.”

Taking a breath, she composed herself to answer calmly. “I think it was perfectly clear.” Before he could say another word, she changed the subject. “I hope a shower comes with my room-and-board deal, because I’d love one right now.”

A muscle in his cheek jumped. He didn’t make a sound. To his credit, he wasn’t shouting at her.

Not that he intimidated her.
Far from it.

She hadn’t realized until meeting Zane just how
much
she liked large men. Or maybe she just liked this one.

When he finally spoke, it came out with resignation and acceptance. “You still have the yellow shorts and T-shirt?”

“Yes, but I need to wash them.” 

“Tell you what. Give me those, then take off what you have on and drop your clothes outside of the bathroom over there.”  He pointed down the hall before continuing. “Take your time. Soak in the Jacuzzi if you want while I toss everything in the washer. There’s a dispenser with soap and shampoo. Linens are in the tall cabinet. The bottom drawer of the middle cabinet has new toothbrushes, disposable things and female stuff you’re welcome to use.” 

Oh?
She made a sound of surprise before she caught herself.
Celibate, my ass
.
His sister clearly wasn’t up on just how much female traffic ran through this apartment.

“Don’t give me that look, Angel.”

“What look?”  She could do innocent.

“Like I’m a man ho.
My sister hates to be alone and, as you witnessed, she shows up whenever. She put that drawer together for when she spends the night here. There’s a hairdryer and whatever in there, too.”

She experienced a moment of relief for no reason, at least none that would make a lick of sense if she dissected it.

Digging out her clothes from the linen bag, she felt a little strange about handing the bundle to him. When was the last time anyone had washed
her
clothes? She’d done the laundry for everyone at home from the time she’d reached ten years old.

When Zane took the handful and disappeared into the kitchen, Angel headed for the bathroom where she peeled off the clothes she wore and deposited them outside the door. Every conceivable luxury installed in the luscious bath had been decorated in black marble with copper flecks and adorned with copper hardware.
Very masculine.

Zane must do well in spite of his poor customer service attitude.

When she had a steaming hot tub of water and bubbles –
thank you, Trish
– Angel sank into what was certainly one step from heaven. Her muscles moaned at the welcome feel of hot water. She bathed slowly, enjoying more luxuries such as a razor and girlie soap. Soaked to the point of wrinkling, Angel finally forced herself to step over to the beveled glass shower so she could rinse off and wash her hair.

At the wall-to-wall mirror above the vanity she tried to avoid her reflection until feminine vanity forced her to see how well she was healing. She’d lost some body weight from lack of eating and sleeping over the past week. Just a few yellowish fist-sized bruises remained across her back and thighs, but one ugly one still shined on her side. The last of her cuts were starting to heal.

Look at the positive
. All those battle scars still belonged to a living body.

She brushed the tangles from her hair, and the parts that had dried began to curl half-heartedly. Couldn’t she have curly
or
straight hair? No, it fell in half-assed curls. After seeing Trish’s cute bobbed cut, Angel would love to cut hers, but couldn’t. Not yet.

Shorten it now and she’d have few options if she had to change her appearance even more. For the time being she’d stuff the wimpy mass under her hat.

No disguise would keep Mason at bay for long.

Every hour that went by decreased her chances of remaining free.

Had Mason had incriminating evidence against her delivered anonymously to the FBI?

The coins had been stolen from Bolen Gallery in Boston. They were beyond rare. The news still carried sound bites. She needed to find someone who remembered a lone female runner on the trails outside Raleigh during the time of the theft – a person above reproach who would swear under oath that Angel had an ironclad alibi.

But how?
Run an ad for witnesses?

She’d been a loner since getting out of prison and had lived in a two-room house out in the woods. The theft had happened over a weekend, or someone would have seen her working around Mason’s warehouse. He swore he had evidence that placed her at the scene of the crime.
Truth or lie?

Deal with one problem at a time.

The plan was coins first, alibi next,
then
cut a deal with the FBI. Until then, she had to stay on her toes to
avoid
the FBI. And, if she pulled all this off,
she’d
have
the evidence to hang Mason.

He’d handled the clear sleeves that protected the coins.

This time, the fingerprint that put someone in prison would be his.

After wiping down everything she’d touched in the bathroom, Angel stuck her head out the door. Country music played in the living room. She called out softly, “Hello. I’m done. Are my clothes dry?”

Silence.She
wrapped a thick towel around her that only reached a few inches above her knees and barely covered her breasts, but she wanted her clothes.
Now.
Holding the front of the towel with both hands, she tiptoed out to search for the laundry room and saw the washer and dryer through an open door on the other side of the kitchen.

Her clean clothes sat folded on top of the dryer.

But that meant walking across the kitchen half naked.

Where was Zane? Had he stepped out?

The bath had refreshed her more than she realized and now she was rethinking the idea of staying here tonight. That meant the risk of bringing trouble to Zane’s door. All she had to do was check at the marina each day until the package arrived. She could find shelter until then, somewhere far from Zane and his sister.

He’d done more than enough by helping her escape Raleigh.

If she worked out a WITSEC deal with the FBI, she’d have them send a letter to Zane explaining everything.

Her chest hurt at the idea of leaving. It would be so easy to stay, but Zane couldn’t solve her problems and didn’t deserve to be caught in the crossfire if Mason caught up with her.

She’d have to dress right here for any hope at getting out the door fast enough.

Chapter 14

Zane heard Angel call out the second time as he finished his conversation with the High Vision representative.

No definitive time as yet for picking up their overseas shipment expected to arrive in Jacksonville any day now. He’d fly out the minute he was notified. Zane had three days left to prove to High Vision he was the perfect choice to handle their southeastern cargo shipping.

It might be easier to hand the entire contract to one of the other two groups contending for their business, but Zane had outperformed both of them every time they went head to head in the southeast. This was his territory.

By the time he ended his call and checked on Angel, the bathroom was vacant. His stomach fell.

Was she gone again?

He rushed toward the kitchen, halting one step from plowing through the knee-to-shoulder café doors that hung between the kitchen and living room.

The curvaceous body that had raced through his dreams came into view, barely covered with a towel.

Good thing he’d stopped here. The swinging doors hid just how much he appreciated what the terrycloth didn’t cover of Angel’s body. His mouth turned to cotton just looking at those legs.
Don’t even think about looking at her chest
.

She turned around and caught him staring.
Guilty.

Now handcuff me and make me pay
.

He should turn around and walk away. But if it were that easy, he’d have done it already.

She cleared her throat and asked, “Did you want something?”

Loaded question.
Hell, yes, he wanted something.
Her.

Admitting that wouldn’t earn him any points. Not after he’d screwed up on the patio. Had he really said wanting to kiss her made him angry?
Idiot.
She’d thought he was trying to trick her.

He scrubbed a hand over his face. “Find everything okay?”

“Yes.” 

Damp strands of cinnamon hair licked her shoulders. One wisp clung to her cheek. She tucked the end of the towel in tighter at the top of her toga wrap, sending his damned gaze there. Drops of water trickled down her
slender neck to the slight crevice created by two soft mounds of ivory breast.

Following that trickle with his tongue would be heaven.

Spending a night in the same apartment with her and only
thinking
about chasing that water droplet might kill him.

“Give me a minute and I’ll get dressed.”  She lifted the wad of clothes to her chest.

He wanted to kick himself. She didn’t need some guy leering at her after all she’d been through. And he didn’t even know everything she’d been through.

“I heard you call, but I was on the phone,” he mumbled, backing away. “I’ll wait in the front room.” He turned and walked away, hearing the sounds of her footsteps hurrying behind him from the kitchen to the bathroom. By the time the door closed, he still stood at rock hard attention. If she dressed slowly enough, he might be at ease by the time she got back.

Think about ... flying
.

What the hell was wrong with him? He had better control than that, but
dammit
he’d never been turned on so fast around a woman who wasn’t trying to raise his interest.

Angel sure as hell wasn’t trying to encourage him. She wouldn’t even be here now if he hadn’t coerced her into staying with him. He’d have done worse than manipulate her if it kept her off the streets and somewhere he could protect her.

No, he couldn’t blame Angel for his lack of control.

He’d dated some hot women and had no trouble finding someone to spend a night burning off energy with, so this clawing need to keep her close and to touch her made no sense. He was overdue for some serious downtime. This proved it, because Angel was pretty, but nothing like the women he normally chose.

He’d never gone for thin and muscular. 

Liar.
That body was trim and well toned.

And her eyes were too big for her face.

Soft eyes
that carried too much living for someone her age and more emotion than she liked revealing.
When her guard dropped an inch, her lashes would lower to half-mast.

Then she’d smile. 

Yeah, she had a heart-stopping smile and legs ... good Lord, what a set ... that went on forever and...

Hell.
He started getting hard again and she wasn’t even in the room.

He had the discipline of a goat.

Shaking his head, he wandered into the kitchen. Maybe another bottle of ice-cold water would help – poured over his crotch.

If that didn’t do the trick, then how about remembering that he had yet to figure out whether she was a criminal. That should douse any spark of desire that flamed up.

Angel walked into the kitchen just as Zane managed to stuff his reaction to her under a veil of polite indifference.

She eyed him warily and hooked a thumb on the waist of her jeans.

For some reason, it dawned on him right then that she hadn’t given him any panties to wash.

Don’t go there.

He’d understand his reaction if she dressed in some skimpy outfit, had her hair styled and makeup exaggerating her finer qualities, but she didn’t have a speck of makeup and only wore the cotton shirt and jeans again. 

Damn if it wasn’t fresh and attractive. He particularly liked the soft, barely-there curls showing up as her hair air-dried. What would it feel like to run his hands through those fine strands or feel them brush against his chest?

He gritted his teeth. Polite indifference, remember?

Got it.

She turned her shirtsleeves up at her wrists, eyes not really settling on any one spot. “Thanks for letting me use your bath. I feel much better.”  A loud growl erupted from her stomach.

“Sounds like you’re ready for dinner.”  When was the last time she’d eaten? “Give me a minute to clean up and we’ll grab a bite.”  He wanted to check the bathroom before they went anywhere. Before walking away, he pinned her with a serious stare. “You
will
be here when I come back, won’t you?”

That she took a moment to answer told him she’d been contemplating leaving, but he’d noticed that she tended to dance around the truth rather than rattle off a lie. After a long sigh, she nodded. “I’ll wait.”

Zane accepted her word, but also had a security monitor in his bathroom with lights that would indicate if anyone opened a door or a window. He shut himself inside the bathroom then squatted down to view the counter and faucets. Every inch had been wiped clean. He lifted the water bottle she’d tossed into the trash basket next, but knew he’d find no fingerprints there either.

Impressive, in an extremely suspicious way.

No problem.

He had the perfect place to eat. The owner would supply him with her entire set of tableware if Zane asked for it.

Making quick work of his shower while keeping an eye on the security monitor, Zane strolled back into his living room. He found Angel planted in the middle of the floor gazing out the glass doors. Was she so uncomfortable around the strange environment that she wouldn’t sit down on the leather furniture?

Or was she so careful to not leave a print?

“Ready?” he asked.

Turning to answer him, concern shadowed her face. “Can’t we just order a pizza?”

“I know a great little Italian restaurant, really a hole in the wall. Only locals go there. They make the best pizza, but you should try their lasagna.”

She slumped in defeat, obviously tired. Once he fed her a decent meal, she’d probably sleep like the dead.

Cutting her eyes back over to the glass doors to
where
purple twilight closed in on the beach, she must have seen something that made her decision. “If it’s not too expensive,” she mumbled.

“I’ll buy dinner. Consider it a bonus for pacifying Suarez today.”  He doubted money mattered as much in her agreement to go as the fact that the sun was setting. Dark offered protection from being easily seen.

“Just a minute.”
  She retrieved her hat and bag, twisted her hair up and shoved the hat on. “Okay, I’m ready.”

Hat or not, he’d recognize that body. Who did she hope to outfox? He herded her to the truck, ready to finally nail down her identity. But would he be just as pleased with himself once he had fingerprint results tomorrow?

In the four miles to the restaurant, the scenery deteriorated from snazzy to worn out. While he described how the area had changed in a mere three years, Angel looked where he pointed but rode in silence, hands in her lap, touching nothing. Her discipline was remarkable, and at the same time disconcerting.

He pulled into a rundown strip mall with one significant store in the center surrounded by small eclectic retail shops. Once a high-end grocery, the cavernous anchor of the center now housed a sprawling flea market he’d spent a couple of outings wandering through with Trish when he
couldn’t get out of it.

Parking in front of
De Nikki’s
, he strolled around to open Angel’s door. She stepped down, eyes cautiously flicking about, which put him on alert.

Inside the restaurant, a rotund Nikki, with a salt-and-pepper handlebar mustache, greeted Zane like a lost cousin. Nikki had a heavy crowd for this early on a Thursday night. Must have something to do with the upcoming holiday weekend when locals dined out the night before the tourists descended.

As Nikki directed them to a small table in the back, Zane almost ran over Angel when she abruptly stopped in front of him. 

He caught her shoulders to keep from knocking her down.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, quickly scanning the room, taking in the people and assessing everything for threats in a matter of seconds. Nothing appeared out of place. What had pricked her attention?

The smile she offered him was countermanded by vivid apprehension in her eyes.

“Clumsy. I stumbled.” 

Nikki had noticed them not following and walked back.
“Problem?”

She smiled the way women do to make men think everything is fine. “Where’s your ladies room?” 

Nikki pointed to the far side of the entrance.
“To the left of the front door, next to the hostess stand.”

Zane didn’t want to let her out of his sight, but what could he do? He’d sound ridiculous telling her not to go, especially while Nikki listened. He caught her by the arm as she stepped away. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” 

She didn’t look fine. Something had rattled her.

“Please, Zane, people are staring.”  Angel slipped from his hold and walked quickly back the way they’d come then scooted into the ladies room.

He gave the dining room another once over before going to wait for her at the hostess stand. Nothing unusual stood out. He might be reading more into this than he should.

Nikki stepped around Zane and asked, “Is there a problem, Mr. Zane?”

Before he answered, Zane waited until a slender, middle-aged man in a gunmetal gray suit stepped past them on his way to the front door. Zane gave the man a second look,
then
grimaced at the direction of his thoughts. Here he was, acting suspicious of Nikki’s clientele when in truth Angel was the dubious one.

He answered Nikki. “No. My friend hasn’t felt well and I’m a little concerned. I’ll wait to see how she’s doing before we sit down.”

“Oh, poor thing.
Not a problem. You just tell me if you want me to fix something to go.”

“Thanks, Nikki. Oh, one more thing. Is that the only door in and out of the bathroom?”

Nikki gave him a quizzical look. “Yes. That is it.”

Ten minutes later, patience spent, Zane asked Nikki to send a waitress in to check on Angel.

The girl returned immediately, wide-eyed and confused. “The bathroom is empty.”