Page 70 of Temptation
“Drive faster,” Sloane and Preston both told Frankie at the same time.
Chapter Sixteen
The road snaked and turned and then…ended. Ended at an old, yellowed sign that just said PAVEMENT ENDS.
Right. Yes. The pavement had ended. Preston could see that. They could all see that because the Range Rover’s lights reflected off the yellow sign in the growing darkness. The wipers were still flying, seeming to work double-time.
“Nothing is here.” Frankie leaned over the steering wheel and squinted out front as the windshield wipers kept flying. “Maybe it was supposed to be a hiking path but looks like it hasn’t been used for a long time. Probably because the whole area is unstable. Freaking flood zone.”
Another vehicle braked beside them. A black Jeep Wrangler. His other bodyguard, Noble Garrison. He’d known the former SEAL would follow them as soon as Frankie had redirected the Range Rover, but Preston had still texted the guy with the destination.
“The thunderstorm is hitting full force,” Frankie added with a low whistle. “You sure you want to get out here?”
“Yes.” One hundred percent sure. Preston was getting out. But he turned toward Sloane. “You’re not.”
“What?” She gaped at him. “It’s my bracelet!”
“And my car. My bodyguards.” Your life on the line, angel. Because for all the hell he knew, this was some trap. A trick to lure her out so that she’d be vulnerable. Maybe Bridget was the bait that the attacker planned to use against them. “That means we’re following my rules.” Something not up for debate.
“I don’t remember agreeing to follow your rules. There was zero discussion about rule-following. Zero.”
“No? Too bad.” Then, unable to help himself, he brushed his lips across hers. A too brief, light kiss. Maybe because he needed her taste one more time. Maybe because he didn’t know what he’d face in the dark. For all he knew, he could start walking into the woods and bullets would begin flying.
It will be a real fucking shame to die without fucking her.
He pulled back. “She stays in the vehicle, Frankie. She doesn’t get out.”
“That sounds like kidnapping,” Sloane pointed out, voice husky.
Preston grunted. “Really? Odd. Sounds like protection to me.” An incline of his head toward her. There wasn’t enough light in the rear of the vehicle for him to see her face clearly. “I’ll do a search. I have the coordinates that your friend sent us.” Hell, according to those coordinates, they should be practically on top of the bracelet. “You stay here. No sense in you getting soaked, too.”
“This isn’t about me getting soaked, is it?”
“Nah. It’s more about you staying alive. Turns out, I’m highly interested in you living.” He turned away and reached for the handle of the door.
Her fingers curled over his shoulder. “I’m highly interested in you living, too. I don’t think you should just be running off alone.”
The door opened before he could reach it. Noble bent and peered inside, water sliding off him. “Just curious. Are we gonna hang out in the middle of nowhere for the rest of the night?”
Because night was falling, fast.
“Or is there another game plan?” Noble asked.
Preston had known Noble since they were both teens. They’d met in Cashiers. Not been friends. More like enemies. Then, after high school graduation, Noble had signed up to join the Navy. Had become a SEAL. When he’d returned home, unable to walk, body littered with injuries, there had been no one to meet his flight. No family. No loved ones. The guy had been wasting away.
So Preston had stepped in.
Because once upon a time, my old enemy stopped me from crossing a very dark line.
“There’s a game plan,” Preston returned.
Noble grunted. His gaze darted to Sloane. A Sloane who was clearly visible because the door was open and the interior light shone brightly now in the back of the vehicle. “Noble.”
“Uh, excuse me?”
“He’s not saying he’s a noble bastard,” Preston groused. He didn’t like the way Noble’s gaze lingered on her. “Focus,” he barked at the guy.
Noble shifted his stare back to Preston.
