Page 33 of Resurgent
“No.”
I throw my hands up in frustration. “Okay. Tell me then. What’syourplan? I have yet to hear it.”
“To keep you alive, okay? That’s my fucking plan!”
That stops me cold. Sure, he’s being a pig-headed, chauvinistic, typical man, but a tiny part of me melts at the thought of him putting my safety above his own well-being. Not that I’m going to let that happen. I trust him to keep me safe, but I intend to keep him safe right back.
I walk over to him and wrap my arms around his waist tentatively. “Thank you. I want us both to stay alive. But that’s not going to happen if we don’t find the guns. We can’t run forever.”
His arms go around me, and he rests his chin on the top of my head for several long minutes, not saying anything. Finally, he says, “Okay. We’ll meet him for drinks. But we get there early and I buy the drinks. Don’t take a sip of anything that I don’t give you. And don’t leave my side for any reason. I don’t care if the resort catches on fire or Jesus himself appears. Got it?” He leans back and tips my chin up so he can fix me with his most intimidating stare, and I feel a trickle of moisture between my legs. God, itishot when he gets all authoritative, even if I like to sometimes call him on it. I resist the urge to press my thighs together as I nod. “And after drinks, we’re getting out of here.”
“Where are we going?”
“I don’t know yet.”
We arrive at the hotel bar thirty minutes early, and despite the brightly colored hanging lights, salsa music, and jovial atmosphere, I feel more like I’m walking to the guillotine instead of into a bar. Liam has spent the last hour grilling me over what I should and shouldn’t say, and I’m terrified I’m going to screw things up and get us killed, although there’s no way I’m admitting that to Liam. After all, I’m the one who talked him into this.
The straw-thatched bar is open air and right on the beach, with a floor made of wooden slats like a beach boardwalk that’s flush with the white sand. Plenty of lights make it a beacon in the dark night, and there’s already a small crowd of partiers, which makes me feel slightly better. Hammocks hang between the solid wooden beams that support the roof, and underneath it, tables with cushioned seats in pairs on either side are carefully placed to create conversation areas. More tables are set up just beyond the covered area on the beach, and the palm trees are wrapped with white fairy lights, giving it a festive air.
With his hand on the small of my back, Liam guides me to the bar. I’m wearing the sundress I bought in Puerto Vallarta with a cut-out back, and the warmth of his hand sears my skin. Without asking what I want, he orders two cervezas, his eyes following the bartender as he pulls the cold bottles from a tub filled with ice and pops the tops off before pushing them across the bar to Liam. Liam pays for the drinks, then taking my hand in his, he leads me to one of the tables inside, waiting for me to sit down before he sits next to me. He’s chosen a table with one of the cushioned seats for two, and I’m grateful for the feel of his solid body right next to mine, making me feel safe.
“We’ll stay an hour. That’s it. Make that beer last,” he murmurs to me.
“Yes, sir,” I retort, giving him a mock salute.
He smiles for the first time since we ran into Manny on the beach—a real one that makes the corners of his eyes crinkle. “I could get used to the sound of that,” he says.
“Don’t count on it,” I say with a smile of my own. “Remember? I already told you…I’m untamable.”
Heat flares in his eyes as he says, “We’ll see about that.”
“Liam!” Unfortunately, Manny’s booming voice interrupts us, and Liam stands to shake his hand. I follow his lead, standing with my beer in hand to greet Manny and the attractive older woman next to him, whom he introduces as his wife Salome. After the initial introductions and small talk is over, Manny motions to the bartender. “A round of shots,por favor.” He grins at Liam, revealing a row of crooked, yellow-stained teeth. “The usual? As El Gato always says, never trust anyone who won’t do a shot with you.”
Liam nods, realizing he’s been backed into a corner. I know as well as he does that he can’t do anything to make the cartel lieutenant think anything is amiss…which in this case, means not turning down a shot the lieutenant buys. The usual turns out to be Patron tequila poured straight from the bottle, and Liam gives me a slight nod to let me know it’s safe as Manny proposes a toast.
“Keep yourcompadresnear and yourenemigosnearer…” he says. He looks at Liam expectantly, obviously waiting for him to finish the toast, and I feel a flare of panic for Liam. It must be horrible not remembering anything. Before Liam can give himself away, I clink my glass to Liam’s and blurt out the first thing that comes to mind. “But if you make your wife mad, she’ll give you reason to fear her.”
There’s a brief pause, and then Salome bursts out laughing. Both men join in, and I let out my breath. “My dear, that is just priceless!” she says. “I can see you’ve heard the party line as often as I have.” Turning to Liam, she says, “She’s feisty.”
Liam shoots me a grin that has my stomach flip-flopping like an acrobat. “Almost untamable,” he says as he lifts his eyebrows at me. “Almost…” he adds deliberately, and my pelvis tightens deliciously.
“So how did you two meet?” Manny asks.
Liam’s warm hand covers mine. “We’ve actually known each other for years. Charlie went to school with my little sister.”
“Ah…McKenzie, is it?”
Liam’s grip tightens around my fingers and I give his hand a little squeeze back to remind him to not let Manny get under his skin.
“Do you know her?” I ask innocently.
“It’s my job to know everything about the people who work for me. Which is why it was such a surprise to find out that Liam is not only not dead, but that he’s also married. Tell me,querida, how did the two of you end up married when he just came back from the dead? I’m intrigued.”
I can feel a rivulet of perspiration trickle between my breasts as his beady eyes bore into me. I steal a glance at Liam, but his expression is bland with a hint of amusement, and I realize he actually trusts me to handle this. My grandmother’s voice echoes in my head. “If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.” She was the one haven of love and peace during my turbulent childhood, and I suddenly find myself missing her. She would have loved Liam, and he would have loved her right back.
“Well, as Liam said, we’ve known each other a long time. Then last fall, a group of us went on vacation together. Liam and I took a walk on the beach, and it was just so easy to talk to him, to laugh, to be happy, to be drunk, to be sober, to be sad or frustrated. Then he touched me, and it was like he set off a nuclear reactor in my body. I felt like every nerve ending was glowing, everywhere we made contact lit up. We kissed and…you know…” I gesture vaguely. “The way he looked at me was unforgettable. And I knew right then I never wanted to go another day without hearing his laugh or seeing his face looking back at me.”
Salome sighs. “That is so romantic.” She smacks Manny’s arm. “Why don’t you look at me that way?”
