KanesBounty Read online

  As soon as she cut him off, his mouth turned down in a frown. “That’s very impressive. How did you learn to do it?”

  “I’ve had to learn a lot in the last few years.”

  His eyes were blue crystals and they were only an inch from hers. “I meant what I said. I will not betray you.”

  “But you will not let me go either.” The bitterness in her voice reflected the way she felt about all men since marrying Oscar Thorn. He was gorgeous too. He’d had money and power and he’d wanted her.

  “I have a job to do, but I’m willing to listen to your story, which is more than I’ve ever done for any other mark, Lena. Try to see it from my side. I’m hired by the courts to apprehend and return a fugitive. You escaped custody. It’s my job to bring you back.”

  Her stomach churned at the memory of her escape. “I had no choice. Oscar was going to kill me and I couldn’t let him get ahold of the stones. They are my responsibility and I had already put them in enough danger by marrying the wrong man. If I was dead, he’d find them.”

  Kane’s eyes narrowed. “Did you swallow these stones?”

  She smiled. He was worried she was going to drop dead, as if she was a drug smuggler. “No. I sat on them, in a manner of speaking.”

  Understanding dawned on Kane and the heat in his eyes increased tenfold. “And is that where they still reside?”

  She didn’t say anything.

  “What are they, Lena?”

  “How do I trust you?” she asked.

  One side of his mouth quirked up. “It’s a leap of faith, sweetheart. It always is.”

  “I trusted Oscar and now he wants to kill me, and frankly, that’s not the worst of his crimes against me.”

  His frown returned. “I can say you can trust me, Lena, but ultimately you have to decide. At this point, all I can promise you is I will keep your secrets and get you safely back to the Boston justice department.”

  “And the other?” She let her mind open up so he could feel her desire.

  “That will be entirely up to you.” He leaned so his backside was to the aisle, took her hand and placed it firmly on his straining fly. “I think you know what I want.”

  Her throat tightened, and she had to swallow hard in order to draw breath again. “At least we have one thing we can agree on, Kane.”

  He groaned and squeezed her hand over his cock.

  Through the denim, he felt enormous. She salivated at the idea of sucking him deep into her throat.

  “Please stop,” he begged. “Your hand I can take, but the things flying through that dirty mind of yours are going to have me embarrassing myself right here in this fancy, first-class seat.

  She giggled and pulled her hand away. She tried to remember the last time she had flirted with a man or giggled. It was too long ago to recall.

  “Tell me about Oscar Thorn?” Kane asked.

  “What do you want to know?”

  “How did you meet?”

  She sighed. “He showed up in my hometown. I’m from a little town in New Jersey. He was worldly and beautiful and he swept me off my feet. He even charmed my grandmother into believing he loved me. As it turned out, he was only after the stones. He took them as soon as we were married and all his pretenses ended. Then, when he realized he couldn’t work them without me, he kept me prisoner.”

  She realized she’d said more than she intended. He’d only asked how they met and she’d told him an abbreviated version of the entire story.

  “I’m sorry,” he said.

  She didn’t know if he was referring to her life with Oscar or if he was sorry he’d gotten her to spill her guts so easily. It didn’t matter. For whatever reason, she trusted this Kane Lakeland. Sexually, she knew she had to have him, but it was more than that. She hoped she wasn’t just being a fool.

  “The Stones of Adeline have been in my family for hundreds of years. I was born with the mark, so I was named Adeline, and when my grandmother felt I was ready, she passed the stones to me. In the hands of the right user, they will tell the future. Or to be more specific, they will show the user exactly what they most wish to know. For Oscar, it was always about money or power.”

  “What kind of mark?”

  His questions always surprised her. She’d thought he’d ask about how the stones could tell the future or what deals Oscar had made by using the stones. Most people would want to know how the stones could benefit them or just disbelieve the entire thing. Not Kane. He wanted to know about her birthmark. “It’s just a small birthmark.”

  “Where is it?”

  His eyes bore into her. God, why did he have to be so beautiful? She looked around him to the people sitting across the aisle. They were both asleep. She checked the flight attendants. One read a magazine, and the other drank a cup of coffee. Her eyes moved back to Kane, who studied her carefully. When she popped the button on her fly his eyes shot from her face to her abdomen. She slid the zipper down a bit more slowly than was necessary. Rolling the right side down to just above her neat patch of hair, she exposed a small reddish birthmark that resembled a dragonfly.

  Before she could protest, his fingers grazed the mark. Her entire body felt the effects of his caress. She gasped, her nipples tightening.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, we are making our initial decent into Los Cabos International. The weather in San Jose del Cabo is…”

  The captain’s voice was a sharp reminder they were not alone. Kane moved his hand away and she quickly did up her jeans just before the flight attendant came over to ask them to put their seatbacks in the full and upright position. If the brunette noticed Lena’s blush, she gave no indication. She was too busy ogling Kane.

  He didn’t even spare a glance at the attractive attendant. He waited until she’d moved to another passenger. “I’ve got a big problem, Lena.” He ran one finger along her jaw.

  Even the gentle touch gave her chills. “Me too. I’m in Mexico without a bathing suit or a toothbrush.”

  He smiled that devastating smile again. “Well, at least I can solve your problem.”

  * * * * *

  Kane was as good as his word. He made one phone call when they arrived in the airport and booked them a room. Before they went to the hotel, he asked the taxi driver to take them shopping. He not only bought her a bathing suit, he also purchased her the toiletries she’d need and a change of clothes more suitable for the tropics. He got a few things for himself too and paid in hundred-dollar bills.

  She couldn’t help herself. “Bounty hunting business pays pretty good, I guess.”

  He didn’t turn, but she could see his grin. “I have special talents, so I get special pay.”

  The taxi drove them to Casa Dorada Hotel and Resort. It was a beautiful place on the beach, walking distance from the center of Cabo San Lucas.

  At the check-in desk, a lovely woman handed them two glasses of champagne. Lena downed hers in one swallow. Kane looked over and raised his eyebrow before handing his glass to her. She took it, but sipped more slowly now that she saw he and the clerk were watching her.

  Lena loved Mexico. Her father had been Spanish, but she had always loved the Latin feel of Mexico and the warmth of the people.

  The clerk was studying her. She smiled back.

  “¿Habla español, Señora?”

  “No. Sorry, I don’t,” she said in her best New Jersey accent.

  The woman just smiled and nodded. Kane looked at her sharply.

  When they were safely ensconced in their room, she downed the remaining champagne.

  “Why did you lie about speaking Spanish?”

  She opened the verandah door and walked outside. A cool breeze flowed in from the ocean. She watched the waves roll in for a moment. “How do you know I lied?”

  He stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her. She was only five foot three inches tall. Kane towered over her. She leaned back against his hard body, her head against his chest. He was a wall of warm, hard man. He didn’t wear cologne. H
is scent was all male, outdoors and spice.

  “I know when you lie.”

  “That’s inconvenient,” she said.

  His laugh rumbled against her back. “So why did you lie?” His mouth was against her ear.

  Her body hummed with excitement and fear. “I didn’t want her to ask me personal questions. It just seemed easier.”

  She felt him nod. “I want to make love to you, Lena.”

  Thank god. “I want you too.” She closed her eyes and allowed herself to melt into his embrace.

  “Are you sure? I sense fear now that we’re alone. You actually seem more afraid of me now than you were when I was toting you through the streets of Savannah.”

  Turning into him, she had to strain her neck to look up at him. “It’s been a long time since I’ve wanted to have sex, Kane. A very long time.”

  He sat down on the chair on the verandah and pulled her, still standing, between his legs. “I don’t know what that means, but I have a feeling it’s important.”

  She shook her head. “Can’t we just fuck? Do we have to analyze everything?”

  One side of his mouth pulled up and the spark in his eyes returned. “It’s very hot when you say ‘fuck’.”

  Sitting down, his face was eye level with her tits. He rubbed his cheek against her chest, abrading her nipples through her blouse.

  “Why do I feel this way about you?” he asked.

  She suspected he didn’t expect an answer. She just allowed him to keep rubbing against her. The friction shocked sensations down to her toes.

  “Lena,” he whispered against her skin.

  She looked down to find her blouse unbuttoned. They were in the open. People might see what they were doing. The idea both excited and intimidated her. “Let’s go inside, Kane.”

  He smiled up at her. She knew he could sense her excitement over being exposed, but he didn’t press the idea. Kane stood up and backed into the room, never taking his eyes off her.

  She followed him step for step. He was luring her in and she had no desire to run away. She’d been running for over a year, running and hiding. Now she just wanted to enjoy something for a little while. She knew it would not last. Soon she would either be running again or dead, but for just a short time, she could pretend she had a normal life. A life where a man and a woman go on vacation to Mexico and make love without a care.

  “Would you mind terribly if I took a shower?” she asked. “It’s been a long couple of days.”

  “Can I join you?” His eyes looked as if they were blue flames.

  The idea made her nipples hard. She nodded. “Just give me a minute.”

  The bathroom had both a huge shower and an enormous jetted tub. Lena locked the door, stripped and carefully removed the stones from their hiding place. She pulled the stopper for the sink and rinsed the soft cloth and the stones hidden within. Under normal circumstances, she would never have kept them hidden inside her for so long. However, she’d put them there while she went to meet John Porter. She could have removed them on the airplane, but she wasn’t sure about Kane. She hoped she could trust him, but the only way to know for sure was to trust him.

  She turned the shower on and unlocked the door.

  The first spray of hot water was as if time itself had stood still. She let the jets pummel her head and shoulders, soaking her hair and rinsing away the grime and worry.

  She hadn’t heard him enter, but she knew he was there all the same. Keeping her eyes closed, she waited and relished the sounds of his clothes rustling and knowing the moment he stepped into the doorless shower. The air changed. He took up space in a way she’d never felt before. He consumed the area around him. How could he catch fugitives when his presence was so extreme?

  Her thoughts and questions abandoned her as soon as his fingers grazed her hip. She took a step back and came up hard against his chest and abs. His cock pressed between them. His hands came around her waist and she couldn’t help looking down to see his skin against hers. He reached forward and took the soap from the dish, discarded the paper wrapper and rubbed it between his hands in front of her. He slid his soapy fingers along her chest and down across her tits, swirling around her hard nipples before palming them and moving to her abdomen.

  “Mmm, Kane, that feels so good.”

  “You’re beautiful, Lena.”

  His hand slid lower, cupping her pussy. She sighed and widened her stance just a little. His soapy fingers slid between her lips and over her clit. Lena gasped. Her knees started to tremble. Kane wrapped his other hand around her middle, clutching her to him while he teased her most sensitive spot.

  Lena gulped for air. Water poured down over them, rinsing away the suds. His fingers circled her clit, then slipped back farther, dipping into her pussy. It had been too long. She couldn’t hold back. The first tremor of her orgasm erupted and Kane pressed hard with his fingers. Her body contracted and pulsed, and all the time, he held her tightly against his body.

  When she could breathe again, it was still a few moments before her legs could hold weight. She turned toward him and looked up into those eyes. “Sorry, it was a little fast. It’s been a long time.”

  “It was perfect,” he said. “I’m going to make you come a dozen more times, Lena.”

  His promise sent goose bumps rushing down her body. Her lower abdomen contracted at the thought of so much pleasure.

  Kane still held the soap and proceeded to wash her from shoulders to toes. He then washed himself. She couldn’t take her eyes away as he slid his hand down his ripped abs and grasped his long, hard cock. She stood mute, salivating and wanting to take his shaft deep in her throat.

  “I won’t stop you.” He was still holding his cock and smiling.

  Her eyes snapped up to his. “You really have to stop listening to my thoughts.”

  “Not a chance, baby. They’re so dirty. I don’t want to miss a thing. Besides, when they’re so intense, it’s as if you are yelling them through a bullhorn.”

  The shower had a small concrete bench set into one end. Lena perched herself on it and told him without words he should bring himself over.

  Without hesitation, he stood in front of her, cock at lip level. She didn’t wait, pulling him deep into her mouth and opening her throat to take him much deeper.

  He groaned loudly. “Ahh, Lena.”

  She let him slide slowly out of her mouth while using her tongue to stimulate his taut flesh. He escaped with a pop and her tongue swirled around the head, dipping into the slit at the top for an instant before pulling him deep again.

  With each deep intake, he said her name. She loved the way he said it as if she were some deity or saint. The feel of his cock sliding deep in her throat had her own juices gushing.

  He suddenly took a step away. She looked up at him. He was out of breath. She asked the question without saying a word.

  “I don’t want this to be over too soon, baby. I want to feel you pulsing around me when I come.” He reached down, turned off the shower and offered his hand. She took it and they stepped out of the shower.

  She grabbed a towel and dried off while watching him take his wallet out, pull a condom from within and tuck it in his palm. Then he turned to the sink. He looked down into the water where her stones lay soaking, then looked at her. He was dripping on the tile floor, but didn’t seem to care. She half expected him to grab the stones and run, but he just turned and pulled a towel down from the shelf above the toilet.

  He had to be the strangest man she’d ever met. First he’d dragged her out of a bar and tossed her over his shoulder as if she was a sack of potatoes. Less than twenty-four hours later, he was seducing her. Maybe she was seducing him. The lines had become blurred. The only thing she was certain of was she wanted Kane Lakeland more than she’d ever wanted anyone in her life. Even at the beginning with Oscar, it had never been so intense. She had never yearned for him the way she did for Kane. In fact, her relationship with Oscar had never been about sex. It had
always been about the stones. Even before she knew they were what he wanted, it had not been about sex.

  “You can touch them if you want,” she said, referring to the stones.

  His mouth pulled up, but just one corner. “I think I’d rather touch the place where they were hidden.”

  “Don’t you even want to know what they are?” She moved close to him.

  He rubbed the towel over his dark hair. It spiked out in every direction. Then he tossed the towel over the rack and reached up to smooth his hands over his hair. He looked completely comfortable with his nudity. Why shouldn’t he? His body was lean and muscular. His shoulders were broad and a smattering of dark hair covered his chest. “Lena, I won’t lie and tell you I’m not curious about five little pieces of shiny rock that would make a man as powerful as your ex hire a psychic army to find you. I just have other things on my mind at the moment.”

  “Other things?”

  He wrapped his arms around her and tossed her towel to the floor. “Yes, other things.” He bent his head and his mouth covered hers.

  His lips magically glided over hers, demanding and coaxing at the same time. There was no doubt in Lena’s mind Kane wanted her. He may have also wanted her gifts, but for the moment it was her body he desired.

  Her hands made their way to his shoulders. His grip on her waist tightened and he lifted her feet off the floor, backing them out of the bathroom. His power and strength should have frightened her, but his lips were so gentle, nipping and sucking each of hers, one at a time. She mimicked him kiss for kiss. When the tip of his tongue breached her lips, she touched it with her own. He moaned and devoured her mouth, plunging his tongue in and swirling it with hers.

  When he broke the kiss, they were both gasping for air. She looked around, surprised to find he had not taken her to the bed. Her feet had never touched the floor. He set her on the small glass table in the kitchen of the luxurious suite. The cold glass shocked her at first, but then she allowed the coldness to heighten her arousal.

  Pressing her knees apart, Kane stepped between them. His cock stood out from his body, perched at her wet opening. She couldn’t take her eyes away from the sight of his shaft only millimeters from her pussy. She could feel her juices filling her as her clit tightened in response to his coming thrust.