Exposed. Samantha Keith

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СКАЧАТЬ style="font-size:15px;">      “All right, thanks.”

      They disconnected and Nate dropped his head back on the seat. Jesus Christ, this was getting crazy. Not only was he lying to Ethan, but now he had to act as a mediator between him and Maddie. He wasn’t in any shape to talk to her. Not after witnessing her groping the sleazy sonofabitch Carlos.

      His gaze fell to the clock on the dash, 4:30 p.m. Maddie had sent him a text last night from the encrypted phone he’d given her, telling him she’d be on the yacht for most of the day. He couldn’t risk reaching out to her while she was with him.

      An image of Maddie, naked and glistening, while hair-covered Carlos pumped into her flashed across his mind. He rubbed his palms over his eye sockets. If she was fucking him, he would lose his mind. All he wanted to do was take her full mouth into his as he had the night of the wedding.

      And yeah, have her naked and under him too.

      His teeth sank into his tongue. This was too dangerous. He’d pay Maddie a visit tonight and tell her he was going to assign someone else to the case.

      He couldn’t continue torturing himself and lying. Enough was enough.

      * * * *

      The soft click of the lock sounded and the door swung open. A pool of light shone through the hall, its glow stopped just short of his toes. Darkness washed over the room and the door slammed shut. A light flicked on almost instantly.

      “Jesus!” Maddie shrieked, her hand slammed against her chest and her purse flung against the wall. Her dark eyebrows snapped over her eyes. “What the hell are you doing here? You gave me a damn heart attack,” she hissed. Her hair waved in soft, wild tendrils over her shoulders, and her sunglasses sat high on her head. She wore miniscule white cotton shorts and some kind of loose, hanging thing over her gold bikini top, which did absolutely nothing to hide her cleavage and soft skin below her belly-button.

      He got to his feet and shifted his pants, but it didn’t create any more room for his soldier. He pressed his finger to his lips. He’d gone through her apartment and hadn’t found any bugs or surveillance devices. That didn’t mean Carlos hadn’t planted anything on her.

      Maddie’s hand rested on her hip, and her eyes flashed at him. “Well? What are you—”

      Her soft, flowery perfume wafted to his nostrils as he closed the gap between them. The slim lines of her brows creased with confusion. He held his finger to his lips again and took her cloth beach bag from her arm. He dug through it, while Maddie’s foot tapped the smooth linoleum under their feet.

      Nothing but clothes and female crap. It didn’t fit Carlos’s bill if he weren’t suspicious of Maddie. The slim line of a small zipper caught his eye. He opened it and fished inside. His fingers closed over a small round device, no bigger than a dime.

      He pulled it out and opened his hand.

      Maddie gasped, and her hands fluttered to her throat. Her wide blue eyes rounded on his. Fear, raw and sharp, flashed shadows across her face.

      “It’s a GPS tracking device.” He dropped it back in her purse and folded his arms over his chest.

      Her shoulders sank and she leaned back against the wall, her hands poised at her temples. “Oh, my god, that scared the shit out of me.”

      “I take it you haven’t been checking your house or belongings regularly?”

      Her eyes met his. “He’s never been here. I’m not stupid, I know how to work undercover and I’ve taken even more precautions this time. My badge and credentials are hidden and—”

      Nate shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. It’s just a matter of time before he has someone come here while you’re working and plants some audio bugs.” Irritation rippled through him. “You need to be more careful, dammit. You’re lucky that wasn’t an audio bug.”

      Her jaw tensed and her eyes dropped to the floor. His shoulders braced in anticipation of her hot temper flaring, but it didn’t come. Her slim, tanned legs straightened as she pushed away from the wall. Her hands fidgeted in front of her and her gaze lifted to his.

      She was so damn beautiful she made his gut twist. If something happened to her… it would be his fault.

      “I feel so violated. I know it’s just a tracking device, but I thought he was starting to trust me.”

      His fingers flexed at his sides, itching to touch her. He balled his hands into fists. She took a step closer.

      “Men like Carlos don’t trust anyone. The fact that he’s letting you even a little bit into his circle only proves that he’s suspicious of you. You need to be really careful, Maddie.” His throat tightened on the words.

      She stopped within inches from him, the heat from her body radiated to his, calling him. His eyes dipped to her exposed belly and his tongue burned with the need to taste her. He dragged his gaze back up to her face. Uncertainty crinkled her smooth forehead. For as long as he’d known Maddie, she’d never shown weakness, never faltered.

      Her small, pink tongue came out to swipe her bottom lip and his muscles twitched in response.

      “You have to watch everything you say. Don’t trust anyone, no co-workers, neighbors… no one, got it?”

      “Of course. I wouldn’t anyway.”

      “One more thing,” he said and pulled his phone from his pocket. He brought up the email from his colleague Josh, pulled the images to life and turned the screen to face her.

      Her breath hissed out and a tinge of green replaced her golden tan. “Oh my god…” she croaked.

      “That’s Fabian Acosta. He was one of Carlos’s men, do you recognize him?”

      She shook her head, her knuckles pressed to her teeth.

      “He’s the last man to snitch on Carlos. His body was found the other day. Now do you comprehend the game you’re playing?”

      Her throat moved as she swallowed, and her eyes, the color of the depths of the ocean, turned glassy. “I know he’s dangerous for god’s sake.”

      “Did you know cutting out the tongues of snitches before murdering them is a signature move of his?”

      She sucked in a deep breath as if summoning strength from a deep well of water and shook her head. “No, but thanks for the image.”

      “It’s not too late to back out, Maddie.”

      She snorted and dropped her forehead to her fingers. “Are you kidding? He’d hunt the country looking for me if I bailed. I might as well just tell him our plan.” She lifted her chin and pulled her shoulders back. “I’m not quitting, Nate. I’ve come too close and am in too deep. This could be over in a couple weeks and he could finally be in prison. We have to continue.”

      He rolled his shoulders back but it didn’t ease the tension. He’d been stupid to think Fabian’s fate would sway her. When Maddie dug her teeth into something, she was worse than a bloody pit bull.

      “Why Carlos?”

      Her СКАЧАТЬ