it from view. That was no doubt part of the reason the cabin had been chosen as a hideaway. It was virtually invisible from the front or the back until you were right on it.
He walked a few yards of the overgrown path toward the water, then stepped behind the trunk of an aged oak tree. Out of sight and too far away to be overheard if Luke did wake and venture out to look for him, yet close enough he could hear Jaime if she screamed—over a roach or worse.
Bending, he removed the small phone from inside his left boot, his fingers brushing the handle of the hunting knife that rested there in its twin leather sheath. Neither Poncho nor Luke suspected he had this completely private and untraceable mobile device on him.
He placed the call, knowing there would be an almost instant response even at this time of the night. He wasn’t disappointed.
“What’s up?”
“Trouble.”
“Specifics?”
“I’ve just helped kidnap a woman named Jaime Collingsworth. I’m guessing she’s connected to Collingsworth Oil.”
“You kidnapped Jaime Collingsworth?” A few curses punctuated the incredulity in his tone.
“I take it that means you know who she is.”
“I was good friends with her brother Langston back when we were riding the high school rodeo circuit. Jaime was just a kid then, but I met her on several occasions. And not only do the Collingsworths own Collingsworth Oil, they also have the second biggest ranch in Texas.”
So the cartel had taken a major risk in kidnapping Jaime—meaning they expected a bonanza from this. And Rio had ended up right in the middle of it, exactly where he’d hoped to be. Only he hadn’t been counting on Jaime to complicate matters.
Rio gathered all the facts he could from the phone call. By the time he’d broken the connection and walked back to the cabin, his head was reeling with the new information, but none of the confusion had been cleared.
He still needed answers and the rest would have to come from the sexy blond spitfire who seemed less afraid of him than she was a cockroach. Every path in sight was mined.
But he’d signed on to do a job. And with a frogman, even a former one, failure was never an option.
IT RAINED SOMETIME during the night, a steady downpour that cleared the pollen from the air and then gave way to the brilliant glow of the morning sun. Even filtered through the layers of grime that smudged the cabin’s windows, the rays painted the dingy kitchen in golden streams of light.
Rio checked out the refrigerator for food while Luke sat at the marred kitchen table scratching the toes of his right foot. Jaime was still in her room, though Rio had unlocked it a good half hour ago and told her she was welcome to come out for coffee.
The options for food were limited, but better than Rio had expected. “How about toast, bacon and eggs?” he asked.
“I could go for that,” Luke agreed, finally reaching for his sock, “but I say make the broad cook it. Cooking’s woman’s work.”
“Easy to see why you’re not married.”
“I’m serious. I don’t see why she should just get to lie around all day while we wait on her.”
“She didn’t exactly plan the party.” Rio took a skillet from the dishes he’d washed earlier that morning. With roaches and who knows what other insects and rodents scampering about, detergent and hot water seemed a good idea. He placed the bacon in it and put it over a low fire, then started spreading butter on bread for toast.
Soft footfalls sounded in the hall. He turned around just as Jaime stepped inside the kitchen door.
“There’s coffee,” Rio said, his eyes riveted to the petite, but shapely woman who showed little signs of the stress she had to be feeling.
Her wraparound dress was wrinkled, but hugged her perky breasts and firm, round buttocks provocatively. She’d shed the jewelry and the sexy heels. Her bare feet and freshly scrubbed face made her look almost waiflike. Her hair, which had been up last night, was down, the strawberry-blond locks tumbling around her shoulders. Disheveled. Tempting.
“I’d like to take a shower,” she said. “Or isn’t there one in this disgusting place?”
“There’s one,” Rio said, “but it’s not working. The water’s a bit cold in the lake, but I’ll walk you down there after breakfast if you’d like to bathe.”
Luke leered at her. “I’ll take care of that chore.”
She shot him a castrating look. “I’d sooner wallow in mud.”
“Yeah, that sounds fun, too.”
Rio filled a clean mug with coffee and handed it to her. “There’s sugar on the counter and milk in the fridge if you want it.”
“No, this is fine,” she murmured. “Thanks.”
There was a pause before the last word, as if it was added as an afterthought. He hoped that meant she was coming around to the point where she might cooperate with him, but he wouldn’t hold his breath waiting for that.
“How do you like your eggs?” he asked.
“Why ask her?” Luke quipped. “She ought to be cooking for us, if the princess knows how to scramble an egg.”
Jaime marched across the kitchen, planted herself in front of the grease-stained range and grabbed the carton of eggs. She broke two into the small skillet and then glared at Luke. “How much arsenic do you want in yours?”
“You got a smart mouth on you, you know that? I want them over easy, and don’t break the yolks.”
Rio removed a pan of toast from beneath the broiler and watched as she deliberately pricked the first yolk and let the yellow run to the edges of the skillet. If they made it through breakfast without a major flare-up between her and Luke he’d be surprised—and relieved.
He didn’t put anything beyond Luke, especially if Jaime pushed him. He’d as soon rape her as not. The way he was looking at her right now evidenced the thought was already festering in his mind.
When the eggs were ready, Jaime slid them onto a plate, sprinkled them generously with salt and pepper and then tossed a couple of slices of toast next to them. “Jelly?” she asked, eyeing a large jar of strawberry preserves.
“Sure, sweetheart. Why not?” Luke said, smiling. “And I want you to sit with me while I eat. Right here,” he said, patting his right knee. “We need to get to know each other better.”
Her expression was one of fury, but her hands were steady as she opened the jar and spooned a large helping of the sticky condiment onto the plate next to the eggs. Padding across the floor determinedly, she stopped inches from Luke.
Luke patted his knee again. Jaime smiled. Rio’s muscles hardened into bulging knots as he braced himself for trouble. Jaime took the last step and then tripped, falling against the table as the plate dropped from her hands and landed upside down in Luke’s lap.
Curses
