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Edward broke off the kiss but continued to brush his lips against Daniel’s in a series of gentle, teasing kisses. “I am really liking this new way you greet me. If I just need to get involved in a little restaurant shootout every once in a while to get this kind of attention…”
Daniel groaned and shoved out of Edward’s grasp. Relief was starting to be replaced by annoyance, and it was getting easier to remember that Edward got him into this mess in the first place.
“Where the hell were you? Why did it take you so long to get here?” he demanded again.
“It took me this long because I was following you,” Edward replied. He started to lead the way over to the car, but Daniel’s legs didn’t immediately follow as his brain turned over the man’s words.
“What?”
“I was following you. Making sure you didn’t have trouble.” Edward smirked over his shoulder at Daniel. “Please tell me you were doing it on purpose. That you weren’t actually lost.”
“Go to hell! I wasn’t lost.” Daniel marched over to the passenger side of the car, grabbed the key, and unlocked the door. He remained standing, glaring over the roof at Edward. “I was sure someone was following me, and I was trying to lose them.”
Edward grinned at Daniel before dropping into the car. Daniel climbed in and shut his door. It was only when he’d buckled his seat belt that he looked over at Edward again. “Was there…someone…following me?”
The car engine rumbled to life and Edward shifted into drive, but before he lifted his foot from the brake, he looked at Daniel. “Yeah, a couple. But I took care of them.”
Daniel sighed and slumped into his seat. His instincts had been right. Someone had been following him. Unfortunately, he wasn’t sure if it was Edward he’d sensed or the person trying to kill him. Apparently, he wasn’t as skillful as he’d hoped.
“I’m never going to be able to return to Barcelona, am I?” he mumbled.
“After that little incident?” Edward chuckled. “Not a big deal at all. You might avoid La Plassohla for a year or two, but you can come back to Barcelona.”
“I never even got to try the food.”
Edward reached across and grabbed his knee. “Don’t worry. We’re heading to France. And you know the French are great cooks. It’s in their DNA.”
Daniel snorted at Edward’s ridiculous comment and then turned serious again. “Thanks for saving my life.”
“Always, Daniel.” Edward squeezed his knee once before releasing it to put his hand back on the steering wheel as he maneuvered them out of the city. “Always.”
Never in Daniel’s life had he ever wanted to believe something as badly as he wanted to believe that one whispered word from Edward. But he knew always wasn’t in the cards for them.Chapter EightThey took an obscure, scenic route through the Pyrenees Mountains into France. Too bad it was nighttime, because the view from this road during the day would have blown Daniel’s mind. He would have seen low-hanging clouds adding a fluffy white mist to the fields of bright green interspersed with rocky peaks and deep ravines. But now, only the moonlight and their headlights lit the fields and rocky outcroppings.
The road Edward chose was narrow and winding with curves that made Daniel gasp next to him. Edward bit back a smile and kept his eyes peeled. He’d chosen this route hoping they wouldn’t be followed, but the roads were a bit hairy. Usually he found them to be an entertaining challenge. He’d made this drive before and knew what he was doing.
“So, we know one set of buyers is Asian. Korean, maybe?” Daniel asked as he rubbed his ears. Edward’s ears were popping from the climb, so he could only assume Daniel’s were as well.
“North Korean, actually. The woman you met is pretty well-known in certain circles.”
“What about the people who kidnapped us in Bermuda?”
“They were from Saudi Arabia. Mr. Jones was playing a deadly game he had no hope of winning.” Edward slowed the car down to a crawl for a sharp curve.
Daniel gripped the handle on his door and the console in the center. “I still can’t believe Mrs. Han just pulled out a gun in the restaurant like that.”
“She’s not playing a game.” He checked the rearview mirror to see they were still alone on the road.
“Based on the two countries involved so far, do you have any idea who else might be in the bidding? Mrs. Han was pissed as hell that others were. I get the feeling she thought they were the only buyers.”
“I can only speculate, but Russia and China would be top contenders. Unfortunately, we’ve not made a lot of friends in the international community in the past few years. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were a few ‘allies’ who wouldn’t mind getting their hands on this info, if only to use it as leverage later.”
