AllFreeNovel
Share Us
When the newest Navarro cartel leader handed me the black bikini, the last thing I felt like doing was swimming, until I dove into the salt water.
“We good?” he asks softly.
I push a wet strand of hair off his forehead. “Of course we’re good.”
A dark cloud passes across his gaze. “I never wanted you to see any of this.”
“I know.” But I signed up for it when I took his deal, whether I realized it or not.
“It’s almost done.”
“Vlad?”
“Being taken care of as we speak.” His eyes flip to me, and the meaning there is clear.
His father will be dead soon.
I take a shaky breath. “I thought you guys wanted to see him one more time.” Caleb said as much in Ava’s office.
“I don’t want to see anyone but you, not worrying about your father or me or yourself anymore.” Gabriel presses his lips against my skin. “That’s all that matters to me anymore. You’re all that matters to me.”
I stroke my fingers through his hair, careful of the wound. “Will Ava let us go home now? It’s been a very long day and I’m tired.”
“Yeah, we’re all done here. We’re just waiting for Caleb.”
“What’s he doing?”
“Ava.” He smirks. “And maybe Merrick.”
“Oh my God. Of course.” I chuckle, but in my mind—in the far distance, obscured by the horrifying memory of Bane—I recall a heady night overlooking the Vegas rooftop terrace, with Caleb and Merrick swapping women under the night sky.
Caleb, Ava, and Merrick though…. That’s a different dynamic. I’m not sure how that will work. “Are they out there?” I nod toward the pools.
“No. They’re in the house. She’s the boss of a cartel now. She probably shouldn’t do things like that in front of her men.” Gabriel traces a playful fingertip over my bare skin, slipping beneath the seam of my bikini bottom. Gooseflesh instantly prickles my bare skin, with the anticipation of him slipping that fingertip inside and teasing me the way he so expertly does.
Only, he stops short, as if thinking better of it, and then slips his hand back out.
My frustration swells. I know he’s trying to be respectful—of my ordeal the last few days, of the fact that we’re in a cartel compound surrounded by security—but right now I need the Gabriel I know back. “If you see Gabriel Easton anywhere, can you return him to me, please? You know, the dirty, foul-mouthed bastard I met at Fulcort?” On impulse, I reach down and yank the ties of my bikini, unfastening the bottoms. The material falls off.
His eyebrow arches.
We have an hour to kill in here, and no one can see us, hidden within this little nook. The thrill of that is stirring my blood. I lean back against the wall and pull my thighs apart.
With a curse and a devilish smirk, he dives in.
I sigh with the first swipe of his tongue. “There he is.”
“Are we finally ready to go?” Caleb hollers as we exit the pool house, hand in hand, dressed in our ruined clothes.
Gabriel makes a point of checking his watch. Three hours have past since he swam through that waterfall. We spent most of it in the king-sized bed, planning our future between rounds of slow, mind-blowing sex. Meanwhile, Vince found a comfortable spot on a lounger where he drifted off, waiting for his brother’s exploits to wrap up.
He and Merrick head toward their helicopter with no more than a nod toward us, as if to say, “Until next time.” Merrick’s hair is mussed and his lips are puffy, and he wears a small smile as if carrying a secret.
“Thanks for the drink.” Caleb blows a kiss to Ava, who watches us from a second-floor balcony, her silky black robe rustling in the slight breeze. “We’ll be in touch soon about that hotel. I could use your help getting him to come around!” His eyes are red and bleary, and I doubt that’s just from booze, knowing Caleb and his proclivity for recreational drugs.
Will he ever outgrow this reckless lifestyle?
“Perhaps.” Ava’s dark eyes drift to me. With a nod, she disappears into the house.
And we head for the gates.
Gabriel wraps his arms around me as we watch Merrick and Vince’s helicopter take off into the night sky, heading toward Napa.
“When do you think we’ll see them again?”
“Sooner than I want, I’m sure.” Gabriel’s eyes are on Ava’s pilot as he climbs into the other helicopter and starts the engine.
“But not too soon.”
“No, babe, not too soon.” He nuzzles his face into the crook of my neck. “We have a few things we need to take care of. A visit to city hall in the morning, a trip to Saint Lucia in the afternoon….”
A thrill courses through me. I’ve already booked the week off and with Empire closed, there’s no better time for the two of us to escape. “After a visit to your doctor for your head, of course.”
