Page 48 of Preacher


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“Yeah? My mom’s got a new guy. Didn’t know about him.”

“That so? Is she worried about what you might think or that you're a tough Navy SEAL and might intimidate the poor guy?”

He grinned and laughed out loud, and it was as if someone flipped her world upside down.She hadn’t experienced him this way—carefree—nor had she ever heard him laugh, and the transformation in him was magical. There was a boyishness to him, mesmerizing her. Dazed and wanting to get closer to him, she realized he made her feel as buoyant as he was right now. Beneath this warrior, this dangerous man was an even more appealing guy, turning her attraction to him into an intoxicating rush.

“You finish up your souvenir shopping, and I’ll go get our wheels.”

He raised his brows. “You have friends in high places?”

“I have a handler who takes care of my demands and my needs.”

He frowned. “Come again?” He raised his head, intently watching her through narrowed eyes, a tone of warning in his voice.

“Down, boy. When it comes to tactical stuff,” she said, nudging him.

He raised his brows, teasing her. She lifted her chin and gave him a prim smile. “I swear,” she said, laughing softly and making an imprudent face. “Oh, and I’m starving. Let’s pick up some food first.”

“Sure. I’m ready and willing to take care of your demands and needs of any kind.”

She experienced that flustered feeling again, giving him a knowing half smile when she got his drift. There was something so wonderfully intimate about the look in his eyes, and a heady warmth spread through her as she stood motionless, transfixed by an indefinable spell. The magic lingered when thecholaasked Preacher if he was ready.

“I’ll pull around.” While he was cashing out, Karasu took the time to call a couple of her contacts. Namely, Gonchaya. When she’d boarded the jet for Bolivia, he’d been seated inside. The one she really wanted to get through to didn’t answer her calls. She might have to track his ass down tomorrow. Was he ducking because he didn’t want to answer her questions? Too bad. He owed her.

When Preacher got into the vehicle, he stared at her. “Pretty fancy wheels,” he said.

She smiled at his tease. She liked her cars fast and this dark blue British racing BMW hard-top fit the bill. “If you’re nice to me, I might let you drive it,” she said, and he chuckled. “After food, we’re going somewhere…private.”

“I like the sound of that.”

It was decadent but bending and breaking the rules was in her blood. Shadowguard did have some fluid boundaries. Her first stop was at a place filled with street vendors she loved. She orderedanticuchofor both of them, which was basically a beef barbeque shishkabob, and some small, deliciousempanadas de queso, baked with an ooey-gooey cheese center. Finally, she picked up some of that spicymocobincbi.She also stopped and picked up somealfajores, melt-in-your-mouth sandwich cookies with dulce de leche in the center.

She drove to Zona Sur, the posh neighborhood in La Paz where the wealthy lived. It was quieter and warmer here, with very few tourists. She pulled up to a three-story house and touched a combination on her phone. A gate opened, and she drove inside a courtyard. Real estate like this was expensive and hard to come by. She pushed another button and the three-car garage opened, revealing several vehicles.

The modern house was glass and stone with Asian-style landscaping in front and a garden in the back with lights leading up to the front door. She closed the garage as Preacher got out of the car with the food.

He followed her without comment. Inside was just as posh and beautiful as the outside. She walked down a hall, then hit a switch. A door sealed them off so tightly, her ears popped. She let out a sigh, then turned down the hall, and walked further inside.

She went to the kitchen and grabbed two plates and forks.

“This place yours?” Preacher asked as he followed her through the kitchen to the patio that had a gorgeous, blue-tinted pool amongst the greenery, along with a softly trickling waterfall. It was an oasis in the bowl of a city. His hand slipped against the small of her back and did incredible things to her spine, and she felt as though her whole body were turning to mush. She gave herself a quick mental lecture about reacting like a silly adolescent, then forced herself to take a deep breath before she turned to look at him.

“No. If I’m going to have a…home, it’s going to be someplace tropical, not in an overcrowded, ugly city. No offense to the people who live here. Their culture is quite fascinating, though.”

“Blunt as usual,” he said, setting down the food onto a round mosaic table, the umbrella shading them from the sun. He turned to face her.

Her laugh had an odd throaty timbre to it, and her voice was slightly unsteady as she responded. “No, this place belongs to the Company for field use.” It would allow her to slip in and out easily without any eyes on her at the busy HQ. It seemed she always had ulterior motives. Of course, it afforded her some alone time with Preacher, something she’d been craving since the first moment she met this man.

He grinned back at her, and for one electric moment their eyes held, like in the market. In that instant, Karasu had the overpowering sensation that she meshed body and soul with this man, and she felt an undeniable closeness, a kind of harmony she’d never had with anyone else. The effect was staggering.

Preacher drew in a ragged breath and his gaze slid to her mouth, his touch on her lower back almost a caress as he said unevenly. “A safe house.” His voice was even more husky as he put pressure on her back, prompting her to move.

She shrugged, taking his cue, fighting to gather the strength and willpower to stay out of his personal space. They were both so hungry and not just for food. She regretfully severed the physical contact but was surprised that the sense of oneness remained. Struggling to regain at least some semblance of reasoning, she folded down into the chair. “Yes, that’s the lingo.” She opened the containers and started to dish out the food. “I thought we could stay here tonight, since your team is in Copacabana. Get to know each other better. Have some privacy.”

“I like the sound of that.” His voice had a sudden husky texture to it, and he said softly, “We’ve wasted too much time.”

It felt like everything was going into a long slow spin, leaving her light-headed.

Who was she trying to kid?she thought, her senses thrown into a mindless muddle by his words. This was as real as anything was going to get.

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