The Espionage Effect(40)
As we approached the mouth of the inlet again, the last tree canopy vanished and the sun bathed us in uninterrupted warmth once again. Yet another example of the world’s irony: An idyllic afternoon on the outside—bright blue-sky day, glittering turquoise waters—concealed dangerous complexities that lurked just below the surface, detectable only if you knew what to look for.
The afternoon and I had a lot in common.
Without another word, we secured our masks back onto our faces and surveyed the coral reef once more. Minutes stretched by as the afternoon lazed on. We had donned our “spy” personas again, cloaking us in the believable cover of tourists exploring the second largest coral reef in the world.
Eventually we made our way back to the boat. By the lowered angle of the sun, I figured we’d only been out in the water an hour and a half. Plenty of time.
When he locked his hands on my forearms and pulled me safely onto the teak boards of the thirty-foot speedboat he’d supposedly “borrowed,” I steadied myself.
I blurted out the question hovering on my tongue. “Come with me on a sunset cruise.” Okay. So what had been meant as an invitation sounded more like a command.
His eyes narrowed. “A sunset cruise?”
“Sure. Like you said, I’m the perfect cover. And Anna bailed on the cruise we’d booked to have dinner with her doctor instead.”
“Escobar?” He frowned.
Ahhh, so he’s not thrilled about that tidbit of information. “So it is the same Escobar.”
“His son,” Alec ground out.
I blinked, utterly confused.
One second, I stood in the coolness of his shadow. The next, the glare of the sun blinded my eyes. I stumbled a couple of steps to the side with a rocking wave, then spun around to find his back toward me. He stopped at the console and flipped a switch. A low whirring sound emitted from the engine compartment for about twenty seconds before he turned the key and fired up the engines.
Intrigued to see the almighty spy who had it all figured out flustered by my inviting him to an event he hadn’t predicted, I followed him, then grasped the handhold on the dash as he pushed the throttles forward, sending us skimming through the water.
“Well?” I prodded as we both stared forward over the bow. We had barely over an hour to shower and get ready. Which gave us just enough time to meet at the boat launch.
His gaze never wavered from the horizon as we began the ten-minute high-speed ride toward the resort. “I’ll be at your place at 5:00 p.m.”
The satisfied nod I gave was as much for my benefit as his. I’d convinced him to see me again, advancing the covertly obtained training I yearned to continue. And he gained more reconnaissance time for his precious mission, one he’d adamantly insisted I not take part in.
If only he knew just how stealthy I’d quickly learned to be.
“How exactly is this a sunset cruise?” I scanned the crowd of twenty-seven people who milled around, many holding complimentary pink rum punch that sloshed in squat clear plastic cups.
“It’s a cruise. At sunset.” His arm wrapped innocently around my back.
But the hand resting not-so-innocently on my hip taunted heated memories to the surface. I blew out a measured breath, attempting to exude his same cool demeanor. “Thank you, Master of the Obvious.”
On were those sunglasses again, obscuring his dark eyes that expressed so much. He stared in the direction of Escobar’s house once more. Although no amusement pulled at the corners of his mouth, I knew his dry sense of humor lurked beneath the surface of his steadfast persona.
“I checked with the captain as we boarded,” he offered. “We sail out to sea, about half a mile, then run the coast until the sun sets over jungle to the west.”
With how the concierge had described the experience to Anna and me, I’d expected to board a sailboat, yet was surprised to find us on an enormous double-hulled catamaran. I curved my fingers around the top portion of a railing made of rubber-coated wire cable that stretched along the side of the catamaran like a flexible split-rail fence.
His casual grip around me tightened with the increased movement of the watercraft, and I eased sideways against him, welcoming the support. Even though the heat of his skin permeating through our linen clothing made my breath catch. Even though it triggered more erotic memories of us connected together without any clothing whatsoever.
On another slow exhale, I forced my attention away from the lingering erotic images, and watched the jungle-fringed ivory beaches slip by before they faded away as we angled out toward sea. Gradually, the glow in the northeastern sky transformed into shades of peach, and Alec guided me to face toward the southwest. The coral sun shimmered over the slim landmass before it began to dip below the jungle-canopy tree line.
And as slow as the sun had always seemed when it inched across the sky during daytime, its speed of descent at the moment of sunset was remarkable, the fiery orb disappearing by degrees with every blink of my eye.
Once the sun became a mere pinkish sliver, threatening to slip into the shadowy expanse, Alec gently turned my body fully toward the ocean, his solid chest pressed against my shoulders. The rough stubble of his cheek scratched over my skin as he bent down, warm breath fanning over my jawline.
Caught off guard, I closed my eyes, inhaling a deep breath to try to calm my eager body. Which resulted in his intoxicating scent wafting through my nostrils, exciting me further.