Damn.
The stranger.
More of those images flooded his brain. Those slender legs entwining his body. Her blood-red nails clawing his skin.
What the hell had he been thinking?
That was the trouble, he hadn’t been thinking.
“Shit.”
Kicking the sheet aside, he sat up. Where wasshe?
He dropped his feet to the floor and fumbled for his boxers. Dragging them on, he walked unsteadily to the bathroom. Deserted. No toiletries other than the ones provided by the hotel. He checked the closet. No clothes. Just empty hangers, one swinging back and forth from the violent way he’d jerked open the door.
The only evidence that he hadn’t imagined the whole event was the bottle of rum on the bar.
She was gone.
Luttrell.Carson was going to kick the shit of the guy.
Dread swelled in his chest.
What time is it?
His gaze veered to the bedside table and the digital clock waiting there, taunting him with its glaring numbers.
8:04.
“Damn it!”
He was late.
He tugged on his trousers. Fumbled around for his shirt, socks, and shoes. No time for a shower or to go home for a change of clothes.
After one last survey of the room, he grabbed his tie, shouldered into his jacket, and headed for the lobby. He hadn’t drunk enough for a hangover, but he still felt like death warmed over. Side effects from the regret and the guilt sitting like an elephant on his shoulders.
How the hell had he let this happen?
Outside on the sidewalk, he took a moment to gain his bearings. He’d parked near the bar. Across the street and a block to the right.
Not far, but nothing was going to change the fact that he was late.
He stepped off the curb.
The roar of an engine bristled the hair on the back of his neck.
He swung his gaze left.
Car.
His heart launched into his throat.
He stumbled back. The vehicle whizzed past, the fender brushing the crease in his trousers.
What the hell?
Half a dozen seconds passed with him struggling to recapture his equilibrium. He sucked in a breath. Tires squealing, the black sedan with its heavily tinted windows disappeared around the corner at the next block.
