“On who exactly you are, and if we have to worry about someone wanting you back.” Essie bit her lip. “Care to clue me in, Peaches? Because I’d really hate to be caught with my pants down and my dick in my hand.”
Essie felt her cheeks flush as the suggestive image flashed through her mind. She shook her head and lowered her eyes, removing any shred of the visual from her thoughts.
“I’m nobody.” Best to lie. Keep him on a need-to-know basis. They’d reach Manzanillo in a couple of days and part ways. She didn’t need him hating her for the next forty-eight hours. She’drather keep things pleasant between them. Especially since he still made her edgy and more than a little anxious. Plus, there was always the risk that if she told him her true identity—the sister of the man who’d had him beaten and locked away—he might leave her to fend for herself despite their agreement.
“Mmm-hmm.”
He didn’t sound at all convinced.
When he took a step forward, she automatically took one back. Then instantly got mad at herself because she was showing fear. Rolling her shoulders back, pushing her chest forward, she pulled in a breath and shoved her index finger against his very firm chest. Much firmer than she’d anticipated.
“Don’t you dare try to intimidate me.” She kept her voice low but firm. She had something to prove to him. To herself. “My whole life, I’ve been surrounded by macho male jerks who bossed me around and tried to control me. But this ismylife. You willnotfrighten me into submission. And I will make my own decisions, including what I will and will not share with you…Peaches.”
Xander bit the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing. The feisty woman had poked him in the chest and called him Peaches.Guess there’s a first time for everything.No one ever dared to speak to him so boldly. So recklessly. He often used his moody, broody, sometimes sarcastic attitude to unnerve. But hisnormal tactics didn’t seem to work on her. Now, with her chest heaving and her cheeks flushed, she looked ready to kick his ass.
She was a little scary and a lot adorable. Sexy, too. The breeze lifted her long, dark hair, blowing it past her shoulders, putting those full lips on tantalizing display. Currently, they pouted. And fuck if the urge to bite down on her lower lip struck him out of nowhere. They looked so soft and suckable. No doubt, one of Barrera’s men would miss hisbuchonawarming his bed tonight. She had to have been intimately connected with one of the high-ranking cartel members. She was too damn gorgeous to ignore. Unless…
She could’ve been Barrera’s woman.
The idea made his stomach revolt. Not because he wanted her, but because anything Barrera touched, he contaminated. Xander’s earlier amusement faded fast. “How about you keep your hands to yourself?” She opened her mouth to respond, but he cut her off. “We need to keep moving.”
A foul mood fell over him as they made their way through the dense undergrowth. It wasn’t easy in the dark, and the tropical forest teemed with dangerous creatures he hoped like hell to avoid. Why hadn’t he done something normal with his life? Like becoming a doctor? A plastic surgeon, maybe? Surrounded by tits and ass on a daily basis instead of this crap. But, no. He’d wanted excitement and danger.I am the fucking king of bad life choices.
With a heavy sigh, he trudged forward, ignoring his travel companion. She followed closely behind him, stepping where he stepped, most likely also hoping to avoid venomous snakes, aggressive spiders, stinging scorpions and his favorite top predator slinking around—the jaguar.
Hell, maybe being eaten by a jaguar would be a blessing in disguise. At least it would put him out of his misery.You’re such a morbid sonofabitch, Hawke.
They continued hiking, miles upon miles, until they were both breathing hard and thoroughly exhausted. Xander paused and wiped a hand across his sweating brow. Above them, the first faint tinges of daylight began to appear, and he realized they’d been walking all night. He’d pushed himself hard to get as far away from Barrera and his men as possible with zero consideration to his companion and her much shorter legs.
“Let’s take a break,” he said. Because endless weeks in captivity with minimal nourishment meant he was exhausted, too. He wasn’t sure how he’d made it this far without collapsing. Guess he’d chalk it up to sheer stubborn will.
She made a relieved sound and dropped to the ground. “I thought you were going to make us walk to Manzanillo all in one go,” she declared, out of breath.
“Sorry. I just don’t want to run into any trouble. The sooner we’re out of here, the better.” The area was crawling with Mexico’s most infamous narco traffickers, all fighting for control. And if her sweet ass belonged to Barrera, his men would capture her and kill him with zero hesitation. As much as he hated her being somehow connected to his arch enemy, he wasn’t going to leave her stranded and defenseless in the middle of the jungle and all its lurking terrors. He didn’t know why she escaped, but she must’ve had a good reason.
He watched as she opened her backpack and pulled out two bottles of water and a couple packages of peanut butter crackers. When she offered him half of her stash, he sat down beside her and grumbled a thanks. As he inhaled the snack—peanut butter crackers had never tasted so damn good—his attention drifted down to the backpack.
“I don’t suppose you have a weapon in there, do you?”
“No.”
He figured as much. She didn’t seem the type to know much about firearms, much less be toting one around. Sure,she’d shown him her fierce side, but she also seemed delicate. Extremely ladylike. Very,veryfeminine. He couldn’t ignore all her curvy, tempting assets if he tried.
“How about a toothbrush?” he joked, fully expecting her to say no. But when she nodded and plucked one out, along with a tiny tube of toothpaste, he wanted to kiss her.No, wrong phrase. Hawke. You definitely do not want to lock lips with the cartel princess.
But he did want to brush the crud off his teeth, and he gratefully accepted both. Squeezing a small amount onto the brush, he began scrubbing with glee as he surreptitiously studied her.
A part of him wanted to know more about her. Why had she run? What was her name? Why did she want to go to Manzanillo? It didn’t matter, though. Soon they would part ways. She could do whatever she wanted, and he would call Brandon Ward and the rest of the Motley Crew. Let them know he was alive.I’m sure they’ll be thrilled.He still felt bad about running off in the middle of an op. But he’d convince them to come down, help him launch a surprise attack on Barrera and kill the bastard.
If he’d learned anything from his thirty-some days in captivity, it was to not run off half-cocked and attempt to accomplish everything on his own. It was a new concept. He’d always been a loner. As far back as he could remember. But after meeting Brandon and the others, he’d learned it’s good to have friends. Men who had his back. And in this case, those men were highly-trained former military badasses. They’d help him bury José Barrera once and for all. Then maybe Xander could finally sleep better at night.
Yeah, right.Guilt over what happened to Lyssa would always eat away at him. Haunt him until he lay on his death bed and exhaled his last breath.
Xander spit, rinsed his mouth and handed the toothbrush and paste back to Essie.Ah, minty fresh.While she packed it back up, he drank the rest of the water and crushed the plastic bottle flat between his hands. Since there was no recycling can in sight, and little chance of finding clean water to refill it, he was about to toss it when movement caught his eye. A shadow slithered right down the middle of the path, stopping beside the backpack.
“Don’t move,” he gritted between clenched teeth, zeroing in on the deadliest snake in Tierra Caliente—the fer-de-lance.
“What—”
