Extreme Exposure Page 6

  Emily gestured to a big cottage about a mile up the shore. Bright outside lights reflected green from the trees onto the black surface of the water. “Is that the cottage?”

  He nodded. “I don’t see anybody now. Maybe they took the party inside.”

  Emily glanced over her shoulder. “You really think we can do this in a couple of hours?”

  “There’s a good chance,” he said in what he hoped was a confident tone. “The water looks pretty calm. It must be slack tide.” The better question was whether they could cross without being seen. The light from the moon, not full but well over half, lit the glassy surface of the water like a giant floodlight. He shuddered, picturing a big boat speeding across the cove toward them.

  The canoe jerked forward as they plunged their paddles into the water and then as they drew them back with long, swift strokes.

  He said, “We have to be careful not to tip. The last thing we want to do is fall in. It’s pretty cold, even at this time of year.” Remembering her jump into the ocean that morning, he added, “Sorry, you know that all too well.”

  “Do I ever.”

  He paddled on toward the lights, as if he were in a race, not letting himself slack off. Every six or seven strokes, he switched sides to keep the canoe straight, compensating for Emily. An hour later, by the time they were halfway across, his arms were sore. Not long after that, sharps needles of pain started shooting down from his shoulders to his wrists, even into his fingertips.

  Needing a break, he pulled the paddle out of the water. “How are you doing?”

  She stopped paddling, looked over her shoulder. Her face was pale in the moonlight. “I’m pretty sure I’m never getting in a canoe again in my life. The water feels thick as sludge.”

  He reached down, cupped some cold water in his hand, and splashed his face, tasting salt. “What will you do when we get to Egerton?”

  “Find a place to sleep for the night.” She gave a little smile. “You?”

  “I’ll figure out how I can go back and get my car.”

  Her mouth flew open. “I forgot about your car. I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t worry about it. I’ll get it somehow. Do you know anyone in Egerton?”

  “No. But I’ll be okay.” She turned to the front again, put her paddle back in the water to stop further questioning.

  He swallowed hard. It took great effort to not challenge that statement. She didn’t have a cent on her and would rather die than ask him for money or help. It drove him crazy, although sometimes he saw glimpses of something else there, a vulnerability that showed the real person underneath. At least he thought he did. He had no luck reading this woman.

  Emily let out a loud curse.

  Tensing, he looked up. “What’s wrong?”

  “I think we have a welcoming party.”

  Squinting through the darkness, it took a few seconds to make out the police cruiser parked at the end of the wharf. Cursing, he slapped the water. Would anything ever go their way?

  * * *

  Matt pulled the paddle out of the water, tried to think. There was one cop in front of the cruiser, leaning against the hood. It was too far to see if there was another one in the car, not that it would make that much difference. This could go south very quickly.

  Emily turned panicked eyes on him. “We have to go back.”

  “We can’t. They could get a boat and chase us down.”

  “You can’t turn me in.” Her pleading eyes met his.

  The cops were likely after the canoe, but he couldn’t be sure. What if she was right and it was the police who were trying to kill her? Even if it was just a couple of rogue cops, it made any dealings with the police risky.

  He said, “I won’t turn you in.” It felt all wrong, but he had no idea any more. He was navigating with a broken compass.

  “Thanks.” She let out a huge breath. “What are we going to do?”

  “We have to get to shore, fast.” But where? Ahead, bright lights lit up the water in front of the downtown. They wouldn’t be able to slip ashore unseen.

  Emily pointed about a mile down the shore to an area past the downtown core with fewer lights. “How about down there? What’s that big building?”

  “It’s a hotel, sort of a resort. I’ve been there a few times. I seem to remember a sandy beach. But we’ll have to be quick if we want to get there before the cops figure out where we’re going.”

  Veering left, he swept his paddle through the water with a long stroke. A glance back caught the cop car driving off the wharf.

  A few minutes later, her voice quaking, she said, “How did they find us?”

  “Try not to worry. It might just be the canoe.”

  “They wouldn’t go through this much trouble for a canoe.” Her paddle chopped at the water with short, quick strokes.

  “On a slow night they might.” Or if the canoe belonged to somebody who could put up a stink, somebody like Egerton’s mayor, who had a cottage in that area on the other side of the cove.

  Soon, there were fewer lights. Arm muscles screaming, he concentrated his strokes on the left side to steer the canoe closer to shore. A few minutes later, the main building of the resort rose before them and they felt the bottom of the canoe hit sand. Jumping out, he waded through the water, helped Emily out, and pulled the canoe up on the beach. There was no time to hide it.

  Crouching down, he peered through the tall grass near the water’s edge across two hundred feet of manicured lawn to the hotel. The voices of people sitting around tables on a ground-floor patio drifted down to the cove. It was likely a bar or restaurant with some seating outside, but he couldn’t recall. Other than that, there was nobody. Darkness shrouded the grounds, although bright lights lit the outside of the building.

  He turned to Emily. “I’m going to get a car. Want to hitch a ride?” She mulled over the offer, but the doubt in her eyes quickly vanished. They crawled backed down to the beach, where they sprinted, heads down, about fifty feet up the sand to where the lawn ended and a wooded area that skirted the property began. It took a couple of minutes to run up the edge of the woods and sprint across a narrow strip of open lawn to the side of the hotel.

  Panting, they crouched behind shrubs lining the side of the hotel foundation. There were no security guards that he could see.

  She said, “How are we going to get a car?”

  He avoided her look. “How do you think?”

  “That’s not funny.”

  “No choice. We have to get out of here quickly, before the cops come.”

  “If you steal a car, we’ll get caught for sure.” Frowning, she grabbed his arm. “Wait, how do you know how to steal a car?”

  “I’ve got a perfectly good explanation. I’ll tell you later. Right now, we have to get out of here.”

  She jumped up and down on the balls of her feet. “Shit.”

  He touched her shoulder. “Don’t worry, we won’t keep it. Just like the canoe.”

  Her eyes examined his face. “I don’t want you to get into trouble. They’ll throw you in jail if they catch you.”

  His heart gave a kick. It wasn’t much, a concern about getting him into trouble with the law more than anything. But it was something, something the softness in those green eyes couldn’t hide.

  Standing so close, he squeezed his eyes shut, fought an urge to touch her. When he opened them a second later, those big eyes, black with a halo of dark green, stared at him. The intensity was like oxygen on a fire smoldering deep inside him. His heart pounded in his chest. What if this was his last chance? If he didn’t touch her now, she could slip away and he might never taste those lips.

  Dipping his head, he cupped her chin in his hand and brushed his lips against hers. Her mouth was warm, salty. She sucked in a little breath and his tongue touched the tip of hers. Raw desire burning through him, he longed to bring her closer, to feel the length of her body against his. But he couldn’t, not now anyway, and he forced himself to pull away.
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  Her expression was bewildered. “What was that all about?”

  He didn’t say anything, just watched those dark eyes, waited for the hammer to fall. But she didn’t look angry, or scared, and she kept eye contact, didn’t back away.

  As if she hadn’t minded it at all.

  He turned around quickly, held that image before she remembered herself and put that wall back up between them.

  “Car.” Grabbing his arm, she dragged him behind a large rhododendron.

  Through the leathery leaves of the shrub, he watched the car approach, knowing even before he saw the lights on the roof that it would be the cops. Emily, huddled against the white clapboard siding of the hotel, looked at him, terror in her eyes again.

  He squeezed her hand. It was that kind of day. One step forward, two back.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Emily held her breath as the cruiser whipped past the side of the hotel and skidded to a stop at the front entrance. Seconds later, a car door slammed.

  Matt waited two beats before he peeked around the corner. “He’s gone inside. Let’s go.”

  The parking lot held about fifty cars, angled into tight slots in three long bays. Light poles every dozen feet lit the lot up like a Christmas tree. She held back a curse. How the heck did he think he’d be able to steal one without getting caught?

  With one eye on the hotel’s front entrance, she crept after him up the far side of the parking lot. He stopped at the third bay, crouched down.

  A car drove along the road toward the parking lot, the same way the cop car had come. It turned into the first bay, drove on to the second bay. She exchanged glances with Matt, and they crawled around to hide between two cars. After a few seconds, the purring of the engine stopped. Doors opened and the laughing voice of a woman cut through the night air. Sticking her head up, Emily watched a man put his arm around a woman who teetered in high heels, obviously drunk.

  When the couple started walking to the hotel entrance, Matt got up, moved along to an old car in the middle of the bay. “Probably an employee car,” he said when she had caught up. “I’d rather steal from the rich, but we wouldn’t be able to hotwire a new one. You keep watch.”

  Putting the knapsack on the ground beside him, he took off a shoe. Emily peered over the trunk of the car beside them. Not seeing anything, she glanced at Matt, who had removed a shoelace. He made a loop and threaded it through the door.

  She whispered, “Where did you learn this stuff? Or do I want to know?”

  “I took a three-day course on escape and evasion. Never did get to use it overseas, but it’s coming in handy right now.”

  He shot her a smile. Her stomach did that flip again, and warmth crept up her neck and into her face. He was gorgeous, so much so she couldn’t take her eyes off him. “I’ll have to sign up when this is over.”

  Easing the car door open, he fished a multi-tool out of his backpack, got in, and leaned across the seat. A few mumbled curses later, the car rumbled to life. The muffler sounded like somebody had dropped rocks in it. He snatched up his knapsack and motioned for her to get in the passenger side.

  As she moved around the car, the cop came out the hotel’s front entrance. Pulse pounding in her throat, she whispered a warning to Matt. Ducking down, they stared at each other, tried to listen for the cop but the car’s muffler was too loud.

  He said, “We have to go. We might attract more attention if we’re idling in the parking lot and I don’t want to shut it off. Duck down.”

  Heart beating furiously, she slid down in the seat. Matt picked up a ball cap from the backseat and put it on, then backed the car out and drove down the bay. The muffler made it sound like the car had tin cans attached, like a car with a sign bearing “Just Married” attached to it. The cop would stop them for sure.

  Heart beating furiously, she said, “Is he watching?”

  “Yes.” He exhaled heavily. “I hope we don’t have to make a run for it.”

  “Oh, God.” He couldn’t be serious. She felt the car turn left, and left again after ten long seconds. “Anything?”

  Watching the rearview mirror, it was a half-minute before he answered. “You can get up now. He’s not following.”

  She inched up, buckled her seat belt, waited for her heart to slow before speaking. “I just don’t get it. Why are they going through so much trouble for a canoe?”

  Avoiding her eyes, he scratched his head. “That was my fault.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “It was a nice canoe, looked brand new. It’s made of Kevlar.”

  “Kevlar? You picked a bullet-proof canoe? Did you think we were going to be shot at?”

  “I had one once. They won’t stop a bullet, but they’re light and fast.” A sheepish look was on his face. “But I think this one belonged to the mayor.”

  “What?”

  “The mayor has a cottage on the other side of the cove.”

  Relief flooded through her. “You should have told me sooner. Here I was, sure the cops were after me.”

  “Will I redeem myself if I buy you a burger?”

  “Can we risk it?”

  “I think so. We’ll get some coffee, too. We’ve got a long night ahead of us.”

  The road led them south, out of town, past a commercial area with gas stations, fast-food restaurants, and motels. He pulled up to a drive-through window at a fast-food restaurant and they ordered burgers, milkshakes, coffee, and water.

  Back on the road, she watched a car come toward them, heading north. When it passed, she let out a breath, reached into the bag to open their meal.

  The heady aroma of greasy food filled the car, but there was something to sort out first, something even more important than raging hunger. She turned to him. “Where are we going?”

  He gave her a sly look, the corners of his mouth curving into a small smile. “Why, Emily, I think you’re finally coming around to me. That’s the first time you’ve used the word ‘we,’ at least in terms of us doing something together.”

  Shooting her a teasing smile, he looked seriously sexy, especially with that dark stubble on his chin. Feeling her face go red, she hoped it was too dark for him to see.

  “Don’t force your luck.” She gave him a stern look. At least she hoped it was a stern look. It was hard controlling how she looked at him. Or how her body responded. “Let’s put it this way, where are you going?”

  Rubbing his chin, he considered this for a minute. “How about this for a plan? We follow this road south for about an hour, and then we’ll pick up the highway heading west into New Hampshire. If we drive all night, we should be in New Hampshire by morning. We’ll stop at a motel, get cleaned up, maybe catch a couple hours of sleep. You should be able to get a bus to Riverton from there.”

  “And you’ll head south to Boston?” For all her wanting to be clear of him, suddenly the thought of them parting brought a dull ache to her stomach. But she knew it had to happen. She couldn’t let herself think of any other scenario.

  He nodded. “I’ll pick up a rental car in New Hampshire.”

  “Okay. Sounds like a plan,” she said, that ache in her stomach deepening.

  He smiled. “Can we eat now?”

  Twenty minutes later, most of the food finished, she said, “I’ll take a turn driving when you get tired.”

  “Okay, but you should sleep. You look beat.”

  Nodding, she put her head back against the headrest, closed her eyes. Her heart rate was in the normal range, but her mind raced with thoughts of her narrow escape. What would she do once she got to Riverton? Would it be safe to go to her apartment? She’d have to ask the landlord to let her in, since her keys were back at the cabin. But what if going there put other tenants at risk? No, she wouldn’t go back there until this was all over.

  Opening her eyes, she sat up straight. It was no use trying to sleep. The milkshake still cold in her hands, she sucked through the straw, finished it. The dim light made the mood in the car feel
oddly intimate. Looking at Matt’s large hands on the steering wheel, it wasn’t hard to remember the feel of them on her face when he’d kissed her. Warm, gentle. Maybe some time those hands would touch her in a different way, one that was rougher, when his need was deeper.

  What is with you?

  To distract herself, she said, “Tell me about the woman you helped hide, the one whose husband was abusive.”

  “She was a friend of my sister’s. I didn’t know her that well.” He shifted in his seat. “To hear her tell it, she married this guy and he changed overnight. First, she tried to stick with him—they’d had one of those huge weddings, it had cost her family a lot of money—but pretty soon she realized she couldn’t.”

  He paused a few seconds. “She left him, but he kept coming around, begging her to take him back. When that didn’t work, he said he’d kill her. She got a restraining order, but he didn’t care. He spent a weekend in jail, got hold of a phone, and told her he was going to kill her when he got out. She believed him.”

  He ran a hand through his hair. “So we—my sister and I—decided to help her. We hid her out for a week while we set things up, got her a new identity. It wasn’t easy, especially since she had a daughter. Anyway, so far, so good. My sister talks to her once in a while. She’s moved on.”

  “Is she in contact with her family?”

  “A bit and her ex remarried, so maybe she’d be okay. But she doesn’t want to take chances.”

  “Why did you help her? It doesn’t sound like an easy thing to do.”

  “It would have been easier to just break his neck, or at least put a good scare into him, but that wouldn’t have been smart. In a way, it benefited me, too.”

  “What do you mean? Did you have something going on with this woman?”

  He scoffed. “No, it’s because of her that I’m doing what I’m doing. She had some money, but nowhere near enough to buy a house, and I realized there was a niche market, especially in cities. My company specializes in small, energy efficient designs for low-income people and retirees, or just people who don’t want to live in a big house. There’s more money to be made building bigger houses, but I get a lot more satisfaction out of this.”