SocialPreyAllRomance (2 page)

Scott spun around to glare at his best friend. “Are you seriously going to leave her
there? We know this girl. We can’t abandon her.”

Keith picked up his cup and headed to the coffee pot they kept in the office. They
both drank more of that crap than they really should, but Keith lived on the stuff.

“The only reason you want to do this is because of Kiley, admit it,” Keith said.

“Hey, I’m not denying I care for Kiley. Hell, she’s been part of my life since I was
six, but she can’t talk me into doing something that could get me killed. It’s not
going to hurt to check things out. See if it’s doable. It might be. Besides, you and
I both know if we leave her there, even if she makes it back to the states at some
point, that girl will never be the same.”

Keith’s brow creased in worry and memories of his own torturous three days in Istanbul.
Of all of them, Keith knew exactly how bad Turkey could be for Americans. “I know,”
he said softly.

“So let’s check it out.”

Keith sighed. “Fine.”

Kiley sat in her home office staring at the computer screen. It had been easy to hack
into James’

Facebook account and follow his i.p. address to other accounts. The more she dug,
the more she found. She uncovered four more email accounts and ten more Facebook accounts,
all under different names.

She broke so many laws doing this it wasn’t even funny. The amount of time she could
spend in jail was probably more than this James jerk would get for his crimes — which
was incredibly sad when one chose to spend much time thinking about it.

How was she going to be able to watch all this? She needed to know when these women
left town to join up with their online fiancés. Paula didn’t post on Facebook when
she left. Would the other women? Were they told not to? There were so many questions
she wouldn’t have the answer to until she was able to speak to Paula and that didn’t
look like it would happen anytime soon.

How did families handle this stuff? She would go nuts if her brother was over there,
and she couldn’t speak to him; didn’t know how he was. Worry over Paula was bad enough.

Maybe she could create a program that would alert her to any of these women getting
an airline ticket. Then maybe they could follow the women to Peru or whatever country
just in case Peru wasn’t the only country they worked out of. That could work.

The front door opened and she froze, listening. She’d locked the door. Who had come
in? As silently as possible, she opened the drawer to her right and rested her hand
against the pistol she kept there. One of many she kept hidden throughout the house.
Working in the type of business she did, she’d learned to be vigilant and always prepared.

“It’s me,” Scott called out.

Kiley breathed a sigh of relief, but then tensed for a different reason. He always
made her feel edgy and slightly off kilter whenever he was around. But her brother’s
friends were off limits.

“Where are you?” he asked.

“In my office,” she replied as she quietly the desk drawer.

Scott stuck his arm into the office with a bag of Chinese food dangling from his hand.
Kiley’s brow creased into a frown.

“What now?” she demanded. “You never bring over Chinese unless you want something.”

Scott lowered the bag and then peered around the door jam. He wore a blue corduroy
shirt that deepened the blue in his eyes. The white t-shirt beneath it made his tan
look darker and the gray in his black hair more prominent. She loved that look on
him—jeans, shirt open down the front, t-shirt beneath. He looked casual, carefree
and so damn good looking she could hardly stop staring.

“It’s a peace offering,” he said.

Kiley sighed in disappointment. “Let me guess. You’re not going to Istanbul.”

“No. I’m not.”

Kiley shook her head in disgust and pushed her chair back. “Then you and your Chinese
food can—“

“You didn’t let me finish.” Scott walked into the room and set the bag on the desk.

Kiley stood and crossed her arms over her chest. “Fine. Finish.”

Scott opened the bag. He pursed his lips and pouted. Kiley would normally find that
look adorable, but right now she was too mad. She hated it when Scott teased her by
pretending to pout.

All she wanted to know was how they could allow Paula to stay there? Especially knowing
what would happen to her.

“I don’t know, now. You’re so moody,” he murmured.

“Moody?” she cried. “I do have a gun in my desk drawer, asshole, so keep it up. Give
me a reason to use it.”

He grinned and glanced at her out of the tops of his eyes. “I’m sure I’ve given you
numerous reasons over the years and you haven’t shot me yet.”

Her whole body heated, but she rolled her eyes more at herself than him. “I wasn’t
this pissed off. How could you—“

“Again, Kiley. You haven’t let me finish.”

“Well, would you hurry up?” she snapped.

Scott closed the bag and picked it up before turning to leave. “If you’re going to
have that attitude…”

“Damn it, Scott,” Kiley growled as she rushed forward and grabbed his shirt sleeve.
She tugged, making him stop. “Stop playing around.” She took a deep breath, calming
her anger. “Please, finish.”

“Since you said please,” he said over his shoulder and inclined his head toward the
kitchen.

“Let’s go get some plates and eat before it gets cold. We’ll talk once we’re settled.”

Kiley had a feeling she wasn’t going to like this. Not at all. Scott watched in silence
as Kiley reached up to pull two plates down from the cabinet. His eyes strayed to
her firm ass, and he couldn’t help but admire how good she looked. Damn, she’d grown
up fine. All that chestnut brown hair cascading down her back made him want to tug
on it, pull her head back so he could kiss her good and thorough.

Kiley worked out a lot and it showed in her toned body, her high, firm boobs, and
her flat, hard stomach. Damn, what he wouldn’t give to explore every inch of that
lithe body with his mouth, his hands, his tongue.

He’d been lusting after Kiley for a long time, but he’d never made a move. For one,
out of respect for her brother and his best friend and for two, he knew Keith would
beat the hell out of him. One thing Keith took more serious than anything else was
the protection of his sister - and that included protecting her from him. Keith believed
his sister deserved better than a Mercenary. And truth be told, so did Scott.

“Do you want some wine or a beer?” she asked, pulling Scott from the naughty images
running through his mind.

“Beer would be great,” he murmured.

Kiley pulled one from the fridge and tossed it to him. He caught it easily and set
it on the table.

He really needed to get his mind off Kiley’s ass. Determined to keep his thoughts
on what he had to tell her, he grabbed the bag of food and began to pull out the cartons
while Kiley set the plates, silverware and a glass of wine for herself on the table.

They fixed their plates in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. Scott was just
about to take a bite of sweet and sour chicken when Kiley asked, “So what’s the bad
news? Other than you’re not going to do this?”

Scott set his fork down. “I’m not going to Turkey but your brother and six other guys
are.”

Her eyes widened. “Seriously?” Then they narrowed. “Wait. Why aren’t you going?”

He leaned on his elbows. “You and I are to stay here.”

“No! Paula will—“

“Kiley,” Scott growled in a tone usually reserved for the men beneath him when they
wouldn’t listen or when he was pissed. He pointed his fork at her, and she immediately
bristled. Scott knew she wouldn’t take well to this. “We are staying here. Your brother
made me stay behind so I could keep an eye on you and make sure you didn’t do something
stupid. Like follow them.” Scott lowered his fork and sat back. “It’s going to be
tough enough getting her out of there. Let them go do what they do and trust them
to get her home.”

Kiley’s shoulders sagged. “Fine. Fair enough. When are they leaving?”

“Sometime after midnight. They’ll be over there about two to three weeks. What you
had was great, but they need to do some surveillance, get a lay of the land. One of
the other guys thinks he might be able to get us in through a contact that works in
that prison. It’s someone he’s used before.”

“That would be great.”

Scott nodded. “Yeah, it would.”

“Are you sure you can trust him?”

Scott nodded. “It’s the same guy who helped us when Scott was held captive over there.
He’s good at what he does, but if the guy ever gets caught, he’s a dead man.”

She pursed her lips and pushed the food around her plate with her fork. “So we’re
just supposed to sit here and twiddle our thumbs?”

Scott snorted before taking a bite of his chicken. He chewed, ignoring Kiley’s curious
green-eyed stare.

“Are you going to explain that snort or not?” she asked.

Scott tried to hide his grin. God, he loved her bluntness. She was never dull, that
was for damn sure.

“I’m going to help you track these guys down.”

Kiley’s lips softened as they spread into a small smile. “You’re going to help me
do research?”

He shrugged. “Can’t be all that hard. Right?” He took another bite of food and waited
for her to answer.

“No,” she said sarcastically. “It’s not hard at all. It’s so easy even you can do
it.”

He gave her a tight lipped grin, but inside he was definitely amused. No doubt about
it; Kiley was a pistol. “So, I’m not just a pretty face?”

Her lips twitched. “Who said you were a pretty face?”

“Ah, come on, gorgeous. The way you stare at me when you think I’m not looking speaks
volumes. I’m pretty, and you know it.”

The blush that instantly covered her cheeks caught him by surprise. He’d only been
teasing her.

He’d never caught her looking at him. If anything, he’d always believed Kiley was
indifferent to his charms. Had he been wrong?

She averted her eyes and focused on her food. “I do not stare at you, thank you very
much.” She took a bite of food but kept her gaze on her plate. “So, how exactly are
you supposed to help me? Most of the time when it comes to research, you’re just in
my way.”

“Ouch,” Scott said with a chuckle.

Kiley lifted her gaze to his. “Well, it’s true.”

“I’ll tell you what,” Scott began as he reached for his beer. “I’m at your disposal.
Whatever you need. Just tell me what to do and I’ll do it.”

In the back of his mind he was hoping she’d tell him to strip down naked and take
her on this table. Legs spread wide, thighs wrapped around his hips, and his cock
buried deep in her pussy. Just thinking about it made him sweat.

He was such an ass lusting after his best friend’s sister. Kiley was his friend. They
fought like brother and sister. They each knew the other like the back of their hand.
Sex would ruin that for them.

Kiley turned her attention back to her food, but she wasn’t eating. Instead, she pushed
the food around with her fork. That was odd behavior for Kiley, especially when it
came to Chinese food. It was her favorite. Scott had never met a woman who could eat
as much as Kiley and still stay slim.

“Is something bothering you?” Scott asked after several seconds of silence.

“You mean other than Paula being in a Turkish prison?”

“Yeah, other than that,” Scott replied.

“I don’t know,” she sighed, then dropped her fork. She grabbed her glass of wine and
downed two sips before continuing. “I know these missions take time, it’s just…I want
her out of there.”

Kiley set her glass down and frowned. “How could she have been so stupid? Why couldn’t
I convince her that guy was no good? Why didn’t she listen?”

“She thought she loved him,” Scott said.

“That’s a good enough reason to turn your back on everyone that cares about you?”

“For some people.”

Kiley sighed and twirled her glass, staring at the red liquid inside.

“Have you ever been in love, Kiley?”

Kiley nodded sadly. “Once,” she replied softly.

Scott frowned. “When?”

She didn’t meet his startled gaze. Scott had no idea she’d ever been in love. She
or Keith had never said a word about it.

“It doesn’t matter. He never returned those feelings.”

“Well then, he’s an idiot,” Scott growled.

Kiley looked at him at first in surprise, then her eyes softened and her lips spread
into a slightly amused grin. “Yeah, I would agree that he’s sometimes an idiot.”

“Do you still see the guy?” Scott asked, surprised at the sharp ping of jealousy hitting
his heart like someone flipping it with their finger.

“What about you?” Kiley asked without answering his question. “Have you ever been
in love?”

Scott snorted. “No.”

“Of course not.”

“I don’t…I can’t…,” Scott sighed. “I don’t have the right job for that kind of relationship.
How can I ask a woman to be okay with me risking my life like I do? It would never
work.”

“We know several Seals that have successful marriages. That excuse is a crutch, and
you know it.”

“I’m not a Seal anymore. What I do is different.”

“No, it’s not,” Kiley scoffed. “You do the same thing. The only difference is one
is funded by the military and the other is privately funded. Come on, Scott. Out of
all those women that you’ve slept with, not one of them got under your skin?”

Scott pointed his beer bottle at her. “You know me well enough to know the answer
to that. Not one.” He sat back and took a sip of beer. “Love em’ and get the hell
out, that’s my motto.” His lips twitched. “From what I understand, that’s yours as
well. Perhaps you and I should team up.”

She smiled just a little, and Scott’s heart skipped a beat at the mischievous twinkle
in her eyes.

“I don’t sleep with co-workers or friends of my brother’s. Not only that, but God
knows where that penis of yours has been.”