Burn

That led her back to spies. Industrial espionage. But that usually involved theft of data, or even the actual hard product, so what were they doing here spending so much time watching a man on a cruise?

No matter which angle she considered, this still didn’t make sense to her. Whatever Cael and his people were planning, there had to be better ways to get it done, though from what she’d seen they were so well-organized that if there was a better way she imagined they would’ve found it. So, what the hell was going on?

The threat to Syd had her effectively bound, restricting what she could and couldn’t do. Not that Cael was going to leave her unsupervised or unbound, but he could, and she wouldn’t do a damn thing to take advantage of being free, because of Syd. One phone call from Cael or any of his people, and Syd could be in serious trouble. No matter what, Jenner thought, because of Syd she had to play along.

She took Cael by surprise, turning out of his grip, leaning back against the deck rail and facing him with her feet firmly planted, her gaze narrow and intent. "Tell me what you’re up to."

"No." His response was immediate and flat, no room for negotiation, no thinking about it.

"I can’t figure it out – "

"You aren’t supposed to figure anything out, you’re supposed to do as you’re told and keep your mouth shut." He slid his hand over her arm, a movement that looked like a caress, except for the way his fingers clamped around her elbow. "That’s enough face time. Let’s go."

"I’m not ready to go." She wanted to stand there and argue with him, maybe dig a detail or two out of that stone wall.

He leaned in, too close, too warm, too big. His mouth moved against her cheek. "I swear to God, I’ll throw you over my shoulder and carry you back to the room, and just think what a show that’ll be for the other guests. Then I’ll cuff you hand and foot to the chair, and you won’t get out of the room again until the cruise is over. I can do this without you, Redwine."

Her heart thumped, she couldn’t take a deep breath, and still, she saw the truth, knew it deep in her bones. "No, you can’t. If you could, you never would have involved me at all."

"Watch me." He wrapped an arm around her waist again, pulled her away from the rail, began to lift her.

"Wait!" Putting on an act was one thing, but making a spectacle was another. And he’d do it; he’d really throw her over his shoulder and carry her off, and most people would grin, thinking they knew exactly what would happen when he got her to a private place.

He stopped. Her body rested against his, but wasn’t being crushed. Anyone watching would think it an embrace between lovers, rather than a threat, but she could see into those cool blue eyes and knew he wasn’t bluffing.

Her heartbeat got even faster, harder. Something about his eyes pulled her in, sucked her into heightened awareness of him on a physical level. She fought to keep her expression blank, to not let him know he was getting to her. Damn it, she shouldn’t be affected by his touch, by being pressed against that tall, muscled body, but she was. He should be physically repulsive to her, and the fact that the opposite was true told her she’d have to resist just that much more, build her wall even higher.

He was waiting for her to say something, and she wrenched her thoughts back in order. What was …? Oh, yeah. She’d told him to wait.

She took a deep breath. "You don’t have to carry me," she said. "I’ll go peaceably, Marshal."

One corner of his mouth twitched. "Good." He eased her down and slightly back, but he didn’t release her.

The wind blew her hair across her eyes and she pushed it back as she looked up at him. "But maybe you could do me a favor and let up a bit. In case you haven’t noticed, we’re on a ship, in the middle of the Pacific. I have nowhere to go, except overboard, and I’m not crazy. I don’t want to do anything that will cause Syd to get hurt. As long as you have her, I’m going to play along. Maybe it makes you feel more in control to keep a steel grip on my arm, but it isn’t necessary. If I have to be a part of this, then it’ll play better if I don’t look like a prisoner."

He took a moment to consider, then said, "That sounds reasonable." Just as Jenner began to relax, he added, "But this is you we’re talking about, so ‘reasonable’ makes me suspicious."

Frustrated, she went on tiptoe and put her lips to his ear. He immediately tensed and gripped her waist with both hands, as if he were ready to chuck her overboard if she bit him again. He just might do it, too. She caught his earlobe with her teeth and very gently tugged, then released. "You’re such an asshole," she whispered as lovingly as possible. "Somehow, some day, I’m going to make you pay for this."

He slid one hand downward and patted her ass. "I don’t doubt it for a minute."

Chapter Sixteen

CAEL CONSIDERED HIMSELF A CALM SORT OF GUY, SOMEONE who always kept his cool, who stayed on top of a situation. That said, Jenner Redwine would be lucky if he didn’t strangle her in her sleep before this cruise was over. He should put in for combat pay; after all, he had the wound to prove he’d been in a battle.

She was the most annoying, prickly, difficult … funny … woman he’d ever met. He didn’t want to think she was funny, though half the stuff she said had him biting the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing. He wanted to toss her overboard and be done with it. She was so skinny, she wouldn’t even make much of a splash. He took a minute to enjoy the vision he had of the little plop! she’d make when she hit the water, though she’d probably spoil the moment by giving him the finger as she went under. Women like her should have "Troublemaker" branded on their foreheads, so people would be warned ahead of time. If he’d known before what he knew now, he’d be dealing with Sydney Hazlett, tears and all, and counting his blessings while Redwine would be in California driving other people crazy.