Burn (Page 93)

He could trust them with this.

"I think Larkin is losing it," he said, his tone heavy.

"No shit," Tucker said.

For the past couple of days, the guard Larkin had once insisting on having at all times had been called off, ordered back on again, and then once more called off. Even if the incident with Tucker and the bread hadn’t proved to Dean that his boss was a nutcase, Larkin’s increasingly erratic behavior as they sailed among the islands would’ve done the trick.

"We’re going to follow him in shifts, just the three of us. Maybe if we keep our eyes open we can figure out what he’s up to."

Johnson, who was thinner and older and usually more serious than Tucker, asked, "Do you think he’s planning a double cross?"

"It’s crossed my mind."

Tucker ran nervous fingers through his hair. "But we’ve got the bombs and the guns. He can’t do anything without us. All he did was plan the getaway."

A getaway that was looking less and less likely to Dean, less and less clean, though he didn’t say so aloud. A part of his brain whispered this isn’t going to work, while another part said, more loudly, millions.

He was so tired of taking orders, so tired of taking shit from men with money, while he never had any, to speak of.

"Once we get off the ship and the bombs have done their work, we might have to take out Mr. Larkin." A bop on the head and a swim in the drink would do the trick.

Neither of the men had a problem with that scenario; one less man to share the haul with meant more money for all of them.

"Until then, we keep an eye on Larkin," Dean said. "I suggest you don’t let him see you."

JENNER COULD HONESTLY SAY she’d had a lovely day. Tiffany was funny and honest to a fault, and the foursome they’d come to know so well – Linda, Nyna, Penny, and Buttons – embraced life, truly enjoying the exotic beauty of the island and the company of new friends. Linda didn’t mention her confession from last night, and neither did Jenner or Tiffany. It had been a private, touching moment, one that had affected Jenner more than she dared to admit.

Cael didn’t say much as the day passed, which should’ve been a relief but was not. For one thing, the look in his eyes as he watched her made her as flustered as a virgin the day after her wedding. When you knew how a man looked naked, when he’d had you naked, it changed things. Once she wouldn’t have thought so, but now she knew better. She was so attuned to him now a simple stroke of his finger on her arm could make her almost jump out of her skin.

Tiffany was fast at figuring out what had happened, and she kept grinning at them, which made Jenner even more self-conscious. Damn, she hadn’t been this edgy when everyone had thought she was having sex with him but she wasn’t. Now that she really was, she felt stripped naked, so to speak. His silence was probably explained away to the others in their group by discomfort over the fact that his old girlfriend and his new girlfriend were so chummy, but Jenner knew the truth: He was thinking about sex with her. Again. Soon.

At the end of the day, though, when they were back on the ship, instead of taking her straight back to bed Cael went to speak with Ryan. To her annoyance, he wouldn’t tell her what had happened while they were gone. While they were getting ready for dinner, she tried to get some information. "What’s the plan for tonight?"

"It all depends on Larkin," Cael said as he buttoned his cuffs. "Since he might’ve caught sight of Ryan and Faith several times today, I’ll need to keep watch if he’s on deck and let them lay low."

"You mean, you and I need to keep watch," she corrected.

He shot her a look. "No, you don’t watch. You don’t do anything but stand there and look gorgeous."

"If you tell me not to bother my pretty little head …" she began, more than a little annoyed. When was he going to get it through his head that she was a part of this? She wasn’t just a passive pawn any longer.

He snorted. "We all have our duties. Yours is to be silent, cooperative, and obedient eye candy."

"Aren’t cooperative and obedient pretty much the same thing?"

"It’s a point I can’t drive home often enough."

She turned her back on him and walked into the closet to choose her outfit. "If I’m only supposed to be decoration, what on earth should I wear?"

It was hard to be sure, but it sounded as if one of the words he muttered was "turtleneck."

Chapter Twenty-nine

SYD SAT IN THE PARLOR WITH TWO PAIRS OF ATTENTIVE eyes – Adam’s and Kim’s – on her as she talked to Jenner on Adam’s cell. Their frequent and always too short conversations had gradually changed in the past few days, to the point where the exchanges were almost normal. Neither of them was terrified anymore. Confidence had returned to Jenner’s voice, and that was a huge relief to Syd. If Jenner was okay with this, then she could be, too. After more than a week of being held prisoner, with the threat of harm to the other keeping both of them hamstrung, it was becoming more and more apparent that there was an end to this. A good end, where no one ended up dead.

The Silver Mist would pull out of Maui this evening, and was scheduled to dock in San Diego in five days. Five days, and this adventure would be over.

"I’m fine," Syd said in response to Jenner’s question about her well-being. "I’d love to go for a walk and get some fresh air, or sit down in a restaurant, or shop, or go to a movie, but other that that, all is well. I never thought I’d see the day where I was tired of sleeping late and ordering room service." Jenner laughed lightly; that was a very good sign.

"Is the ship lovely?" Syd asked. She’d so wanted to see the Silver Mist in action.

"It’s very nice," Jenner responded. "Which is a good thing, since I’m never getting on a ship again as long as I live."