The kid hadn’t seen her yet, but I damn sure did.
Her black hair fell in waves around her face, shining like a cascade of black silk.
I tried to push my emotions back, but I couldn’t. Happiness, despair, and fear fought for control of my body.
Finally, I’ve found you.
I leaned my head closer to the window and inhaled, hoping I could capture her scent from this far away. My heart ached when I realized I couldn’t.
They’ll never be this much distance between us again.
An unbearable ache engulfed me. The bottom of the gown was lifted by a gust of wind, revealing black stockings over her strong calves that I had run my hands over before and would run my hands over again.
I parted my mouth. My nostrils flared.
She remained by the door and looked around.
I leaned back into the shadows.
Still the kid smoked and checked for his bike.
West’s voice sounded in my ear. “Do you see anything?”
The pumping of my heart nearly drowned out his words.
“Cain, what’s going on?”
Heat pulsed within me.
“Cain, are you there?”
I cleared my throat. “I see her.”
“Oh shit!” West chuckled. “What the fuck do we do?”
“Give me a minute to think.”
My head fogged with so many possibilities. One part of me argued that I should get out of the truck, grab her fast, and force her to come with me. The other part told me to grab Phoenix, throw her on the hood, lick every inch of her body, and bring her to orgasm after orgasm.
My dick jerked in my pants.
I drank her in, so excited to finally see her after too damn long.
How could you think we would ever be finished?
All done up, Phoenix was impossibly beautiful and utterly elegant. I bet she outshined all the dancers in the club and had most of the male customers drooling. The very thought of them seeing her naked, made me want to shoot the place up.
I should burn the club down.
She noticed the kid and headed his way. Her heels clicked forward. She moved like liquid, twisting and flowing.
There’s. . .something different about her.
The kid turned, held the cigarette in mid-air, and gaped.
When she got to the kid, she took the cigarette from him, and slung it on the ground.
He frowned, but kept his mouth closed.
Phoenix. . .
I wanted to go to her, to hold her.
But I couldn’t. There were still ways that she could escape. She was a runner. A hard-core survivor. Even in that gown, I probably couldn’t catch her.
Plus the kid had two guns.
I checked the area and counted the group of smokers.
Maybe, it is better if the smokers left. There would be less people to worry about getting in my way.
However, the kid could try to be a hero, pull out his guns, and shoot. That would force me to kill him. I couldn’t let that happen. He was too young for me to bury, and had nothing to do with what was going on between Phoenix and me.
Griff’s voice came in. “Cain, what’s going on now?”
“She’s talking to the kid.”
“Thank God. Grab her ass and let’s go.”
“Too many witnesses.”
West added, “I saw cameras by the door too. If we grab her, there will be footage.”
I tapped the steering wheel. “While you both were driving around, did you see any side exits?”
West chimed in, “I did. I can go back to it.”
“Do it and park there.”
Still keeping my eyes on her, I tilted my head to the side, opened the duffle bag, and took out a gun. If there was a good opportunity to grab her, I would seize it. For now, I had to be patient.
I leaned back in the seat and waited in the shadows.
The whole time I gripped my gun.
Go ahead, kid. Tell Phoenix about our conversation.
A smile spread on my face.
Let her know that I’m coming.
The kid started talking. He raised his hands above him, probably describing me to her. I knew the moment he got to it. She inched back and frantically scanned the street.
I sank down in my seat. With my big body, I could only get a little low, but I was sure the shadows hid me.
The kid kept shaking his head as if trying to tell her that no one followed him.
She didn’t appear convinced at all. The whole time he spoke, she scanned the space and inched back toward the club’s door.
Yeah. You won’t be that easy for me to grab again.
Hopefully, I could snatch her away while she was wearing that lavish gown. I imagined how beautiful she would look hanging from the hook in my soul coffin. The gown would sparkle and flow with blood.
I grunted.
Phoenix said something to him.
The kid pulled out another cigarette and gave it to her.
She took it, said something else, and hurried back to the door.
What’s the plan, Phoenix?