Under Fire Read Online Free Page A

for the night.
    The warning tickle in the back of his throat damn near choked him. She agreed to meet an anonymous contact and wasn’t afraid of drug dealers, yet she worried he was a— Shit! Did she think the informant was a cop? Greer said she had connections. Shit! Shit! Shit!
    He sure as hell couldn’t come out and ask her. But he couldn’t let her walk out of here tonight without knowing. He reached out and touched her arm. “You wanna dance?”
    She gave him a lackluster smile, shook her head and turned back to the band.
    Disappointment and surprise shot through him. Disappointment he couldn’t hold her again and surprise it overrode his need to get information from her.
    The song ended and Olivia turned, her bottom lip pinched between her teeth. Sure she’d changed her mind about the dance, he stood.
    “It’s time for me to go, Rico,” she said softly. “Thanks for the dances.”
    What? He sat back down. Another wave of disappointment washed over him. He couldn’t let her leave. He needed to know what she knew. More than that, he needed her.
    She stood.
    “You can’t drive. I’ll have the bartender call a cab for you.”
    “Okay. Sure. I’ll wait outside.”
    “I’ll wait with you.”
    “Not necessary.”
    “I’m leaving anyway.” Fuck . That didn’t come out right. He was suffering from terminal foot in mouth disease tonight.
    She shrugged. “Suit yourself.”
    He downed the last of his drink, settled up with the barkeep and asked him to call a cab. When Rico caught up with her the look she gave him caused his stomach to clench. He had to say something to keep her from leaving. But what? This was new territory. Working inside the biggest drug syndicate in the country, women were easy to come by. The clothes, cars, boats and spectacular condo overlooking Biscayne Bay drew them in. He snorted. Not tonight. He had none of that and was dressed like a backwoods Bubba.
    Silently they waited for the cab. Only the sounds of nearby traffic and the shell surface of the parking lot crunching underfoot broke the silence.
    He caught her scent on the night breeze. Lavender and something spicy. Whatever it was drove him crazy, made him want to press his lips to her long, silky neck. The tension in his gut grew stronger. The heat inside him officially turned into a wildfire. He stole a sideways glance at her, sure she was going to leave, walk away. Shit. He couldn’t let her leave. She ignited something long dormant in him. Desire. When the old guy gave her grief he hadn’t hesitated to step in like a rookie and risk blowing everything to be near her. If he let her leave he’d risk not seeing her again and fucking up the investigation. Time for a decision: do what he came for or make a move. He sucked in a loud breath. Screw it…Tomorrow he could think about the job. Tonight he was thinking about himself.
     
    Olivia chanced a sideways glance at Rico. A man she couldn’t be sure of. A man she wanted to jump between the sheets with. Lie naked against and trace her fingertips across his bare chest and lower. Feel his lips and hands on her breasts. How it would feel to… She flinched. It didn’t matter anyway. Men fell all over themselves when she let them know she was interested. Not him.
    Going all tight ass at his joke hadn’t helped. She should have been more aggressive, told him outright she wanted to spend the night with him. Being an aggressive helo pilot was great. But with a man she never knew where to draw the line. Olivia blew out a loud breath.
    “Oh, hell,” she cursed under her breath. This was a horrible mistake, a huge error in judgment. Time to quit being selfish thinking about her own needs and get back on task. If that cab wasn’t here in two minutes she was going to bolt.
    Then Rico slipped an arm around her and all thoughts of leaving fled.
    She turned to him. Cupping her chin in his hand, he raised her face to his.
    Olivia crooked her index finger and placed it ever so slightly