Hot by Angel Payne

Author:Angel Payne
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781947222373
Publisher: Waterhouse Press

Chapter Fourteen

Zoe shivered, curled her legs under her in the patio chair, and wrapped her purple pashmina tighter against her shoulders. It was early November in the high desert, meaning the temperature descended with the sun. Though a few violet streaks lingered in the sky beyond the peaks of Red Rock Canyon, nighttime was definitely on the prowl.

She took another sip of the Cabernet Brynn had brought to go with their lasagna and salad. As the wine slackened her limbs, she leaned back, trying to let it ease her mind and heart as well. A bite of wind rustled through the juniper and willow trees and then across the in-ground reflecting pool, a nice reminder of why she’d decided to rent a place in Canyon Gate and commute a little farther to work on the Strip. When a girl’s post-shift happy hour was at two in the morning, it was skies like this, blanketed with a thousand stars, that bested any cocktail for “taking the edge off the work day.”

But she’d never had edges this harsh.

The stars began to glitter more brightly, but tonight, she didn’t see any friends in them. Instead, they were heart-stabbing reminders of the gorgeous glints in Shay’s eyes. The mighty silhouettes of Turtleback Peak and Mount Wilson only made her think of every perfect ridge in his muscles, of how safe she’d felt in his massive embrace. And the wind, stronger now, sucked her breath away just like he had on so many occasions. The first moment their gazes had met. Every single time he’d kissed her. Every second he’d filled her body with his.

The wind died.

It was eerily quiet.

Just like his four days of silence.

All the better to hear the desperate questions on their ridiculous repeat loop in her head.

Where the hell is he?

Is he safe?

Is he alive?

If so—and she wouldn’t allow herself to believe anything else—then was he still playing his dangerous ruse with Stock? Or had he returned to his Spec Ops team, gone from the country on a completely new mission?

You knew it would probably go down like this. Even after you learned his truth, you knew the possibility of seeing him again was never as sure as splitting aces.

“Shut up,” she muttered, gulping more wine.

Four days. Why did it feel like four thousand? Yet in so many ways, it could’ve been yesterday…even a few hours ago. She could almost hear the deafening roar of the helicopter again, carrying her, Ghid, and Melody Bommer away from the raid. She could smell the wildflowers in the meadow where they’d landed, near the ghost town in the middle of nowhere. She’d guessed they were at one of the long-forgotten mining camps that were scattered across northern Nevada. Though a tour wasn’t offered, it was clear Ghid and his gang had taken over the place as a remote outpost, probably in preparation for exactly what had happened at the base.

The setting had been remote and chilly, a perfect match for the instant plummet of her spirit.

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