Kerrick Read online

  She realized Brandon was no longer beside her and sat upright. “Where is he?”

  “With Griffin. Brandon wanted to see a little bit before we left.”

  “Is that wise?”

  “It’s about 2:30 a.m. Less crew members are needed at this time. Plus, this ship is not in enemy waters. Griffin knows the deal, but he figured this would help take Brandon’s mind off his father. Besides, this graveyard shift has a crew meeting happening on one of the upper floors. So … even less seamen about.”

  “Still …”

  Kerrick sat on the bench beside her. He reached up and stroked her face. “We all have to leave in a couple hours.”

  She yawned gently and tilted her head into his hand. “Okay. But I wish we could stay here. At least long enough to recover.”

  “I don’t,” Kerrick said with a chuckle. “I’d rather be back at a motel or an apartment.”

  “I thought you loved being out on the ocean.”

  “I do,” he said. “There’s nowhere I’d rather be, except for the fact that we’ve got hundreds of people around us.” And, at those words, in a surprising move, he leaned over until their faces were almost touching, nose tip to nose tip. Then he whispered, “And it would be awfully nice if we were alone.” He leaned over a little bit more and kissed her gently.

  What was supposed to be just a brush of his lips was an instant melding of the two of them. He pressed hard, kissing her deep and long. Still half asleep, she woke up fast, but she also woke up every other body part of Kerrick’s as she wrapped her arms around his neck and held him close. When he finally pulled free, he whispered, “Hold that thought.”

  “Why?” she asked. “It doesn’t sound like we’ll have any privacy or be alone anytime soon.”

  “Not necessarily,” he whispered as he leaned over and kissed her again.

  Her heart quickened once more.

  “We have an hour at least.” Then Kerrick said, backing off slightly, “Or we can make it happen when this nightmare is over.”

  She took a deep breath, trying to slow her heart rate and to calm down her racing hormones. She never did one-night stands, so this constant reaction to him had to be from her long-term abstinence added to the adrenaline-filled situation. But she didn’t want to let him go. She couldn’t see ever wanting to, … but what if he disappeared from her life when this nightmare was over? Her instincts said, Grab the moment while you can. Slowly she let her hand drift down his arm until her fingers clenched his. “An hour?”

  He nodded. “Can you be quiet?” He got up, locked the door and returned so he was lying alongside her, his breath warm against her neck.

  “No.” Yet her head was nodding.

  “Can you try?” He chuckled softly.

  “Maybe.”

  He noted the change in her voice and smiled. “I like the thought of an hour alone with you.”

  “Mmm,” she murmured, closing her eyes and shifting slightly as his breath washed across her cheek and ear. Shivers whispered down her spine. His fingers slipped under her T-shirt, stroking across her ribs and down her flat belly. She sucked in her breath.

  “Problems?”

  “No,” she gasped, “just sensitive.”

  He nuzzled her ear and, with that same warm breath driving her crazy, whispered, “Good. Sensitive works for me.”

  She’d have chuckled, but just then he slipped a finger inside her waistband, and it came out as a moan instead.

  He took the lobe of her ear into his mouth and suckled as his fingers delved deeper under her panties. The double onslaught sent her senses soaring. Those damnable fingers. … She arched her back and twisted slightly, but he held her still, his fingers sliding deeper and deeper. She couldn’t stand it, pushed up against him, mewling in need.

  “Easy,” he whispered.

  “Not possible,” she gasped, shuddering as he ratcheted up his devilish fingers. “So damn close.”

  “Good,” he murmured. “It’s great for stress release.”

  Her short laugh turned to a groan as her body exploded like minifireworks and ran throughout her body. Her nerves, already sensitive, sent shudders through her body.

  He held her close, gently stroking up and down her body. “Perfect,” he murmured. “So sweet.”

  “For me, yes,” she whispered as her body slowed down, leaving her replete and toasty warm inside and out. “But not for you.”

  “We still have time.”

  She burst out laughing. “Oh, so that’s your nefarious plan. I’m hardly likely to argue now.”

  “You weren’t arguing a few moments ago either,” he said, his gaze twinkling.

  “So true,” she readily admitted, snaking her arms around his neck and pulling him on top of her. “Not now either.”

  “Except for this next part, where we’re both wearing too many clothes.” He rolled off her and, within minutes, was down to his skin. He eyed her clothing, then, with typical military efficiency, had her stripped down to the buff just as fast. She lay here and let him work, amazed at the speed with which he got things done. With their clothes dumped on the floor, she opened her arms and whispered, “I’m so ready for round two.”

  His gaze heated up, and he came down beside her. “Good,” he whispered, “as I find I can’t wait anymore.”

  With their fingers linked, he raised her arms overhead and slid down her body, suckling, licking, … kissing …

  Her senses, already simmering, flashed with heat once again. She gasped at the sensations surging through her, the fire licking at her nerve endings. “Kerrick,” she demanded, “I want you with me this time.”

  His breath rasped heavily in reaction, but he worked his way back up before claiming her lips once again. She widened her thighs, wrapping her legs around his hips and urging him closer. When he accepted the offer, the emotions that overtook her were too much; … she turned her head away as he simply entered her, her body suddenly liquid, molten fire pouring through her. Simply his touch, his arms tight about her, his breath featherlight on her neck, the warmth of his body, the ultimate physical joining …

  Just when she thought she couldn’t take any more, he started to move. Deeper and deeper he drove in a slow and steady tempo, until he gasped and broke the rhythm to drive harder and faster, until he ground his pelvis tighter against her. Even his somewhat muted guttural cry, an erotic sound of his own completion, sent her over the edge right after him.

  He cuddled her close, his body satiated and replete. In more ways than one. He couldn’t remember sharing this sense of joy, this heartwarming closeness before. She was so damn special, and he had no intention of losing her when this mission was over. That they had a long way to go to get to the end of this nightmare would just give him more time to cement this beginning.

  His job itself was problematic but not an insurmountable one. Besides, Amanda would likely be so driven in her work that he’d be the one making adjustments along that way more than she would. He smiled at the thought. He’d be okay with that. He admired the work she was doing. And understood her passion. That was important. When one followed their heart, it would take them where they needed to go.

  That’s what he’d done, and he couldn’t stop anyone else from following their own heart. As long as she was willing to share her heart with him too.

  Chapter 15

  Amanda woke to warm kisses at her neck. She curled toward Kerrick only to hear his muted laughter. “Sorry, sweetheart, not this time.”

  “We’re leaving?” She opened her eyes and smothered a yawn.

  “Soon. We used up all that spare time.” He kissed her nose. “And we’ll have company soon.” He shifted off the bunk and dressed quickly.

  “Is it safe to leave the ship, you think?”

  “I’m not sure,” he said. “But you haven’t been totally safe so far, and you’re still doing better than when you were in that prison.”

  She gave a clipped nod. “Good point.”

  She swung her le
gs over and sat up on the bunk. “I guess no showers, huh?”

  “No time,” he said. “You can have a quick wash, and then Griffin’ll be back with Brandon. We’ll eat some food and leave right away.”

  She nodded, scooped up her discarded clothing, and made her way to the bathroom. After using the facilities, she indulged in a quick wash, then did the best she could with her hair, but it was well past the point of doing very much. Still, when she stepped back into the main part of the room, she found Brandon, holding up toast topped with something.

  “Didn’t realize the food was here already,” she exclaimed, studying the makeshift table, the food and … “Coffee,” she exclaimed a little too loudly, clapping a hand over her grin.

  Kerrick smiled at her as he held out a cup. “I gave you a few more minutes in the bathroom.”

  She nodded and accepted the coffee from him. “I didn’t even think there would be much in the way of food here.”

  “Special circumstances,” he said.

  At that, she studied his face, frowned, and said, “Nobody on board knows we’re here, do they?”

  She caught Griffin’s gaze, and he shook his head. “No, they don’t. And we’ll keep it that way.”

  She nodded slowly and took several sips of her coffee. She eyed the breakfast options, everything from muffins to breakfast sandwiches. Brandon ate eggs on toast. She picked up a muffin and quickly unwrapped it and ate it, even as Kerrick handed her a breakfast sandwich. Then, with both of those down, and the rest of her coffee too, the tray was polished off. Soon came a subtle knock on the door. Kerrick immediately stood, walked the tray over, handed it out, and said to the others, “It’s time to go.”

  He ushered them out one at a time, Brandon still chewing the last bite of his food, whereas Amanda busily wiped her hands off as she followed them out single file. There was no sign of anybody except for their special host. They were led through another maze and into an enclosed narrow circular ladder, where they climbed and kept climbing and then kept climbing some more. If she had been claustrophobic, their small room would have done her in, but here, for sure, she would have not handled it well.

  When they were at the top of the flight of stairs, the hatch was opened, and they were let outside to find themselves on a huge deck. The wind gusted at them, but very early morning gray clouds reigned. They were atop the ship now, nearing a helicopter pad—with a helicopter ready to go, its engine running and its rotors cutting into the air, awaiting them. Crouching down, they quickly raced over to the side of the chopper, where they were lifted into place.

  Brandon exclaimed in joy. “Wow, a helicopter and we were just on one of those great big warships!” He kept bouncing from seat to seat, trying all four behind the chopper pilot. Amanda immediately sat down closest to the window and out of the way. Brandon took the opposite seat, and Griffin sat beside him. With Kerrick beside her, they were buckled in, each given a headset, and the helicopter lifted off.

  She noticed several large black bags were to one side. Probably Griffin’s and Kerrick’s gear. She wished it were clothes for her, but all she had were the black clothes she had been given to wear for this trip. She was thankful for these. Her old ones were gone. She also dreamed of a good shower followed by a long soak in a hot bath with bubbles and fresh clean clothes of her own, but that wasn’t to be. Not yet. She stared out the window.

  “You okay?” Kerrick asked through their headset.

  She smiled and nodded.

  “Ever been on a helicopter before?”

  “A couple times.”

  Brandon heard her and leaned forward to stare at her in awe. She just grinned at him and said, “Enjoy. They’re fun.”

  At that point in time, Brandon peppered Griffin with question after question after question. But Griffin was patient and calm as he answered as many as he could. She wondered if he could keep it up the whole way, but, after about twenty minutes, it seemed like everything overwhelmed Brandon, and he sank back into his seat and watched in silence.

  She didn’t know how long they would be gone or how far they would travel, but, at this point in time, this was all about trust. And she had placed her trust in Kerrick right from the first time they’d met. It wouldn’t change anytime soon.

  Kerrick laced his fingers with hers. She squeezed his fingers and smiled.

  “All right?” he asked.

  “I was just thinking about how much my life has changed since somebody threw a hood over my head,” she said, half joking.

  “Any idea who it was?”

  “No,” she said, “not really. But I remember Hinkleman wasn’t at work that Friday before the Sunday I was taken. Granted, he didn’t work weekends, but I always did. And he knew it. So he must have informed the kidnappers, and they just waited until I left the building, because I didn’t keep to any schedule. Meanwhile, Hinkleman was probably already at that old sanitorium, that prison, waiting for me to arrive.”

  “It’s quite possible,” he said. “Hopefully we can bring this to an end soon.”

  “I still don’t understand what the research ship is supposed to tell us.”

  “Hopefully everything,” he said cheerfully. “At least if we’re lucky.”

  “Good,” she said, “but it’s still a little disturbing.”

  “Of course it is,” he said. “But we’ll get the answers we need from the people on that ship.”

  It took them several more hours, where they traveled by helicopter to another naval ship; then they were switched out to another helicopter aboard that ship and finally landed at a small port off the Norwegian coast, where they were thereafter put into the smaller ship and taken out to open waters. Brandon continued to find the experience amazing, whereas Amanda had gone quiet. She never argued or questioned. She just followed.

  Kerrick was amazed at the amount of trust she had put in him. He mentioned it once, and she shrugged and said, “In for a penny, in for a pound apparently.”

  He squeezed her hand, realizing he kept physical contact with her the whole way, even at one point in time wrapping an arm around her shoulders and tucking her up close. Now they sat on a small bench behind a table in this last ship. “This is the final stop.”

  She nodded. “We’ve already slept and ate our way through this set of travels. What is it that you want us to do when we get to the research ship?”

  “That’ll be a little tricky. Chances are, you’ll stay on this vessel.”

  “Why?” she asked in surprise.

  He nodded at Brandon, who had crashed once again. “I don’t want him there.”

  “So why bring us here at all?”

  “Because we couldn’t leave you behind,” Griffin answered from the seat across from her. “We thought about leaving you with various people, but we didn’t want to take the chance that it would be the wrong person.”

  She frowned and then gave a clipped nod. “That makes sense, so thank you for that. But I still think we should all get on the research ship together.”

  “Have you been on it before?”

  “Yes,” she said, “I have. For other conferences. As part of one of my degrees, I spent several weeks out on this particular ship.”

  “Good,” Kerrick said. “What can you tell us about the layout?”

  There followed a discussion of the different levels of the ship, the way the cabins were laid out, where the labs were, where the computer centers were, and where the pilot’s center was. Kerrick was fascinated by the insights she provided. “This should be very helpful,” he said.

  She nodded. “I hope so.”

  Just as they finished up, the pilot called down and said, “We’re two nautical miles away.”

  Kerrick hopped up to take a look at the research ship up ahead. “And we’re delivering for them, correct?”

  The ship captain nodded. “A bunch of supplies they were supposed to take but were missed. So, good timing on your part.”

  And suddenly they arrived at the side of the shi
p. Immediately Kerrick went on board and became one of the two men helping to unload the parcels and the packages, the foodstuffs, and the computer gear. He helped carry everything up the ladder and onto the vessel. If these supplies had been loaded while the ship was still docked, heavy equipment would have been used.

  But, while the ship was at sea, it all had to be hand lifted, some with the use of a winch. And as soon as he found the opportunity, Kerrick disappeared into the bowels of the research ship. He knew Griffin would take the same opportunity. He tapped his comm twice to let Griffin know he was safely on board. Kerrick knew the pilot would take his place to help unload.

  He quickly moved to the far side of the research vessel, keeping to the blueprints he carried in his head, as he raced toward the engine room. He was doing a full sweep, checking to see how much security and what kind of manpower they had on board. After he cleared the bottom level and moved up, he found the sleeping cabins. Some were opened; some were closed, and some were locked. But, so far, he saw nothing suspicious.

  It looked like a good fifty people or so were on board. There was a galley and a full kitchen, in which they had five or six kitchen and housekeeping staff. The vessel was not fully loaded as far as hired help. But then it was a research ship, not a cruise ship. Neither was it a private yacht.

  He kept out of sight and, when he had an opportunity, snagged one of the uniform shirts from a supply closet and put it on over his regular clothes. It was a rough fit, but it would work. It would allow him to move a little more publicly. He kept going through floor after floor. Meanwhile, Griffin, after he cleared each floor, gave back a clear signal. Finally Kerrick stepped up on one of the upper levels where the big conference rooms were, with all the glass windows overlooking the water.

  He heard voices in the background and a speaker. Part of the conference was ongoing. So far, he hadn’t seen anything suspicious as to what the hell was going on and how this was connected. He went back down a level, which was just above water level and had open decks. He walked through, looking like he had a purpose. A few people worked behind the fully stocked bar. He headed for the more internal lab room.