Her Very Strict Captain by Carpenter, Maggie (best book club books of all time TXT) 📗

As she let out a series of euphoric cries, powerful convulsions shuddered through his body, exhilarating waves evoking groan after groan, until finally dissipating, they left him breathless and his heart thumping.

* * *

For long, glorious minutes Elizabeth nestled in Scott’s arms. Even as he slipped from the bed and disappeared into the bathroom she continued to doze. But a muted buzzing sent a crinkle across her brow. Sighing contentedly, she slowly opened her eyes. Standing over her, Scott was staring at his phone wearing a dark frown.

“Scott, what’s wrong?”

“There are two guys on the yacht,” he replied, sitting on the edge of the bed.

“You’re kidding? Does Dan know it’s your boat? Maybe he brought in some help to find me.”

“It could be opportunistic.”

“You don’t really believe that, do you?” she asked. “Is there much crime like that down here?”

“Some, and I like to keep an open mind. Regardless, I need to get photographs.”

“From this far away?”

“I have a powerful camera,” he replied, hastily pulling on his shorts. “It will give me sharper details than the video.”

“I’m coming with you.”

Though desperate for a shower, she quickly dressed, and they hurried back to the security room.

“Look through the telescope. See if you can make out the name or reg number on their boat,” he ordered, opening the folding plantation doors.

Walking swiftly to the window and peering into the lens, she could see a speedboat, but the wind from the approaching storm whipping up the sea had caused significant chop.

“I can see the writing, but the water’s rough and the boat’s moving around. Hang on… I think it’s Zelda,” she declared as Scott strode past carrying an impressive camera with an extended zoom lens. “Holy crap. That looks like something you’d see on the sidelines of a football game.”

“This would give them a run for their money,” he replied, opening the sliding glass door and stepping outside.

A blast of wind blew through the room, but he moved confidently to the edge of the patio.

She was tempted to join him, but with the naked eye there was little to see. Returning to the telescope, she watched the two men struggling to climb off the yacht and into their bouncing boat. They looked awkward and inexperienced.

Her heart suddenly leapt.

“I suspect Dan discovered my yacht is registered to my sailing school,” Scott declared, walking back inside and closing the patio door. “It’s easy to trace ownership here.”

“Scott,” she exclaimed urgently, “one of those guys—I know him.”

“From the mansion in L.A.?”

“No, no, I can’t believe this! Shit! He’s an agent like me. He works for Jim, my boss. His name is David Clark.”

“You didn’t know he was embedded with Conchello down here?”

“That’s just it, he’s not. Jim said he was sent to New York. This is crazy.”

Placing the camera on the desk, Scott put his hands on his hips and stared at the floor.

“Scott? What are you thinking?”

“How close to the beach rental did you hide your bag with the money?”

“The money wasn’t in the bag. It was in a metal briefcase. I paid the manager of a nearby hotel to keep it in his safe. It was too risky to have it at the cottage, and there was no way I was about to stash it in the bushes.”

“Damn,” he muttered under his breath. “Elizabeth, if the money with the tracker wasn’t with you, or near you, how did Dan know where you were?”

“I have no idea. The only person who knew my whereabouts was—”

“Your boss, Jim,” Scott interjected.

An icy chill shuddered through her body.

“I’m feeling all prickly,” she mumbled, a wave of nausea washing over her. “I think I’m going to be sick.”

Hastily stepping forward, he pulled her into his arms.

“No, I can’t believe it,” she whispered, scorching heat searing the back of her throat. “The failed raid, Manny’s death, is it all because of Jim?”

“I’m sorry, Elizabeth, it’s the only explanation.”

“Then… he must be working for Conchello,” she mumbled, clutching Scott tightly. “Jim didn’t send me down here to keep me safe and look for evidence against Conchello. He sent me here to have me killed.”

“You must remember Conchello is the puppet master,” Scott said grimly. “He’s the one pulling the strings. If he wanted you dead, you wouldn’t be here. Dan, and apparently Jim too, are working for him, but there’s no telling what they know about each other, or the orders they’re following.”

She slowly pulled back and nodded her head. “You’re right, but it doesn’t alter the fact that Jim isn’t the brave, honest, wonderful man I’ve admired. He’s a treacherous bastard.”

* * *

Scott knew all about betrayal.

The bitter pill.

Easy to choke on, but once swallowed, it burned in the gut with a white-hot heat. Blinding rage followed, causing errors in judgment and maddening hours of self-doubt.

“Weren’t you worried leaving the cash in a hotel?” he asked, wanting to distract Elizabeth from the hellish news.

“What?”

“The money,” he repeated. “Weren’t you worried about leaving it?”

“Not as much as I would have been keeping it in the cottage, and I didn’t want to carry the case everywhere I went.”

“Tell me about this case.”

“Before I left L.A., I put the money in a security briefcase. Being in covert ops for the Navy you might even know what I’m talking about. It’s impossible to smash, the locks are hidden, and it interferes with any kind of GPS device.”

“The Trident?”

“That’s the one, it’s great, but it looks like what it is, a case made for carrying valuables. I didn’t want to attract the wrong kind of attention on my way to your boat, so I transferred the money back into my regular bag.”

“Smart girl. Where’s the case now?”

“In a dumpster—Scott!”

“What?”

“I just realized… that’s why Dan kept coming back to your boat. I texted Jim and told him I was with you. He must have passed it on. They are working together.”

“Ah, yes, and that’s why he was so persistent,” Scott muttered with a grimace.

“Fuck,” she hissed, tears