On the Line Read online

“Another costume,” he cocked his eyebrow as he looked her over.

  “Apparently the guy whose harem I am about to join first saw me in a costume like this, when I was sixteen and over in Morocco for my first Belly Dance Universe competition. He liked it so much he had a replica designed and he wants to see me again in this.” She shook her head. “I am going to be sex slave number ninety-nine—probably, but the good news is he wants you dead. Apparently you killed his brother.”

  He shrugged. “I was career military, and I have had this search and rescue firm going for a while now so I would say I have probably had my share in killing a lot of brothers to someone. Actually I guess I should say it’s Micah’s firm really, he just gave me the reigns and a huge part of the partnership, but this baby was his idea.”

  She smiled. “Giving credit where credit is due, very noble of you.” There was no malice in her voice at all. She still admired and respected him to the fullest. “The man’s name in Ammon. Do you know him?”

  Preston growled fiercely.

  “I’ll take that as a yes.”

  “Long story,” he grumbled. “I would give you the details, but I’m trying to figure out how to get us out of here, unless you want to be sex slave number ninety-nine.”

  She shook her head no. “If it comes to that I very much plan on dying with you.”

  “You’re not dying,” he said harshly.

  “I’m not planning on it. That’s why I got this,” she pulled a tiny piece of metal from her hip scarf. “I may have accidently on purpose fallen against one of the tables while they were taking me out the room. I saw this while I was changing and I thought maybe I could use it to pick the lock of your chains like you taught me to.”

  “You remember that?”

  Preston was always trying to teach her something, including how to shoot, even though she had horrible aim he had managed to get her to a moderate level of accuracy. “I remember many things,” she said before going forward with her plan. The first part of her plan was to get him out of his bindings. The second part of her plan was to pick the lock on the barred window and judging from the size of the window she knew that she and Preston could both fit through the opening one at a time. After that she didn’t have much of a plan other than running fast, hard and far away from this place; that part of the plan was going to have to be up to him.

  “You can get us away from here, right?” She looked at him pleadingly.

  He nodded. “I’ll do everything I can, Ariana. You know that.”

  “I do,” she admitted. When Preston gave his word he stuck with it—except for their marriage vows that is. Even though she had been the one to send the divorce papers he had been the one to walk away long before that and on top of that he hadn’t fought for her. The memory of how things went down was still vivid in her mind, only now she questioned if sending the papers was the best solution. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn’t, but given the fact that he hadn’t come after her, even after all these years, maybe it had been the best thing. Maybe he wanted out and he just needed her to make the move so he could have his way out. She felt a single tear cascade down her cheek.

  “Hey,” he said softly. “We’ll get out of here.”

  That wasn’t what she was worried about, although maybe it should have been. “Okay, I have it,” she said as she managed to get the last shackle undone. Preston didn’t waste any time getting to his feet. She thought it would take him a few minutes because he had been sitting for so long, but apparently he was ready to move.

  “I thought you might be stiff.”

  He mumbled something she didn’t understand and then he looked out the window, checking to see if everything was clear. “I made good use of the breaks they gave me to use that,” he pointed to the toilet. “It wasn’t ideal movement, but it worked. My legs are ready to move. I hope yours are too.” He picked the lock on the gated bars covering the window and when he was sure they could get out he pulled it open and went out first, continuously checking for danger while she managed to get herself out the window too. Being in the cabaret costume was both help and hindrance. There was enough ease in the garment to move, but it was long and flowing with only the hip scarf holding the upper parts down. Trying to crawl out a window in an outfit like that wasn’t easy, and when she nearly tumbled to the ground she realized just how uneasy it was. If it hadn’t been for Preston she would have fallen flat on her face. Fortunately she was able to curtail her panicked scream at seeing the ground nearly connecting with her face, or maybe it was her face nearly connecting with the ground as the ground hadn’t moved at all.

  “Quietly,” he said as he pulled the barred window gate closed and cautiously moved them forward. He kept moving them forward slowly until they hit a spot where running seemed to be the best option and then they ran. There was nothing but desert ahead of them. She had no idea where they were going and she had a feeling he didn’t either, but as long as they were moving away from that place she wouldn’t worry about where they were headed right now.

  When they stopped running she was ready to breathe a sigh of relief until Preston reminded her that the area was volatile and even though their captors weren’t hot on their tail—at least he didn’t think they were just yet—they still had to worry about other enemies.

  “That’s just great,” she had said. “See, that is why I don’t come over here. They’re all crazy.”

  He laughed.

  “You think that’s funny?”

  “You have been avoiding this area like the plague since Morocco happened.”

  “No, I have been avoiding this area like the plague since crazy people with an obsession with bombs took over.” She sighed. “Thankfully this outfit doesn’t have the coin beading or we would have made far too much noise getting out of there.”

  “You can take some of that stuff off if you want.”

  “And put it where? I think if I leave it buried in the sand somehow they’ll still find it and they’ll know exactly which way we went. Besides, this arm bracelet is heavy so it’s more than likely real gold. We might need to barter it for something like food, water, a camel.”

  He laughed heartedly. “Maybe we can barter it for a bike.”

  “As long as we get out of here I don’t really care what we use.”

  He nodded as they walked along.

  “It’s really hot out here,” she said absently as she shielded her eyes to look up at the sky. “Should be dark soon though…you think?”

  “Sun will be setting soon,” he told her. “Then we’ll have to worry about this tomorrow. No water. No food, but I’ll take this hell over the alternative any day.”

  “True,” she whispered. “I am still scared, Preston. I mean this is bad, this is really bad. Stranded in a foreign country with far too many potential enemies and no friends to help. What are we going to do?”

  “Hey,” he stopped walking and turned her to face him. “I’ll get us out of here. And if we’re lucky maybe there will be some covert U.S. military men out here somewhere.”

  “And if we’re not lucky?”

  “I’ll still get us out of here.”

  She nodded. “Yeah, we’re going to make it. I’m going to keep walking until I drop.”

  “And then I’ll carry you.”

  “How do you do it? You have been locked up and shackled and you’re spry as a chicken.”

  He started laughing so hard she wanted to slap him. “Spry as a chicken? Wow,” he laughed again. “One would think you grew up in the south instead of the Midwest.”

  She mumbled her discontent with his words. She had been born and raised in the Midwest so it would have made sense to move back there after their divorce, but she hadn’t. She wanted to stay in Texas. Maybe she wanted to stay because she had held on to hope that they could make things right one day. That was a long time of wishful thinking, but she couldn’t help it—she still loved the man.

  He was still just as handsome. He was older, a few lines around his eyes
that she would call smile lines, and some gray hair mixing with the dark hair, but he was still handsome—maybe more so today than he was eighteen years ago, if that were even possible because Preston was a handsome man even back then.

  “Why don’t you take that hip scarf off and drape it over your head to block the sun?”

  “Because…well…this is a little embarrassing,” she mumbled. “I had on a darker costume when I arrived and my panties matched that costume. This is clearly white and very sheer and without this hip scarf my underwear will be on display for everybody to see.”

  “Am I missing the rest of the patrons of the desert here or something? It’s just the two of us and I have seen your panties before, Ariana.”

  “You haven’t seen these,” she said. “And you haven’t seen them in a long time. And I’ve gained a little weight. Not much, but some.” She was rambling now. Why was she rambling?

  “I noticed. It looks good on you. But it can’t be more than ten pounds, fifteen at the most.”

  “Twelve,” she said. Although maybe this wasn’t the conversation she wanted to have. She didn’t need to draw attention to the changes her body had undergone. Wait, he had said the weight looked good on her. She smiled.

  “You look great, Ariana and you know it. You’re aging well.”

  “So are you,” she returned the compliment.

  “Seriously,” he stopped walking and stepped in front of her. Putting his hands on the knot in the hip scarf he untied it and removed it from her body. “I promise not to peek.” He winked and she laughed. He had already peeked. There was no way he couldn’t peek given the sun illuminating the fabric and making it look like an open window to her barely hidden flesh.

  “Okay,” she mumbled as she took the scarf from him and placed it over her head. Maybe it would help block out some of the sun until the sun set and they were able to get some reprieve from the glaring heat.

  Preston couldn’t help but notice the lace panties beneath her chiffon skirt. Good lord what he wouldn’t give to pull those panties off and get to the areas they covered. He shouldn’t be having those thoughts about her. She had left him. The reasoning behind it still wasn’t clear to him because in his mind she had to know he loved her. He was still trying to figure out how one simple statement could have been interpreted so wrongly. If she had loved him then she wouldn’t have sent him divorce papers. She would have come after him.

  They walked along in silence, each one either afraid to say anything or not knowing what else to say. He had questions and he wanted answers, but now really wasn’t the time. Right now he needed to focus on what they were doing and where they were going other than wandering aimlessly in the desert. He didn’t have a gun, which he hated being without. He didn’t have a compass, and he had no idea of where his exact location was. He could navigate by the position of the sun and by the stars so by nightfall he should have confirmation if they were headed in a good direction or not. Navigating away from their captors was a good thing, but eventually they would need water, and thus far they weren’t near any.

  “Are you all right?”

  She looked at him and smiled. “Of course. You know me. I survive.”

  He thought he knew her, but that was before she sent him divorce papers. But if he did know one thing for sure she was right, she was a survivor.

  “Are you okay? Did they hurt you?”

  He chuckled. She was worried about him? Well yeah, she was. That’s why she sat on her knees massaging his legs. “I’ve had worse; besides, I think they were saving that for the other guy.” He winked at her.

  “How do you do it, Preston? I have always wondered that. How do you show no fear? You just do what needs to be done. I admire that about you—I always have.”

  His lips turned upward on their own volition. She was proud of him; she admired him, and something about that made him feel really good. “I have fear, Ariana. It’s just that fear can get you killed. I push that fear out the way and I do what needs to be done.”

  “Yeah, you’re one of the good guys, Preston. Your code of honor won’t ever let you turn your back on a mission, an obligation or the chance to right a wrong.”

  He wasn’t sure what she meant by that. Was she saying his ethics ruined their marriage? Or was he just over processing every word that came out her mouth? He wasn’t sure so he decided to remain silent. Sometimes silence was best. As they walked onward he thought about the challenges they would still face. He had to get them to safety. He had to get them home.

  Chapter Nine

  “Thanks,” Zahara hugged Malachi. Her smaller body pressed against the man’s larger frame and Alex felt a twinge of possessive jealousy rearing its head. “I can’t thank you enough for helping me do this.” Her voice was sweet and soft.

  “Anything for you,” he said to her.

  Alex didn’t like the looks of the man. He was tall, built like a linebacker and had golden bronzed skin. He was also looking far too possessively at Zahara which made Alex wonder if this “friend,” was really just a friend. She had said this Malachi guy wanted her to come to Egypt and experience his excavation and see the stars. What man offered that without having an ulterior motive? Zahara was gorgeous, smart, and sexy even if she didn’t realize it herself; there was no way this guy was thinking of just being her friend. He probably wanted her to come to Egypt so he could seduce her.

  Alex watched Malachi brush the back of his fingers up and down Zahara’s arm and something within him reacted—something primal and possessive. He took a step forward. Jet’s hand caught hold of his arm and steadied him in place.

  “Down boy,” he mumbled to him.

  Alex growled low.

  “Steady,” he said. “We have a mission to complete. Focus, Marine.”

  “I am focused,” he grumbled.

  “On the mission,” he gave him a crooked grin. “Not on the woman you let get away from you once. When this is over and we get back to the States don’t make the same mistake again.”

  “How did you know?”

  “Gut feeling.” Jet patted him on the back.

  Alex still couldn’t stand to see the way Malachi touched her. He caressed her skin when he should have been keeping his hands to himself. And she hadn’t even stopped him! Didn’t she understand what he was doing? Could she be that blind to a man’s intended seduction that she didn’t understand the lust that man was looking at her with, touching her with? Maybe she wanted it. Maybe she was more than friends with this guy, but that thought didn’t sit too well with Alex either. She had been his one major regret in his lifetime. They were friends and he never pushed for more, but she had been the one woman he had wished he could have claimed as his and in return let her claim him as hers. He was not happy with the visual in front of him right now.

  “I’m okay,” he said. As much as he wanted to go show the guy Zahara was spoken for he knew he had to resist the urge. They did have a mission—one of the most important missions of their life because Preston was their friend, their family.

  When they met with Preston’s contact he provided them with weapons. He had to expertly hide them amongst supplies they would have used to go to the dig site. After the inspection of a few packs the military men let them pass. They had acquired a guide to take them to the dig site. It wasn’t that they wanted a guide, but it was mandatory. Even though they were traveling as scientists and researchers there was still little trust. Zahara had been right when she said they would need her. Her presence had eased the suspicion some and for that he was thankful.

  When they made it to the excavation site and their “chauffer” as Zahara had teasingly called the man, left they were ready to set out on foot. Alex could honestly say if it weren’t for Zahara they would have been beyond suspicious because Zahara was really the only one making the jokes and being playful with the military “chauffer” and because of her ease with the man their cover stayed intact. Thank God for a woman who could think through her anger, fear and stress be
cause she had been their saving grace.

  They needed water to take with them. The desert was no place for a man or woman without water. Malachi had provided that for them. He had provided their cover and under the cover of night they were going to set out to find the area where Preston had last been known to be heading. His contact had done a little more digging after they got in touch with him and had found a remote compound where he thought they might be holding Preston and by extension they probably had Ariana there as well. It would take them all night and most of the day, but they were hoping to arrive at the compound by the next nightfall. It could take longer because they would be on foot and even with moving swiftly there were still dangers they would have to watch out for.

  They couldn’t borrow the jeep Malachi had for the site. He only had the one and when they were ready to leave for holiday they had to wait for the Egyptian government to come to inspect their site and their belongings and then load them onto a vehicle to head back into the city. A missing jeep would be too obvious. They didn’t have any horses or camels to serve as transportation either. They were essentially on lockdown which for them it didn’t matter because they were there to explore and discover, but for Alex that level of restriction would have drove him crazy. They were virtually caged without the iron bars to hold them—they were still prisoner and at the mercy of some man in order to come or go.