it would drive him to break away, to truly love, to laugh . . . and to live.
Tanner’s mouth was tender against mine. I felt desperate for his lips and kiss. Tanner took control, keeping it soft and gentle. He might not have said the words, but with this kiss, he told me he loved me. When everything seemed cruel and dark, he cast in me a single flicker of light. I prayed that it was strong enough to hold its flame when he was gone.
I couldn’t break away. I needed to breathe, but I didn’t want his mouth to tear from mine. I wanted to keep his palms on my face, with my hands soothing the scars he had borne for too long.
I moaned into his mouth, and under his touch I let myself forget where we were. I foolishly let my defenses down to the danger getting caught with him would pose. Tanner started backing me down to the ground, then suddenly the echo of a gun safety being released sounded like thunder around us. Tanner froze against my lips.
I slowly pulled back my mouth from Tanner’s. Shock rendered me speechless. Vincente, my guard and Diego’s best friend, had his gun pointed at the back of Tanner’s head. “Vincente—”
“Quiet,” Vincente ordered. He flashed his dark eyes my way and I saw the clear judgment of betrayal glaring back at me. My hands shook as I next looked to Tanner. He was crouched on the ground, unmoving. I had to do something. I got to my feet.
“Vincente,” I whispered. “Get back from Se?or Ayers.” Vincente’s lips rolled over his teeth, showing his anger. “This isn’t a request. It is an order.”
“With all apologies,” Vincente said, “I have orders from Diego that take precedence.” Like hell he did!
“And what are those?” I asked, seething that Diego would dare defy me.
“That if you were ever caught with anyone romantically, I was to kill them on sight.” My stomach fell and my hands shook with dread. Had we been too obvious? Did Diego suspect something?
No . . . we had been careful. It was just Diego and his jealous nature. He had been this way since we were children.
Suddenly, Tanner leaped to his feet and knocked the gun from Vincente’s hand. In seconds he was behind Vincente. I didn’t have time to even blink before Tanner’s hands had wrapped around Vincente’s head. Vincente’s eyes, for a split second, fixed on mine. Then Tanner’s hands moved, the crack of Vincente’s neck snapping under his touch echoing around the silent garden.
I didn’t move my eyes from Vincente’s. They remained fixed on mine, until Tanner dropped him to the ground. My limbs went numb with shock. I stumbled back. Vincente . . . I had known Vincente since I was a child. I couldn’t wrest my eyes from his dark hair, from his suit, dirtied by the path. From his stiff body, from his wide-open eyes now staring into nothing.
I gasped, as what had happened started to sink in to my fogged mind. “Tanner . . .” I whispered. My hands flew to my mouth to stop the scream I felt building in my throat.
Tanner came around Vincente and took hold of me. He pulled me against his chest, then kissed my head. He scanned all around us. “I have to hide the body.” Tanner spoke calmly, but I could see the urgency in his eyes. “Go back to your rooms,” he ordered. But my feet wouldn’t function. I could feel the paralyzing sensation of shock taking control of my body. Tanner’s hands cupped my face. “Baby,” he said. Even in all of this mess, this nightmare we had just found ourselves in, the endearment dragged me from my stupor. “Baby . . . you need to move.”
Nodding, I cast one last glance at Vincente and fought the urge to vomit. I backed away from Tanner slowly. “Go!” Tanner turned round and slung Vincente over his shoulder, disappeared into the thick foliage of the garden and then into the surrounding blackness of the forest.
When they were out of sight, I traveled through the maze of garden paths until I arrived at my suite. I slipped inside and rushed to the bathroom. I turned on the shower, stripped and moved under the faucet. A deep sense of dread was the dominant feeling as my head dropped and I let myself fall apart. My tears mixed with the running water and circled the drain.