a series of concealed buttons and exposed the narrow compartment under one of the bench seats, I realized there was no way it would fit.
“We’ll have to unload it,” I said. I wondered if the men even knew what was inside. When we pried it open, neither of them even skipped a beat, whereas I had a hard time keeping my mouth shut. I’d never seen that much cash in one place at one time. In a bank account, sure, but not in real life, sitting in a pile in front of me. It was neatly bundled and wrapped in plastic. It was certainly enough for Malone to hold these two for questioning and potentially turn them against the higher-ups, but that wasn’t our plan. We didn’t want to raise any flags up the chain pole until we had the actual guns in our possession.
Once the crate was emptied, I sealed the compartment and walked the guys back up top. They left without a word.
Two of my phones buzzed at the same time.
The secure line read:
M1: Send a picture.
My phone from the man I hated almost as much as my dick of a father was the one that held my attention the longest.
UNKNOWN: I need to hear from you.
I retreated to the cabin, hit the buttons on the compartment, took a picture, and sent it to Malone before calling Ken’Ichi.
“Everything set?” he asked.
“Yes,” I answered back. “We had to―”
“Good,” he said and hung up.
I blew out a breath. He never let me say anything that would incriminate him. My jaw clenched in frustration.
I heard footsteps clatter on the deck above me, and my heart raced back to life, thrusting away the calm I’d found on the water because I wasn’t expecting anyone else. My hand reached for the Glock at my back as I turned and started up the steps to the deck.
Violet appeared before me, her long hair hanging over one shoulder, dressed in a sweater that kept slipping off her shoulder, jeans that clung to her curves, and ankle boots that were probably from Jada’s closet. Even though she smiled at me, there was still a tension to her that had appeared in the elevator the night before. It was as if she’d assembled some sort of protective bubble around herself. I didn’t know if I hated it or was relieved to find it there.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, blocking the entrance to the cabin, hand sliding away from my gun.
“Dax wanted us to see the boat,” she said.
“Dax is here too?” I glanced down the dock, looking for his tall, lanky frame. My heart thudded, and my brain whirled through a series of ways to get the compartment closed before anyone saw it.
“Jada was asking him about one of the other yachts,” she said. Then, she glanced away from my face to take in the Ada Mae. A look of awe crossed over her face. “This is…just…wow.”
I couldn’t help the smile that lit me up. I was so damn proud of what we’d built.
“She’s the most perfect boat I’ve ever been on,” I said sincerely.
Violet saw the joy in my eyes, and her frame seemed to relax. She returned my smile with a genuine one. The wind blew a tendril of her hair onto her face. Before I could stop myself, I reached out to brush it from her lips. They were covered with just a hint of gloss, enough to make them shiny but not enough to make me resist kissing them.
I caught myself. Kissing them would not be happening.
Momentarily lost in my thoughts of her lips, I wasn’t quick enough to stop her before she ducked under my arm to head down the stairs.
“Vi, wait…”
I tried to grab her arm and pull her back, but she was already dancing out of my grasp, eyes still smiling, as she moved into the tight space below. I knew the moment she saw it, because her body froze. Then, she was flipping back toward me, mouth gaping.
“What the hell?” Her surprise quickly turned into anger. She stormed toward me and hit me on the chest with a finger. “What kind of shit are you mixed up in?”
I grabbed her by the wrist.
“It isn’t what you think, Vi.”
“Normal people don’t float around with that kind of cash, Dawson. I’m not stupid.”
“No, you’re a fucking genius.”
“So, explain it to me.”
“I can’t. It’s complicated.”
“You keep using that word. Complicated. You used it about Jada too.” Her eyes grew