Risky Engagement. Merline Lovelace

exposed inch of skin.

      She covered her involuntary reaction with a nod toward the rapidly darkening sky. “Cools off fast when the sun goes down, doesn’t it?”

      “It does,” he replied, and promptly tucked her closer into his side.

      His scent enveloped her. The seductive blend of sun-warmed skin and healthy male sweat retriggered the erotic sensations Nina was so determined to repress. Gulping, she tried to focus on the dramatic red-and-gold streaks in the dark sky, the raucous beat of music coming from the restaurants, anything but the man beside her.

      She failed miserably and breathed a distinct sigh of relief when they reached the parking garage. Easing free of his hold, she punched the button for the fourth floor.

      “Thanks again for the drinks.”

      “I’ll ride up with you.”

      She turned to him with a polite but firm no on her lips. He spiked it with a shrug and casual remark.

      “This part of town is usually pretty safe, but a couple of tourists were mugged in this garage a few days ago.”

      Common sense prevailed. Parking garages in any part of the world could be risky. No sense tempting fate.

      Which was exactly what she was doing by prolonging her brief association with Blackstone. She wasn’t fooling anyone, herself included. The tingling awareness of his proximity, the delicious feeling of temptation rode all the way up to the fourth floor with her.

      They stepped out into cavernous gloom. Their footsteps echoed as Nina led the way up the ramp, glad now that she’d accepted Blackstone’s escort. The garage had emptied considerably since her arrival. Probably because most of the businesses in town that didn’t cater exclusively to the tourist trade had closed for the day. Her rental now sat by itself at the end of the row.

      Digging the keys out of her tote, she clicked the remote. The lights flashed, the locks popped, and she turned to her escort once more. He was close. A little too close. She put on a cool smile.

      “Thanks again. I enjoyed—”

      “Let me have the keys.”

      “Excuse me?”

      “Give me the keys. I’ll drive you back to your hotel.”

      Okay, enough is enough. Lifting her chin, Nina shook her head.

      “Look, I don’t know what signals you think I sent there at the bar, but you read them wrong.”

      “Give me the keys.”

      When he took a step closer, crowding her against the car, fright exploded in her chest. How stupid was this? How stupid was she?

      She threw a wild glance down the ramp. Nothing moved. Not a single person walked to or from a car. No headlights stabbed through the gloom. She was on her own here.

      Her throat clogged with fear, she tried to recall any of the moves from the self-defense courses she’d taken over the years. All she could remember, all she could think of was to yell her head off and gouge her attacker’s eyes with her car keys.

      She fumbled the pointed ends between her fingers, balled her fist, and screamed for help. Or tried to. She didn’t emit much more than a squeak before Blackwater clapped a hard hand over her mouth. His other hand batted away the arm she’d brought up in a vicious arc.

      She fought him, using every bit of her strength, but he was too big, too strong. Reaching behind her, he ripped open the car door and shoved her inside.

      Her heart hammering in terror, Nina landed in a sprawl across the driver’s seat. Pure instinct brought her knee up and her foot lashing out. Blackstone dodged the kick aimed at his groin, and took it on the outside of his thigh instead.

      “Calm down!” he got out with a grunt of pain. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

      Right. Uh-huh. Sure.

      She wasn’t about to take his word for it. With his unyielding presence blocking the exit, she scrambled over the center console and made a desperate lunge for the passenger door. Cursing, he dropped into the driver’s seat and wrapped fingers of steel around her upper arm. A swift yank jerked her back down.

      “Listen to me. I’m not going to hurt you.”

      “Then let me go!”

      “Not yet. And not here.” He kept her in place with an iron fist. “We need to talk, Dr. Grant.”

      Dr. Grant?

      The title penetrated her wild fear. She hadn’t used the honorific in conversation. She was sure she hadn’t. She rarely did, and then only in professional circles. So how did he know?

      “Who are you?” she panted. “What do you want to talk to me about?”

      “I’ll tell you at the Mayan Princess.”

      Oh, Lord! He knew where she was staying. Had he followed her from the resort? Been following her the entire day?

      He couldn’t have! She would have spotted him out on that winding, dusty road before her rental broke down.

      If it had broken down. What if he’d sabotaged her car? Anticipated that she’d be stranded out there in the middle of nowhere? Which she would have been, if she hadn’t trudged a mile through the hot sun to Sebastian Cordell’s hacienda. Or was that part of his diabolical plan, too?

      The questions hammered at her as he eased his brutal grip, but she decided not to stick around for the answers. She made another grab for the door handle, only to hear the door locks snick.

      “Child protective locks,” he commented laconically as she tugged futilely on the handle.

      Grinding her teeth in frustration, she sank back against the seat. Her cell phone was in her tote, she remembered. With a dead battery. Her last hope she thought as her abductor keyed the ignition, was the garage attendant.

      Except there wasn’t one. The booth where she’d forked over a fee when she’d entered was now empty. Apparently, anyone who drove in after the main businesses and shops closed got to park free.

      Nor was there a police officer anywhere in sight when they pulled out of the garage and hit the streets. Nina seriously considered hammering on the window to attract the attention of the people out for a late evening stroll. A return of her common sense—and gradual subsiding of panic—subdued the impulse.

      Blackstone said he didn’t intend to hurt her. He also said he’d tell her what he wanted from her at the Mayan. That meant he had to pull up at the entrance to the posh resort, where the extremely well-trained parking valet, doorman and desk clerks all knew her by name. Blackstone could hardly waltz into the resort with her and waltz out again, leaving behind her dead and/or mutilated body and a small army of people who could ID him.

      Could he?

      She’d more or less reassured herself on that point by the time the resort appeared in the distance. She’d also worked up as much reluctant curiosity as distrust. What the heck did this man want with her? She was pretty sure now it wasn’t sex, and was shocked by the contradictory feelings that realization generated.

      “Turn here,” she muttered as they approached the long, winding drive that led up to the resort. When he flipped on the directionals, the lingering remnants of Nina’s fear eased. He really was taking her back to the Mayan. She let out a low sigh of relief.

      The resort was the latest in a string of San Cabo resorts that included Westin and Ritz Carlton and other high-priced escapes. Constructed to resemble a Mayan temple, the main building sat on a cliff overlooking the sea. Tall palms lined the drive leading up to it. Lit by floodlights, they provided an exotic approach to the stunningly dramatic pyramid gleaming against the night sky.

      As Nina had anticipated, a valet came forward when the car rolled to a stop. He had to wait for Blackstone to hit the lock release to open