First E-Book

Mary E. Thompson

• Herausgeber: BluEyed Press
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2021

Beschreibung

Pilar Luna knows better than to trust a man, especially one with a sexy smile and a self-deprecating sense of humor. The last time she did that, she almost ended up dead. She would have been if not for her brother. Not that he was perfect. Lying men were all Pilar knew. 

Former SEAL, Jack Farrell has no interest in getting close to anyone. He has his team and doesn’t need anyone else. Definitely not a stunning, curvy woman with aa feisty side and strength for days. 

Jack’s team has been working on taking down the dangerous men Pilar’s ex works for, but they aren’t willing to let it happen without a few casualties. They send her ex to deal with it, but taking her brother isn’t enough. He won’t return home unless Pilar is with him. 

The search for Pilar’s brother forces Jack and Pilar closer together when Jack is tasked with keeping her safe. But finding her brother means putting Pilar in danger. It means showing their hand to the man who could take everything away from him. 

And it means the one thing Pilar needs from Jack is something he can’t give her. The truth. 

Leseprobe

FIRST

F-BOMB: SEALS LOVE CURVES, BOOK 3

MARY E THOMPSON

First

F-BOMB: SEALs Love Curves, book three

Copyright © 2019 Mary E Thompson

Cover Copyright © 2021 Mary E Thompson

Cover Photo from depositphotos, Copyright © stetsik

Background from depositphotos, Copyright © yupiramos

Flag from Pixabay, CC0

Published by BluEyed Press, All Rights Reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This is a work of fiction. All characters, businesses, locations, and events are either products of the author’s creative imagination or are used in a fictitious sense. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-944090-72-2

Print ISBN: 978-1-944090-73-9

Audiobook ISBN: 978-1-944090-66-1

Created with Vellum

F-BOMB: SEALS LOVE CURVES

Welcome to the world of F-BOMB where a group of former SEALs have come together to protect the curvy women they love and the country they call home from the dangers of the world. They have the training and the knowledge, and they have the ability to kick some ass when needed. And it’ll be needed.

F-BOMB: SEALs LOVE CURVES

Freedom

Fiancée (subscriber exclusive)

Forgotten

First

Failure

Friends

Family

Forbidden

Future

Finally

SUBSCRIBE NOW AT MARYETHOMPSON.COM

CONTENTS

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

About the Author

For that first love… whether they’re the one who got away, the one you set free, the one you stayed with forever, or someone else, may you always remember the joy of falling in love for the first time.

For my first and only love, thank you.

1

The truth was the most important thing to Pilar Luna. She valued it above everything else. Trusting that the people she loved told her the truth was not always easy.

The truth was a funny thing. Most people would say the truth sets you free. That it’s a balm on your soul. It can release you from pain and heartbreak and misplaced devotion.

But the truth can also do the opposite. The truth can destroy you. It can cripple you. It can take your heart and smash it into bits.

That was why the truth was so important to Pilar. She had been there. More than once. She knew what it was like to find out the truth about someone and have it ruin everything you thought you knew.

“Why are we here?” she grumbled to her brother.

He turned back to her with a wide grin. His dark hair had bright blue tips, something new for him. It had been a long year for him, always checking behind himself. It was nice to see him smile, and she couldn’t help the tug at her own lips.

“Because parades are awesome. We didn’t do stuff like this at home, hermanita.”

“That’s because the cartel didn’t approve of celebrations or anything that would bring the people together. They wanted us scared and separate,” Pilar snapped.

Juan’s smile faded, and she immediately regretted her words. Juan, or John as he’d changed it to when he moved to Niagara Falls, spent more than his fair share of years as a falcon for the Castillo cartel. He didn’t realize what he was getting into when he was young, and by the time he understood, it was too late to get out.

But he did. She was proud of him for walking away. It took guts. Guts Pilar had to use when she found out the man she fell for on one of her breaks from school was further up the chain than her brother and involved in things she couldn’t even think about, let alone be a part of.

“I’m sorry,” Juan whispered, squeezing her hand. His dark brown eyes showed how much he meant his words.

She smiled at him and squeezed back. “It’s not your fault. I’m tired. It’s been a long week.”

His eyes brightened, and his grin returned. He stared over her shoulder and held up a finger. “I know what will make you feel better.”

He took off before she could ask him where he was going. She tried to follow him through the crowd, but between the people lining the streets to watch the parade and the vendors selling everything from sausages to light up necklaces, he vanished far too quickly.

Panic flooded Pilar’s veins as she rushed down the street, scanning for his blue tipped hair and bright red shirt. The sea of red surrounding her swallowed up her brother like he’d never been there at all.

Pilar pushed ahead, blindly running. She had to have missed him. She turned back but kept moving forward.

She ran smack into something, backing into a hard… body. Arms came around her, hands gripping her biceps. Her panic was real, potent, a thing surrounding her as surely as the stranger’s hands.

She tried to step away, but the hands tightened on her arms.

“Are you okay?” he asked in a smooth, deep voice that set off every nerve ending. Male. Commanding. Calm. If she weren’t so terrified, she might have found the voice sexy, but she could only think of getting away.

“Fine,” she said, again trying to push away from him.

He finally let her go. “It’s crazy here, isn’t it?”

She turned and looked at him. His accent said he wasn’t a local, but he wasn’t Mexican either. His skin was too light and there was no hint of Mexican in his tone. “Yeah, busy.”

She scanned the area again, needing to find Juan. He couldn’t have gone far.

“Are you looking for someone?”

She nodded. “Yeah, my… cousin,” she stammered, remembering their cover story at the last second. She kept their mother’s last name when she made the move to the States permanent, but her brother chose a whole new identity. Something she wasn’t willing to ask how he knew how to do.

“Maybe I can help you. What does he look like?”

Pilar shook her head. “It’s okay. I’m sure he’s around here somewhere.”

He shrugged. “If you’re sure. But I don’t mind helping. My friends are grabbing food. I was saving our spot so we can see all the festivities. I’m a newbie at all this. Never thought I’d stand on a street and throw my sausage around.”

Pilar’s eyes bugged out. “What?”

He held up a raw sausage. “For the parade. Are you a Dyngus Day virgin, too?”

The conspiratorial grin he flashed her had her fighting her own smile. “I am,” she admitted. “And I’m going to stay that way if I have to leave to find my brother.”

His eyes narrowed. “I thought you were looking for your cousin.”

“Oh, um yeah. We’re just really close. I always thought of him as more like a brother.”

The guy’s eyes narrowed but stayed warm. He was looking at her a little too closely for someone she just met on the street. And he was being friendly.

“Um, I need to go.”

Pilar turned and came face-to-face with the last man she ever wanted to see.

“Hola, amore,” Carlos Ibarra said with a menacing grin and eyes only for her. His black gaze scanned her body, pausing at her breasts and between her thighs.

There was a time when seeing his eyes heat the way they did made her a puddle at his feet, willing to do almost anything he asked because she loved him. He twisted that love, and he turned it into something disgusting that shamed her to her very core when she found out who he really was.

“You don’t have a kiss for me?” he asked.

Every muscle in her body seized, unable to function. She wanted to slap him, or kick him, or do something that would bring him the same kind of pain she experienced, but he was invincible. The kind of man who couldn’t be hurt because he had no heart. No emotions. No feelings.

A hand slid around her waist and tugged her close to a firm body. “Sorry, man. She saves her kisses for me.”

The guy she ran in to. He was holding her and pretending she was his.

She belonged to no one, but the last thing she wanted was to let Carlos think she was alone. Vulnerable.

Carlos’s eyebrows winged up and a vicious grin turned his lips up. “Ah, that won’t be for long.” Carlos moved to walk away, then turned back. “I’ll let Juan know you’re being taken care of. He was pretty pissed at us for leaving you all alone. Of course, I can take you to him.”

“Where is he?” she cried, breaking free from the stranger’s grasp to get up in Carlos’s face.

He growled and shoved her back. “Don’t you ever come at me again, or you’ll get to share a resting place with your brother. Adios.”

And just that fast, the truth knocked Pilar on her ass all over again.

* * *

Jack Farrell didn’t know what to expect from the woman in front of him but collapsing on the sidewalk definitely wasn’t it.

He should have. She just found out her brother was kidnapped. But it still shocked the hell out of him.

He reached for her arm, gently placing his hand on her. “Hey.”

She immediately jerked away from him and scrambled to her feet as though she just realized what was going on. Her dark gaze scanned the crowd, but he was gone.

“Where did he go?” she demanded.

Jack shook his head. “I don’t know. I was more worried about you. Are you okay?”

She shook her head, slowly at first, then quicker. “My brother. They took him.”

Jack’s face hardened. “Who was that?”

She laughed softly. “The man who’s going to kill me.”

“I’m not going to let that happen,” he promised her. She had no clue who he was, but that didn’t matter to him. He was going to keep her safe. He wasn’t losing her. Too many people in his life had died.

Not that she was in his life, but she was standing in front of him. She was there. And he was going to keep her safe.

“Come with me,” he said, reaching for her hand and starting down the street in the direction she initially came from.

She tugged out of his grip, causing him to stop. “I’m not going anywhere with you. I don’t know who you are.”

Jack grinned. “I’m the man you’re saving all your kisses for, remember?”

A ghost of a smile crossed her lips, but it didn’t last long. Fury replaced the fear with determination on its heels. “I have to find my brother.”

Jack nodded. “I’ll help you.”

“Why?”

Jack grinned. “Because it’s what I do.”

“Who are you?” she asked, taking a step back.

Jack shook his head and followed her, doing his best to look innocent. “I work for a company that helps people.”

“Smooth,” the sarcastic voice in his ear muttered.

Jack pasted on a grin, ignoring his friend and boss, and hoped it would help convince Pilar to go with him.

She turned back to where Carlos disappeared. “I have to find my brother.”

Jack nodded. “I know. My company can help you. And keep you safe so what you said doesn’t actually happen.”

She laughed mirthlessly. “Unless you’re some kind of superhero, it’s going to happen. Now that Carlos knows where to find me, he’ll either take me back or kill me. Maybe both. Definitely both.”

Jack’s grin slid onto his lips easily. He opened his mouth to tell her he was a superhero when the voice was back.

“Don’t you fucking dare, Squirrel. Just bring her in.”

Jack scowled at the voice in his head and vowed to make sure Pres knew exactly how much he appreciated being called Squirrel.

“What’s your name?” Jack asked, pretending he didn’t already know.

She drew in a ragged breath, one that hitched in the middle. She faced away from him, but he could still see her profile. Full lips, one clamped between her teeth, caught his attention first. He’d always been a sucker for a woman with soft, plump lips. Her dark eyes held pain and fear, but that damned determination was still there. Her arms were crossed, one hand pinching her chin as if that made it easier for her to figure out what to do. Her curves dragged his eyes down, making sure he took in every dip of her body from the swell of her breasts to the slight narrowing of her waist, then out again to her wide hips, then curvy legs down to the sandals on her feet. It was still cold for sandals, but her bright pink toenails told him she didn’t care. She was ready for fun and sun.

“Pilar,” she whispered, as though testing it out.

He nodded and stuck out his hand. “Jack Farrell. It’s nice to meet you, Pilar.”

She stared at his hand for a long moment. Long enough that he felt like an idiot and wanted to pull his hand back. But he waited. She had to trust him if she was going to go with him. There was no way in hell he was letting her get in her own vehicle. Not when she was in danger.

She was smart not to trust him, but she had no way of knowing that. All she knew was her brother was gone, and she had no one else to trust.

Finally, she extended her hand and slid it into his. A zap shot up his arm and settled in his dick, bringing it to life. If that wasn’t surprising enough, Pilar tugged his hand, catching him off guard and yanking him to her. She glared up at him, her eyes as dark as midnight. She was so close he could feel her breath on his cheeks as she growled, “If you’re lying to me, I’ll castrate you. You got me?”

Jack fought a grin as the assholes in his ear hooted and hollered that he’d finally met his match. All Jack could do was nod, because if he opened his mouth, he risked a laugh coming out.

Or something much worse. The truth.

* * *

Pilar couldn’t believe she threatened the hot guy who was trying to help her. Even more than that, she couldn’t believe she actually accepted his help and went with him.

She knew she was safest at the parade, surrounded by thousands of other people, but seeing Carlos shook her. More than she expected it to. She never thought she’d see him again. Or maybe she just hoped she’d never see him again. He was the stuff of her nightmares, and coming face-to-face with him after three years of hiding was the most terrified she’d been since the day she found out what kind of monster he was.

She slid a glance at Jack. Jack Farrell. If she was smart, she would have sent a text to a friend with his picture in case she ended up in a ditch somewhere in a few days. Except she didn’t really have any friends. A few acquaintances, sure, but no real friends she trusted with the truth. One of the many consequences of living in fear. She didn’t get close to anyone and didn’t let anyone close to her.

As she sat in a truck with a stranger, going back over the Grand Island bridges toward Niagara Falls, she wondered if she’d live to tell anyone. He could easily pull into a warehouse and she’d never be seen again. Or anything. She had no clue who he was or what he was going to do with her.

“I promise I’m not going to hurt you,” he said softly.

Her head snapped his way, meeting his gaze. He pulled the sunglasses he wore down so she could see his eyes. They were a dark green, so dark she wasn’t sure what color they were at first. They reminded her of a forest, with hidden depths and secrets around every turn. And for some reason, she believed him.

“Where are we going?” Pilar finally asked. She hoped she didn’t sound as terrified as she was.

“My office. It’s up in the Falls.”

“In?”

He laughed softly. “In the city. We do a lot of work with the border so we like to be close.”

“What kind of work?” she asked, eyeing the man next to her. He was big. Much taller than her or Juan. He was thin, but he definitely didn’t lack muscle. He looked like a soccer player with long, strong legs and a narrow frame. Pilar always had a thing for soccer players.

“It’s a task force, F-BOMB. We work to keep our borders safe.”

Pilar choked back the snort that rose in her throat. If he only knew who she was. She chewed her lip. He was the kind of person she should have gone to when she first found out who Carlos was. But it was too late for that. It was too late for her. Carlos was back, and he had Juan.

“Do you really think you can get my brother back?”

Jack took the exit onto Robert Moses Parkway toward downtown Niagara Falls. He kept his gaze focused on the curvy road as he wound around toward the Upper Niagara River, but Pilar was sure he was paying her attention, too. Nothing got by the man next to her. Which made her wonder again why was she trusting him.

“We’ll do our best,” Jack said. He glanced at her again, then reached over and squeezed her hand.

And again, she found herself believing him.

2

Jack catalogued every move Pilar made from the moment he said “F-BOMB” to when they arrived at the massive building they housed their office in. He eyed her when he drove under the building and parked his SUV in the designated spot for company vehicles. And he watched her as she processed where they were.

Either she was a damn good actress, or she was clueless.

“You work here?” she asked, scanning the underground parking structure. “You’re kidding right?”

Jack shrugged. “No. Why? Not fancy enough for you?”

She rolled her eyes and got out. Jack scrambled to follow her and hear what she had to say. “There are tons of places for people to hide down here. On top of that, there are multiple entrances, which means escaping is easier. And there aren’t any cameras, so if something were ever to happen down here, no one would know. This place is a criminal’s dream.”

He narrowed his eyes at the curvy beauty and wondered how she knew all the weak points. They were the same things the team talked about when they rented the office space, but it was nondescript and provided them with anonymity to operate without having to deal with anyone else.

Jack nodded and turned toward the elevators. “Then how about we head upstairs so we’re a little less vulnerable.” He added one of his grins to encourage her even more.

She rolled her eyes at that, too, then stalked off to the elevator without him.

With her arms crossed, she waited for Jack to swipe his card to give them access to the elevators. The only way up was with one of the security cards every employee was required to use. Each card gave them access to one floor only, the one where they worked. Jack was pretty sure English hacked his card and could visit any of the floors in the building, but Jack’s only went to the F-BOMB offices.

Pilar was silent as she stood in the corner and chewed on her lower lip. If it wasn’t already tempting him, the slick, red flesh was making Jack rethink his personal vow to stay away from women for a while.

The doors whooshed open, revealing the sterile entryway of their offices. He held the door open for Pilar and followed her out, her tension radiating through the small space.

“Pilar, you’re safe here.”

She shook her head. “I’m not safe anywhere.”

“Good, you’re here,” Dunn said, walking through the secured doors that led to the bowels of F-BOMB. He turned to Pilar with faux surprise and said, “I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Daniel Dunn.”

Pilar barely acknowledged him, shaking his hand and turning back to Jack. “Are you going to help me?”

Jack nodded. “Yeah, and so is Dunn. He’s in charge around here. You need to tell him everything that happened, Pilar.”

“Okay, well, I was walking down the street with my… brother.”

Dunn held up his hand. “Let’s get you inside. How about a cup of coffee? Or some tea?”

Jack shook his head as Pilar’s eyes lit up. She thought it was a coincidence that Dunn offered her tea.

“Tea, please. Thank you. I appreciate it,” she said with a grin.

“Of course,” Dunn said, leading Pilar through the doors and into the conference room they used for visitors.

Jack started to move past them, but Pilar called out to him. “Aren’t you staying here? I thought you were going to help me.”

Jack turned back and nodded. “I will. You need to tell Dunn everything first, though.”

Dunn swung his gaze between them and gave Jack a tight grin. “Maybe it would be best if you joined us,” he said carefully, offering Jack no room to argue.

Jack wanted to distance himself from Pilar, to ignore the attraction he felt for her and pass her off to someone else, but he was the one she knew. Sort of.

Jack finally nodded and moved into the room behind them. Pilar watched him until he claimed a seat, then took the one next to him. Dunn, the son of a bitch, smirked and sat across the table from them. He thumbed out a text to someone, probably asking for Pilar’s tea, then looked up at her.

“Okay, Pilar, right?” he asked.

She nodded.

“What’s your last name?”

She hesitated. “Luna.”

Dunn wrote it down on the pad in front of him. “And your brother is missing. What’s his name?”

She took a deep breath. “Juan Rios. He goes by John, though.”

Dunn nodded. “Rios? You have different last names? Are you married?”

She shook her head. “I’ve never been married. My brother and I both changed our names when he moved to the United States. For me, it was years ago. My degree is in my name.”

Jack sat up straighter and leaned toward her, offering her silent support.

“Is there a reason?” Dunn asked.

“Carlos Ibarra. He’s the man who took my brother. I… I was involved with him years ago, and I didn’t want him to find me. Juan was the same. Didn’t want Carlos to know where he was.”

Dunn nodded, taking notes as she spoke. His earpiece was quiet, but Jack knew English was listening, too. Typing in everything she said and recording the conversation. Everything would be checked and double checked. It was the only way for them to do their jobs.

“Why didn’t you want him to find you?” Dunn asked softly, looking up at Pilar. He was giving her the power, submitting to her. It was all a mind-fuck, a game to get her to trust him. To think he cared. And it was pissing Jack off. He wanted Pilar to trust him, not Dunn.

“He’s dangerous. When I called things off with him, he was angry. He told my brother I’d pay for it.”

“Your brother was friends with,” Dunn pretended to check his notes, “Carlos?”

Pilar half-shrugged. “They worked together. That was how I met Carlos. He came with my brother to our house once. I was home from school for the summer and Carlos showed up. I was… stupid.”

Dunn smiled with her.

“I’d never known anyone like him. He had a way of making me feel special.”

The wistful look in her eyes had Jack ready to go hunt the bastard down and strangle him with his bare hands. Usually that was a job for Archer, whom they called Hulk, but for the first time, Jack understood the rage it took to kill someone up close and personal instead of from the other end of a sight at a few hundred feet.

“I’m sorry for what you went through, Pilar. I have to ask, though, what does this have to do with your brother missing now? If this Carlos was upset with you before, why is he now here and why would he take your brother?”

She shook her head once, enough to shake off the old memories in her eyes, then looked up at Dunn. “When Carlos threatened me, Juan said he decided it was time for him to find something else to do. It took him a couple of years before he could get out, though. Their boss wouldn’t let Carlos leave Mexico to come after me, but when Juan disappeared, I guess things changed.”

“How so? And how do you know that? He just disappeared an hour ago.” Dunn was good. He even sounded sincere.

Pilar shook her head. “No, I don’t mean when he was taken. He left his job a year ago. I was working in Texas, a few hours from the border. Juan showed up on my doorstep on the last day of school. He was done with the cartel and wanted to get as far away from Mexico as possible. We came here because our parents visited Niagara Falls on their honeymoon and constantly told us how beautiful it was. We wanted to be close to them. They died a few years ago.”

Dunn reached across and grabbed her hand, smiling up at her. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

She smiled back at him, then glanced at Jack. He didn’t know what she saw, but the hitch in her breath said it wasn’t good. He unclenched his fist on the table and worked at smoothing the anger from his face. He was always cool under pressure. It was a requirement for being a sniper, but sitting in the same room as Pilar and Dunn, and watching Dunn play her, had him ready to tear into his boss.

“Anyway,” Pilar continued, “once Juan left Mexico, it was only a matter of time before Carlos found us. We knew it, but I guess we got complacent.”

She glanced at Jack again. He hated that he couldn’t tell her what was really going on, but until he got the word from Dunn, he had to stay silent.

“You believe Carlos took Juan in order to get to you?” Dunn asked.

Pilar nodded. “I know he did. He told me he did. You heard him.” She turned to Jack for confirmation.

Jack shook his head. “He didn’t specifically say that. It was clear he wanted her to know he was the one who had her brother.”

“Why else would he take Juan, and why tell me, if he wasn’t after me, too?”

“What kind of work does Carlos do? That Juan used to do?” Dunn asked. He sounded bored, as though the question was simply a way to connect them.

“They worked for an import and export company,” Pilar said stiffly.

“With the borders?” Dunn asked.

Pilar shook her head. “Not always. Packaging and making sure everything had the right paperwork to pass customs. Stuff like that mostly.”

Dunn scribbled something on the paper, and there was finally a sound in Jack’s ear. “Clueless or hiding?”

Dunn caught Jack’s eye and lifted an eyebrow. Jack lifted two fingers against his chest, signaling the second option. Dunn nodded in agreement.

“Unfortunately, I’m not sure if we are going to be able to do anything,” Dunn said, leaning back in his chair. “There isn’t a whole lot to go on. This Carlos guy doesn’t have a motive for taking your brother, especially if he’s really after you. I have no way to track them, and if they’re not from here, I have no known associates to use to find them. This is probably something you’re going to need to report to the police.”

Pilar’s eyes filled, her tears spilling out onto her cheeks. “Please, Mr. Dunn. Don’t do this. I need your help. Jack said you would help me find my brother. Carlos will kill him. He’s a ruthless murderer, and he won’t hesitate to kill my brother if he thinks it’ll get me to go to him. He wants me back, and he doesn’t care if he has to keep me in a cage. He will, and I can’t live like that. I’d rather die than ever be with that monster again.”

Dunn leaned in, his eyes sharp. “Do you have any kind of proof that he’s killed people?”

Pilar shook her head, but her gaze slid to the side. Definitely lying. “I did, but it was destroyed. Juan… my brother is a good man. Growing up in Mexico isn’t easy. And Juan ended up getting involved with the wrong people.”

“So you’re saying you had proof of Carlos killing people, but your brother took it and destroyed it, and now you want us to save him from the man he was protecting? Your story sounds more and more like Carlos isn’t involved with your brother’s disappearance at all. Are you sure your brother didn’t just get lost in the crowd? That he’s truly gone?”

Pilar full out sobbed at Dunn’s accusation. Jack grabbed a box of tissues from the sideboard behind him and slapped them down on the table in front of her. “We’ll give you a minute,” he growled, then jerked his head to the door for Dunn to follow him.

Dunn raised his eyebrows at Jack, but he stood and followed him into the hallway, closing the soundproof door behind them. The recording devices in the room would pick up anything Pilar said to herself and any calls she made.

Dunn crossed his arms over his chest and waited for Jack to speak.

Jack paced a short distance up and down the hallway, his gaze falling to the door more than once. “Why did you go after her like that?” he finally hissed.

“Do you believe her?”

Jack nodded. “Yes. She thinks her brother’s gone. You heard Carlos. He made it pretty damn clear they took Juan.”

“We knew they were going to meet,” Dunn said slowly.

Jack sighed. “I know, but we were supposed to have eyes on Juan at all times. He wasn’t supposed to disappear. What the fuck happened?”

Dunn raised that damn eyebrow again. “Situations change. We all know this. We couldn’t stay on Juan and not have Pilar aware of our presence. We had to give him some space. He demanded it.”

“Do you think he double crossed us?” Jack asked.

Dunn shrugged. “Hard not to think that’s exactly what happened. He came to us with this whole thing. He was the one who set it all up. And when we’re closing in, all of a sudden he vanishes.”

Jack shook his head. “I just find it hard to believe he would leave Pilar. They seem to be really close.”

Dunn’s neutral expression slipped, just long enough for Jack to see the anger and distrust Dunn carried with him for the last two years. It had only gotten worse since their Commanding Officer and supposed friend betrayed them all almost a year earlier. Brady Williams was Dunn’s mentor, and he took the betrayal hardest, especially since he was already burned by an informant he thought he loved.

“People aren’t always who they seem. Juan grew up and became one of the go-to people for the Castillo cartel. He and Carlos were side-by-side through all of it, even though Carlos rose higher and faster. We’ve been suspicious of Juan from day one.”

Jack knew it was the truth, but the way Pilar broke down said she truly thought her brother had changed. That he was a good man. “I don’t think she knows anything about this.”

Dunn shook his head. “No, but she knows something. We need to keep her close. If Carlos gets them both, it’s likely he’ll kill them. She’s our new informant. Until we can get what Juan promised us, we need Pilar.”

Jack nodded. “What are we going to tell her?”

Dunn gave Jack a hard glare. “Nothing. You got me? She stays in the dark about everything going on. We will tell her we believe she may be right about her life being in danger, and that we will find Juan. After that, there’s nothing she needs to know.”

“Are you serious?” Jack asked, incredulous.

Dunn nodded sharply. “Yes. And if you can’t handle that, I’ll put someone else on her.”

“Whoa, wait. You want me on her?”

Dunn looked at him like he was crazy. “She knows you. She obviously trusts you. If she didn’t before, she definitely does now since you dragged me out of there after I attacked her. Good move, by the way. If you can get her to trust you, she might offer up whatever information she has on Carlos and the rest of them.”

“I didn’t do it so she’d trust me,” Jack grumbled.

Dunn narrowed his eyes at Jack. “There better not be another fucking reason, Squirrel. We all need our heads in the game with this one. Think with the head on your fucking shoulders, not the one you usually use.”

“Fuck you, Pres,” Jack said.

Dunn’s glare hardened. The two men stood in the hallway, staring at each other. Their breath came in rapid pants, tension ramping up higher and higher. Jack was ready to start swinging if he had to. Happily.

“Both of you pull your fucking shit together and get back in there. Now.”

Ryker Hamilton. Known as Dex to them. The voice of reason in their ears.

Dunn and Jack tossed each other another glare, then headed back into the conference room.

3

Pilar stared at her phone and willed it to send her a text. For Juan to ask where she was and say she disappeared when he went to get whatever the hell it was he thought would make her happy.

He was constantly doing things like that. Little things that made her smiled. She knew he regretted introducing her to Carlos, even though he never intended for them to get involved. Pilar kept it from her brother because she knew he’d be pissed. He never wanted her to date any of his friends, but Carlos was charming and it didn’t take much convincing for her to go out with him.

When Juan found out they were together, he went nuts. Pilar didn’t understand why. She had her head buried in the sand when it came to her brother and his involvement with anything illegal. She suspected it, but he always denied it when she worked up the courage to ask him.

That was the night he sat her down and told her the truth about what he did for a living. How he was paying for her to go to school in America.

Pilar was so angry with him that she ran. She believed he was lying and went straight to Carlos to laugh about the lengths Juan was willing to go to keep them apart.

She wished she’d just believed her brother because what she witnessed when she got to Carlos’s was worse than any imagination could have dreamed up.

The door opened to the small room where she was being held, jerking her back to the present. A present that involved her missing brother and her evil ex.

Mr. Dunn walked in first. He was a commanding presence, a man who was hard to ignore. He was attractive, with dark brown skin and eyes that matched. His muscles were much bulkier than Jack’s, but he was definitely a good-looking man. What bothered her about him was he obviously didn’t believe her. Although why, she had no idea.

Jack defended her and Juan, which made her want to trust him. She couldn’t completely, but if she had to pick between the two men walking into the room, it was definitely the second one.

She glanced at Jack and had to fight the urge to leave the room. He was glaring hard at Mr. Dunn, his eyes drilling holes in the back of his boss’s neck. The pure hatred in his gaze had her rethinking trusting him at all. She’d only seen a look that harsh once in her life. In the eyes of the man who wanted her dead.

Jack swung his gaze to her, and it softened immediately. She wasn’t sure what to make of that. Which man was he?

“I apologize for upsetting you, Ms. Luna,” Mr. Dunn said. “That was not my intention.”

Pilar nodded. She didn’t know where he was going with his apology, but she wasn’t going to give him more ammunition to use against Juan. She needed his help to find her brother, not accuse him of working with Carlos again. Juan wouldn’t do that. He promised her.

“We need time to look into all this. Since you believe your life is in danger, we’d like to keep you in protective custody for the night, at least.”

“Protective custody? You’re joking, right?”

Mr. Dunn shook his head and raised an eyebrow. “I’m not kidding. If you’re in danger, I don’t understand why you wouldn’t want someone with you at all times.”

Pilar swallowed the lump in her throat. She knew it was the smart thing to do, the logical thing, but being watched was going to wear on her. It also meant she couldn’t go looking for Juan.

“Pilar,” Jack said, drawing her attention. “What are you thinking?”

She took a deep breath and glanced at Mr. Dunn. He was watching her with interest, but no longer glaring at her like she was guilty. “I’m just worried about Juan. I want to go look for him. What if he’s home? What if it’s like Mr. Dunn said and we just got separated?”

“We’ll go there first. Check out your place and make sure Juan isn’t there. Then we’ll go somewhere safe.”

“You’re going to go with me?” she squeaked. She wasn’t sure she could handle that. A man like Mr. Dunn, a man who would protect her but keep her at a distance, was safer. A man like Jack, someone who plied her with jokes and made her want to trust him, he was dangerous.

“I don’t have to, but that was the plan. There are others who can go with you,” Jack said calmly.

Her gaze flickered to Mr. Dunn, who sat back and watched their exchange. Of course, he saw her looking at him.

“We assumed you’d be most comfortable with Jack since you allowed him to bring you here. If you’re not comfortable with him, I can assign someone else to go with you.”

Pilar thought about it for a second, then shook her head. It made sense. She trusted Jack more than she trusted Mr. Dunn, and she hadn’t met anyone else. She would have to keep her walls up. She had very little doubt part of his task was to find out everything he could about Juan and Carlos. If she was going to get her brother back alive, she needed to make sure that didn’t happen. There was no way men like them would be interested in saving a cartel falcon.

* * *

Jack held the door for Pilar while she climbed back into the SUV. He scanned the parking area, making sure no one was there with them, then closed the door quickly so he knew she was safe.

He jogged around to the driver’s side and climbed in, then started up the vehicle. His own truck was parked a few spots away, but he wasn’t taking any chances. The company SUVs were equipped with bulletproof glass and GPS. He knew the GPS was a risk because it could be hacked, but it was worth the risk to make sure his team always knew where he was.

He backed out of the spot and was about to leave the garage when he remembered he shouldn’t know where Pilar lived. “What’s your address?”