Tension crawled inside Kara and took root, and her hand went to her purse to once again grasp her weapon. She could only assume someone must be following them, close enough that he feared they would be heard if they spoke, or worse. That they were about to be attacked and he was trying to hear a perp’s approach. Ignacio was as low as they came. It would be nothing for him to kill them right here and now. And, as he’d said, he was good at getting rid of bodies. She knew that for a fact. Knew it in an intimate way she wished she didn’t.

The entrance to the parking garage came into view and Blake seemed to speed up, not slow down at the dimly lit tunnel it resembled. Kara relaxed marginally, seeing that as a sign he felt they were leaving the trouble behind.

Once the truck was in sight, Blake clicked the automatic locks and she rushed to her door and climbed inside, pulling the door shut. She turned to Blake as he did the same, intending to ask questions when he slammed his hands down on the steering wheel. Kara flinched.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” he exclaimed, raking fingers through his hair, long, dark strands falling from the tie at his nape and hanging around his face. His grip closed into a vice around the wheel and Kara could see his muscles quivering as he grappled with whatever had him in knots.

She held her breath, waiting expectantly, long seconds ticking by, while Blake clearly stood on the edge of a proverbial cliff about to jump. Kara could feel his tension and she actually felt herself tremble, her stomach knotting with the pain and torment that radiated off of him. Whatever the darkness was that she’d sensed in him the first time she met him had been triggered. Something had reached in deep and dragged it to his surface. It was crazy, but on some unexplainable level, she knew this man, and understood him, knew he was motivated by some deep hurt that carved him inside out. The idea that she could understand an enemy and make him human rather than a monster was a terrifying thought. She wanted to reject the idea. But she couldn’t. Not with Blake.

She didn’t give herself time to think. She reached for him. The instant she was about to touch him, it was as if he knew. His hand snaked out, fingers wrapping her wrist, and the next thing she knew she was flat on her back with him on top of her.

Chapter Twelve

CHAPTER

TWELVE