Free Lie by Night: An Out of Darkness novel (Entangled Ignite) by Cathy Marlowe Page B

indicated that he knew exactly what she was thinking. Again.
    “Ready?”
    “Let’s go.” She headed for the gate.
    That’s when panic hit. Her Mace was still in her pocket. Heart racing, she slipped off her jacket and wadded it into a bin. She tossed her shoes and backpack on top. Her meager possessions began a slow roll toward the security check. She looked back to find Cole in deep discussion with the security guard and took a calming breath. If they discovered it, she’d just check her bag. No big deal.
    An agent waved her through the metal detector. She reached the other side as her bag entered the machine.
    “Hey Roberto!” The security guard approached with Cole. “This guy just gave Big Joe the evil eye when he was hassling the little lady. Shut Joe right down.”
    Roberto looked up from the screen. “Nice. Too bad you’re leaving James Island. Anyone who can handle Big Joe is guaranteed employment here.”
    “I’ll keep that in mind.” Cole offered a friendly wave as he walked through the metal detector.
    Her belongings rolled through the x-ray machine unchecked. Before she could grab her jacket, Cole scooped it up, along with the backpack. Emma glanced back at the conveyer for the duffel.
    “I checked my luggage because I’m carrying a weapon.” His pointed glance told her he knew her Mace remained in her jacket. With a shrug, she snatched her jacket back and walked down the ramp.
    Ten minutes later, the plane lifted into the afternoon sky.
    “In Miami, you need to check the spray. Or pitch it.” Cole’s whisper tickled her ear. She turned so quickly they almost knocked heads.
    Their gazes held. “I know.” She meant to sound tough—don’t-tell-me-what-to-do—but even to her ears, her whispered response seemed throaty, suggestive. She tore her eyes from his and stared forward as the plane leveled in the sky and the stewardess began her trip down the aisle, offering peanuts and beverages.
    Emma cleared her throat. She turned to him, waiting until he looked her in the eye. “Why did you destroy the warehouse?”
    He said nothing.
    Her gaze hardened. All the frustration, anger, and fear she thought she’d gotten under control came surging back. She tapped his upper arm, demanding response. “Why did you destroy the warehouse? It held answers to my brother’s disappearance.”
    He grabbed her hand and set it on the armrest, enclosing it firmly in his grasp. Heat leapt between them, hung suspended, expanded until Emma found it difficult to breathe.
    He unwound his fingers from hers. “I destroyed the warehouse because it was part of Alistair Forrester’s drug operation. It was an abomination on what was once a peaceful island retreat.”
    “But there were supposed to be answers…”
    “There weren’t answers.”
    “You don’t know that!” She winced at the anguish in her voice. Bringing her emotions under control, she kept her voice low. “You didn’t even—”
    “Emma, I went through the warehouse before I set the fuses. I was looking for clues to help me shut down the drug operation of a man who kidnapped my friend, Zach Weston, his wife, and their son.” He looked out the window before turning back to her. “Alistair Forrester is evil. He tried to destroy the Westons’ lives, just as he’s destroyed other innocent lives. Zach and I have been systematically dismantling his operation, and knowledge is power. So, yes, I looked very, very carefully. There was nothing.”
    “So it’s personal.” She mulled this over. She’d spent the past months certain Cole wasn’t a loyal kind of a guy. Apparently, she’d been wrong. He was capable of loyalty. He just hadn’t felt any toward Jacob. She’d wanted to protest his earlier claim that he’d liked Jacob even as he suspected him of working with Forrester; however, here she sat, attracted to a man she couldn’t fully trust. Although she didn’t like his explanation, she had come to understand it.
    “Yes,” she heard Cole