The Midnight Hour - Brenda Jackson [58]
"I don't intend to be any woman's substitute, Drake," she said, giving him a measured look.
He looked back at her with darkened eyes. "And you're not."
She narrowed her eyes. "For some reason I don't believe you." Taking the 9mm off the seat beside her, she placed it in the holster underneath her jacket. "Come on, let's get something to eat," she said as she turned to get out of the car.
"Rangel is dead."
The hand not holding the phone clenched at Cross's side. "That's a pity. What about the woman?"
The voice on the other end took a long breath. "She got away. It seems she had help."
Cross frowned. "Help?"
"Yes. Warren may have reached her before we did."
Rage flowed through Solomon Cross's body. Blood pounded in his head. His lips twisted. "You let Warren get to her!"
The man on the other end of the phone heard the demented anger in Cross's voice and it made his insides flinch. "We'll get her," Red Hunter said in a shaken voice. "I'll call in some more men and-"
"Shut up and listen to me! I want both Warren and the woman. It will save me from having to ship her remains to him. I want him to sit and watch everything I do to her. I want him here when I cut her into tiny bite-size pieces.’' Cross chuckled. Of course it would be after he had his fun with her, and he intended for Drake to watch that too, and not be able to do a damn thing about it.
"Do you hear me, Red Hunter? I want them brought to me alive."
"Trying to take them alive would be suicide; damn near impossible."
"You'd better make it happen. I'll send Miguel and a few of my men to your country to help you."
"I don't need your men. I have my own who are just as capable."
"For your sake, I hope so. How you do it is your problem and you'd better not disappoint me. Keep in touch with periodic reports on your progress."
Cross hung up the phone and then slammed his fist onto the table. When he was finished, Drake Warren would regret the day that he was born… and unfortunately, his woman would, too.
CHAPTER 8
Tori glanced around the restaurant as she waited for Drake to return with their food. The place wasn't all that crowded. There were a number of mothers with small children, a couple of men sitting together who appeared to work for some business or another since they were wearing dress pants and ties, and then there were the two women who were about her age who appeared to have just ended a game of tennis.
A twinge of jealousy shot through Tori when she saw how one of the women was trying to get Drake's attention. She frowned. For all the woman knew, she and Drake could have been an item, but that wasn't stopping her from flirting.
Although she didn't appreciate the woman's brazen behavior, she did understand her interest in Drake since everything about him shouted of his masculinity. And the way he looked dressed in his jeans wasn't helping matters. Even with his rough appearance, he would be at the top of the list as a man who belonged in any woman's fantasies.
Not that she was any better. She couldn't keep her eyes off of him either. She loved watching the way his well-defined, incredibly developed biceps flexed when he moved, and his broad shoulders made him seem commanding… the dominant alpha male.
"Here you go and I brought plenty to hold us for a while."
The deep timbre of his voice sent a shiver all the way down her spine to settle between her thighs. "Thanks." She watched as he lowered his body into the seat across from her after setting the hamburgers, fries, and milk shakes in the middle of the table.
He glanced at her. "You all right?"
Other than wanting to scratch that woman's eyes out, I'm fine. Instead she answered, "Yes."
He grabbed one of the hamburgers and began unwrapping it.
"Can we say the grace before we eat?"
He lifted a brow and his gaze fixed on her face. "I knew someone else who used to be adamant about saying grace before eating."
Tori nodded, remembering and knowing who he was referring to. Sandy.