Page 4 of Cross Point

They had driven down a deserted road lined with the rainforest on either side until a striking structure had finally come into view. Rising over the treetops with the sea at its back, the Palace Resort and Spa was a truly extraordinary sight. The resort reminded her of Aladdin’s palace with a contemporary twist. Several towers held the VIP suites, varying in different sizes. Even though it was one of the smaller hotels in the Palace chain, the main building hosted an impressive number of rooms.

Once inside the hotel, she’d been able to bypass the tedium of checking in since the executive manager had been waiting for arrival. She absently wished that Julian hadn’t informed everyone she was coming, but it did make things go more smoothly. The executive manager immediately led her up to the top floor of the largest tower where the owner’s suite was located, cheerfully chattering on about the various amenities available at the resort along the way.

Unique in its design, the owner’s suite was magnificent. More like a self-sufficient condo than a hotel room, it had a complete 360-degree view of the island. There was a large, open living room with a full kitchen and two bedrooms on opposite sides of the suite in a split arrangement. It was almost shameful that she would be the only one staying there since it was such a large space, but she wasn’t about to complain.

With its lavish furnishings, quiet elegance, and wide windows that overlooked the sea and the bay to the north, it wouldn’t be difficult to spend a few weeks enjoying herself there. Although she loved it all, her favorite part of the suite was its large balcony with a patio table and its very own lap pool. She imagined it would be absolutely blissful to sit on the deck and have a big ass glass of wine as the sunset over the water.

Wanting to get the work part of her vacation started so she could get it over and done with, she unpacked quickly before leaving the resort. She’d wanted to head over to the construction site next door to take a closer look around. She’d been pleasantly surprised when the valet handed over a set of car keys to a sleek little silver convertible when she came back down to the main entrance.

Sending warm thoughts to her friends when she was told that Julian had arranged for the car to be at her disposal for the duration of her stay, she headed the short distance to the construction site.

The Palace Resort and Spa sat on a large plot of land, which was cleverly used to host a variety of activities. There were two huge pools on the property as well as tennis courts and a beautiful golf course located south of the main building. The new expansion plans included the construction of a sister site on the plot of land next to the existing location which was nestled into the bay on the western side of the island.

Surprisingly, when she arrived, the lot was completely empty of workers. That had given her the time and space she needed to poke around. As she’d strolled around the property, she was glad she had changed into a pair of comfortable flats to go with her jeans and the simple white shirt she’d thrown on before she’d left her room.

From her survey of the progress, she immediately knew that the project was way off the mark. What should have been a solid foundation of the building’s structure was no more than a skeleton of concrete and wood. Shaking her head, she had worked her way carefully around the structure, wanting to get a better view of the entire site.

Not that there was much to see.

When a man called out to her, instinct had her reaching for the grip of the Sig Sauer hidden in the waistband of her jeans. Fucking hell, she shouldn’t have been so damn skittish. As the man got closer, she noticed the security logo on his shirt and greeted him with a smile instead of a face full of Glock.

“Hi.”

The security guard frowned at her. “Ma’am. This is private property and you’re trespassing. You need to leave.”

“Actually, I’m a friend of Julian King. He said I could come by and check out the new project while I’m visiting the island.”

Trinity had chosen to bend the truth a little since she didn’t want anyone to know exactly what she was doing there yet. She’d shot him what she hoped was a look of innocent concern. “It doesn’t look like much yet, though. I thought it would be further along by now.”

Trinity had noted the security guard started fidgeting at that.

“There’ve been some slight delays. I’m sorry, but I’m still going to have to ask you to leave. It really isn’t safe for you to go walking around here. I wouldn’t want you to get hurt.”

She flashed him another smile as she made a point to glance down at the badge attached to his pocket. “No problem, Billy.”

She’d gotten back in her car and left with a friendly wave. There would be time to return once she’d looked over all the records stored in the office.

Hunger pains distracted her, making her debate whether or not to find somewhere to grab a bite or just return to the resort to indulge in some room service. Deciding to take the scenic route into town, she headed up the coast. She knew from her study of the island that the road would branch out and take her straight into town after she passed some of the private villas.

It wasn’t more than ten minutes into her drive that she noticed a black jeep coming up behind her on the empty road. Fast. Way too Fast. Instincts kicked in gear when she noted the mud-splattered window that obscured her view of the driver. More mud hid the license plate of the approaching vehicle. On the chance that she was just being paranoid, she slowed her car and pulled a little toward the right to give him plenty of room to pass.

That move ended up saving her life.

The jeep surged forward, slamming into the back of her car. Cursing at the hard jolt, She used every bit of skill and experience she’d learned to keep control of the car. She pulsed her foot on the brake instead of slamming down on it, swerving slightly to slow down further. The jeep rammed her again, this time throwing her into a violent spin.

“Son of a bitch!”

Someone really was trying to kill her.

So much for her fucking vacation.

Trinity jerked hard on the wheel, trying to counter the spin. Her heart nearly stopped for a moment as the car slammed into the guardrail, the only thing protecting her from going over the cliff. Moving fast, she jumped out of the car and pulled her Sig, training it on the jeep as it quickly turned around and sped down the road. She didn’t hesitate and fired repeatedly at the rapidly departing vehicle.

Cursing again, the loud pounding of her heartbeat was joined by the low throb of a motorcycle engine coming from the same direction the jeep had fled. On guard, she turned and pointed her gun at the individual on the bike as he pulled over and parked a few feet away. Her breath hissed out for a very different reason as she got her first good look at the newcomer’s face.

Around six-three and built like a golden god, the man was wickedly handsome. Built like a prized fighter, he was packing some serious muscle and had a fierce aura about him that all but screamed law enforcement. His shaved head only showed a hint of dark hair that matched the five o’clock shadow covering his chiseled jaw. Intense green eyes seared into hers as the man pulled his own weapon, approaching her slowly.

“CIPD, put your weapon down.”

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