Page 3 of Mated to Team Shadow

"Find something of interest?" he said with an oily voice. I imagined a snake sliding across my skin, and I shivered.

"I was looking for the bathroom," I said.

"And found my desk instead. Let's see." He slid around the desk and pulled at the should-be-locked middle drawer, which opened. Inwardly I cringed.

"Hmm," he said. Morgan glanced at the biggest guard. "Frisk her," he said.

I looked to Morgan and to the guards and did the math. If I didn't find a way out of here, I was as disappeared as my friend Surma.

Tall, blonde and delicious, AKA Gunner, responded to a flick of Big Guy's head and advanced on me. I shrunk against the bulkhead and desperately searched for an out. Toeing off my sandals, I scanned the distance between my position and the door. I had to hope I had surprise and speed on my side.

I curled my body then leaped to put one foot on the desk. I jumped forward to sail past the black-garbed muscle, landed and rolled. Three years of high school gymnastics paid off at odd times, like this one. I stood and sprinted into the hallway only to run into another six-foot mountain of muscle, and he stared at me in amusement as I bounced off him.

"Grab her," said Gunner.

"We don't have time for this," said Big Guy.

"Yeah, but we can't leave her behind," said Gunner.

"Are all the guests off the ship?" said Big Guy.

"Yes, Ryker," said the guy in the hall.

"And the crew?"

"Gave them shore leave. It thrilled them."

"Where's Damon?" said Ryker.

"Here, boss," said Tall, Dark, and Dangerous, AKA Damon.

"Let's hit it then," said Ryker. "Grab her, Gunner."

"With pleasure, Ryker." Unceremoniously, Gunner threw me over his shoulder.

"Wait," said Morgan coming from the stateroom. "What's going on?"

"We're terminating our employment," said Ryker.

As he finished speaking, a sun-splitting boom rocked the ship.

Ryker

The C-4 blast thundered through the ship, and the shockwave of the timed explosions threw us against the deck. Gunner had placed the first charge at the bow of the yacht for Morgan's benefit. But damn it, that pirate was at that wrong place courtesy of Gunner not manning his assigned position. He should have kept Morgan cornered until the last minute.

"Fuck!" sputtered Morgan. As he tried to stand, the second explosion splayed him across the bulkhead.

"Who are you guys?" the pirate rumbled with a dangerous tone in his voice.

"No time for chit-chat. Adios."

I eyed my team. "Go! Go! Go!" I yelled. The four of us with our guest scrambled toward the ladder that would take us below deck where the auxiliary watercraft sat. That was the plan: Get in, set the charges, steal—I mean, appropriate the speedboat and watch one slimeball go up in flames.

The woman bounced on Gunner's shoulder spitting fury and beating his shoulders.

Too damn bad. Serves Gunner right.

"Did you unleash the moorings, Kane?"

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