Page 15 of Wrong Turn

“What are you talking about? You’re my Lucky Lay,” he murmured, nibbling her neck, grinding her pelvis against his.

“No.” Lei pushed at Lucky more forcefully. “I don’t want to do this.”

“Cock tease!” His hands were like an octopus, crawling over her body, invading, burning her skin with their intimacy. “You dress like this and think you can say no? How much will it be? I’ll pay if that’s what you want.”

“No! Let go!” Lei thrashed. She couldn’t believe this was happening. He’d seemed so nice. She bucked and resisted, but he’d pinned her down by the arms. “No!”

“I believe the lady said no,” a low masculine voice said from behind them. Lucky, panting, turned his head. From beneath him, Lei could see a shadowy figure—and there was coiled menace in his stance.

Lucky let go of Lei and rolled to the side. “Sorry about the misunderstanding. We had a crossed wire.” He stood up. “See you back on the dance floor.” He walked rapidly away.

Clearly, something about the man looking down at them had spooked him.

Lei sat up, straightening her skimpy top and pulling down her skirt as far as it would go—that dilemma again. She leaned forward, unbuckling the ridiculous shoes, letting her rumpled curls fall forward to hide her face.

She’d almost been assaulted again, in a fairly public place, and some stranger had to rescue her. What a disaster. Some cop she was going to be, if the police academy would even have her . . .

The backlit man advanced to stand in front of Lei, his legs slightly apart, arms loose at his sides. “Did he hurt you?” His voice was silk over steel and raised the hairs on Lei’s arms.

She stood up with the shoes dangling from one hand. “Just my pride.”

Now she could see what he looked like, as light fell on the man’s face. His eyes were liquid chocolate, with lashes any woman would envy. His hair lay in tight coils against his head like a lamb’s; his skin was golden brown. He was dressed for action in a black tank top, cargo pants, and combat boots.

“You’re Cruz,” Lei said. “Harry’s trainer.”

“I am.” They took each other’s measure for a long moment. He smiled. “I see why Harry likes you.”

“Harry likes me?”

“Yes. She asked me to come meet you. Asked me to work with you a little.”

“Really?” Lei’s tongue was too thick for her mouth as she stared at Cruz, spellbound by his beauty, by the leashed power of him, by the serenity he emanated. How could she be so thoroughly smitten when she’d almost just been raped? Lei took a step back, away from him, and the feel of the cool gritty cement beneath her bare feet anchored her.

This must be some bizarre reaction. Her therapist back in San Rafael probably had a name for such a thing. “Harry must have seen that I wasn’t handling the stress from last night very well.”

“Yes. There are some techniques I can show you.” Cruz bent down, a supple movement, and picked up a small granite pebble from a nearby potted palm. “Put out your hand.”

Nervously, Lei extended her hand, palm up. He dropped the stone, still warm from the sunny day, into her hand and curled her fingers over it. His touch was light and confident, and over too quickly. “Carry that with you. Rub it when you’re worried. Put your fear and negative feelings into the stone. It will carry them for you.”

Lei looked down at the pebble in her hand. “It’s not magic. It’s just a rock from a planter.”

“It’s what you think it is. And for you, it needs to be a container. Come with me.”

Lei, carrying her shoes, followed him into the darkness without question.

Chapter Ten

Cruz ledLei away from the lighted area of the resort, heading down a graveled path past bungalows set in a row to the beach. The moon was high and full, as it had been the previous nights. The long, curving stretch of beach, marked at one end with cliffs and the famous stone arch the area was known for, was bathed in silvery light.

The sand and moonlight reminded Lei of their raid, and her heart sped up. She rubbed the pebble in her hand, testing what Cruz had told her to do—picturing her fears flowing down her nerves and filling the stone, which expanded to hold whatever she sent it.

Here she was, following yet another strange man into the dark—but this time, her feelings were vastly different. Cruz was here to teach her something, to heal something in her that had been wounded, and even without the things Harry had said about him, she instinctively trusted him.

They fell in step as they walked along the beach. Lights and music from the resorts leaked down to meld with the soft surge of the surf, speckled with the glow of bioluminescence, a magical sight. As they walked, Lei felt her heart rate lowering.

She was safe in Cruz’s company. Harry had called him for her, and he was going to help her let go of the aftereffects of the raid. Perhaps even the humiliation of Lucky’s crude assault. Maybe he could even help with the scars Kwon had left on her—though that seemed like a ridiculous hope.

They reached the far end of the beach, bordered in cliffs, a long way from any other human presence.

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