Page 68 of Dangerous Games (Tempting SEALs 2)

Pulling the revolver from the small of his back, he was aware of Morganna slipping the snub-nosed pistol from her purse. There was just something wrong about her carrying, he thought distantly as his eyes narrowed, probing the dark shadows beyond the French doors.

"Stay behind me." He eased the door open, ignoring her] soft snort.

"Don't worry, baby; I have your back." Her voice was calm, though the thread of amusement had the corner of his lips kicking up in a grin as he led her onto the deck and they| worked their way to the ground.

Nothing moved; nothing breathed. The hairs along nape were tingling with warning, though. They had to hurry. Gripping her free wrist, he pulled her through the shadows toward the front drive as he dropped both their receivers to the ground.

Forget the valet parking. Despite Morganna's grumblings earlier, he had parked close to the exit drive directly in front of the thick brush that bordered the property. He led her into the brush then, aware of her stocking-covered feet and cursing his own ignorance in not thinking of this.

He hadn't expected it to come this soon, he admitted. He hadn't expected them to move so fast. Though he should nave. He had just hoped the intel they had received that Diego Fuentes was dead had been correct. He had also hoped his suspicions against Merino's team had been wrong. He had messed up, he admitted. He should have dragged Morganna out of town the first night he'd found her.

She stayed silent as they worked their way to the truck. She moved behind him easily, her breathing steady, following the guidance of his hand on her wrist until they paused in me dark shadows in front of the pickup.

The driveway was well lit closer to the house, but this far down the bright lights were dimmer, the shadows cast by the other vehicles making the truck harder to see.

"Stay put," he whispered as they paused beneath the thick weeping willow branches. "When I give you the go-ahead, stay low and get your ass to the truck."

"Got it." She crouched beside him, and when he glanced sack at her, he didn't see fear

or excitement. He saw determination.

Gripping the revolver in his hand, he slid from beneath me tree and made his way to the truck. He had seen the black sedan that pulled in front of the house as they neared his truck; he was betting Diego's assassins were already figuring out something was up.

Bending close to the truck, he checked the length of Scotch tape he had placed over the front of the hood. It was still in place. Then he made a quick survey of the undercarriage, checking for surprise packages that would blow them to hell and back.

Moving quickly, he pulled the keys free of his pocket and eased open the driver's side door before motioning her to him.

Pulling back, he helped her into the track before jumping in behind her, shoving the key into the ignition, and praying before giving it a quick turn.

The engine turned over with a smooth hum. Throwing it into reverse, Clint pulled from the parking spot as he saw the two men rushing from the front of Trina's house.

"Hang on." He shoved the vehicle into drive before accelerating quickly from the parking lot.

"Only Joe's team knew where we were?" Morganna was> turned, staring behind them, as he raced back toward town.

She was quick; he had to give her credit for that.

"Yes. They were the only ones."

"Could someone have had time to call from the party?"

"They would have." He nodded. "But it was pre-planned. I was tipped off at the last minute by a friend."

"Hell of a friend," she breathed out roughly. "We have lights rounding the curves behind us."

"I see them." Clint flipped off his own lights, knowing the brake and parking lights would follow suit. The adjustments he had made to his vehicles after the operation in South America were paying off.

He had known something had gone bad there besides Nathan's death; he just wasn't certain what.

With a quick jerk of the wheel he turned off onto one of the smaller side roads, before making a quick U-turn and pulling off beneath a canopy of trees.

He had checked as close as he could for bugs or bombs, but no one was perfect.

Seconds later, the dark sedan raced by, their lights sweeping within feet of the truck before continuing around the curve and along the main road.

He watched the lights disappear before hitting the gas, racing back toward Trina's. Once their assassins figured out had pulled off, he hoped they would check this side road before suspecting him and Morganna of heading back the way they had come.

"We're in a shitload of trouble, aren't we?" Morganna breathed out several minutes later as they raced past the road that led back to Trina's. "Yep." He flipped the lights back on, breathing a sigh of relief as the illumination of the darkened road made navigating the curves easier.

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