Page 19 of Chasing Hope

Ethan gave her a dark-eyed glare of his own. ‘Please, the Mumbai port is the busiest port in India. I could have an orgy right now and no one would get to know.’

Hope’s plump cheeks tinted a beautiful shade of pink. ‘Hmm, an orgy huh?’ She let the camera hang from her neck and rubbed her hands in mock contemplation. ‘What are we thinking, like… three women, two men, or vice versa? Five’s a good number. Too many cooks spoil the broth and all.’ His breathing hastened at the suggestive look in those light brown eyes.

‘Fuck,’ Ethan cursed under his breath. If he had a shovel right now he would beat himself on the head with it. ‘Stupid fuck.’ His mind hurried along conjuring images of slick naked bodies.

Hope’s and his, of course.

Already excited about the fabricated prospect, his erection lurched in anticipation. ‘Don’t pretend like we weren’t doing fine on our own,’ Ethan mumbled, glaring at his prick.

‘Why are you sounding like you have a sore throat? If you could just take off that ridiculous scarf covering half of your face maybe I would hear you better. Besides, it's ruining your trademark style.’ Ethan was in agreement. Wearing the scarf in this humid climate was stifling. Unfortunately, he hardly had a choice. Although he dressed, acted and spoke differently – thus the sore throat analogy – he couldn’t chance Hope recognising him. ‘And it’s pitch dark here. For crying out loud, I can’t even see my own hand.’

Ever since that night that he’d agreed to help her, Ethan had communicated with her through an encrypted email ID. This morning she mailed saying she had some intel that something was up atHimesh’swarehouse. Sheinstructedhim to meet her at the docks at 11pm sharp. And she sashayed in at eleven-thirty. One glance at her and his annoyance at her delay vanished in thin air. She looked so adorable in her oversized white tracksuit, matching cap and sneakers. No points for guessing they were allGame of Thronesmerchandise. Ethan grinned behind his scarf. The woman had a crazy obsession.

‘Fine, have it your way,’ Hope said, huffing a frustrated sigh. ‘At least I have comfort food.’ A partial flash of yellow light from a crane in the water tipped in their direction. As the chaotic activities in the distance continued, Hope studied him with narrowed eyes. ‘Do I know you from somewhere?’ Ethan’s gut tightened. His breath halted halfway up his chest. After a pregnant pause she burst out. ‘Chill, I’m messing with you… or am I?’ Hope wiggled her eyebrows. Ethan released his confined breath. Hope covered her mouth to smother the sound of her laughter. ‘I can feel the tension sizzle off your skin.’

‘Are you always this infuriating?’ Ethan didn’t sound the least bit infuriated. Quite the opposite actually. The black mask hid his dimples.

‘You will know soon enough.’ He knew all too well how maddening she could get. One half of her body was submerged in light while the other half in darkness. Whereas, Ethan preferred to stay in complete blackness. Hope thrust her hand in the pocket of her jacket and drew out a packet of nachos, two bars of Twix, one can of Red Bull and two packets of roasted nuts. She placed them on the stone slab before them.

‘Sorry I missed the memo. I just brought along with me my charisma and mysterious allure,’ he said, in a playful tone.

‘Let me be the judge of that.’ Hope pulled open the packet of nachos and bit into the crispy treat. She offered him some, but he shook his head. She shrugged and spoke between bites. ‘I have a ravenous appetite. I get hunger pangs every two hours—’

‘Shh…’

Without warning, Ethan hauled Hope into the shadows as a gust of acidy fumes puffed out of the battered truck while it coughed its way into Himesh’s warehouse. Wasting no time, Ethan’s sharp gaze picked up the number of the vehicle. ‘You wait here. I’m going to check that out.’ Ethan left a stunned Hope plastered to the wall of a rigid container while he stealthily moved ahead. Halting closest to the opening of the warehouse, Ethan snagged the bar and hoisted his body into the back of a parked lorry. Adrenaline pumped through his veins. Ethan’s breathing grew hard and he yanked off his scarf. Brisk sea winds travelled towards him and he tucked himself in the furthest darkened corner. The incoming truck screeched to a halt and the driver and co-passenger jumped down from the large vehicle. From this distance it was hard to hear their conversation. By the looks of it, it appeared like the two men were having an argument.

‘What do you see?’

‘Jesus Christ!’ Ethan cursed as Hope snuck up on him. She must have been as nimble as a cat for him not to have heard her get up behind him. ‘I told you to stay put.’ She snorted and her body inched closer to him. Ethan’s facial muscles tightened. This woman had taken some kind of an oath to disobey orders.

‘I smell something fishy.’

‘No shit. We are in a fishing yard.’

Hope sneered, ignoring his mockery.

‘Why does Himesh own a milk truck? He has no business which requires him to use one,’ Ethan said. His gaze followed the movement of the driver as he handed over a thick binder to a woman. ‘Dammit, where have I seen her? I can’t seem to place her.’ Ethan’s brows drew together. They observed in silence as the woman flipped through the binder. Something in the binder seemed to have pissed her off. She flung it at the driver and barked at him, pointing to the top of the truck. Clearly petrified, the driver nodded and dabbed the sweat dripping off his face.

‘I got it!’ Hope squeaked into his ear. Ethan held onto the curse that was desperate to erupt. All these years he faced and apprehended the worst of criminals. But somehow this one night with Hope made him rethink his abilities as a vigilante. Ethan mentally swatted off his state of distress and implored himself to focus.

‘She is the woman Himesh was tonguing. He’s her “sugar daddy”,’ Hope said, coming closer to Ethan. Speaking of ‘sugar daddy’, Himesh swept into the godown in his patented flamboyant style. A red and black printed silk suit. He slithered close to the woman and grabbed her ass. She giggled and cupped his crotch. The men in the godown shared smirks, no doubt accustomed to their shameless display of vulgarity.

Ethan and Hope growled in disgust. ‘He has ruined the colour red for me,’ Hope said as a shudder raced through her. ‘God, even seeing him from this far makes my skin crawl.’

‘This must be a big deal for him to have come down here personally.’ Ethan filed that away for later. He would have to do a thorough investigation. Himesh lit his cigar and arrogantly blew smoke in the driver's face. The driver’s hand shook as he presented Himesh with the binder. Himesh clamped his cigar and let the fumes puff out at regular intervals while he surveyed the contents of the binder. His face turned red at something in the file. Even before the driver could blink, Himesh landed a punch to his stomach. The driver yelped in agony and crumpled to his knees. Ethan’s blood roared. His hands curled into fists.

Hope gasped, leaned forward and snapped a few quick pictures. ‘Oh my God, he’s such a ruthless bastard. I need to get closer. I can’t make out what they are saying.’ She got to her knees and draped one leg over the side of the truck.

‘Where the hell do you think you are going?’ Ethan ground his teeth and he yanked her back. Hope hissed as Ethan’s arm banded around her waist.

Hope retaliated. ‘We can’t sit on our asses and do nothing.’ If Ethan were alone he would have had Himesh flat on his back and begging for mercy in no time. As much as it bothered him, all he could do now was lay low and observe.

‘This is no game, Hope.’ Ethan pressed his face to her neck, his voice low and angry. ‘Can you see the bulge on the man’s side? That’s a fucking gun. Does he seem like the kind who would think twice before pulling the trigger? Make one wrong move and you will be lying in a pool of blood.’ Hope’s heart slammed under his palm. The reality sobered her instantly. She shuddered and went slack in his arms.

‘You’re right. I’m sorry. I could have endangered both our lives.’ Hope sighed and settled in his lap, prodding his senses into overdrive. ‘What do you suggest we do?’ Ethan's mind went blank and all the blood rushed down south. How could he possibly think with her sweet ass nestled between his thighs? ‘They are closing the damn shutter.’ Hope bound out of his lap and hurriedly clicked a series of close ups. Within minutes the shutter slammed shut, sealing whatever they were doing inside, and making it impossible to find out.

‘We’ll run the plates,’ they said together in the next breath.

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