Page 99 of The Wanted One

“I can’t be your friend. Colleague, yes. But I don’t have friends. Particularly not female friends.”

“Camila’s your friend,” Gwen shot back. Like a bullet to the brain, hearing Camila’s name reminded me about her mystery conversation with Charley. The conversation that’d sent Charley over the edge and in need of alone time.

“Camila’s . . . different,” Carter said, almost dragging out the words.

I pushed away from the door, wishing I had a time machine to go back and unhear that entire conversation. Or brain bleach. Carter naked on a couch, watching Gwen from across the room while a woman swallowed his cock. That was something I did NOT want in my head.

“Camila’s Camila,” Carter replied to a question I must have missed while trying to remove the unwanted images from my mind. “Now go. Please.”

They were both quiet for a moment before Gwen answered, “Fine, I’ll respect your wishes. I wouldn’t want to come between you and anyone just to have you fulfill some fantasy. I, uh, know you and I’d never actually work out.”

At Carter’s reluctant sounding, “Thank you,” I bowed my head in relief and took off back down the hall to get to Charley’s room.

It took me a second to shake off the chills and lose the nausea brought on by that unexpected conversation. But maybe it was good I heard it? I trusted Carter a bit more for gently (his version, at least) letting her down. And then there was the fact he apparently did give a damn about our opinions and feelings (not that he wanted us knowing that).

I quietly opened the bedroom door, finding Charley asleep on top of the covers. Well, she appeared to be sleeping, but she could’ve been faking it.

“Charley?” I prompted, closing the door before tossing my hat onto the nearby leather chair.

When she stirred but didn’t open her eyes or speak, I joined her on the bed.

I wanted answers about the real conversation she’d had with Camila, but I also wanted the color to return to her face first before I pressed.

I hooked my arm over her side, her ass nestled against my cock, and the back of her head rested near my chin. Closing my eyes, I decided maybe, just maybe, I’d give myself a few minutes of rest, too. It’d been a long time since I’d actually slept.

I wasn’t sure how long I was out, but Gray came into the room without knocking and announced, “We found Brant and Erik’s location. Time to make our move.”

“Where are they?” I bolted upright, blinking away the last bit of sleep still holding on as Charley did the same.

Gray’s eyes fell to the end of the bed, and shit, he had to see the “jaws of life” there. “Um.” He focused back on us, blinking now as well. “Cayman Islands. Sydney pulled up aerial surveillance of where we believe the Luthers are staying.”

I reached for Charley’s hand and squeezed. “How bad is the site we’ll need to breach?”

“Not too bad. Gated entrance. Two overwatch towers on the north and south sides of the estate with men more than likely positioned there. The mansion is right on the ocean, which means we could quietly infil that way. Lots of hammerheads and tiger sharks in those waters, though.”

“When’s the last time stamp for Erik being seen there? Could he already be gone if he’s realized Shannon is MIA?” I asked him.

“CCTV footage Sydney pulled had him landing at the airport there two hours ago. My sister took over from there and used her network to continue to ping his location through traffic cams, which led us to the address where we assume Brant is as well.” He folded his arms, an uneasy look crossing his face that didn’t do wonders for my stomach considering we had a location and a timeframe we could work with. “If Brant’s there, he’s been holed up there for a long time. Sydney can’t get a match for him on the island on any recent cams.”

There it is. The reason for the stress. No definitive proof our main asshole was onsite, but we’d have to take our chances. Worst case, we’d get Erik, and he’d lead us to Brant.

“We can take Camila’s jet. She just landed, and she’s waiting there for our decision on what to do next.” Gray checked his Apple watch. “If we leave now, we can hit the estate a little after midnight.”

“I’m going, right? Or am I staying here?” Charley asked, and I peered over at her, concerned to see that despite the nap, the color hadn’t returned to her cheeks.

What are you keeping from me?

“We have two options, which is why Camila’s still at the airport waiting for our decision on this,” Gray said, and I pivoted back his way, my heart racing. “First option, the women stay here, and Camila and her team guard them. She doesn’t believe they were tracked or followed, but let’s not operate under the premise of hope.”

Yeah, fuck “hope it’s okay.” I needed guarantees when it came to Charley’s safety.

“Second option, the women fly with us, but they wait at the airport in the Caymans while we complete our mission,” Gray suggested. “But we can’t all fit on Camila’s jet. And Carter’s backup jet is still en route here. So, Camila’s team would have to wait for his jet and fly separately, which will push our mission later. I don’t want to be chasing daylight, so it’ll be tight, but it’s still doable.”

“And you think Lucy and I will be safe at the airport?” Charley asked him, squeezing my hand harder.

“Camila doesn’t think her team was followed to and from Colombia, but if she’s wrong, I don’t like the idea of my team being so far away if this house gets hit. And as much as I’d like to trust Camila’s men, I don’t know them well. I’d rather you be near us, so I do think the airport is the safer option. Security there. Less chance Brant, a so-called reputable businessman, will openly target it, possibly drawing attention to himself and his company.”

“Do you agree?” Charley asked me, and I looked at her as she blew out a shaky breath.

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