Pilar stared at her phone and willed it to send her a text. For Juan to ask where she was and say she disappeared when he went to get whatever the hell it was he thought would make her happy.
He was constantly doing things like that. Little things that made her smile. She knew he regretted introducing her to Carlos, even though he never intended for them to get involved. Pilar kept it from her brother because she knew he’d be pissed. He never wanted her to date any of his friends, but Carlos was charming and it didn’t take much convincing for her to go out with him.
When Juan found out they were together, he went nuts. Pilar didn’t understand why. She had her head buried in the sand when it came to her brother and his involvement with anything illegal. She suspected it, but he always denied it when she worked up the courage to ask him.
That was the night he sat her down and told her the truth about what he did for a living. How he was paying for her to go to school in America.
Pilar was so angry with him that she ran. She believed he was lying and went straight to Carlos to laugh about the lengths Juan was willing to go to keep them apart.
She wished she’d just believed her brother because what she witnessed when she got to Carlos’s was worse than any imagination could have dreamed up.
The door opened to the small room where she was being held, jerking her back to the present. A present that involved her missing brother and her evil ex.
Mr. Dunn walked in first. He was a commanding presence, a man who was hard to ignore. He was attractive, with dark brown skin and eyes that matched. His muscles were much bulkier than Jack’s, but he was definitely a good-looking man. What bothered her about him was he obviously didn’t believe her. Although why, she had no idea.
Jack defended her and Juan, which made her want to trust him. She couldn’t completely, but if she had to pick between the two men walking into the room, it was definitely the second one.
She glanced at Jack and had to fight the urge to leave the room. He was glaring hard at Mr. Dunn, his eyes drilling holes in the back of his boss’s neck. The pure hatred in his gaze had her rethinking trusting him at all. She’d only seen a look that harsh once in her life. In the eyes of the man who wanted her dead.
Jack swung his gaze to her, and it softened immediately. She wasn’t sure what to make of that. Which man was he?
“I apologize for upsetting you, Ms. Luna,” Mr. Dunn said. “That was not my intention.”
Pilar nodded. She didn’t know where he was going with his apology, but she wasn’t going to give him more ammunition to use against Juan. She needed his help to find her brother, not accuse him of working with Carlos again. Juan wouldn’t do that. He promised her.
“We need time to look into all this. Since you believe your life is in danger, we’d like to keep you in protective custody for the night, at least.”
“Protective custody? You’re joking, right?”
Mr. Dunn shook his head and raised an eyebrow. “I’m not kidding. If you’re in danger, I don’t understand why you wouldn’t want someone with you at all times.”
Pilar swallowed the lump in her throat. She knew it was the smart thing to do, the logical thing, but being watched was going to wear on her. It also meant she couldn’t go looking for Juan.
“Pilar,” Jack said, drawing her attention. “What are you thinking?”
She took a deep breath and glanced at Mr. Dunn. He was watching her with interest, but no longer glaring at her like she was guilty. “I’m just worried about Juan. I want to go look for him. What if he’s home? What if it’s like Mr. Dunn said and we just got separated?”
“We’ll go there first. Check out your place and make sure Juan isn’t there. Then we’ll go somewhere safe.”
“You’re going to go with me?” she squeaked. She wasn’t sure she could handle that. A man like Mr. Dunn, a man who would protect her but keep her at a distance, was safer. A man like Jack, someone who plied her with jokes and made her want to trust him, he was dangerous.
“I don’t have to, but that was the plan. There are others who can go with you,” Jack said calmly.
Her gaze flickered to Mr. Dunn, who sat back and watched their exchange. Of course, he saw her looking at him.
“We assumed you’d be most comfortable with Jack since you allowed him to bring you here. If you’re not comfortable with him, I can assign someone else to go with you.”
Pilar thought about it for a second, then shook her head. It made sense. She trusted Jack more than she trusted Mr. Dunn, and she hadn’t met anyone else. She would have to keep her walls up. She had very little doubt part of his task was to find out everything he could about Juan and Carlos. If she was going to get her brother back alive, she needed to make sure that didn’t happen. There was no way men like them would be interested in saving a cartel falcon.
Jack held the door for Pilar while she climbed back into the SUV. He scanned the parking area, making sure no one was there with them, then closed the door quickly so he knew she was safe.
He jogged around to the driver’s side and climbed in, then started up the vehicle. His own truck was parked a few spots away, but he wasn’t taking any chances. The company SUVs were equipped with bulletproof glass and GPS. He knew the GPS was a risk because it could be hacked, but it was worth the risk to make sure his team always knew where he was.
He backed out of the spot and was about to leave the garage when he remembered he shouldn’t know where Pilar lived. “What’s your address?”
She rattled it off for him to key into the vehicle. He hit go and listened to the automated voice tell him what he already knew.
Pilar was silent for a few minutes. Jack watched her out of the corner of his eye. He debated saying something to her, but he didn’t know what. He wasn’t known for being a great conversationalist. He could make people laugh, but he didn’t think that was what she needed at the moment. She wanted reassurances that her brother would be okay, and Jack couldn’t give them to her.
“Do you think he was right?” she finally asked softly.
“Who?”
“Mr. Dunn. Do you think he’s right about my brother? That he’s working with Carlos again?”
Jack started to shake his head, but that could reveal too much. He fucking hated having to lie to her. Jack was a lot of things, but a liar wasn’t one of them. Not usually. “It’s a possibility. You seem pretty sure he’s not, though. Why are you asking me?”
Pilar shrugged and leaned against the door. “Nothing about this feels right. Juan has been so careful since we moved here. Everything he’s done has been under the radar. Until today when he wanted to go to the parade. It doesn’t make any sense.”
Jack squeezed the steering wheel. If he told her, she would feel better, but she wouldn’t trust him. In order for them to get what they needed, she had to trust him. So he kept his mouth shut and said the only thing he could. “Maybe he thought the threat was over. That Carlos wasn’t going to come looking for him.” He paused, debating his next words but knowing he had to ask them. “Do you really think Carlos is here for you?”
Pilar’s gaze jerked to his. She hesitated for a second, then nodded. “I do. Juan said Carlos never stopped trying to find a way to come after me. He knew where I was during school and my first year working, but their bosses wouldn’t let him leave the country. It was too big of a risk. When Juan left, it pissed them off. I guess the risk became worth it.”
“But you think Carlos’s boss sent him up here to find you? Not your brother?”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “You think they were after Juan? But why?”
Jack shrugged, playing his part. If she pieced everything together, she might be able to figure out what Juan was going to turn over. She might be able to turn it over to them. As much as he hated the idea of not going after Juan full force, they hadn’t established a level of trust in him that said he wasn’t planning the entire thing all along. Jack had to operate as if Juan could be playing them.
No matter what his beautiful sister thought.
“Do you think he could still have the proof I gave him? Is it leverage to keep them away from us?” she asked, her voice hushed and scared.
Again, Jack shrugged. “I have no clue. I’m just surprised that Carlos grabbed your brother if he was really after you. He could have taken both of you, or just you, if you were his target.”
Pilar stared out her window again and chewed on her lip. She stayed that way until Jack pulled up in front of the four-unit condo building she lived in. He hadn’t ever been inside, but he’d seen enough pictures of the place to know every inch of it.
Jack got out and went around to Pilar’s door. He opened it and smiled at her when she finally met his gaze. The emotions were starting to pile up on her. Exhaustion was sneaking in around the edges of her eyes and tightening her mouth. It had been hours since her brother disappeared, and she was feeling it.
Jack held out a hand for her to take as she slid out of the tall SUV. She was tiny standing next to him, almost a foot shorter than his six-foot-four height. He’d never had the desire to wrap a woman in his arms and take away all her fears, but when Pilar looked up at him, her dark brown eyes searching his gaze, he ached to do just that.
“Let’s go inside,” he said instead of acting on his desire. She was getting to him. It was supposed to be the other way around, with him getting to her. He was the one who needed information, not to fess up to all his secrets. But she disarmed him with every look, and fighting his attraction to her wasn’t easy.
He just needed to get through the next few days. They’d find Juan and get what they needed to take down the whole operation, then Jack and Pilar would never have to cross paths again.
She nodded, breaking the connection between them, and led the way to the building. She unlocked the front door and headed for unit three upstairs on the left.
Jack scanned the building the entire time, checking for anything out of the ordinary. The other units were closed with no signs of forced entry. The hallways were quiet. A muffled TV played in the unit across the hall from Pilar and Juan’s, but there was nothing that concerned Jack.
Pilar unlocked her apartment and stepped inside before she turned on the lights, then gasped.
“Shit,” Jack breathed, taking in the space. Every cushion on the couch was sliced. The TV and computer on the dining room table were both smashed. Papers were scattered everywhere in the small space. It was a mess.
“Stay with me, Pilar,” Jack said, moving into the apartment. He closed and locked the door behind them and drew his gun. With it pointed toward the hallway, he moved toward the only bedroom.
Pilar pressed close to him, her breathing rapid and loud as he strained to listen for movement in the bedroom. The closer he got, the closer she pressed to him until her breasts squished against his back and distracted him from what he was doing.
Jack stopped and grabbed one of her hands with his. He wrapped it around his waist, letting her get as close as she needed to be. Her breath hitched, her entire body pressing to his back, and she wrapped her other arm around him.
They moved as one, slowly walking toward the back of the apartment. Jack held his breath to stop breathing her in and keep his focus, measuring every step so he didn’t tip off anyone who was still inside.
The bedroom was dark, but thankfully empty. The shower curtain fluttered, but when Jack whipped it aside, no one was hiding there either. Pilar still held on to him, her body trembling as they moved through the space. He went back to the kitchen and checked the laundry room, then slid his gun back into the holster and took a breath.
“No one’s here, Pilar. You’re safe.”
That was all it took for her to finally break down. She collapsed on the floor and sobbed, the sound shredding his resolve to keep his distance from her. Jack dropped next to her and reached for her, pulling her onto his lap and holding her while she cried.
He didn’t know how long they sat there, but the voices in his ear said he needed to make a call before they all showed up and scared her even more. He pulled out his phone and tapped the screen to bring it to life. Seven texts and three missed calls already. He tapped the first one and held the phone to his ear.
“You fucking answer me when I call you,” Dunn growled at him.
“Someone was here, boss,” Jack said, not tipping Pilar off that he was still connected to the team through the listening device in his ear. “No signs of forced entry, but the place is trashed. Couch is sliced, everything tossed. They didn’t go for subtle.”
“Something is there. Or they found it and we’ll get a body,” Dunn said, swearing.
Jack glanced at Pilar, who was still crying, and hoped she couldn’t hear the other end of their conversation. “Agreed. We’re going to get some clothes for her and go. Send in a team to search the place.”
Dunn agreed to send a team in and hung up. Jack rubbed Pilar’s back. She’d quieted, but he knew she wasn’t done being upset.
“You want to grab a few things and we can get out of here?” Jack finally asked.
She nodded, moving back and out of his arms. She stood stiffly, her actions wooden and awkward. She glanced back at him when she went toward the bedroom and nibbled her lip. “Will you, um…”
“You want me to come with you or do you want privacy to get your stuff?” he asked, reading her thoughts.
“Will you come with me?” she whispered, her voice raw and shaky.
Jack nodded and followed her, glancing around the room as he went. Normally, he’d be one of the guys sent in to clean up a place like this. English would be there to scan for any surveillance, but Dunn and Dex were likely to be the ones searching the place. Going through every item and hoping something crucial was overlooked.
Jack followed Pilar into the one bedroom. A double bed sat in the middle of the room, one he knew she slept in alone. Juan stayed on the couch so he could keep his sister safe. There were definitely things about him that made Jack trust him, or at least not distrust him entirely.
Pilar grabbed a duffle bag from the closet and tossed it on her bed. She glanced up at Jack and asked, “How long should I pack for?”
Jack drew in a breath and shrugged. “I don’t know. Let’s say a week and hope it isn’t that long.”
Her breath hitched again, likely imagining her brother gone for that long and the things Carlos would do to him. Jack could only hope she’d see her brother alive again. He knew the chances weren’t great unless Juan was working with Carlos. Neither option was good.
Pilar grabbed a few items from her closet and added them to the bag, then moved to her drawers. She started at the top and screamed when she opened the first one, dropping to the bed with her hand over her mouth.
