Double Cross. Terri Reed
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hair at the nape of her neck shimmied with awareness. She knew before she even turned her gaze that she’d find Ryan standing in the doorway, filling the frame with his presence.
And blocking the only escape.
TWO
Turning her face away from Ryan and lowering her voice, Kiki said, “There has been a stranger here wanting to buy the farm.”
“Give me his name and I’ll have the FBI run a check on him,” Hunter said, his voice echoing her anxiety.
As a well-respected lawyer in his own right, Hunter had connections in all areas of law enforcement. Kiki gave him the information, aware that Tutu had moved to talk quietly with Ryan.
“Also, Daddy, someone blew up the fertilizer truck today. The police said it was a homemade pipe bomb.”
“Kiki, you and Lana come to Philly immediately,” he demanded, his voice hard and laced with worry.
“No, Daddy,” Kiki replied with a good dose of stubbornness. They’d been down this road several times over the last year. Her parents thought she was wasting her talents on a business that had never really seen great success. Kiki’s mother wanted Lana to sell and move to Philadelphia to live with them. And she’d been very upset about Kiki’s decision to move to Maui. Kiki didn’t understand how her mother could turn her back on her heritage, a thing Kiki could never do. Not even an explosion could make her go back to Philadelphia and the life she’d had there.
“At least until all this unpleasantness is settled,” he insisted.
“No,” she repeated. If there was danger here on the island, she’d rather trust the Maui police to protect her and Tutu than go back to Philly and subject herself and Tutu to her father’s family.
There was a moment of silence. Kiki could picture the frustrated tick in her father’s hard jaw.
“I’ll check on this McClain fellow and get back to you. Until then don’t let him in the house,” he finally said.
It’s a little late for that, Kiki thought as she watched her grandmother hand Ryan a glass of water. “Hurry.”
“Be very careful.”
“I will.” Kiki hung up and faced Ryan. He looked ridiculously handsome, despite the flecks of fertilizer clinging to his suit, and nothing like a hardened criminal. But one could never tell. “Is Nik still outside?”
Ryan nodded. “The forensic team just showed up.”
“Good.” Kiki moved closer to her grandmother. “I’m sure Nik is done questioning you. You can leave now.”
He blinked at her blatant attempt to get rid of him. “Actually, I’m blocked in.”
Crud. Kiki tapped her foot. How long would it take her father to have a background check run on the man?
“Won’t you stay for dinner?” Lana asked, always the polite hostess.
Kiki shook her head. “I’m sure Mr. McClain would like to clean up. I know I would.”
Tutu laughed. “I’ve grown used to the smell.”
Ryan smiled. “Dinner would be great, but perhaps another time.”
“Tomorrow?” Tutu pressed.
“Works for me,” Ryan answered. “But I really should see if I can get back to the condo and clean up.”
“Yes, that’s a great idea,” Kiki stated, and preceded him out the door.
Ryan suppressed a grin. She really was something, this Hawaiian beauty. Her long tan legs carried her with a swift, economical stride. Everything about her was tightly contained, but the woman clearly had fire in her blood. And obviously even a bomber couldn’t intimidate her.
He frowned, not liking that someone had committed such a dangerous act. Kiki and her grandmother could really have been hurt had they been closer to the truck.
Kiki flipped her dark braid over her shoulder, the thick end nearly clobbering him in the face. She’d probably hoped it would. For some reason she didn’t like him.
Having a woman respond so negatively was an odd experience for him when he poured on extra charm. For as long as he could remember, females flocked to him with as little encouragement as a smile.
But not Kiki Brill.
No, from the moment she’d laid eyes on him last May she’d bristled like a porcupine caught in the glare of headlights.
Today was no different. When she scrambled away after the blast, her gold-speckled eyes had widened with a mixture of disbelief and something else that he’d been unable to identify. And then her gaze had turned cold and the lines around her lush red lips had tightened.
From the moment she’d opened her mouth, she’d made it clear he wasn’t welcome, which only fueled his desire to breach her wall of resistance.
Because with enough charm and persistence, he would get his way. He would not fail. Failing wasn’t something he did graciously. Or often.
He wanted to close the deal and acquire the second half of his bonus so he could move on to other projects. The delay in convincing Kiki and Lana to sell stressed Ryan’s game plan. Not something he took lightly.
From his vantage point behind Kiki, he noted the regal manner with which she walked down the porch, so straight and tall, as if ready to conquer the world, and it called to something deep in Ryan.
Pano and Nik stopped talking as Kiki and Ryan approached.
Nik’s dark, assessing gaze reminded Ryan of his brother Brody, also a law enforcement man. Ryan supposed it was a trick of the trade, watching and analyzing every person. Brody was good at the law thing. Nik probably was, too.
But Ryan wasn’t sure what to make of Pano, who wore a T-shirt with a restaurant logo emblazoned across the back and red board shorts that fell just above his knees. He looked very much like the stereotypical Polynesian man.
Pano was huge in height and mass, with broad features and jet-black eyes and hair. Kiki’s curvy statuesque build, crowned by her shiny black-brown hair, gold-specked brown eyes and symmetrical features made it seem as if they weren’t from the same gene pool.
And looking at Lana Kaapa, who had joined them outside, he could see that she had different features than either of her grandchildren. Lana’s rounded face, kind brown eyes and diminutive stature made Ryan wonder about the two cousins’ parents.
Granted, not all relatives resembled each other. Ryan and his sister, Megan, favored their mother’s side of the family, except for Ryan’s dark eyes. Only his sister, out of the four siblings, had been blessed with the Kelley blues. Ryan’s older brothers, Brody and Patrick, both resembled their father in looks, but also their grandfather Connor McClain.
“Officer, do you need anything else from me?” Ryan asked.
“No, you’re good to go. Just don’t leave the island,” Nik responded.
Pano tipped his chin in Ryan’s direction. “Tomorrow I can take you out to Makena Beach. Good surfing there.”
“Makena Beach is fine.” Ryan turned to Lana. “I’m sorry for the trouble you’ve had today. If there is anything I can do, let me know.”
She patted his arm. “We’ll see you for dinner tomorrow.”
He met Kiki’s smoldering gaze. Whether she liked it or not, Ryan was going to make this sale go through.
One way or another.
Anger simmered low in Kiki’s gut as she watched Ryan drive his rented Mustang out of sight. He seemed to have her Tutu wrapped around his little finger. He wouldn’t be so successful with Kiki.
Why hadn’t