That glimpse revealed a side to the man she knew she’d be wise not to provoke.
Chapter Seventeen
As soon as Nathan saw Nicole walk back into the playroom with Sloane, his protective instincts went on alert. The tension between the two was palpable, and not in a good way. Nicole’s face was pale, the stress in her eyes visible when her gaze met his across the room. Sloane didn’t bother to hide his look of irritation-clearly, things hadn’t gone well between the two of them.
Concerned for Nicole, Nathan moved off the draped bed and helped Angela off the mattress, too. Taking her hand, he met up with Sloane and Nicole.
Sloane inclined his head at Nathan. “Did the two of you have a nice visit?” he asked of Nathan’s time alone with Angela.
“We did.” Nathan didn’t ask the same of Sloane’s visit with Nicole. Something was visibly wrong, and he’d get the details from Nicole later, when they were alone.
“I’m still interested,” Sloane said, shocking Nathan with his announcement. Especially since the other man wasn’t all warmth and smiles. “How about you?”
“Absolutely,” Nathan replied, knowing Sloane was counting on his agreement.
Except there wouldn’t be an actual trade, not when leaving Nicole alone with Sloane again would likely put her life in danger. Somehow, he and Nicole had to figure out a way to use tomorrow night’s masquerade party as a distraction to smuggle Angela out of the house,
“Excellent,” Sloane said, his irritable mood mollified somewhat. “After breakfast in the morning, a few of the girls are going to a spa I own for a day of pampering before the party. Angela and Nicole can go with them. While the girls are out, why don’t the two of us talk and make the necessary arrangements?”
“That’s perfect.” Nathan met Nicole’s gaze, and seeing the get-me-the-hell-out-of-here look in her eyes, he took that as his cue to end the conversation with Sloane.
“It’s been a long day and Nicole doesn’t look as though she’s feeling well,” he said, taking her hand and tucking it into the crook of his arm. “I think we’ll turn in for tonight.”
“Good night, then.” Finally, Sloane smiled, but the sentiment didn’t fully reach his eyes. “I’ll see you two in the morning.”
Nathan didn’t waste any more time getting Nicole away from Sloane, though he wished he could have done the same with Angela. He hated leaving her behind, but consoled himself with the knowledge that by this same time tomorrow night he’d have her out of the estate and on her way back to her parents.
As soon as they arrived in their room, the first thing Nicole did was take off a silver bracelet from around her wrist-a piece of jewelry he knew for a fact she hadn’t been wearing earlier. Next, she kicked off her shoes, her movements jerky and angry.
“Nicole?” he asked, knowing she’d hear the concern in his voice.
She shook her head, telling him with that gesture that she didn’t want to talk-or couldn’t talk about what was really on her mind in a room that might be bugged. “I need a shower.”
She also needed time to calm down, and he let her go, giving her a few minutes to herself while he checked in with Caleb. He sent his boss a text message, letting him know he’d made contact with Angela and that he was planning on extracting her tomorrow night, along with the discovery that Sloane was also trafficking the girls. Less than a minute later Caleb responded that he was going to call Angela’s parents and give them the update, and they’d deal with the trafficking issue as soon as they were safely off Sloane’s estate. Nathan promised to remain in touch as his plans progressed.
By the time Nathan entered the huge, decadent bathroom, Nicole was done shampooing her hair and was rinsing a conditioner from the strands. Knowing this was the best place for them to talk, he closed and locked the door, then took a moment to appreciate the sight of Nicole standing naked beneath the rush of water free-falling from the large, square grid built into the ceiling.
The glass-enclosed shower was luxurious and designed for sensual pleasures, with handholds built into the walls and ledges for sitting. The display of switches on the wall made him curious enough to see what they did. When he pressed a few of the buttons, the main lights went off, but the shower grid glowed with soothing colors of blue and amber, illuminating the falling water and giving the illusion that Nicole was standing beneath a canopy of rain at night.
Nathan grinned, amazed by the spectacular sight and innovative design. “Okay, that’s really cool.”
“Yeah, it is,” she agreed, looking like a sensual water nymph as the luminous water sluiced over her firm breasts and along her lush curves. “Leave it like that. It makes me feel like I’m somewhere other than where I really am.”
He understood, and gave her the escape she seemed to need. He quickly stripped off his clothes and joined her under the stream of warm water, already thoroughly, achingly aroused. As much as he wanted to take advantage of the erotic setting and make love to Nicole, there were things they needed to discuss first.
“What happened tonight?” he asked, keeping his voice low as he reached for a large sponge and poured a generous amount of liquid soap on top. Then he motioned for Nicole to turn around so he could scrub her back.
“Where do I start?” she said with a sigh as he began buffing the soapy sponge across her shoulders and the scent of ripe peaches filled the steamy air. “He gave me a bracelet, tried to kiss me, then issued a threat-that it was up to me whether things between the two of us went gently, or roughly, and he didn’t seem to mind the latter if that’s what it came down to.” She shuddered.
Nathan clenched his jaw as he glided the sponge over her bottom, hating that she’d had to endure even a moment of Sloane’s vulgar personality. “Did he hurt you?” he asked, kneeling to wash her legs.
“No. But I can’t be alone with him again.” She turned around again when he urged her to do so, and let him soap and scrub his way back up the front of her body. “He’s not very patient with the hard-to-get routine. Next time, he’s not going to take no for an answer.”
“I know.” Standing again, he dragged the sponge over her belly, then her breasts, trying like hell to keep his mind on business, and not the temptation of her tight, hard nipples and slick, wet skin silhouetted by the erotic rainfall of blue-amber water.
He swallowed hard and placed the soapy sponge in her hands so she could return the favor. But before she touched him, he needed to tell her just how urgent this mission of theirs had become.
“Things here at The Sanctuary are much worse than we originally thought. Sloane is trafficking the girls to Russia once he’s done using them,” he said, watching as her eyes widened with shock. “He’s already made arrangements to sell off Angela and a few of the other girls.”
“Oh, my God,” she breathed, her face reflecting her own revulsion at the news. “We have to get the girls out of here.”
He gently smoothed wet strands of hair off her cheek, knowing how desperately she wanted to save each and every one of the girls here at The Sanctuary. Except the two of them just couldn’t do it on their own. It was impossible. Once they were out of this hellhole, it would be up to the authorities to look into the allegations further and gather the evidence they needed to arrest Sloane-and make sure the charges were strong enough to stick.
“We’re getting Angela out tomorrow night, before a swap can be made, so you won’t be alone with Sloane again,” he said, informing her of the more immediate plan he’d formulated. “I’ll set things up with Sloane tomorrow when we talk, let him think that after a few hours at the party we’ll make the exchange for the night. Except by then, we’ll be gone.”
“You make it sound so easy.” She was washing his back, and while he couldn’t see her face, he could hear the frown in her voice. And the doubts.
“No, not easy.” He didn’t want her to think that anything about getting Angela out of the estate without Sloane’s knowledge was going to be simple or uncomplicated. It was a matter of hoping for the best, and planning for the worst. “But it can go relatively smoothly if we have Angela’s cooperation. When you go to the spa with her, I need you to establish a friendship with her, let her know she can trust you, and me, and get her in the mind frame to leave. I honestly think she’s ready to get out of here, so hopefully it won’t be too difficult to sway her.”
