His lips brushed hers softly in a chaste kiss. Her sigh urged him to deepen the embrace, lightly flicking his tongue across her lips until her own tongue tangled with his. The kiss was intimate; the kind that got his heart thumping. It had been a long time since he'd been with a woman, and it had never felt like this before.
They made out like teenagers until the sound of her cell phone ringing from the kitchen forced them apart. Hannah was out of breath as she stumbled to her feet to find her phone. Dylan watched her closely, and knew from her frantic eyes it had to be Jake Davenport calling.
She threw her phone down to the counter as if Jake had the ability to burn her fingers from afar. Dylan pushed to his feet, crossing to her with wide strides, circling her in his arms tightly. She went willingly. They held each other until the phone started ringing again. Neither looked at the display, choosing to cling to their precarious bond for as long as possible.
The ding of a text message came next.
Dylan pulled back enough to grab her phone, looking down first to shield her from the message. It was worse than he'd feared. The photo of a faceless, naked woman filled the screen. The sharp knife being held at her throat overshadowed the vicious clamps on her nipples. The accompanying message read: Answer your fucking phone or the next photo will be red.
Dylan had no trouble believing Davenport would slit an innocent person's throat. He did, however, hate his own relief at realizing that at least it wasn't Hannah's. He'd make one more attempt.
Looking into her frightened eyes, he pleaded. "Come with me. Let's pack up your stuff and grab Connor, and we can be out of here in fifteen minutes. I'll take you away from here."
He saw raw longing in her eyes. She was tempted.
The next text arrived: I thought you could use some additional incentive.
The picture filling the screen was actually less gruesome than its predecessor, which confused Dylan. A crying and pissed off looking Asian woman stared back at him. She was clothed, indicating it was not the same woman. Hannah grabbed the phone and angled it so she could see. Her strangled cry distracted him from realizing her legs had given out from under her. She fell to her knees with a muffled cry.
"What is it, Hannah? Who is it?" he asked urgently.
Through her anguished tears she cried, "He took Mia. Lucy was bad enough." She was going into shock, repeating again and again, "He took Mia." She wrapped her arms around her waist, rocking as she knelt, broken-hearted.
The jingle of her cell phone ring jarred the space, moving him into motion. "Come on, let's get out of here." He pulled Hannah to her feet, but that was as far as she would go. She held her ground, reaching for the phone.
"No. Nothing good will come from talking to him. We need to get you safe."
Her teary eyes looked up at his, so vulnerable, yet strangely resolved. "She's my best friend. My only friend. I can't leave her there."
He reluctantly let her take the cell from him, her hands visibly shaking as she accepted the call. She didn't speak. He didn't know she'd put it on speakerphone until Davenport's calculating voice bellowed into the room.
"You fucking bitch, you are going to regret messing with me. I'll be at your place in thirty minutes, and I expect you to walk out the door carrying only what you stole from me. You'll get in the front seat of my car and then we'll go somewhere private, where I can explain to you the depth of my anger at your betrayal."
"No."
Dylan was impressed at how strong she sounded, despite the situation.
Jake's chilly response had the temperature in the room plummeting. "Excuse me? You have zero bargaining power here, Hannah. You can only make your situation worse each time you open your damn mouth."
"I don't think so. I have something you want. You have something I want. I'll drive to you with my item and we'll trade in the parking lot. That's the deal. Take it or leave it."
"I'll leave it. You want to drive yourself, that's fine, but you will be coming in if you want to see your friend. We've already started the party without you. I'd hurry if I were you. She doesn't seem to be having much fun without you here," Jake said.
Dylan could hear the muffled sounds of a struggle and crying in the background. Hannah obviously did as well, and a helpless resolve filled her eyes. He willed her to hang up the call, yet knew she wouldn't.
"I hate you. You'd better not hurt a hair on her head, you bastard," she snarled.
Jake's only reply was a devious chuckle. The sadistic ass was having fun.
She spat, "I'll bring you what you want, but then Mia, Lucy and I are leaving. Promise me, or I'll take a detour to the police station on the way there."
Jake's humor was gone. "Do that, and you'll never see them again."
"That sounds suspiciously like a threat. I think the police will be interested in that, as well," Hannah countered.
"I'd shut up if I were you. You're only making things worse for yourself."
Dylan respected her bravery, but he had to agree with Jake. She was only pissing the sadistic fuck off more. He shook his own head to try to prevent her from doing more damage.
Jake helped by cutting the conversation short. "Come to the warehouse. Thirty minutes, Hannah. Don't make me come for you. You won't like what happens if I do." The call cut off.
They stood silently for thirty seconds, each weighing their options. Dylan wanted to load the car and drive in the opposite direction of the warehouse, only stopping when they were hundreds of miles away. But Hannah would fight him. Of that he was certain.
He wasn't prepared for
