Tijuana Nights (The Nights Series Book 1) Read Free Page A

have given me some bloody warning.”
    “Out with the old and in with the new, Mack. If you roll with me, that’s how it is.”
    I put my palm against my forehead and leaned back, closing my eyes. “You have got to be kidding. I don’t even want to roll with you. You guys are the ones who got me into this position in the bloody first place.”
    River snorted with laughter. “If I hadn’t found you when I did, you wouldn’t have nearly as much dignity as you do right this very minute. You were trying to whore yourself, I saved your ass. You should count yourself lucky that I took time out of my day for you.”
    I could feel a headache coming on from the direction this conversation was taking. “You should be lucky that I happened to need the money. Now I just want to go home.”
    River shook his head. “No sweet pea… you’re damn lucky we have the money you need.” He was focused on driving in the Tijuana traffic. “We’ll get you home, don’t you worry about that. But just remember that this was originally a business deal. You held up your end of the deal, and we promised you would go home safely.” He paused and took a deep breath, “Now in the meantime, we just need to make sure nothing goes wrong.”
    “You think I’m going to do something wrong?”
    He shook his head, “It’s not you I’m worried about. It’s Carmen. She’s unpredictable, and so is the Cartel.”
    I glanced over at River, wondering if I should light a cigarette, but with the mood he was in now he’d almost certainly throw me out on the side of the road somewhere. The only other time he had ever let me have a cigarette in his car was the night I first met him.
    Instead of killing me when he’d the opportunity, he’d let me live, and then taken a chance on me by offering me a better paying job. I could come to Mexico with his team, and do just one small job for them. Be a sexual distraction to one of the El Diablo Cartel leaders. Before I knew it, they cut my hair to a close crop so I could wear wigs, sent me off for laser surgery on my eyes, thrown me in a sunbed for a few sessions to give my English skin a few shades of colour, and dressed me in designer clothes. The attitude I seemed to be developing now has only been rearing its head since the night I met the team.
    It was all too much; today, the past month. I knew that if I didn’t close my eyes and sleep, I was in danger of throwing up from the motion of the car. I absolutely regretted drinking far too many early morning margaritas.
    I woke to the sensation of salty air tickling at my senses. We rounded the top of the tree lined driveway to River’s place, and pulled up in front of a low lying house overlooking the Mexican coast. River stopped the car and turned off the engine. “Listen. I will do whatever is in my power to assist you with Carmen. However, new information has come in, and I strongly suspect it has to do with Javier Amaro. So let’s just play this one by ear, shall we? Our pay check will have everything to do with Javier, therefore he’s the priority. Carmen’s just a bonus if you can get to her. Okay?” I undid my seatbelt, and gave him a watery smile. “Okay.”

2

    When I woke a few hours later in one of River’s guest rooms, I found that my clothes had been hung up in the wardrobe and I sighed with relief. After a shower, I felt thoroughly alive again, and more mentally prepared to deal with whatever was coming.
    Despite the fact that it never got very cold here, River had the fire roaring by the time I walked into the living room. With the bi-folds wide open to make the room more bearable and the sea breeze ruffling white gauzy drapes, it made a far prettier scene than you’d ever expect to find in the lair of a contract killer.
    Chase was stretched out on one of the sofas with a book propped up on his knees, and a glass of wine on the coffee table beside him. “I hear you’ve severely pissed Carmen Amaro off.” Chase directed both the