His tall, looming presence should have scared the hell out of her. Instead, he made her stomach tumble. He was the only man who had made her look twice in over a year. There was something about him that pulled at her and made her want to know more.
She hoped it was one of those freaky things where a victim mistook gratitude for her rescuer for interest. A good night’s sleep, some food and an hour or two of planning her next move, and she’d be fine. Everything would go back to normal. She’d get back on Sterling Howard’s trail. Kane would get back to whatever it was he did all day on this secret vacation of his.
The time between now and getting back to normal made her nervous. Sure, she’d eventually forget all about Kane, but right now he was on her mind. That made Kane Travers, alleged Police Chief of Kauai, the number one threat to her plans.
Unfortunately, he was also her best chance for protection and information. Without him and his resources, she’d never track down the missing yacht. If the police and DEA couldn’t find it, neither could she.
That wasn’t an option. No, she needed to stop Howard before he hurt another woman.
“It’s time for a chat.” Kane grabbed another mug and the coffee pot and sat down in the chair across from her.
“Isn’t that what we’ve been doing?”
“You’ve been evading and posturing.” He set a bowl of sugar packets in front of her.
“I didn’t—”
“Flirting and ignoring. Not talking about anything that matters or that I want to hear.”
“Flirting?” That one stunned her enough to make her ignore the nastiness behind his other comments.
“I’m serious, Annie. I want answers.” He poured a fresh cup of coffee and topped hers off. “It’s just us. No more audience to play to. No more time for games.”
She ripped open a pink packet and dumped the contents into her drink. Maybe some sugar would help jump-start her brain cells. For some reason, they seemed to be frozen from all that ocean water.
“You sound like a cop,” she said.
“I am a cop.”
She sat back and folded her arms across her stomach. “Not according to Derek.”
“Tell you what.” He drained the cup and poured another. Black and strong. “I’ll answer one of your questions if you answer one of mine.”
“Okay.”
He smiled. “That was too easy.”
“You’re not the best winner I’ve ever met.” Of course, he really hadn’t won since she didn’t plan to answer anything.
“Truthfully this time, Annie. No more lies.”
“I said okay.”
“Ever been on the Samantha Ray?”
Did being thrown overboard count? “Who is she again?”
He made a face. “Do I need to define what truthful means?”
“A woman should be able to ask for some clarification without being called a liar.” She twisted the empty pink wrapper between her fingers.
“Fine. The missing yacht. She docks at Port Allen. Owned by Sterling Howard, wealthy businessman and all-around scumbag. Any of this ring a bell?”
All of it. Especially the scumbag part. “That’s more than one question.”
“It’s a description.” Kane leaned forward with his elbows on the table. “Right now, I’d settle for you telling me how you know Howard.”
Kane hadn’t said how much of the truth he expected, which was good, because he wasn’t going to get much. This was her battle. Not his. “I’m in town to photograph him.”
“What the hell for?”
She made a tsk-tsk sound. “I answered your question. Now it’s my turn. How did you get kicked off the force?”
He hesitated for a second before answering. “I didn’t.”
“What does that mean?”
He tsk-tsked right back at her. “One question only, remember? Your rules.”
“You’re a—”
“Don’t say it.” He stood up.
She decided to push him. “You’re telling me that if I called police headquarters right now, someone would pick up the phone and confirm your job. Your title.”
He grabbed the phone off the wall and pushed the receiver under her nose. “Ask for Ted Greene.”
Okay, fine. He was the police chief. That still didn’t explain the vacation-versus-leave debate. She’d get to the bottom of that mystery once she solved her own.
She slapped the phone away from her face. “I’m sure you could get this Ted person to cover for you.”
“Not very trusting, are you?”
“The handcuffs and interrogation ruined my mood.”
“I asked one question, Annie. Not exactly a white-light-in-the-eyes shakedown.” Kane hung up the receiver.
“You say potato…”
“As fun as this is, it’s late. We should get to bed.”
The word bed shot through her. “I’m not tired.”
More like exhausted. The adrenaline rush had died down, leaving a trail of sleepiness in its wake.
“You should rest. You’ll need it.”
“A threat? I’m terrified,” she said in a bored, flat tone.
He ignored the sarcasm. “Tomorrow you’re going to give me the answers to all of my questions.”
“More tit for tat?”
“Then we’re going to go on a little field trip to your hotel.”
“What makes you think I have one?”
“Unless you’re sleeping in a car. Where is it parked again?” He poured another cup of coffee.
By her count, that made five. The guy must have a rock-hard stomach. At two cups, she tested her body’s tolerance. The hanging out and drinking part of her job never got easier. Alcohol or coffee, it didn’t matter. She preferred her own company. Just her and her camera and the room to explore.
“A hotel,” she admitted.
“Which one?”
There was no use in hedging. He’d figure it out, so she gave him the name of the beach resort where she’d stayed before boarding the yacht. She should have checked out by now. She’d get right on that as soon as she figured out what to do about not having any identification or a key or her stuff.
With the yacht missing, she needed everything in her room. She’d also need protection to escort her inside in case the same someone who pushed her off the yacht was waiting in there to finish the job. And Kane would fill the role of escort just fine. Once there, she’d figure out how to get him out of the way.
“Hotel first, then we’re going to the marina,” he said.
She couldn’t figure out if that was a good idea or a bad one. “Not to state the obvious, but the yacht isn’t there.”
“I’ve heard.”
She toyed with the sugar packets, piling them in a neat stack, knocking it down, then building again. “Then what’s the point? We can see the water from your