Mar's heart went down to her gut when she saw the two large men at the door, who seemed to take a keen interest in the three of them.

Oh, my, G.o.d. We're going to die.

6.

TWO GUARDS, ROUGHLY the size of sumo wresters, created a wall in front of the nearest exit. Mar had a feeling trying to shove her way through would be like trying to push down a couple of giant redwoods with her bare hands.

c.r.a.p. What do I do now?

"No," the one on the right said gruffly, his face giving new meaning to the word menace. She didn't know much Thai, but no seemed universal.

Think fast or die, crazy girl.

"But." Mar threw her hand up to her mouth as if she were going to be sick. "Had too much to drink, I'm gonna seriously hurl. Please."

They didn't budge.

Mar forced her eyes to go big and a low gagging sound came from her throat as if she were doing her best not to throw up on them. It really wasn't much of a stretch. She'd never been so scared in her life.

"Please, gentlemen, the lady doesn't want to embarra.s.s herself here, and trust me when I tell you she definitely had too much to drink," Jackson said affably. His hand went to her back. "She was quite the wild woman on the dance floor tonight."

The choking sound burbled from her throat again, and this time the mountain of men parted and even held the door open for them to exit.

They were out of the club and into the hired car around the corner before Gladstone even had a chance to question who they were.

Mar's nerves were on edge, so much so she had to put her hands on her knees to stop them from shaking.

Jackson shut the door behind her and sat in front with the driver so they wouldn't be crowded in the back.

Gladstone was in some kind of daze, as if he wasn't quite sure what had happened. Once the car pulled into traffic, Mar regained her strength. Taking a deep breath, she turned to face the man to her left. "Mr. Gladstone, I'm Mariska Stonegate from Stonegate Investigative Agency. I was sent by your wife to find out why you disappeared from the hotel."

"Oh." Her words seemed to sink in through his confusion. Then his eyes flashed with understanding. "d.a.m.n. She knows. G.o.d, can nothing go right tonight? She'll be royally p.i.s.sed that you didn't find me dead." The unexpected response confused Mar.

Jackson grunted from his seat.

"I don't think that's true," Mar continued. "She was quite worried when she called the agency. I happened to be in the area and promised to follow up." Mariska didn't like the man, but his wife and child deserved answers.

"When she finds out I gambled away the second mortgage she is most definitely going to wish me six feet under." Gladstone raked a hand through his hair. "And I don't blame her. I was on such a roll and I thought I was going to really do it this time."

"It never happens," said Jackson, his voice low and gravelly as he turned to stare Gladstone directly in the eyes. "You need help, and you need to know that there never is a this time or a next time. You might win once or twice, or hit a lucky streak for a few hours, but when you don't know when to stop you end up losing it all. Every time."

"You don't know that," Gladstone spit out bitterly, the acid in his tone unmistakable. "I was doing okay tonight. I lost focus. That all-in play at the end-"

"Saved you a lot of heartache," Jackson interrupted. "I know what I'm talking about. My dad spent a great deal of time at the track before he died."

For a few seconds Jackson's confident mask lifted and she saw the vulnerable boy underneath. A child hurt by the people who were supposed to protect him. She had to consciously keep her hand from touching his brow so that she could soothe away the hurt she glimpsed there. A beat later the confident, steely mask returned.

"I don't have a problem. It's a run of bad luck," said Gladstone. "I know what I'm doing. I had an off night at the tables, it doesn't make me some loser with an addiction like your dad." The last word spewed out of his mouth full of hate.

Mar never wanted to punch a guy so bad as she did right then.

"Yes, it does. And you've been at those tables for two days at least." Jackson didn't back down. His voice had a hard edge of steel in it. Mar was grateful the words weren't directed at her. "I can tell from the way you're talking that this isn't the first time you've done this. You can't see it, but you're about to lose everything that is precious to you. The mortgage aside, if you keep gambling, your wife and child aren't going to stay in your life. You need help."

"So that's what all this is, some kind of intervention? Thanks, but no thanks. You can let me out on the corner."

Mariska's eyebrow went up. "I'm beginning to wonder why your wife wants a deadbeat like you back home." It might be a harsh thing to say, but the man needed a solid dose of truth. She had no compa.s.sion for idiots who only thought about themselves and left their families to suffer their mistakes. "You're lucky we found you. If you borrowed money from those guys, your life would be even more complicated. You didn't, by the way, borrow any money?"

Gladstone glanced out the window, not bothering to answer.

"Let me tell you something about these types of casinos," Jackson interjected. "They are run by the Thai and Russian mafia. That big guy who stepped in front of me at the table was Russian. They take your money and offer markers when you run out.

"Then you wake up the next morning after being sleep deprived for three days straight, you realize it wasn't so much bad luck as a huge screw-up because you find yourself having to pay forty percent interest on a huge loan."

Holy c.r.a.p. Mar knew it would be bad but had no idea it would be that much. Jackson must have come across this kind of thing in his line of work, or maybe with his dad. He did seem to know what he was talking about.

Gladstone stared at his hands as if they were the most interesting things in the world.

"When you can't pay, and who the h.e.l.l could? They make you sign over your house." Jackson pointed a finger at the man. "Then they come after your business, telling you they only need a few shares to call it even. All of the sudden they own every aspect of your life and you are screwed over so bad your a.s.s is going to hurt for months." Jackson snarled. Not really at Gladstone, but at memories. The man had definitely been through some big-time pain a.s.sociated with gambling in the past.

"You might think because they're here that they won't be able to reach you in the States, but they will." He made a wavy motion with his fingers. "They are bacterial sc.u.m who will eat away at your life until you have nothing left. Oh, and when all of that isn't enough, they'll go after your family. That little baby and your wife are considered commodities. They'll find out exactly how far you are willing to go for them. I've seen entire families killed for as little as ten thousand dollars. Babies, grandparents, these people don't care. They kill for sport."

There was a long silence.

She started to say something, but Jackson tilted his head toward Gladstone, who appeared tortured. His face contorted into a ma.s.s of emotion.

Jackson's words must have finally penetrated the man's skull because his head fell into his hands. "What the h.e.l.l was I thinking?" he cried out in agony. "She's going to kill me. Oh, G.o.d, I don't want to disappoint her again. I'd been doing so well and then the new baby came and we needed to add on to the house." His fist clenched.

"Sales were down at the office and I was worried about my job. I heard about this place from a friend and thought I'd make some quick cash. How could I have been so incredibly stupid?" The last part came out as a groan.

Yep. Mariska didn't say it out loud.

"My only saving grace is that you guys came in before I could borrow any. Though, I'm sorry to say I probably would have. I kept thinking this time it'll be my turn to win. At first I was up almost a hundred thousand."

Jackson cleared his throat to get the man's attention. "I don't know who suggested you come to Bangkok to gamble away your home, but they don't exactly run clean games in a place like that," Jackson said as he wrapped an arm around the headrest. "There are some legitimate clubs operated by the hotels, but not the ones run by these guys.

"Be grateful that we got you out when we did. Go home and make amends. Ask for forgiveness, and get your a.s.s to a meeting."

Gladstone was quiet again.

"You're right," he finally said. "I have to get home. I'm out of control and I've made a royal mess of my life again." He sighed. "Can you guys take me back to the hotel? I can pick up my things and my pa.s.sport. I want to get the h.e.l.l out of this place as soon as possible."

"It isn't necessary to take you back to the Four Seasons," Jackson said. "We're taking you straight to the airport. Your bag and papers are in the trunk."

A tiny gasp of surprise escaped Mariska. She couldn't believe he'd done that or had even thought to do it.

He must have read the question on her face. "I thought if we were lucky and did find him tonight, he might need to make a quick exit. I took care of things before we left. It's the Boy Scout in me. I like to be prepared." He winked.

The man was full of surprises. Mar chastised herself for not thinking about what would happen if she did find Gladstone. Always have an exit strategy. Whether in a client meeting or when being chased by bad guys, it was one of the things her friend Katie, who used to be a detective with the NYPD, drilled into her.

They pulled up in front of the airport and the driver opened the door nearest Gladstone.

Mariska watched as Jackson jumped out and grabbed Gladstone's bag from the trunk and handed it to him. She pushed the b.u.t.ton to roll down the window so she could hear what Jackson said to the other man.

"Go home, Desmond. Tell your wife what you did, then go to a meeting. Those people can help salvage your life. It may feel like it's too late, but it isn't. It may take her a while for her to forgive you, but she will eventually." Jackson stuck out his hand. "Whatever you do, take your ticket and get through security. I can't promise that those guys won't come after you as long as you are still in Thailand. Best if you go as fast as possible."

They shook hands. "Thanks." Gladstone glanced back at Mariska. "Can you get a message to my wife and let her know I'm on the way? I should do it myself, but I need some time to think. She'll go ballistic no matter what, but I need some time. Um, maybe you could hold off on telling her everything." He sighed. "I'd like to do that myself."

Jackson climbed in the backseat with her.

"He's really messed up," she said. "I can't believe what he's done to his family, he could have put them in mortal danger. How could he think gambling his family's finances away would solve his problems?"

Jackson had a guarded look on his face. "People do crazy things when they're desperate."

Wasn't she going to do something desperate in a few minutes when her courage kicked in? "I guess you're right."

She crossed her hands against her chest to keep from hugging him, which, though she wanted to do it more than anything, was less than professional. "Thank you, Jackson, for your help with this." Mariska suddenly felt awkward. "There's no way I would have found him so quickly if you hadn't helped me."

Jackson gave her one of his devastating smiles and took her hand in his. Mariska's heart pounded an extra beat. "You would have managed fine on your own. You are quite resourceful when you need to be, but it was my pleasure to help," he said as he squeezed her hand gently. "I'm surprised it went as easily as it did. I figured we'd have to hit at least a few more casinos over the next few days before we found him.

"I understand how you feel about Gladstone. The guy needed some tough love. I hope we made it through that stubborn brain of his, but you never know with these guys. They'll say almost anything to get out of a jam."

Mariska noticed that he didn't let go of her fingers, and she didn't bother to mention it. "I sure as h.e.l.l couldn't have walked up to him like that in the casino. You freaked me out. Can I ask what made you suspect gambling in the first place?"

Jackson frowned for a second. "Instinct, I guess. If it were an affair he'd have no reason to leave the hotel. He's thousands of miles from home, and the Four Seasons is no shack. There are only a few things that keep a man from sleeping for a few days, and gambling is number one on that list."

"Huh. What are some of the others?"

Jackson laughed out loud. "A woman, drinking and there's always death. I prefer the first two myself." He gave her another wink.

Mariska gave a rather unladylike snort. "You crack me up."

Biting her lip, she almost said something about the woman part of his comment, but chickened out. At first she thought she could segue into asking about him joining her in p.h.u.ket. She had to give up this craziness. There was no way she would get the courage to ask him.

But her vacation officially started when Gladstone walked into the airport and for once in her life she was ready to have some fun. Jackson made her feel so much more than any man she'd ever met. Even if it was a temporary heat, she needed to burn up in it.

That kiss in the club left her with one thought. If he's that good at kissing, what would the s.e.x be like? The idea of s.e.x with Jackson was the one thing that gave her courage. If he said no, she'd be embarra.s.sed, but she'd survive. Once they left the car, she'd never have to see him again.

Do it.

She was a grown woman with needs. A strong, smart woman who shouldn't feel guilty about going after what she desired. At least that was what she told herself. She'd never asked a guy out, let alone to go away with her on vacation.

Most of her s.e.xual relationships in college were with bored fellow cla.s.smen who were as drunk as she was on Sat.u.r.day night. None of them had come close to Jackson. The way he looked at her sometimes sent her into a spin, twirling so fast she couldn't stop. Crazy girl that she was, she didn't want it to end.

There was also something dark and dangerous about him. Yet, he was compa.s.sionate in the way he dealt with Gladstone, knowing exactly what to say to the other man. If she were really honest she had to know more about Jackson. The man was the biggest mystery she'd ever come across, one she desperately wanted to solve.

She took a deep breath. "Uh, I'm heading out to a beach resort and-I, um. This is stupid. Never mind." Mariska couldn't go through with it.

Worry furrowed his brow and he leaned toward her. "What is it? Do you need help with something? I may have some free time in the next couple of days if you have another case, but then I'm traveling again."

You. I need you. She couldn't tell him that.

Now she really felt like an idiot. "Oh, no. Sorry. It has absolutely nothing to do with work." She bit her lip again. "I was wondering if you might like to come with me for a couple of days. I could-" She started to say pay for his expenses, which would make him sound like a man wh.o.r.e. This was not going the way she wanted.

Her hands twisted with anxiety. "Sorry. I-You're. Gawd. No. Uh. Never mind. Please forget I said anything. I mean we worked so well together. It's not like any of that was real. The kissing and the way you touched me. Um. Chalk it up to the excitement of the job."

What the h.e.l.l are you doing?

"I'm so embarra.s.sed. I don't know why I can't shut up. This is one of the most horrifying moments of my life. Well, except when we faced those guards back at the club and there was that time freshman year with the granny panties. See-oh. Gawd. Make me stop." She threw a hand over her mouth. Mortified beyond belief.

Jackson grinned, before glancing out the rear window, then back at her. "Yes, I'll go with you." Taking her left hand from her mouth, he ran his thumb across her fingers and then kissed them.

For a moment she couldn't breathe, and she was fairly certain her body had turned into a puddle of melted b.u.t.ter. Then she wasn't sure if she'd heard him correctly. Say something.

"Really?"

He chuckled. "Yes. A few days at the beach sounds like a good time to me, especially if I'm with you."

Okay, this time her heart really did stop.

"Wow. Okay. Cool." Der. Now she couldn't form sentences. The hunk of gorgeousness across from her wanted to spend the weekend with her. She wouldn't question the G.o.ds. She'd be grateful. Score!

Breathe deep. "When do you want to leave? I thought the case might take a few days, but my reservation is open-ended at the resort from today to the end of the month." There, she sounded quite cosmopolitan, like she had weekend flings all the time.

"Why don't we go tonight? It's the weekend and there's nothing on my agenda that I can't set aside for a few days." Jackson's eyes lingered on her mouth. "I need to run some errands, which will give you time to pack up some of your things. Then we can head out."

Mariska couldn't believe it. In a few hours she'd be alone with Jackson on a remote beach. Her body trembled with need. Down, girl. We'll be there soon enough.

7.

THE SUN CRESTED THE waves as they pulled up in front of the resort. It had been a long time since Jackson had stopped to watch a sunrise, but he'd promised Mariska so he parked the bike in the small lot to the right of the hotel.

It was more like a large tropical mansion with a few suites for exclusive guests. Several small villas dotted the beach. It was a place where those with money, who valued their privacy, went to relax. The woman had the funds, but he wondered why Mariska had picked it. She didn't seem like someone who liked the solitary life.