HOT SEAL Lover (HOT SEAL Team - Book 2) by Lynn Raye Harris Page A

spoke.
    “It’s behind us,” Cash said. “In the city. It just sounds closer than it is. We’re safe.”
    The woman beside him didn’t seem appeased.
    “What’s your name?” Christina asked.
    Remy turned his head at the sound of her voice this time, but she didn’t make eye contact with him. She was focused on the woman.
    “Penny,” the woman said softly.
    Christina leaned forward and reached across the aisle. “Hi, Penny. I’m Christina.”
    Penny shook her offered hand with a moist one.
    “Look, I know this is scary,” Christina said. “But these guys are the best there is. Believe me.”
    “You know them?”
    As if that was in doubt after her conversation with Remy earlier, but maybe Penny hadn’t been paying attention.
    “Yes. I know them all. Fantastic guys to have at your back in a fight.”
    Penny’s eyes widened even more, if that was possible, and Christina regretted mentioning fights.
    “Or in general,” she added. “They’ll get us out of here safely.”
    Penny twisted her hands together. “I didn’t want to be here at all, but my boss—Mr. Davis—said it was safe. I have a six-year-old at home.”
    Her voice broke then, and Christina couldn’t help what she did next. She crossed the aisle and sank onto the seat beside Penny. Then she put her arms around the other woman’s shoulders.
    “You’ll get back to your child. Isn’t that right, Cash?”
    The handsome SEAL next to Penny nodded. “That’s right, ma’am. We’ll get you home. It might be loud and scary sometimes, but we know what we’re doing. Promise.”
    Penny’s smile was shaky. “Thank you.”
    Christina could feel the other woman trembling. “It’s okay, sweetie. You’d be crazy not to be scared.”
    Penny sniffed. “You aren’t.”
    Christina blinked. “I am. But I trust these guys.”
    Her gaze tangled with Remy’s. His dark eyes were intense, glittering, his sexy, sensual mouth set in a hard line. She didn’t know how long their gazes locked—it seemed like forever, but then the van lurched to a stop and her heart sped up again.
    She heard a window power down and then voices. Remy turned and got involved in the conversation. A few moments later, he got to his feet.
    “Stopping for a few minutes, kids,” he said, shifting his weapon before opening the van door and jumping down into the night.
    A second later he was back.
    “Traffic’s at a standstill. No idea what the holdup is, but we’re stuck for a while. Everybody out for a few minutes. Stretch your legs while you can, but stay near the vans.”
    Christina got to her feet with the others, her bones creaking from so long in one position. When she stepped down from the van, Remy was there, his hands spanning her waist as he lifted her and set her on the sand. He let her go as if she’d burned him. She stumbled sideways but recovered.
    He helped Penny down as well, so Christina couldn’t say he’d stayed to help her specifically. Yet her body had responded to his touch, the same as it always did. Her nipples tightened and her core ached. Ridiculous, considering where they were. What was happening.
    She trudged a few steps in the sand, then stopped and stared back in the direction they’d come. The city of Baq was a beacon in the night. But not for the reason it should be. The skyline glowed. She knew instinctively the glow came from fires, not from city lights.
    She wrapped her arms around herself and shivered. Qu’rim might be a desert nation, but the desert was cold at night, and she hadn’t packed a jacket. You didn’t need a jacket when you never ventured out into the night. She’d had a wrap for chilly meeting rooms, but it was still in her bag in the hotel. She hadn’t thought to grab it.
    She stared at the road behind them. Then she turned and looked at the road ahead. It was literally jammed with traffic in both directions as people fled the capital. And that traffic was at a complete standstill. She didn’t know if that was good