On the Line (Special Ops) by Capri Montgomery Page A

good. “Do they know who you are; that we were married?”
     
    She crawled over to him and studied his face, his body. “Are you hurt?”
     
    “Answer my question first, Ariana.”
     
    She shook her head no. “I don’t think so. I awakened once, but I couldn’t see them. I heard their voices, but I’m not really sure,” she shook her head. She placed her hand on her chest, letting her fingers slightly trace her neck. “I gave my locket to Zahara before my dance because she had a spot on her outfit where it would fit without falling out. They wouldn’t have seen the picture.”
     
    “You still have that locket?”
     
    “Of course,” she said. He looked at her hands and he saw the ring he had given her still on her finger, not the finger he had placed it on, but still on it nonetheless. “Are you hurt?”
     
    “Not yet,” he said. “How did they get you?”
     
    She shrugged. “That’s the million dollar question. I don’t remember much. I went back to my dressing room. There were flowers that I received before the show with instructions not to open the card until after my first dance. I went back after Zahara danced and I remember picking up the card; I remember opening it and I think there was kind of a puff of something…I don’t know, it was kind of a surprise like the popup books. I don’t remember anything after that. Except when I came to it was dark. I don’t think they realized I was awake at first, but the moment they did they stuck me with a needle and once again everything went black until I awakened here, with you.” She looked around and then back at him. “Where are we?”
     
    “Egypt I think. At least that’s where I was before I ended up in here.”
     
    She nodded. “This is bad isn’t it?”
     
    “You could say that,” he said dryly. “Does anybody know you’re missing—that is do you think anybody knows you’re missing?”
     
    “Zahara should. She was supposed to come to my dressing room. And if I’m in Egypt I would guess everybody else should know by now too. I have to admit they did it the smart way. Everybody would have been so busy with the show, getting ready for their dances, that it would have been a while before anybody noticed I wasn’t there. Not that I go off the radar often, but you know it’s just so busy and chaotic that I think it would have been long enough for them to leave unnoticed.”
     
    “Then for your sake and mine I hope this Zahara noticed you were gone sooner rather than later.”
     
    “Me too. But why would it matter for you if she noticed?”
     
    “She would have reported it. It would have made the news and I’m hoping my guys would have seen it and put my missed check in with my missing ex-wife together and know to come find me. Of course I’d much rather get myself out of here instead of waiting for rescue. What day is it?”
     
    “It was Friday when they took me. I don’t know, maybe Saturday by now.”
     
    “Can you see out that window there?”
     
    “I’ll try,” she said as she got to her feet and went to the set of bars, lifting on tiptoe enough to look out. “Desert,” she said. “That’s all I see is sand and nothingness.”
     
    “Egypt,” they both agreed simultaneously. She came back to sit beside him.
     
    “How are your legs feeling?”
     
    He shrugged. “They’ll be fine. I have been moving them as much as I can.”
     
    She nodded before kneeling beside him. She went to touch him and for some reason he pulled away. “I’m just trying to help,” she said softly and he reminded himself to relax—if that were at all possible. She started to slowly massage one leg, starting at his ankle and working her way up to his thigh. She spent a good deal of time on that one before moving to the other. She always did have the magic touch that could both relax and arouse him and right now was no different. He was shackled to a wall and all he could think about was how good her hands would feel if they