Mine to Crave (Mine 4)

“When you lie…your chin rises up a bit.”

“No it doesn’t,” she whispered back. “It does that when I get scared.”

He blinked.

“Uh, we should get on the plane,” Noah announced. “The pilot told me that we’ll be—”

“Why do you watch Noah so much?” Drake demanded, and he heard the bite of jealousy in his own voice. He’d never been jealous over a woman. Not like this.

Noah coughed a bit. “Okay, I think I’ll wait on the plane…” He started to back away.

“Don’t go anywhere,” Drake ordered because he was trying to figure this thing out.

Jasmine had paled. The sun was up, and he could easily see the sudden pallor of her skin and the flash of fear in her eyes. “That was Noah’s wedding picture.”

Now Noah was crowding in closer. “What are you talking about?”

The pilot advanced toward them. “We should board the plane now.” He shifted a bit nervously, from one foot to the other. “The pre-flight checks are all clear. We’ve got the okay to take-off.”

Two mechanics were over in the corner, packing up gear.

Jasmine tried to head toward the plane. Drake moved with her, blocking her path.

“What is with you?” Jasmine demanded. “You want me to go, you want me to stay. Make up your mind!”

“I want to know why you took one look at Noah’s wedding picture, and you decided not to hack my computer. I want to know why one look at that picture changed everything for you.” And it had. She’d betrayed Maxwell and set this deadly chain of events into motion.

But she didn’t betray him for me.

Jasmine’s gaze slanted toward Noah.

She did it for him.

“I saw you on the security footage.” There had been such longing on her face. Longing for Noah? Rage pumped through his blood.

Jasmine wet her lips with a quick, nervous swipe of her tongue. “I don’t know what you think you saw—”

Drake’s stare lasered onto Noah. “Have you met Jasmine before?”

Surprise flashed on Noah’s face. “No.”

Trace had closed in next to Noah.

“Are you sure?” Drake pressed. “Think about it.”

Noah’s stare swept over Jasmine. A very tense Jasmine. “I don’t think I’d forget a woman like her,” Noah said.

Drake unclenched his back teeth.

“But…but I swear,” Noah continued, voice roughening, “there’s something familiar about you, Jasmine. I look at you, and I…”

Jasmine pushed through the men and headed for the plane. “We need to get this show on the road.”

“How do you know him?” Drake demanded.

She kept marching toward the plane.

Drake shot a glare at Trace. “Are they connected? Did you see anything in her past that is tied to Noah?” Why had she changed everything for him? Yeah, that jealousy was back and twisting hard in Drake’s gut.

Trace shook his head. “I didn’t see a connection, but so much of her life is shrouded. The woman is good at covering her tracks. Hell, if I didn’t know better, I’d think…” But then Trace broke off. “I’ve seen government agents who have less security in their lives than she does. She wanted years of her life hidden, and she made them vanish.”

“What can I say…” Jasmine’s words drifted back to them. “I’m amazing.” But her voice was flat. “Now, the plane’s ready. The plane that you insisted I board.”

The pilot hurried by her and rushed up the steps that led to the plane.

The mechanics were still lingering in the corner. Watching.

Waiting?

Jasmine climbed two of the steps.

Drake turned away from her and focused on those mechanics. One had a faint smile on his face as he watched Jasmine board the plane. The guy was still smiling as he turned away…and started heading for the door.

“Stop!” Drake shouted at him.

The guy jerked and glanced back.

“I want to talk with you,” Drake barked as he hurried toward the man, his instincts on high alert. “To both of you.”

“Uh, Drake…” Noah began.

The mechanics were grabbing their gear and they weren’t slowing down for a little chat. They were trying to haul ass out of there.

“Stop!” Drake yelled again. His phone started ringing, vibrating like mad in his coat pocket. He ignored the phone and focused on the men. The two guys were full out running now and the plane’s engine was growling behind him. That didn’t make any sense. Mechanics wouldn’t run—

They’re not mechanics.

He spun back around. “Jasmine, get away from the plane!”

She was on the stairs. Her eyes widened.

“Get away from it!”

Trace was now running after the fleeing mechanics but Drake ran right toward the plane. Toward Jasmine.

He saw understanding on her face. But she didn’t leave the plane. That insane woman turned toward the plane’s entrance and began yelling for the pilot. She disappeared inside.

No! “Jasmine! Get the hell out!” His legs burned as he raced toward her.

All he could think was…a bomb. They planted a bomb, and I’m about to lose her. Maxwell likes his bombs…I’m going to lose her. “Jasmine!”

His phone was ringing again. Drake ignored the thing because he was rushing to her.

She was back on the steps now—and hauling the pilot with her.

Drake rushed up the stairs toward her. He grabbed her hand and pulled her against him. Then they ran down the last few steps as fast as they could.

They’d just cleared the tiny airstrip when the plane exploded.

***

“Boom,” Maxwell whispered when he saw the smoke fill the sky. Ah, but it paid to have eyes and ears everywhere.

Noah York and Trace Weston were on Maxwell’s hit list. He’d planned to take them all out…because they’d all played a part in Anna Jean’s death.

But they’d been targets for later. Less important. Drake had been his main goal.

Then Drake had made the mistake of calling in his friends.

“It was time for them to die.” Maxwell rolled his shoulders. He’d made the little bomb. All his men had needed to do was plant it.