Captive Star by Nora Roberts Read Free Book Online

control himself, he could think, he could reason. And that was just what he was going to do.
    He'd probably have a scar, he thought again, grimly, as he touched a fingertip gingerly to his swollen lip. Just let that be a lesson to you, Dakota. He jerked his head in a nod at the reflection in the spotty mirror. If you can't trust yourself, you sure as hell can't trust her.
    When he came out, she was frowning at the hideous drapes on the window. He glared at her. She glared back. Saying nothing, he sat in the single ratty chair, crossed his feet at the ankles and tuned into the movie.
    Hercules was over. He'd probably triumphed. In his place was a Japanese science-fiction flick with an incredibly poorly produced monster lizard who was currently smashing a high-speed train. Hordes of extras were screaming in terror.
    They watched awhile, as the military came rushing in with large guns that had virtually no effect on the giant mutant lizard. A small man in a combat helmet was devoured. His chicken-hearted comrades ran for their lives.
    M.J. found the candy bar from her purse that Jack had tossed her earlier, broke off a chunk and ate it contemplatively as the lizard king from outer space lumbered toward Tokyo to wreak reptilian havoc.
    "Can I have my water?" she asked in scrupulously polite tones.
    He got up, fetched it out of her bag, handed it over.
    "Thanks." She took one long sip, waited until he'd settled again. "What's your fee?" she demanded.
    He took another soda out of his cooler. Wished it was a beer. "For?"
    "What you do." She shrugged. "Say I had skipped out on bail. What do you get for bringing me back?"
    "Depends. Why?"
    She rolled her eyes. "Depends on what?"
    "On how much bail you'd skipped out on."
    She was silent for a moment as she considered. The lizard demolished a tall building with many innocent occupants. "What was it I was supposed to have done?"
    "Shot your lover—the accountant. I believe his name was Hank."
    "Very funny." She broke off another hunk of chocolate and, when Jack held out a hand, reluctantly shared. "How much were you going to get for me?"
    "More than you're worth."
    Now she sighed. "I'm going to make you a deal, Jack, but I'm a businesswoman, and I don't make them blind. What's your fee?"
    Interesting, he thought, and drummed his fingers on the arm of the chair. "For you, sugar, considering what you're carrying in that suitcase you call a purse, adding in what Ralph offered me to turn you over to the goons?" He thought it over. "A hundred large."

    She didn't bat an eye. "I appreciate you trying to lighten the situation with an attempt at wry humor. A hundred K for a man who can't even take out a single hired thug by himself is laughable—'
    "Who said I couldn't take him out?" His pride leaped up and bit him. "I did take him out, sugar. Him and his cannon, and you haven't bothered to thank me for it"
    "Oh, excuse me. It must have slipped my mind while I was being dragged around and handcuffed. How rude. And you didn't take him out, I did. But regardless,"
    she continued, holding up her free hand like a traffic cop, "now that we've had our little joke, let's try to be serious. I'll give you a thousand to work with me on this."
    "A thousand?" He flashed that quick, dangerous grin. "Sister, there isn't enough money in the world to tempt me to work with you. But for a hundred K, I'll get you out of the jam you're in."
    "In the first place—" she drew up her legs, sat lotus-style "—I'm not your sister, and I'm not your sugar. If you have to refer to me, use my name."
    "You don't have a name, you have initials."
    "In the second place," she said, ignoring him, "if a man like you got his hands on a hundred thousand, he'd just lose it in Vegas or pour it down some stripper's cleavage. Since I don't intend for that to happen to my money, I'm offering you a thousand." She smiled at him. "With that, you can have yourself a nice weekend at the beach with a keg of imported beer."
    "It's considerate