Lure of the Jaguar: Hades' Carnival, Book 7 by N.J. Walters Read Free Book Online Page A

wants to call for help. I don’t think he’ll contact the authorities. And I’ll be surprised if there’s a trace of any of them left here by morning.”
    Toni shivered, stepped inside and hurried into the bedroom. She carefully set both guns down on the bed before turning on the bedside lamp. She looked longingly at the bed. What she really wanted to do was crawl under the covers and pretend none of this had happened, but that wasn’t an option.
    Thankfully, she didn’t have much stuff to pack. She was used to traveling light when she was on the road. It didn’t take her long to stuff everything into her duffle bag and carefully place both weapons in an outside pocket. Then she went to the kitchen and packed up her laptop and cameras, placing them carefully into their protective cases.
    When she was done, she rinsed off the few dirty dishes and set them in the drain tray on the counter. Then she threw what little food that remained into a box. Once she left here, she wasn’t coming back, not for anything.
    Stavros patiently waited while she worked, but there was a sense of anticipation, of readiness about him. Whatever was going on, it wasn’t over. Not by a longshot.
    “You’re naked,” she blurted. Heat crept up her cheeks and she knew she was blushing. But really, she couldn’t ignore the elephant in the room any longer. Stavros was standing naked in the living room like it was no big deal.
    And it was a plenty big deal. It was impossible for her not to notice. His hair flowed around his broad shoulders. And the man didn’t have a six-pack. He had an eight-pack. She could easily see him gracing the cover of any magazine. And he’d never have to be airbrushed. He was perfection.
    “Let’s get out of here.” He reached for her duffle and slung it over his shoulder. “We’ll take your car. You won’t be coming back here.” Stavros lifted the box of food and tucked it under his arm. He raised one eyebrow in question when she hesitated.
    Okay, so he was going to ignore the fact he was naked. If he could, then she could too. Toni took a deep breath and glanced around the room. Nothing of hers remained. She couldn’t help but feel that her life had irrevocably changed. Whatever was going on, she needed to get to the bottom of it, needed to understand how her life had gone from normal to crazy in the span of a few hours.
    And right now, Stavros was the key.
    It might be smarter to run back to the city and catch a flight home to Maine, but deep in her gut, Toni knew the problem would only follow her.
    No, as much as she might want to flee, she had to stand her ground and fight whatever storm was coming her way.
    She squared her shoulders, slung her camera bag over her shoulder and grabbed her laptop bag. “I’m ready.” She turned off the lights and strode past him. She paused on the porch long enough to lock the door before heading to her car.
    The sedan she’d rented at the airport was still sitting where she’d parked it the day she’d arrived. Stavros opened the trunk without the key. Toni ignored that little tidbit. The man was Houdini, not seeming to need keys for anything. She set her bags next to the duffle and the box.
    “Do you have a purse?” he asked.
    She shook her head. “My wallet is in my camera case.” She rarely bothered with a purse considering she was always dragging around her camera bag or a knapsack. She dug her car keys out of her bag and clutched them tightly in her hand.
    Stavros closed the trunk and then went around to the driver’s side and opened her door. Paul must have heard them, because he called out again. She glanced toward the backyard. He was bleeding heavily from his wound and that would attract all sorts of critters.
    “You can’t help him,” Stavros told her. “He signed a deal with the devil and the devil always collects.”
    A shiver went down her spine. Why did she have a feeling Stavros meant what he said literally and not metaphorically?
    Toni had to