Dangerous Desires Read Online Free PDF

failed.
    And to make matters worse, she was little more than a prisoner here in Cali. Once they’d returned from Bogotá, she’d found that her bedroom had been moved from the first floor to the second. And at night there were guards outside her bedroom door. During the day she wasn’t allowed even a walk on the grounds without an armed escort. Di Silva’s men swore it was for her own protection, but Madeline didn’t believe a word of it.
    It had been almost three weeks since she’d heardanything from the Embassy. And once she’d been sequestered here, there had been no way for her to contact anyone. Someone was always watching her. She stopped in front of the window, looking out across the manicured lawns. The breeze caressed her face, the curtains lifting lazily as the air was filled with the heady perfume of orchids.
    Casa de Orquídea was beautiful, its namesake flowers coloring every nook and cranny in shades of pink and purple. But beauty could be deceiving. The compound, like San Mateo, was a prison. Only this time, Madeline was fairly certain there would be no reprieve. In the end, Andrés’s playing card had amounted to nothing. She hadn’t wanted to believe it offered salvation. Only fools bought into happy endings. And yet, some part of her had hoped it was true.
    She sighed, her hands closing on the bars that obstructed the open window. They were a new addition, another way to make sure she couldn’t escape. Behind her the door rattled as it was thrown open, and she whirled around, composing her face as she struggled to maintain at least an outward sense of calm.
    “I see you’ve settled in here nicely,” Hector Ortiz said, his lithe frame filling the doorway. Hector was one of those men who blended into the background. Neither tall nor short, big nor small, handsome nor ugly. He was every man. And it served him well. His dark hair was always impeccable. Combed back in the Latin style, it emphasized the angles of his face, and the dark obsidian of his eyes.
    She hadn’t realized until now how much she truly despised the man. “I liked my old room. I had access tothe courtyard and the grounds beyond. Now,” she waved toward the window, “I’m little more than a prisoner.”
    “I’m sorry you feel that way.” Although Madeline’s Spanish was excellent, Ortiz, for some reason, preferred to hold their conversations in English. “But I have reason to believe that you’ve been considering breaking our agreement. And I don’t have to tell you how dangerous that would be.”
    “I’ve done exactly as you asked me. From the very beginning.” She shook her head. “But it’s never enough.”
    Ortiz smiled. “I’m afraid it’s the nature of the bargain. There’s always something more. But your work isn’t the problem. You’ve actually been quite a valuable asset. Which makes my discovery all the more disappointing.”
    Her heart twisted, but she lifted her chin, squaring her shoulders. “I’ve done nothing wrong.”
    “You contacted the American Embassy.” He threw a photograph onto the bureau. She reached for it, fighting to keep her hand from trembling. “Is that not you?”
    She glanced down at the picture. “I’m an American.” She tossed the photo back on the chest. “And Will is a…” She hesitated, lifting one shoulder in feigned indifference. “Friend.”
    Actually, she’d only met him once before the picture was taken. At a political function. She’d been there with a prominent politico, a man with strong ties to the Latin American military-industrial complex. He’d been a pig. But Ortiz had insisted he had access to information no one else did. Anyway, it was that night that she’d met William Richardson, filing the name away as a possible ally should she ever need a way out.
    “You’re implying that the man was your lover?” Ortizactually laughed. “From what I’ve heard he was a devoted family man.”
    “That hardly stops di Silva,” she said, determined to