Seized (Hostage Rescue Team Series, #7) Read Online Free PDF

filled the space between them. Lemon and something else spicy that was uniquely him.
    The low pitch of his voice resonated deep inside her as he spoke close to her ear. “Please, Carm,” he murmured, his grip on her arm gentling, almost a caress.
    He was so big and powerful, yet always gentle with her. His touch used to give her butterflies. Now it made her ache for what would never be and what she could never have. And that please hit her square in her stupid, squishy heart.
    She reluctantly lowered herself into her chair once more, then glanced over her shoulder. Out on the dance floor, Ethan and Marisol were still completely lost in their own world. She could leave now but it might make Ethan suspicious that something was wrong.
    Exhaling, she gave Sawyer a stiff nod. “Fine, but not here.” Better to go someplace where they could have at least a semblance of privacy and get this over with so they could both put it behind them.
    “Then come on,” he said, releasing her as he stood, the brim of his hat casting a shadow over his face.
    Ignoring the hand he offered to help her up, she pushed to her feet and headed for the door without looking back, all too aware of how closely he followed behind her.
    ****
    S urabaya, Java
    As usual, his visit home had passed far too quickly.
    Wira Tedja patted his elderly mother’s hand and pushed from the edge of the bed to his feet, a familiar heaviness settling in his chest. She’d begun to go downhill right after Leo disappeared last year but she’d gotten so weak the past few days, it worried him.
    Looking at her now, it was impossible to ignore the possibility that this might be the last time he saw her. In the morning he’d be on another plane headed back to the States. The day after that he’d report to the docks and board the cruise liner for another contract at sea.
    Ten months of twelve-hour long shifts, with only a half day off per week. Ten months of sleeping in the crowded bowel of the cruise ship and helping keep rich westerners safe during their lavish vacation. They made him sick.
    “I’ll miss you,” his mother said with a sad smile, her voice weak.
    “I’ll miss you too. But don’t worry, you know I’ll contact you whenever I get the chance.”
    Her eyes shone with the unswerving love that had made her such a phenomenal mother, and person in general. “You’re so good to me.”
    He shrugged off the praise. She was counting on him and he would not fail her. “You’re my mother.”
    Those deep brown eyes glistened with tears. “You’re a good man, Wira. I’m so proud of you.”
    He glanced away as guilt seeped into his heart. She’d raised him to be a good, loving man. This upcoming mission went against all that, but there was no other choice. This was the only way.
    Putting on a smile, he turned his gaze on her once more. “Do you need anything before I leave?”
    “No. Your brothers are here to help me. And we all appreciate the sacrifices you make for the rest of us.”
    His job, she meant, and the long absences from home. A job he hated but kept taking because of the money. The pay was good and he sent almost every bit of it home to support his mother and younger brothers. The only two brothers he had left.
    You don’t know that for sure. Leo could still be alive. He prayed it was so, that the mission wouldn’t come too late. “You’ve all made plenty of sacrifices too,” he said.
    She inclined her head, looking exhausted. Her face was pale and she had dark circles beneath her eyes. The doctors hadn’t found anything to explain why she’d suddenly deteriorated like this. Even though they insisted it wasn’t, he was still concerned it might be cancer and they just hadn’t been able to detect it yet. “Yes. May God be with you, my son.”
    “And with you.”
    He slipped from the house and stepped into the front garden, breathing in a deep lungful of the fragrant evening air. His childhood home was small, but he was deeply attached to