Loving the Enemy (Seven Forbidden Arts Book 0) Read online

  “This is serious, Lily.”

  The flash went off.

  “Done?” he said.

  “I think so.”

  He opened the curtain and helped her down from the high stool. After retrieving her photo, he repeated the procedure for himself. They stopped at a Postnet courier office where Jacob bought a cardboard envelope and sealed the photos inside. After giving the assistant the address and paying for same-day delivery, Jacob got a taxi to drive them back to their hotel.

  They took turns to have a shower, and then collapsed onto the bed next to each other. Jacob was lying on his back, his eyes closed.

  “Jacob?”

  “Mm?”

  “Shouldn’t we call Kyle to let her know we’re all right?”

  He turned to look at her. “Every person that both you and I know will be monitored, their phones bugged and computers hacked.”

  “But she must be worried. Can’t we get a message to her somehow?”

  “Kyle knows my job’s dangerous. Sometimes I disappear for long periods without being able to contact anyone.”

  “You said you’re a private bodyguard.”

  “Yes.” He folded his hands behind his head.

  “What kind of people do you protect? Celebrities? Politicians?”

  He opened his eyes. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “Okay.” Lily stared at the ceiling for a while. “Why are you helping me?”

  “I already told you, I’m as much a target now as you are. They’re after me too, Lily.”

  “I’m sorry you lost everything because of me. All that you owned, your whole life–”

  “As I said, it’s not your fault. Stop beating yourself up about it.”

  “When we get to my dad, he’ll pay you back. Every last penny. And more. My dad is wealthy. And generous. He’ll make up for all that you’ve lost. That’s a promise.”

  He didn’t answer for a long time. Finally, he simply said, “Get some sleep. We have to leave soon.”

  When they woke up, Lily followed Jacob outside where he made a call from a phone booth. They had lunch at a hot dog vendor, and then he took her to Dischem, a hypermarket that specialized in toiletries and medicine.

  “What are we doing here?” Lily said.

  Jacob handed her a shopping basket. “Getting the stuff you need for our journey.”

  They walked down the first aisle together, and when Lily reached for a bottle of shampoo, Jacob’s fingers folded around hers. “Take the travel size.” He pointed at the miniature bottle. “We need to travel light.”

  Her skin jumped to life under his touch. A pleasant heat knotted in her stomach and spread like an intricate spider’s web to the rest of her body, until it burned in her cheeks. Jacob withdrew his touch. He turned away from her and dropped deodorant into his basket.

  After they had chosen their grooming essentials, Jacob selected a smartphone with a prepaid card at the electronics counter, paid for their purchases with the blonde’s money, and led Lily to a clothing store next door. He selected a cute yellow summer dress, a padded denim jacket, a red bikini and a pair of brown cowboy boots before taking a change of clothes for himself.

  Following him to the change room, Lily said, “Aren’t you going to ask me if I like the clothes?”

  He glanced down at her. “Why? Don’t you?”

  She shrugged and took the garments from him. “A bikini and a sundress? In case you haven’t noticed, it’s winter.”

  “Where we’re going, it’s hot and humid.”

  “Do I keep them on and put the old clothes on the hangers?”

  “Never take a risk if not necessary. And we need a change of clothes.”

  She laughed. “I was just messing with you.”

  Instead of returning the gesture, Jacob remained serious, staring at her mouth.

  “What?” she said.

  “You have a pretty laugh.”

  Lily stilled. She hadn’t laughed in a very long time. “The last few months … it wasn’t easy. For the first time since … I feel safe with you.”

  A shadow flickered through his eyes. He motioned at the booth. “Hurry.”

  Their next stop was an underwear store, but this time Jacob let Lily shop for herself, even if he stayed one step behind her the entire time she browsed the merchandise.

  She held up a yellow and orange matching bra and thong. The soft yellow cotton had a strawberry print with orange lace trimming. “How about this? Too girlish?”

  Jacobs’ cheeks darkened.

  Lily reveled in the fact that she could embarrass him. Or did the sudden change in his skin tone mean the thought of her wearing these scraps of fabric was a turn-on?

  “Think it’ll go with my dress?” she added with a grin.

  He narrowed his eyes. “Don’t be a tease, Lily. I’m not one of your schoolboy friends.”

  No, he wasn’t. Jacob was very much a man, one like no other. He was confident and sexy and strong, and judging by what she had seen in the W, he was a hell of a kisser. She suddenly wanted to know what his lips tasted like.

  “Will you kiss me, Jacob?”

  He looked at her from under hooded eyes. “Why are you asking me this?”

  “Because I want to know what it feels like.”

  He cupped her head. “Sweetheart, if I kiss you, it won’t stop at that.”

  For a moment he continued staring at her lips, and Lily thought he may kiss her after all, but then he let go and took the underwear from her. “This it?”

  Lily nodded. She bit her lip as she watched him make his way to the cashier. A man like Jacob was way out of her league, but it didn’t make her want him less. If anything, she wanted him more.

  From the mall they took a cab to a bar in a shady part of town. Jacob made her sit by a table where he could keep an eye on her while he walked over to a man leaning on the pool table. He handed him a roll of bills in exchange for an envelope. Before hailing a taxi again, Jacob bought two small travel bags with wheels from a luggage vendor, and dropped their purchases inside. During the ride back to the hotel, they didn’t speak. Back in their room, Jacob opened the envelope. He removed two passports and handed one to Lily. She looked at the photo and the name. It was the photo of her they had taken in the booth, and printed next to it was the name, Mary Franklin.

  “That’s the call you made earlier,” she said as realization dawned on her.

  “From now on, you’re Mary Franklin.”

  “But how did you manage it so fast?”

  “In my line of work, this is one of the fields you’ve got to master.” He gave her a wry smile.

  “And who are you?”

  “Jason Theron.” He unzipped the suitcases and threw the content onto the bed. “Let’s pack. And then we’ve got to call your dad.”

  “Call my dad?”

  “To let him know you’re on your way. We’ll need all the help we can get.”

  “I don’t have his number.”

  He stilled. “What do you mean you don’t have his number?”

  She chewed her lip. It wasn’t easy to explain that her father was a dangerous criminal, and that he didn’t leave her with any contact details. He always said it was for her own good, better that she didn’t know. He obviously never thought his army would fail in keeping her safe.

  “He didn’t leave me with a number.”

  His face looked like thunder. “He left you alone, with no means of contacting him?”

  “He did what he thought was best for me. I only know he’s in Paris.”

  Jacob rested his hands on his hips. “Are you even sure he’s there?”

  “Yes. I know he went there.”

  Jacob gave her an incredulous look. “And how are you going to find him with no telephone number? Do you know how big Paris is?”

  “I know he’ll sometime or another have to show up at the Eiffel Tower.”

  “What?” Jacob threw his hands into the air. “We’re going to stalk his tou
rist trail in the hope that he’s going to visit the Eiffel Tower?”

  “He has to go there a lot. Often. I know it.”

  “How can you be sure?”

  Lily hesitated. She wasn’t comfortable sharing the information, but she did trust Jacob. He had saved her life, and he was willing to help her, without knowing what he was getting himself into.

  Finally, she said, “I know, because he’s going to buy it.”

  Jacob stared at her for so long she started fiddling with the hem of her T-shirt.

  “You’re serious,” he said after a while.

  Her silence was her answer.

  Jacob pulled a hand through his hair. “Let’s pack.”

  As she folded the new clothes and put everything away in the travel bag, Lily realized that Jacob had taken charge of her life, and that the course of it was now in his hands. She had no idea what his plans were.

  “How are we going to get to Europe?” she said. “Shouldn’t we cut and dye our hair, and get wigs and glasses?”

  Jacob surprised her by picking up a strand of her hair and rolling it between his fingers. “I like your hair too much for you to dye, never mind cut. For what I have in mind, we won’t need to.”

  At some point she was going to have to play open cards with him. It was unfair to keep him in the dark. But not now. She’d put it off until later. It was too difficult to admit the truth. Part of her feared that Jacob would hate her if he knew why she was on the run. And he’d most probably change his mind about helping her, too.

  “What do you have in mind, then? A private plane, or something?”

  He closed his bag. “Not by plane. By boat.”

  “By boat? But it’ll take ages.”

  “They’ll have checks in place for passengers entering all international airports. It’s a risk we can’t take.”

  He didn’t give her time to argue. He took their bags and opened the door. “Come on. We’ve got a ride to catch.”

  A black Mercedes waited in the street. Jacob threw their bags in the boot and helped Lily into the back, taking the seat next to her.

  The driver turned to them with a broad smile. He had dreadlocks and a square face. He gave Jacob a firm handshake. “Howzit, my man? Long time no see.”

  “Thanks for the ride, buddy,” Jacob said.

  “No prob, man.” He winked at Lily, and started the engine.

  “Where are we going?” Lily said to Jacob.

  “The harbor.”

  She scooted closer to Jacob and placed her head on his shoulder. The driver turned up the hip-hop music that was playing on the radio. Just before Lily dozed off, she felt Jacob’s arm coming around her, pulling her close.

  The time on the dashboard clock confirmed the drive had taken an hour in the peak-hour traffic. They parked near a jetty lined with yachts. As they stepped from the car, Lily’s stomach summersaulted. She was not a big fan of water, especially not the vast ocean, and she had expected a big boat, a cruise liner maybe, but not a yacht.

  “You okay?” Jacob said, rubbing his hand up and down her arm.

  “Fine.” She smiled at him. “Just … are these safe to cross the Indian Ocean?”

  He gave her a quick hug. “Don’t worry. The yacht was built for long-distance cruises. It’s been well tested. The owner made a trip around the world with it.”

  Jacob paid their driver and led her to a boat with Janine painted on the side in blue letters. He threw their bags onto the deck before helping her onboard.

  Lily pushed her hair behind her ear. “You know how to sail?”

  He only gave her a smile.

  “What about customs and all that?” she said.

  “We’ll be fine with the passports we have.”

  “Okay.” She ran her hand along the shiny rail. “I trust you.”

  He froze, only for a second, but she noticed. Again that familiar shadow crossed his face.

  “You shouldn’t,” he said.

  “Shouldn’t what?”

  “Trust anyone.” He picked up their bags. “Remember that, Lily. Never trust anyone.”

  Chapter Five

  ‡

  One week on the sea and Jacob was having a hard time controlling himself. His balls were so tight and his dick so hard he didn’t know if he could last until the evening without a hand job. Now that they were closer to a tropical climate with warmer weather, Lily was lying on the deck in her bikini, exposing her perfect little body and conjuring images he shouldn’t have of what he’d like to do to that body. First of all, she was a virgin, and secondly, he was a liar and a cheat. If she knew the extent of his betrayal, she’d despise him.

  When he had embarked on this mission, he hadn’t considered how he’d react to her, or she to him, because he could see in her eyes she wanted him, and it didn’t help his resolve to not cross that line. Making a conscious effort to turn his attention away from her ass and her bare back, he focused on the instruments. So far, they had had good weather. The forecast played in their favor. They’d have to stop in Durban in three days’ time to stock up on water and food. His contact, Gustavo, had done a good job fitting out the boat, making sure they had enough and more to last until then. From there it would be long stretch up the coast of Africa, all the way to Marseille. This is why he ensured they got a good vessel. The Janine was as luxurious as they came, including personalized embroidered yacht towels and Egyptian cotton linen. He made a mental note to pay Gustavo a bonus for the extra–the unlicensed revolver and boxes of ammunition.

  Lily lifted herself on her elbows and looked over her shoulder at him. Her black hair trailed in the wind, blowing around her face in a way that made him imagine how it would look tangled in his sheets. She had unfastened the clip of her bikini top to tan her back, and as her shoulders lifted, the fabric fell away at the sides, exposing the rounded curves of her breasts. He got a torturous hint of their firmness, and how perfectly they’d fit in his mouth.

  He groaned and adjusted the hard-on in his pants.

  “Jacob?”

  His name was a soft lisp on her tongue. Coming from those candy-apple lips he could never get enough of hearing her say it, although, it would sound better if she’d scream it in pleasure.

  He gave himself a mental shake and forced an answer. “Mm?”

  “Can you give me a hand, please?”

  His gaze ripped to her narrow waist, and the way it tapered to her ass. He’d like to give her a hand in more than one way.

  She reached behind her back and tried to close the clasp, but her fumbling fingers failed. With a tight jaw, he made his way over to her, and took the problematic clasp from her hands. The clips snapped together with a soft click.

  “Thank you,” she said, lying back down with her face turned to the side.

  Her lips were slightly parted, which made him want to grab her face and dig his fingers into her cheeks and suck those lips into his mouth. Her skin was soft to his touch. He was a bastard, for he lingered a second too long, brushing his fingertips over her spine for a stolen caress. He was punishing himself, because Lily was forbidden fruit. Even if he’d steal to get to her father, he had no plans of stealing her virginity. That was best saved for someone worthy of it.

  The task done, he straightened but hovered above her, not able to tear his gaze away as she lifted on her elbows and popped the underside of her curves back into her top, making them plump out at the top. A vision of her naked breasts bouncing while she rode him suddenly taunted him, and he quickly turned away. He kept on telling himself to get a grip, but it was damn hard. He grimaced at the pun.

  She got up and wrapped the towel around her in a cute, modest kind of way, pushing the one end over the other between her breasts to keep it up. He had to give it to her, she wasn’t a deliberate tease. Lily was just too innocent to realize how much she affected him. If she knew, she would never have taken this trip with him.

  “Dinner?” she said, giving him a bright smile.

  Not trusting his
voice to speak, he only nodded, and watched her make her way to the cabin.

  He ensured that they were steady on course before he went inside to wash up for dinner. The day had been warm and he was sticky from sunblock and the salty air. Lily stood in front of the counter, chopping whole, tinned tomatoes when he entered. He watched her slender fingers work. Her finger– and toenails were painted pale pink with the varnish she had bought at Dischem. She was still only wearing the towel over her bikini, looking petite and vulnerable.

  “I’m going for a shower,” he said more tightly than he intended.

  She looked up, measuring him with her big, baby blue eyes. She almost seemed disappointed. “I thought we could have a swim before dinner, when we anchor for the night.”

  In fact, a swim wasn’t half a bad idea, but seeing that she had confessed her fear of water to him, he lifted an eyebrow. “I thought you didn’t want to have your legs dangling in shark infested waters.”

  The glare she gave him was meant to chastise. “Don’t tease, Jacob. It’s not nice to make fun of my phobia. And I know there are no sharks here.”

  “Oh?”

  “I’ve read the guide.” She pointed at a book with the sea fauna and flora that was kept with a few other non-fiction titles on the small bookshelf. “The great whites are around False Bay, and the ragged tooth sharks are in Durban.”

  He wasn’t going to tell her that they weren’t that far from Durban. Why spoil her fun?

  “Food won’t be ready for a while,” she said. “I’m making pasta with tomato sauce. That all right?”

  She looked at him with expectation, and he couldn’t help but say, “Sounds good.”

  Lily’s cooking was goddamn awful, but he didn’t want to crush her efforts in trying to make herself feel useful. It was obvious that she had never set foot in a kitchen. He’d have to teach her a few basic cooking skills.

  She dumped the tomatoes in a pot, and chucked in a handful of dried basil. He flinched at the quantity. “I’ll put on the sauce when we get back.” She made her way to the deck. “Come on,” she called over her shoulder.

  Jacob pulled off his shirt and followed her outside. She dropped the towel, gave him an uncertain glance, took a deep breath, and jumped overboard with a scream loud enough to make his ears ring. Damn brave minx. He couldn’t believe she had dove in just like that. He rushed to the side, worried about the swell. Lily was tiny and she was still weak from malnourishment. Looking down, he saw her floating on her back, laughing. He aimed for a spot farther from her so as not to splash her, and when he hit the water, his body jerked at the coldness. Maybe a cold swim was exactly what he needed. With strong breaststrokes he made his way to Lily, who had the nerve to kick water at him.