Part 5 (1/2)

Face it, Gina. Every man is off-limits to you. Any man who makes you feel anything is off-limits. And G.o.d knows, in a couple days Derek Marks has sure as h.e.l.l made you feel something.

She got in line for her gear, ignoring her body and her argumentative mind. So what if he was hot and she was h.o.r.n.y? So what if she wanted him? There was no time for s.e.x and relations.h.i.+ps on this island or during this adventure, so she might as well get those thoughts out of her head.

She was safe from entanglements, from having to think.

From having to feel.

Derek stood by the table and handed out gear while Lou entered gun numbers of the partic.i.p.ants in the computer.

It was d.a.m.n hard to stand by and just watch when what he really wanted to do was partic.i.p.ate. Even if this was just a game, it was at least practice, a way to keep his skills sharp.

Ah, h.e.l.l, what he really wanted to do was burn off some excess energy, douse the fire Gina stoked inside him. When he'd come to her bungalow earlier, she'd been seemingly lost in thought, her hand absently trailing over her body. Watching a woman touch herself was the hottest G.o.dd.a.m.n thing he'd ever seen. And even though he shouldn't have been watching, the hounds of h.e.l.l themselves couldn't have torn him from that spot.

Her eyes closed, her lips parted, she'd been lost in some kind of fantasy, her fingertips trailing between her b.r.e.a.s.t.s on their way down her ribs and belly.

What had she been thinking about? He really wanted to know what she'd been thinking at that moment. And like an idiot, he'd had to stop her, just when her hand had been about to hit the sweet spot.

Dumba.s.s.

But when he'd caught her attention and she'd cast her gaze his way, the look she'd given him had rocked him back on his heels.

Her eyes had been filled with heat, l.u.s.t, and longing. He knew that feeling of hunger, and in that moment he'd felt it zing across the room like a strike of lightning between them. He wanted to grab her and pull her into his arms.

Somehow he doubted she would have objected.

So what had stopped him? The game? That he knew he shouldn't mingle with the partic.i.p.ants? Maybe it was the fear that he really didn't know if he took that step exactly what he'd be stepping into.

Or quite possibly, if he touched her he wouldn't be able to stop with just a touch. If he kissed her, he wouldn't be satisfied with just one kiss.

He wanted inside her in the worst way.

She was beautiful, no doubt. Gorgeous, in fact. s.p.u.n.ky and challenging and strong and capable. But there was also a vulnerability about her that intrigued him, that made him want to sit down and talk with her, find out more than what was in her bio. Dig beyond the surface of Gina Bliss and find out how what happened to her all those years ago had shaped her.

And Derek wasn't the kind of guy who wanted to spend time talking to women he was attracted to. But dammit, they all had demons in their past. He did, she did, they all did. Would be nice to just once sit down with someone and talk about it. Though there were other people around him who'd been through it. Why not talk to them? What made Gina so special?

Right. Like you're a big f.u.c.king talker. You want to strip her naked and lick her all over, not talk to her. Like you're a big f.u.c.king talker. You want to strip her naked and lick her all over, not talk to her.

'I want a big one.'

And suddenly, there she was, the last one in line and standing in front of him at the table. Yeah, he had a big one for her. A big one that was twitching in discomfort right now. He handed her a rifle. She arched a brow.

'I said a big one.'

At her dubious stare, he added, 'Every weapon is alike as far as number of rounds and max distance, Gina. No one will start this game at a disadvantage. Trust me.'

'Why should I?'

She tilted her head, making him want to dive across the table and bury his lips against the smooth column of her throat. 'Because I haven't given you a reason not to.'

'I've heard that one before.' She took the weapon and the rest of her gear and strolled away without a word, joining the other compet.i.tors.

He wondered what she meant by that comment. Another Gina mystery. He didn't want mysterious people on his team, which meant he was going to have to dig in and find out more about her!beyond just the file Lou had on her.

Oh, sure, he knew her background. He knew all their backgrounds. h.e.l.l, he knew more about these people than they knew about themselves. But it wasn't his job to psychoa.n.a.lyze what happened to them in the past and how they ended up at this place. It wasn't his job to give them the 'big revelation.' That was Lou's deal.

His job was to make fighters out of them.

Of course Gina was right!he was lying to her, to all of them. So she really did have a good reason not to trust him, at least on the surface.

In fact, he'd bet some of these people were going to be p.i.s.sed as h.e.l.l when they discovered what this game was really about.

Chapter Four.

G ina, Trace, Jake, Shay, Ryder, and Olivia were designated Team A and ready to head into the jungle. The other compet.i.tors made up Team B. And just like in conditioning drills, the other group who didn't mingle with the rest of them had all been placed on one team, while Gina and her pals had been placed on another. ina, Trace, Jake, Shay, Ryder, and Olivia were designated Team A and ready to head into the jungle. The other compet.i.tors made up Team B. And just like in conditioning drills, the other group who didn't mingle with the rest of them had all been placed on one team, while Gina and her pals had been placed on another.

Not that Gina was suspicious or anything. Much.

But it didn't matter. She had competent teammates and she was tired of standing around hearing rules. Headset on, gun in hand, night-vision goggles placed on top of her head and ready, she was primed for some action, even if this was just a practice run.

'All right, teams,' Derek said. 'Pay attention to each other, to your surroundings. And don't forget to look out for demons at all times. You never know when one will spring up on you. Listen to my commands and when this exercise is over, report back immediately.'

Gina looked over at the other team who was poised at the line ready to head into their part of the jungle. Her team was going to smoke their a.s.ses.

'Ready and go!'

They charged off into the dark jungle with Trace at the lead. Since he was an experienced survivalist and tracker, they'd voted him group leader for tonight's event. The path was marked with a series of torches and fluorescent, glow-in-the-dark tape to guide their way and indicate boundaries, but the further they trekked into the jungle, the harder it was to see. The torches grew more spa.r.s.e, until she could see only one single light off in the far distance. As it was she could barely make out the other compet.i.tors, and in order to do so they had to stay right next to each other.

'I'd say it's time for goggles,' Ryder suggested, bringing up the rear of their group.

'I agree,' Gina said. 'I don't know about the rest of you, but I can't see a d.a.m.n thing. We can't hunt if we're standing on top of each other.'

'I've played this game before, or at least something similar. We gotta spread out or we're sitting ducks,' Jake said.

'Okay, then we all agree,' Trace said. 'Goggles on.'

Gina slipped the night-vision goggles in place. Much better. Green, but better. At least she could see something besides complete darkness now. Everything was three dimensional, so she could make out people from trees.

'Let's spread out a bit,' Ryder suggested. 'Keep your focus and your ears sharp for sounds of approaching demons. There are twigs and branches and fallen palms all over the jungle floor here, so we should be able to hear anyone approach.'

Gina couldn't wait to head out on her own. They all s.h.i.+fted and spread outward. She kept her gun at chest level, primed and ready to fire the instant she came upon a moving target.

It didn't take long. A shape moved out in front of a thick tree trunk in front of her. She aimed and fired a laser shot.

'Only ten points for that one, Gina, which means you didn't hit a decent spot on that demon. Calm down, sharpen your focus, and aim higher.'

Derek's voice piping in her ear. The laser must send the data to their computers instantly. 'Got it.'