Sweet Seduction Shield(31)

We all licked salt off our hands, tipped back the shot glasses, then sucked on our limes, gasping through the explosive taste combination and subsequent burn.

"Bloody hell, the deck's spinning," Abi announced.

"So are the stars," Kelly chimed in.

I giggled. Jeesh, giggled!

"Well," Kelly said eventually. "He probably knows all about this conversation by now, anyway."

The haze of inebriation shimmered, but didn't completely clear.

"What do you mean?" I slurred.

"Nothing's a secret for long," Kelly announced dreamily.

"Except Fred's real name," Abi offered from her reclined position, now out flat on a lounger off to the side.

"You can't make me talk!" Kelly cried out in a fake tortured voice, hand fisted above her head.

"But I can watch you," Abi declared, pointing a waving finger at Kelly. "Very closely. One day you'll slip up and then we'll know who it is." She gasped again. "Is it Adam?"

"No!" Kelly said exasperatedly.

"Brook?"

"Not telling!"

"Koki?"

"Pfft!"

"Um," Abi mumbled, clearly trying to think who else they both knew. "Oh, God!" she groaned. "You're not corrupting Lucas, are you? That boy is practically half your age."

"Abigail!" Kelly shouted. "I work with him!"

"OK, not Lucas, then who?"

"Give up now, sweet pea. My lips are sealed."

"You just don't want ASI to know," Abi announced.

"How would ASI find out?" I asked, enjoying their bantering and feeling extremely relaxed watching it play out.

"Because Eric will be listening in," Abi answered, then sucked in a breath. "It's Eric!"

Kelly groaned. Then sat upright and took great care to talk clearly for some reason. "Not that you aren't cute and all, Eric. But dude, you are so not my type. Sorry," she added and flopped back down again.

I looked over my shoulder and then all around the back yard.

"Who are you talking to?" I asked after spotting no one else near us.

"Eric at ASI," Kelly said, as though it made complete sense.

I had to think about that for a moment, brain synapses were definitely not firing as they should.

Nope, still didn't make sense.

"Run that by me again?" I asked.

"Sweetie," Kelly said, rolling over onto her side and giving me a small smile. "This house is monitored by ASI. Cameras, microphones, perimeter alarms, et cetera, et cetera. All of which is listened to by Eric in ASI control."

"Then, transcripts and updates are given to Detective Pierce," Abi offered, also giving me her own apologetic smile.

I sucked in a mortified breath of air and tried to sober up immediately.

"What did you think Ryan meant when he said this was the safest place for you and Daisy?" Abi asked softly.

I shook my head back and forth, unable to form an immediate reply.

"We thought you knew," Kelly offered as explanation.

"Fucking Ryan," Abi declared. "Always so freaking secretive."

"I'm gonna kill him," I declared before I could filter my brain from my mouth.

Kelly stiffened, and then started to sit up.

"Have at it," she managed to slur and then shuffled over to Abi who had started to breathe deeply. "Take me to bed or lose me forever, sister!"

"What?" Abi mumbled, crawling to her feet with Kelly's help. "I'm not sharing my bed with you. What will Ben say?"

"Oh, sweetie, I'm sure I could convince him that three's better than two."

"Good luck with that," a male voice said from behind me, making me yelp.

A warm palm came down on my shoulder stilling my flight as Pierce leaned in and whispered, "Missed me?"

I shot to my feet anyway, the world spun drunkenly and I ended up slap bang in the exact place I was trying to avoid; Pierce's arms.

"Whoa," he murmured. "Are you pissed?"

"Tipsy," I corrected, somehow it sounded better.

"Tipsy," he repeated in a deep drawl, mouth curved in a half smile. "Now, isn't that just my luck."

I froze, still in his arms, and slowly dared to look up at him. Intent brown pools of whiskey - or was that tequila? - stared back at me. But what the hell did he mean?

"Let's have a heart to heart, shall we?" Pierce declared, leading me to the closest lounger and sitting us both down.

Somehow I knew I was in for a whole lot of trouble, but in my current compromised state I wasn't exactly sure what form that trouble would take.

"You can't be trusted," I mumbled, as he lay me against the slightly raised back of the lounger, placing himself by my hip, so he could face me.