She looked at him with a speculative gaze. “Interesting solution. Are you someone I should be afraid of?”

He smiled, white even teeth flashing against his dark skin and one dimple winking at the corner of his mouth. “Hey, I’m the guy who saved your life, remember?”

“Yeah, but you could have done that to get close to me.” She took a cautious step backward.

“If I wanted you dead, Miss Welles, you’d already be lying here next to this idiot.”

She realized suddenly that she was wearing the tiniest bikini she’d been able to find and Adam Molloy was letting his eyes take a slow journey over her body. She turned slightly so he couldn’t see the instant puckering of her barely-covered nipples. Well, wasn’t this a fine mess. She had no idea who this man really was, who the man was who’d tried to kill her, and her body, all on its own, was thinking about sex.

“Let’s clean the place up.” Molloy’s deep voice cut into her thoughts. He shoved his gun into the waistband of his shorts at the small of his back and lifted the body as if it weighed nothing, hard muscles flexing beneath the tanned skin. “Why don’t you gather your belongings from the beach while I handle this…situation. I’ll be back in a minute.”

He strode away without waiting for an acknowledgment from her.

Nicki stared after his figure as it disappeared onto the trees. What an arrogant ass. And who exactly was Adam Molloy that he was staying in this very private place? Besides a walking sex machine, that is.

Nicole! Snap out of it. Find out what the hell is going on.

She stomped back to where her things still lay next to the lounge she’d been using. Picking up the sarong that matched her bathing suit, she wrapped it around herself and knotted it under one arm. She stowed her gun in her beachbag, drew the drawstring tight and slung it over her shoulder. She was halfway back to her bungalow when tall, dark and mysterious Adam Molloy materialized seemingly out of nowhere.

She stopped in the middle of the path. “Finished already? What did you do, feed him to the fish?”

There was that smile again, making her knees suddenly week and the pulse deep in her womb thump out its rhythm. Holy shit! Nicole Welles never reacted this way. Not to any man. Oh, she was far from a stranger to sex but it was always carefully planned and on her terms. She never allowed herself to react this way.

It must be the situation. It’s not every day someone tries to assassinate me.

“In a matter of speaking. I’ll tell you all the gory details if you buy me a drink.”

“I don’t think I’m much in the mood for the bar. And I’d like to try to find out who that idiot with the gun is. Was.”

He took her arm and urged her along. Her feet moved as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

“Me, either. But I’ll bet your bungalow has a fully stocked bar. I know mine does.”

She stopped, pulling against his hold. “We’re not going to your bungalow.”

“No. We’re going to yours.” He tugged her forward again. “Don’t you want to figure out who that guy is and how he got here?”

“I don’t think the answers are at my place.”

“Right. That’s where we’re going to talk about this and dig for answers. Come on.”

She found herself at the door to her bungalow, wondering how he even knew which one was hers. Oh, right. With so few people on the grounds he’d probably scoped out all the guests as soon as he checked in. And when exactly had that been?

“Aren’t you going to open the door?” He had just a touch of amusement in his voice. “It’s not polite to keep people standing outside. Not to mention possibly dangerous.”

Nicki pulled out her key card, shoved it into the slot and pushed the handle down. The artificially cooled air hit her warm skin with a frigid blast. She hurried to adjust the thermostat and threw her bag on a table, then moved behind the built-in bar.

“All right. I suppose I do owe you a drink. And I do want some answers. What’s your pleasure?”

His mouth curved in a wicked smile. “If I said ‘you’, would I be overstepping my bounds?”