Vortex (Cutter Cay) (35 page)

“I want to show you the island. At least a couple of weeks.”

So he wasn’t ready to send her back to DC alone. Her heart lifted even more. “It’s beautiful here.” The sugary sand stretched before them for what looked like miles. The water was the most exquisite color with just a lacy froth spilling onto the shore. In the center of the small island, the volcano rose like a jewel surrounded by lush emerald-green vegetation. Cutter Cay was Paradise.

Being with Logan was—bliss.

They were close enough to the small crowd up ahead that Daniela could separate the faces. Several people had turned to watch their approach.

“Chief?” she called. Dog bounded after a seagull. “Aries? Hercules? How about Zeus?”

Logan laughed. “I don’t think he’s interested. Don’t confuse him. He knows his name.” He brushed his fingers against her sun-warmed shoulder as they walked. “What happens if I move this little piece of material aside…”

“The whole thing will fall off and everyone over there will see the woman you love bare-ass naked.” She gave him a sassy look under her lashes. “Go ahead. I dare you.”

He shook his head, holding up his free hand. “I know how you enjoy calling bluffs. I withdraw my dare.”

“Thought you might. How about—Skipper,” she called out. “Okay. How about Ahab?” The dog frolicked through the water, splashing and barking happily. Oblivious to her best efforts.

Logan shook his head.

“Buoy, come here Buoy.” The dog stopped, then spun around, bounding toward them, tongue hanging out. “He likes it!”

“Because
Boy
isn’t that different from
Dog
,” Logan pointed out, still grinning.

“You boys spell it your way, and I’ll spell it mine. Ah,” she lifted her face for his kiss. “Compromise is a wonderful thing.”

Buoy trotted back to them as they closed in on the wedding party. A couple, both dressed in jeans and white T-shirts, stood before a man in a bright pink Hawaiian shirt. Everyone turned at Buoy’s wild barking.

Zane yelled, “Wolf’s here!” Logan’s brother raced across the sand to give him a bear hug. “God, I’m happy to see you.”

Logan hugged him back, then took him by the shoulders and held him at arm’s length. The two men grinned at each other like fools. No one seeing them would ever doubt that they were brothers. Same dark hair, identical searing blue eyes. “Wouldn’t miss your coming of age for the world, Ace.” He pulled Daniela closer to his side. “Daniela, my miscreant brother, Zane. And this gorgeous woman is my soon-to-be sister, Teal. Hi, beautiful.” Still with his arm around Daniela, he leaned in to give the other woman a kiss right on the mouth, sending a laughing glance at his brother.

Logan extended his hand to a frail older man who’d come up beside Teal on the arm of a heavyset woman who was all smiles. “Sam. You look good.”

The man smiled as he shook Logan’s hand. Daniela saw how gentle Logan was with him, and her eyelids stung. Sam said gruffly, “And here I thought you despised liars.”

“You look good to be here.” Logan smiled. “Zane and Teal and the rest of us are grateful for every moment. So yeah, you look great.”

“Hey, big brother.”

Logan grinned as another blue-eyed man and dark-haired woman approached. “This must be your princess.”

The woman extended an elegant hand. “Bria. So you’re the big bad wolf.”

There was much hugging, and laughter.

“And this,” Logan looked up, unsmiling at a man standing a little bit out of the tight circle. “Must be our long-lost brother, Jonah.”

Like Zane, Nick, and Logan, Jonah Cutter was tall, dark, handsome, and blue-eyed. Daniela would’ve picked him out of a crowd as a Cutter without a moment’s hesitation. He stepped into the group, hand extended. He looked a little wary, but Logan shook his hand without hesitation, then yanked the guy into a bear hug.

“I’ll probably beat the shit out of you for lying. Later.” Logan told him, half seriously, Daniela thought, amused. “But for now, welcome to the family. Okay, people. Let’s get these two married.”

They moved as a laughing, loving,
noisy
group to the man waiting to join the happy couple in marriage.

Daniela suspected she’d be seeing the minister several more times in the coming weeks.

Filled with a joy that she could barely contain, she tugged at Logan’s hand, holding him back for a moment. She turned, lifting her face. “I love you, Logan Cutter. There’s no one else like you in the whole world.”

He grinned. “Not true,” he glanced over his shoulder at his three brothers waiting for him. “Apparently there are more just like me being added every day.”

“
Nothing
like you. Their eyes might mimic yours, but you’re
my
one and only.”

“That’s the only one I want to be,” he told her thickly. His Cutter blue eyes darkened as he dipped his head to kiss her. After several moments he lifted his head. Cupping her face in his palms he stared down at her with eyes filled with love. “I’m going to spend the rest of my life loving you, Daniela Rosado. The rest of my life and beyond.”

“Hey, you two!! People trying to get married here!” Zane yelled.

Hand in hand, Daniela and Logan ran across the sand, Buoy at their heels.

Life didn’t get any better than this.

Also by

CHERRY ADAIR

Undertow

Riptide

ROMANTIC SUSPENSE AT ITS BEST!

P
RAISE FOR THE NOVELS OF
C
HERRY
A
DAIR …

“Cherry Adair writes for those of us who love romantic suspense fast and hot.”

—
Jayne Ann Krentz

“Adair leaves readers eager to dive into the next novel in her Cutter Cay series.”

—Booklist

“
Undertow
is the beginning of an exciting and witty new series enriched with fun characters and action-packed drama. I literally could not put it down!”

—Fresh Fiction

“Adair returns to her romantic suspense roots with an underwater treasure hunt that is thrilling and hazardous! Nonstop action plays off the treachery and danger. When you add in the sensuous sizzle, you have the full Adair package.”

—Romantic Times
(4 stars)

“Grips readers and never slows down as the protagonists struggle with perils, including to their hearts, with every nautical mile they sail. Fast-paced, Cherry Adair opens her Cutter Salvage series with a strong sea saga.”

—Genre Go Round Reviews

“Full of action and suspense! Cherry Adair did such a great job making the readers feel as if they were part of the experience. I felt like I was right there diving into the water looking for the buried treasure with Zane and Teal.”

—Hanging With Bells

“A relentless page-turner with plenty of enticing plot twists and turns.”

—Seattle Post-Intelligencer

“[A] fast-paced and intricately plotted tale of danger, deception, and desire that is perfect for readers who like their romantic suspense adrenaline-rich and sizzlingly sexy.”

—Booklist

“Adair has done it again! The chemistry between Hunt and Taylor is red-hot, and the suspense is top-notch.”

—Rendezvous

“A very sexy adventure that offers nonstop, continent-hopping action from start to finish.”

—Library Journal

“Get ready to drool, sigh, and simply melt.… Fascinating characters, danger, passion, intense emotions, and a rush like a roller-coaster ride.”

—Romance Reviews Today

About the Author

CHERRY ADAIR
has garnered numerous awards for her innovative action-adventure novels, which include
White Heat, Hot Ice, On Thin Ice, Out of Sight, In Too Deep, Hide and Seek,
and
Kiss and Tell,
as well as her thrilling Edge trilogy:
Edge of Danger, Edge of Fear,
and
Edge of Darkness.
A favorite of reviewers and fans alike, she lives in the Pacific Northwest.

Visit her website at:
cherryadair.com

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

VORTEX

Copyright © 2012 by Cherry Adair.

All rights reserved.

For information address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.

www.stmartins.com

eISBN: 9781466816084

St. Martin’s Paperbacks edition / June 2012

St. Martin’s Paperbacks are published by St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.