Poison Me by Cami Checketts

this to Jake or Brinley.”
    Michael held her gaze. “I’ll never tell them.”
    Ruby couldn’t take his injured look for one more second. She pushed past him, speed-walking down the trail. If only she could change the past. If only she could let Michael know how much she had ached for him after all these years.
     
     

Chapter Seven
     
    Ace Williamson paced his eight-by-eight-foot interior cabin aboard Voyager of the Seas. He felt sandwiched between the wealthy exterior suites on the luxurious cruise ship. Someone pounded on the door. Ace opened it. “Quiet, you moron.”
    Willy Moore, his repulsive partner, slunk into the room. The grotesque thickness of Willy’s upper arms and barrel chest were enhanced by a tight T-shirt that read, “Don’t need a license for these guns.” Arrows pointing to Willy’s biceps outlined the words.
    “Why are you wearing that shirt again?” Ace asked.
    A flicker of a smile crossed Willy’s eyes. “I like this shirt.” He closed the door behind him, glancing at the wet bar behind Ace. He rarely dared meet Ace’s gaze. “I think they’ve found out about us.”
    Ace shook his head. “That’s not possible. I’ve been careful.”
    “I heard some of the crew talking in the hallway.” Willy chomped on his gum with each word. “They’re supposed to watch us at the poker tables.”
    Ace jammed a hand through his hair, narrowing his gaze at Willy. “It’ll be fine. We’ll get off at Cozumel in the morning and ferry over to the mainland.”
    Willy punched a string of gum with his tongue and then sucked it in with a loud pop. “What are we going to do then?”
    “I don’t know, but I’ll figure out something. Something better than— I’m sick of this.” Ace exhaled, gesturing around the windowless cabin. “Pulling small-time tricks and never making enough to be where I want to be.” He tried to pace the length of the room, but Willy was in the way. Ace jerked open the bathroom door. “Give me a minute.”
    The small mirror reflected the surfer’s image he’d been striving for—bleached hair, turquoise eyes, and an even tan. He grunted with disgust. If he couldn’t earn some decent money, his good looks would be of no benefit. He massaged his upper vertebrae with long fingers. As he stared into the mirror, an idea came.
    Ace flung the door open and faced Willy. “We’re going to find Don.”
    His accomplice’s forehead puckered and he stopped snapping his gum. “The old guy who ratted us out back in Vegas?” Willy’s hands clenched into fists. “That might be a bad idea. If I ever see that guy again…” He tossed his large head. “I’ll kill the sucker.”
    “Can you control yourself until we get his money?”
    “He’s got money?”
    Ace nodded. “Lots of money. One night he got plastered and bragged to me about how he and his son invented some kind of gadget, then sold out to Apple. He claimed his kid and grandson are loaded.” He licked his lips, dreaming of touching millions of dollars. “After we rough Don up a bit for turning us into the cops, we’ll find somebody he cares about, threaten them, and get enough money to do whatever we want. You can open that hamburger joint on Bora Bora.”
    Willy smiled, his thick fingers relaxing. He focused on Ace for a second before glancing away. “What will you do?”
    Ace shrugged. Unlike Willy, he had no dreams. He’d left his hope for happiness and a worthwhile existence back in Vegas, after he’d betrayed the only woman he’d met worth caring about. “I’ll make sure we get enough so I can do whatever I want.”
    “What about the girl?”
    Ace paused. Willy had an uncanny ability to bring her up whenever Ace thought about her.
    Chanel. He could still picture her dark gaze searching the casino until she located him. The ray of light from her smile when their eyes met each night. Forever burned into his mind was the birthmark next to her eye that gave her an out-of-the ordinary appeal. Her firm