Follow Me #3: In Too Deep

by Cara Lockwood

Overview

FOLLOW ME: Overnight, Calypso "Cal" Morgan's sensual Greek summer abroad turns into a thrilling, high-stakes race to prove to the world (and herself) that her brand-new and very sexy boyfriend Daniel is not a murderer. On the run together, Cal and Daniel must outwit handsome Greek detective Nico Theseus and face their attraction to each other - amid the stress and growing suspicions unearthed by the investigation.

As college co-eds Cal and her boyfriend Daniel are hiding out from the police in Greece for fear that they'll be arrested for the suspicious murder of their wild and gorgeous roommate, the investigation takes a stunning twist. Suddenly their other roommates's lies, petty jealousies, and hidden crushes are exposed and one of them hints that he has proof of the murder that he will hand over to Cal and Daniel - for a price. The third episode in Cara Lockwood's sexy e-serial Follow Me heats up as the stakes get higher for Cal and Daniel.

Don't miss CLOSING IN, the fourth sexy and heart-pounding story in FOLLOW ME.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781466836310
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	10/08/2013
Series:	Follow Me , #3
Sold by:	Macmillan
Format:	eBook
Pages:	50
File size:	804 KB

About the Author

Inspired to write Follow Me by the stunning events brought to light during the Amanda Knox case, Cara Lockwood is also the USA Today bestselling author of ten novels, including I Do (But I Don't), which was made into a Lifetime Original Movie. Born in Texas, she currently lives with her two daughters near Chicago.

Inspired to write Follow Me by the stunning events brought to light during the Amanda Knox case, Cara Lockwood is also the USA Today bestselling author of ten novels, including I Do (But I Don’t), which was made into a Lifetime Original Movie. Born in Texas, she currently lives with her two daughters near Chicago.

Read an Excerpt

Follow Me #3, In Too Deep

---

By Cara Lockwood

St. Martin's Press

Copyright © 2013 Cara Lockwood
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4668-3631-0

---

CHAPTER 1

"Thena, wait! Thena!" Nico shouted at Thena's retreating back as she stormed away from him across the parking lot of the Naxos Police station. Her back was rigid with fury, her hands balled at her sides so tightly her fingernails pressed dents into her palms. "I can explain."

"Explain how you slept with Cal Morgan and me in the same week?"

"Thena! Please." Nico jogged after her. As she reached her car door, she whirled to face him, brown hair flying loose from the bun at the nape of her neck, her hazel eyes blazing like hot coals.

"It's too late, Nico."

"It was one night, okay?" Nico put his hands together as if he were saying a little prayer, his brown eyes pained. "It's not what it looks like."

"It looks like you fucked a material witness!" Thena ran her hands over her head in frustration.

"She wasn't a witness to anything at the time!" Nico exclaimed.

"Right, two weeks ago. What? Did you sneak out of my bed and go straight to Rojo? Is that what happened?"

"Thena! Let me explain. Please. I ..."

"Forget it. The minute I found out you were hanging out at Rojo, I knew that's what you were doing there. So, fine. That is what it is." Thena's eyes flashed with hurt and jealousy. "But ... I mean ... Cal Morgan? The girl we're looking for? The girl who may have been one of the last ones to see Gia Cito alive before someone slit her throat? You are beyond tainted for this investigation. You need to take yourself off the case."

Nico stopped still, in the middle of the asphalt. "I'm not going to do that."

"You haven't any say about it. You're off this case. Now."

"You're jealous," Nico said, taking a step closer to Thena. "You're punishing me because you're jealous."

"I never asked you for anything, Nico." Thena's breath came hard and fast, her chest rising and falling steeply, her face flushed with anger. The breeze blew the leaves of the olive tree above her head, rustling the leaves.

"No, you didn't have to. Cooking me meals, playing house, don't pretend like it meant nothing to you." Nico grabbed her arms as if he could make her understand, but she shook him off.

"Step away from me, Nico." Her voice was thick with emotion as she looked at the ground.

"You're hurt that I slept with someone else. That's all this is. I know you have feelings for me. But it doesn't mess up the investigation."

Thena barked out a bitter laugh. "This was why you were so concerned that we find her. You wanted to play the white knight."

"Thena! That's not how it is." Nico spread his hands. "You have to understand ..."

"Oh, I understand. Pretty barely-legal American. You don't have to explain it."

"Thena ... she's more than that. I mean ..." Nico tripped over his words, fumbled for what to say, but only managed to dig himself in deeper.

"You love this girl." Thena stood staring at him, incredulous. "Un-fucking-believable. This isn't even about a one-night stand. You actually love her."

"Thena, just let me explain," Nico pleaded. "I never meant for this to happen. I never meant to hurt you. I can make this up to you. To the case. I can help bring Daniel in. I talked to her —"

"You what?" Thena glowered.

"She's with Daniel. I think she's in trouble."

The hurt disappeared and Thena's expression grew somber, suspicious. She didn't say anything for a full second. "Did you warn her we were coming to the airport? Did you tip them off, Nico?"

"What? No. Of course not."

"You aren't helping your girlfriend get away, are you?"

"I want her safe in custody as much as you do. I'm just worried about her. She's with Daniel and she's scared."

"I'm sure she is. Scared of being prosecuted, but then again how much does she really need to worry when she's fucking one of the detectives on the case." Thena laughed to herself and shook her head. She stared up at the sky through the branches of the olive tree above her head. Then, she found Nico again. "You're off the case. Go home, Nico." Thena turned and opened the silver Renault's door angrily, swinging it wide. "Don't make this personal."

Thena froze, hand on the doorframe, but didn't look him in the eye.

"You're the one who made it personal, Nico. You lied to me. Good partners don't do that."

"Like you don't have secrets, Thena. Like you haven't been lying to me since the moment we met."

"What are you talking about?"

"Let's start with Mario, Thena. Who's his dad?"

Thena pressed her lips in a thin line. "You know I can't tell you that."

"Right, so you're keeping a secret. You're lying to me by not telling me all of it. Iknow, Thena, okay? I know it was your captain's baby. I know that he was married — shit, still is married. I know that's why you got transferred from Athens. And he's not the only one."

Thena's hand snaked out and slapped Nico hard across the face.

His head whipped to the side. He rubbed his cheek. Resignation settled on his features. "I deserved that. I'm sorry. But I'm hardly the only one saying it."

Thena stood stock-still, shock on her face. "No," she murmured, shaking her head, disbelief blossoming on her face. "It's just Hestia. ..."

"No. More than her. That's who you are to them, Thena. Giannis. All the way up to Headquarters. The little island detective who can't help but sleep around. Is this what you mean by being honest?" Nico took a step forward, his cheek red from where Thena's hand had landed. "Is this what you wanted to hear?"

Thena's bottom lip quivered for just an instant, before she got her face back under control. A wall came down behind her hazel eyes, and her expression went blank. She was a detective again, her emotions hidden, logic once again in control. She ducked into her car. "You're off the case, Nico," she said, toneless. "Go home." And then she slammed the door, turned the ignition, and rolled away from Nico with a screech of tires.

CHAPTER 2

"We're free, Cal! Free! They arrested Carlos!" Daniel was practically skipping down the streets of Naxos as warm morning sunlight bathed them. Pink rays of early sunshine shone on the white alabaster buildings crowding the seashore. In the distance behind Daniel loomed the large medieval castle tower, and in front of him, a patch of grass stretched east, ending at the seaside highway. They walked past an old statue of Dionysus, god of wine, holding a bunch of grapes and an old jug of wine.

Cal glanced at her phone, rereading Marco's text:

You're out of time. I'm calling the police.

"Daniel, settle down," Cal said grimly, lagging behind him as he hopped on top of the small stone wall surrounding the old statue. "Get down from there."

"Why aren't you happy?" Reluctantly, he jumped off a piece of ancient stone near the statue, landing in a puff of sand and dust. "The nightmare is over!" Daniel picked up Cal's free hand and pulled her over the wall, dancing her around the god of debauchery. Her blond ponytail bounced as he jerked her about inside the small stone circle. Dionysus looked at them with a smile on his face, his marble eyes blank. High above them, sea gulls circled, making shrill calls. Blue water sparkled out into the distance.

"Daniel ... stop." She pulled her hand away and sat down on a large stone slab with carvings on the side, her sandaled feet settling into the sand. She studied her neon pink toenail polish, which glittered in the sun. "I have to tell you something." Cal glanced at her phone. "Marco videotaped you. Videotaped us."

Daniel stopped mid-jig, his dark eyes confused. "What do you mean?"

"You know what a pervert he is, right?"

"Of course. I remember all the porn he kept on his computer at the house, and then, what he tried to do to you in Athens."

"Right, Athens." Cal looked somber, and then flinched, as if reliving a painful memory. "Marco rigged up some kind of hidden camera in the bathroom. He filmed me showering at the house." Cal shuddered and rubbed one of her bare upper arms.

"That piece of shit. Next time I see him, I'm going to do more than break his nose."

"There's more. He ... he sent me footage."

"How could he do that? How does he even have your new number?"

"He texted me before I got the new SIM card. I just replied with the new number. It doesn't even matter, Daniel. He has video of you. And me. Washing up. After we found Gia dead. We have blood on us. ..."

Daniel's face went pale. "Let me see it," he demanded. He sat next to her, near the square foundation where the statue loomed tall above them. Reluctantly, Cal showed Daniel the video Marco had sent, the one of Daniel washing off blood in the sink. Daniel stared at the screen long after the video stopped playing.

"But, they arrested Carlos. ..." Daniel's voice was small, distant, as he stood up and walked away from the statue, almost in a stupor. Cal stood as well, and dusted off the back of her flowered dress. She walked after him, phone still in hand.

"Right, but they might let him go if they see this."

Daniel stopped near the wooden street signs painted in blue with Greek letters, pointing back to where they came. Daniel leaned against the wooden pole holding the sign, one hand holding his weight, as if he'd run a long way and needed to catch his breath.

"Does he have more video? More cameras?"

"I don't know."

"What does he want?"

"Money."

"Goddammit!" Daniel kicked the signpost and it shook with the force of the blow, rattling as if it might disintegrate into splinters. "Why can't I fucking get a break!" he shouted to everyone and no one, the power of his voice startling birds in the trees nearby, who took flight.

"Daniel — shhhh. Someone will hear you."

"Who will hear me? Some dead Greek god? Marco? Let's go find that prick. I should've finished this at the house. That perverted son of a —"

"You can't hurt him, Daniel. You can't ..."

"Like hell I can't."

"We have to keep our heads here. Maybe we can just talk to him."

"You talk. I'm going to rip his throat out." Daniel grabbed her phone. "I'm going to call him."

"Daniel! No. You can't do that."

"I can't have him wandering around with pictures like that," Daniel said, shaking off her grip. "Daniel! Daniel, no. Let's just pay him."

"With what, Cal? Our fucking imaginary money?" Daniel strode ahead of Cal. "Not that I'd pay him a dime, worthless son of a bitch."

"Don't go off all angry like that. Just calm down. We can sit, talk about it, figure it out."

"I'm sick of fucking talking! I'm sick of this whole thing! And since when do you defend Marco?"

Cal went stock-still. She covered her quivering bottom lip with her fist. She sat on the low, sloping stone wall near the sign and hugged herself, rubbing her arms as if she was cold, but the sun was already a bright spot in the sky, and the breeze was warm off the Aegean Sea. "I'm not defending him. I just don't want you in more trouble."

"I can't get in more trouble than this. It's not possible. Where is he? The university?"

Cal fell silent.

"University, then. That's where I'm going."

"Daniel, wait ..." Cal ran after him, caught his elbow. "I'll come with you."

Daniel shook her off and changed course, away from the ruins and back up to the castle. The university was just west of the old tower, and probably a good twenty-minute walk.

"I don't think that's a good idea. You wait at the docks. I'll go."

"No," Cal said. "No, that's not going to happen. I'm not going to just wait while you —"

"I can handle myself, Cal. And you'll just be in the way."

"No! Daniel. I'm coming. You can't stop me." Cal grabbed his elbow again. Daniel glanced at her hand on him and frowned.

"Fine." They walked close to a coffee shop. Lights flicked on inside as someone rolled up the tin door, signaling they were open for the day. He nodded at the shop. "Can you get us something to eat? I mean, I need some food. God knows when I ate last. I can't ... I can't think straight." Daniel rubbed his temples. "It's like my hangover just won't go away."

"Food will help. Let's go in. Get something to eat."

"I think it's safer if we don't. There's a TV there. Can you go? Cal ... I need to sit down." Daniel sat on one of the wrought-iron chairs on the patio.

"Are you okay?"

"I just need something to eat. Maybe coffee, too."

"Okay. I'll get it. What do you want?" Cal stood shifting from one sandaled foot to the other. She gripped her backpack strap tightly.

"Anything," Daniel said. She left Daniel standing under one of the open umbrellas on the patio.

Cal walked into the small coffee shop and ordered two coffees to go, along with two slices of olive bread and some cheese, a common offering for breakfast in Greece. After paying, she walked briskly out of the coffee shop, paper cups and bag in hand. But when she got there, Daniel was gone. There was no sign of him on the empty cobblestone street. She sat there, holding the two coffees, frozen for a few long moments. Then, she dug out her phone, and with one hand, she dialed Nico.

CHAPTER 3

Thena wasn't paying attention when she pulled up to Kosko's office near Old Naxos. One of the Headquarters men had found a knife at the crime scene, and Kosko had called Thena. She nearly ran over Makis, the lead investigator from Headquarters, who was walking up to Kosko's office, carrying a paper tray holding two lidded cups of coffee. She slammed on the brakes with a screech, eyes wide in surprise. Makis froze, his tall, lean body stiff. He wore a standard Headquarters dark suit, which seemed a poor choice on Naxos, where temperatures hovered in the mid-eighties. Makis trudged forward and Thena pulled the car into the parking spot she was originally aiming for, her hands squeezing the wheel so hard they turned white. Makis tapped one knuckle on the glass near her ear.

Thena rolled it down.

"There are easier ways to take over the case, Thena. You don't have to kill me."

"If I was trying to kill you, Makis, you'd already be dead," Thena said curtly, not bothering to look at him, her disdain clear on her face.

As she stood, Makis let out a bark of a laugh.

"What's so funny?" Thena asked sharply as she slammed the door.

"Just that I know you're not kidding."

Thena's eyes slid to Makis, and then to the cups of coffee he was holding. Makis glanced down. "I was going to give one to Kosko to butter him up, but who am I fooling? He hates me anyway, and coffee won't make a damn bit of difference. Want it?"

"I don't know. Did your best friend send you to poison me?"

"No. He hasn't. And we don't speak that much anymore."

"How come?"

"You and I both know Demetriou didn't treat you right. It's not fair that he's in Athens, while you're out here raising his kid. Is he helping out?"

Thena narrowed her eyes but said nothing.

"That's what I figured. I didn't think it was right from the start, you know," he said.

"Because of the Rules."

"No. Because he was our captain and you were barely out of the academy. He pressured you."

"I'm a big girl. I made my own decisions."

"I know, but ..." Makis searched for the right words. "You took all the blame."

"You didn't care much about that when you testified at the suspension hearing and got me demoted."

Makis thunked the coffee tray on the roof of Thena's silver car and took a step toward her. "Your head wasn't in the game and it almost got you killed. You rushed in that day —"

"If we'd waited for backup, we would've lost him. We had a job to do."

"The rules are there for a reason. They save lives," Makis said. "You sure as hell weren't thinking clearly — distracted by the baby on the way. I thought it was time for you to have a less dangerous job — at least until the baby came."

Thena let out a bitter laugh. "It had nothing to do with the fact that I was a political problem and your friend wanted me to disappear."

"I didn't know that they'd send you out here for good. I thought it would be temporary. That's what I was told."

"Four years isn't temporary." Thena glared at Makis. "You were my partner. You should've had my back."

"I did. I saved your life. Or did you forget what happened that day?"

Thena's eyes flicked down, a guilty expression flitting across her face. "Yeah, I remember."

"I was in surgery for six hours to get that bullet out. So I don't want to hear it."

Thena glanced down at his right leg, looking sheepish. "I said it before, but I'll say it again. I'm sorry about that, Makis. You know I am."

Makis studied her for a long beat. "And I'm sorry I got you exiled out here. So can we call it even? And will you take the damn coffee?"

(Continues...)

---

Excerpted from Follow Me #3, In Too Deep by Cara Lockwood. Copyright © 2013 Cara Lockwood. Excerpted by permission of St. Martin's Press.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

---