by Lisa Kessler
Her eyes widened. “Seriously? You think Nate is going to vouch for you?”
“We worked with him last night after the shooting at your theater. He can see the writing on the wall, too. We’re going to have to work together if there’s any hope of stopping Kronos.”
“A shooting?” Her brow knitted with worry. “What shooting?”
“A member of the Order has been stalking Tera. He tried to shoot her bodyguard so he could take her back to Kronos.” He put his hands up. “Tera’s fine. And Mark only went after her because Kronos has his wife. If Mark doesn’t bring Tera to him today, Kronos will kill his wife.”
Trinity was quiet for a long moment. Finally, she nodded. “Fine. I’ll talk to Nate.”
“Fair enough.” Ted picked up his things. “Contact me when you’re ready.”
“If I’m ready,” she corrected.
Ted stood up. “I know it doesn’t change anything, but I do regret everything that has happened, everything I’ve done… I’m so sorry, Trinity.”
She crossed her arms, looking up at him with cold disdain. “You’re right. It doesn’t change anything.”
Gavin finished his coffee and followed Tera and Clio out of the café. He took out his cell phone, ready to text Tera to remind her he needed Callie’s address, but she beat him to it. And right after the address was another message from her.
Clio thinks you’re hot.
Gavin chuckled as he got behind the wheel of his SUV. He quickly sent back a reply.
Your opinion is the only one I care about.
He started the engine, and his phone buzzed again. He glanced down and had to laugh.
Guess you’ll have to wait for my Yelp review.
He knew he wasn’t forgiven, and at this point, he didn’t deserve it anyway. But she was still teasing him, and that had to count for something. Once they caught these Kronos guys, then he could work on repairing the damage he’d done to the fragile relationship. For now, her safety was all that mattered.
He made a right onto Lothlórien Lane as Tera had instructed and found a place to park on the street. Tera and Clio were already going inside the house. She didn’t even look back to see if he was following. It shouldn’t bug him, he reminded himself. He had a job to do.
As Gavin crossed the street, a familiar face exited the house—Hunter Armstrong. That was a blast from the past. Gavin hadn’t seen him since they did SEAL training together. They had been assigned to different teams, but damn, other than having longer hair, Hunter looked exactly as Gavin remembered him.
Gavin grinned as he walked toward Hunter and the house.
“Thompson?” Hunter’s eyes widened as he came over and wrapped Gavin in a tight man-hug. He pulled back with a wide grin. “Gavin Thompson! How are you, man? What the hell are you doing on my street?”
“Working.” Gavin glanced at the house. “I’m a bodyguard now. I have my own personal security company.”
“No way.” Hunter shook his head. “Wait, are you Tera’s bodyguard?”
Gavin nodded. “That’s me.”
“Small world.” Hunter chuckled. “Nate told me he knew a guy, but I had no clue it was you.”
“So why are you here?” Gavin asked.
Hunter looked back at the house. “This is my place.”
Gavin struggled to keep up as all the pieces came together. Hunter had to be Callie’s Guardian. No way he’d be living with her and not know she was a muse. Or would he?
Rather than running in more mental circles, he dug in with both feet. “So Callie must be your muse?”
Hunter sobered, his jaw a little slack for a second. “Did Tera tell you that?”
Gavin lifted his shirt, exposing his birthmark.
Hunter’s smile returned. “You’re her Guardian.”
“Yeah, apparently,” he said with a laugh. “Out of the blue my birthmark started burning, and then suddenly I could move at light speed.”
Hunter clasped his shoulder. “Welcome to the club. I can hear people’s thoughts if they’re about Callie. When it first started, I thought I’d lost it.”
Gavin nodded. “Yeah, I was thinking I needed to get back on the shrink’s couch.”
The door opened behind Hunter, and another familiar face appeared. She met Gavin’s eyes. He’d recognize her pixieish features anywhere. Speak of the devil, it was his shrink from the military.
She came over and held out her hand, although questions were written all over her face. “Captain Thompson. I’m surprised to see you here.”
“Dr. O’Connor.” He shook her hand and smiled. “I’m Tera’s bodyguard. When she said we were going to Callie’s house, I had no idea I’d be visiting my therapist. I guess I never knew your first name.”
Callie stared up at him, and for a second, he tensed. This woman knew all his secrets and the core of his belief that there was no reason to fear death. His life had seemed so simple back then. Before Tera had inspired him to imagine a future…
Callie released his hand. “Thanks for watching out for Tera.” Hunter slid his arm around her waist and she smiled up at him before focusing on Gavin again. “I see you already met my other half.”
“We met years ago. We went through SEAL training together.” Hunter chuckled. “Gavin’s also Tera’s Guardian.”
Callie smiled. “She told me.”
“What?” Gavin raised a brow. “When?”
Callie looked Gavin’s way. “She didn’t tell me your name so I didn’t realize I knew you, but she called me hoping I would tell you everything for her.” Her eyes widened a little. “Oh gods, she did tell you, right?”
He nodded. “I know all about the craziness.”
“Good, because you’re about to hear plenty more.” She looked up at Hunter. “We’ve still got a lot to discuss.”
Hunter pulled her in closer. “Is the worm gone?”
“Yes.” She swatted his leg. “Ted left.”
He shook his head. “I don’t know how you can forgive that guy after what he did.”
“I’ll never trust him,” Callie explained, “but I’ve worked with plenty of men who did horrible things in an effort to win a parent’s approval. Since the fire, Ted’s been trying to help us.”
Gavin didn’t know who Ted was, but he and Hunter exchanged a look that spoke volumes. Gavin didn’t have to meet the guy to understand he was trouble.
Hunter replied, “Or that’s what he wants us to believe.”
Callie rolled her eyes. “Just come inside, okay?”
Hunter chuckled. “Be right there.”
She went into the house, and Hunter watched her until she vanished through the door. Gavin wondered if Callie had any idea how dangerous her Guardian could be if anyone tried to hurt her. Did Tera understand that Gavin was no different? She hadn’t seen that side of him, not really, but he wouldn’t hesitate to kill if it meant saving her.
Hunter nudged Gavin and then pointed down the street. “There’s Nate and his family. You used to work together, right?”
“Yeah.” Gavin nodded, crossing his arms. “Nate’s a good guy.”
The little girl Gavin had met outside the dance studio came racing toward them and launched herself at Hunter. He caught her in midair and hoisted her up onto his shoulders. Her grin was contagious.
She wrapped her arms around his forehead before placing a kiss on the top of his head. “Are you coming to my dance recital, Uncle Hunter?”
He had a grip on each ankle and knocked her shoes together playfully. “Of course I am! We’re all going. There’s not going to be any room for the other kids’ families.” He started jogging toward the house, her still atop his shoulders. Her bouncing giggles tugged a smile out of Gavin.
He shook his head and looked at Nate. He had an infant in his arms while his wife ducked back into the car for the diaper bag. “Looks like you have your hands full,” Gavin teased.
“Yeah. We adopted Maggie right after we found out Mel was expecting little Noah here.”
He bounced the baby, coaxing a pudgy-faced grin from him. Nate sobered. “Maggie still gets worried at group events with other kids. She was in foster care for a few years, and the bullies were quick to point out that she had no family. Now she has a huge family with all the muses and Guardians, but she’s still a little nervous about no one showing up to the recital.”
Mel swapped the baby for the bag. “See you guys inside.”
Nate hooked the bag covered in baby zebras over his shoulder. Gavin chuckled. “I never imagined you’d turn into a family guy.”
“Me neither.” He smiled, his gaze firmly on his wife and infant son as they headed for the house. “But then I found my muse.”
No truer words had been spoken. Finding Tera was changing Gavin in ways he could never have expected. He crossed his arms. “You’re tossing around muses like I’m already in on the secret. I’m guessing Tera must’ve told you I’m her Guardian?”
“Yeah, she mentioned it at the theater. That’s why I said you should believe her.” His gaze locked on Gavin’s. “Do you?”
He nodded slowly. “I do.”
“Good.” Nate cleared his throat. “Then you’ll understand when I tell you that I think you should assign someone else to this job. Look, I get it. The connection with her is primal; hell, our bodies burn when they need us. No one is judging you. We all fell for our muses, but the guy after Tera isn’t human, and you’re too close to make cleared-headed decisions. Your judgment is off right now whether you know it or not.”
“No.” Gavin’s shoulders tensed as he clenched his jaw to keep from saying something he’d regret later. “Last night was a lapse in judgment, I’ll give you that, but I backed things up with Tera today. Until this threat is over, I’m all business.” He paused and finally added, “Come on, Malone, you know I’m the best in town. Plus, now I have a danger-sensing birthmark and some kind of insane superspeed.”
Nate stared at him for a minute. “Fine, but if you get in over your head, you call me for backup. If Tera hadn’t called me when she did at the theater last night, you two would’ve been sitting ducks.”
All true, but damn, Gavin hated having it pointed out to him. “Will do.”
Gavin turned to go to the house, but Nate caught his arm. “One other thing.” He waited for Gavin to meet his eyes. “The guy who shot at you and Tera was a member of the Order of the Titans. He’s only been stalking her because Kevin Elys kidnapped his wife. And if he doesn’t deliver Tera tonight, Kevin won’t hesitate to kill the woman.” Nate looked over at the house and back to Gavin. “This is our chance to catch Kevin. If this guy meets Mark at the rendezvous point with Mark’s wife to exchange for Tera, we can have the place surrounded by officers and arrest him for kidnapping before Tera ever gets out of the truck.”
“No. No way.” Gavin shook his head, struggling to think of another solution. Nate was right: this might be their best chance to capture Kronos or Kevin or whatever the hell name he went by right now. But it was too risky. “Dress up an undercover female cop like Tera. She won’t be in any danger since she’s not the target Kronos wants.”
Nate sighed. “We don’t have time to pull something like that together before the rendezvous.”
“You can ask Tera, but if she asks my opinion, I’ll tell her the truth. She needs to stay as far away from Kronos as she can.” Without another word, Gavin walked away.
CHAPTER 12
The muses had already started their meeting when Gavin walked in. Tera was seated at the table with Clio on one side of her and a woman he hadn’t met yet on the other. He sat on the sofa in the adjoining room where Hunter was entertaining Maggie. At least the open floor plan of the house meant he still had a clear view of Tera.
Nate came through the front door and took the chair Mel had saved beside her. For a moment, Gavin envied him. But he had no one else to blame. The distance between Gavin and Tera was all his own doing. Tera typed something on her phone, and he secretly hoped it was a text for him.
His cell didn’t buzz.
The conversation around the table was spirited, and while Callie was definitely in charge, most of the women chimed in about Ted’s offer to work together to stop Kronos. Most of the muses were against the idea, and Gavin didn’t know enough about all the players to weigh in. Instead, he kept his attention on Tera. She listened intently, but she didn’t speak up. This shy side of her compelled him to make her feel safe, to feel comfortable enough to share her thoughts. But she never even looked his way.
Nate brought everyone up to speed on the plan to arrest Kevin Elys, and Gavin was glad to hear Nate already had someone at the precinct getting ready to stand in for Tera. Another muse—a woman with a short, brown bob named Lia—jumped into the conversation, recounting what had happened when Ted met with her and Rhea about helping them stop Kronos.
Gavin rubbed the back of his neck as he struggled not to bolt from the room. The immortal Greek gods were seriously in Crystal City? He couldn’t quite wrap his brain around it no matter how hard he tried.
As the meeting broke up, a few of the people who’d been seated at the long table headed his way. Lia approached him first.
She grinned and offered her hand. “I’m Lia, the Muse of Comedy.” She shook his hand and glanced back at a tall, blond guy. Her affection for him was written all over her face, her eyes sparkling with mischief. She gestured at him to come over. “And this is my super serious boyfriend and Guardian, Cooper.”
Cooper chuckled and pressed a kiss to her cheek. He shook Gavin’s hand. “In my defense, everyone seems serious next to Lia.”
They moved along to allow another couple to come forward. The fiery redhead offered her hand with a bewitching, confident smile.
He shook her hand. “I’m Gavin.”
“Nice to meet you, Gavin.” She tilted her head a little as she released his hand and peered up at him from under her lashes. “I’m Erica, the Muse of Lyrics, Erotic Poetry, and Passion.”
A big guy came up beside her carrying an infant in tiny pink overalls. “She’s a triple threat,” he said with a smile. “Sorry. My hands are full, but I’m Reed, Erica’s soon-to-be husband. And this is our daughter, Hope.”
Gavin grinned. “She’s beautiful.”
“They both are.” Reed winked at Erica. “We’ve gotta go—naptime—but we’ll see you soon.” Gavin nodded, and they made their way past Gavin toward the door.
Gavin peered over at the dining room table, but Tera was gone.
Shit.
He got up to search for her when Clio stepped into his path. “Tera’s waiting in my car.” Her gaze was apologetic. “I’ll drop her off at her condo. I just wanted to say hi—officially.”
“Great to officially meet you, Clio.” He was tempted to tell her that he’d never meant to hurt Tera, but it didn’t feel right to plead his case to someone other than Tera. When she was ready, he’d talk to her directly.
Clio turned to the tall man standing beside her. “I’ll see you at home.”
“You know it.” He bent to kiss her and then watched her leave before offering his hand to Gavin. “I’m Mason. I’m the contractor and the lucky man who gets to call Clio his.”
“Good to meet you, Mason.”
“You too.” He smiled at Gavin, his southern accent plain in his voice. “I’ve got to get back to the jobsite. Just got another delivery of lumber, and that theater doesn’t seem to build itself.”
“I need to get back to the condo anyway.” Tera might complain, but with the rendezvous approaching, she would have to get over it. There was no way he would be leaving her unguarded. Hell, right now, she probably wouldn’t even acknowledge he was there. His own fault, but it still sucked.
Mason led the way out, and Gavin stopped briefly at the door to call over to Hunter. “Catch you later, Armstrong.”
“Take care, man.”
As Gavin got into his SUV, Clio pulled out of her spot, made a U-turn, and headed down the street. He waited a moment, then tai
led them, running scenarios through his head as he drove. If Nate’s plan worked and they could contain this Kronos or Kevin guy, then he could relax a little and make things right with Tera.
By the time he pulled into the parking lot of Tera’s complex, he’d come up with multiple ways to make everything up to Tera once the danger was behind them. He parked as Tera waved good-bye to Clio, but instead of going to her condo, Tera went to a blue car he didn’t recognize.
Gavin frowned and jogged over to her. “When did you get a new car?”
“It’s a loaner.”
He blinked. “When did you—”
“Mel told one of the other Mom’s about my car being damaged in a shooting and they insisted I borrow their other car. I was texting with her at Callie’s.” She glanced up at him. “Happy?”
He hadn’t been happy since last night. “Okay. So where are you going?”
“I have an appointment.” She slid her hand inside the front fender and pulled out a hidden key box, then unlocked the door.
He didn’t bother asking what the appointment was for, but he sure as hell wasn’t letting her go alone. “All right. I’ll come with you.”
“Not a good idea.” She shook her head. “Feel free to follow me, though. I know you’re just doing your job.”
Without another word, she got in the car and started the engine. Dammit. He ran back to the SUV and tailed her all the way across town to a large brick mansion on the cove, overlooking the ocean. She pulled up to the security gate and hit the speaker. The gate rolled open, and she drove through.
Shit. He hit the steering wheel. What was she doing? And who the hell lived in the sprawling estate?
Gavin took out his cell and called Nate.
He answered on the first ring. “We haven’t made the swap yet.”
“I wasn’t calling about that.” Gavin stared through the gate across the street and watched Tera get out of her car. “I followed Tera to this mansion on the cove. I need to know who owns it.” He gave Nate the address and waited.
