An Unexpected Viking: Sveyn & Hollis: Part One (The Hansen Series - Sveyn & Hollis Book 1)

by Kris Tualla

  “Let him see me as I am,” she muttered.

  “Your beauty is stunning,” Sveyn replied. “You do not require ornamentation.”

  Hollis flashed him an appreciative smile. “If nothing else, Viking, your presence is fantastic for my self-esteem.”

  Once again, Sveyn offered to stay near the car so he would not be a distraction for Hollis. Everett was already inside and had claimed a table.

  He stood when she came through the door. “I took a chance and already ordered. Just some basics: eggs rolls, pork fried rice, crab wontons, and egg drop soup.”

  Hollis’s stomach gurgled. “That sounds great. Thank you.”

  “Do you want hot tea?”

  Hollis gave a little laugh. “Diet Coke, actually. But I’ll get it.” She fished a couple dollars from her wallet, then hung the strap of her bag over the chair. “Will you watch my purse?”

  Everett spread his hands wide in acknowledgement. “Isn’t that the man’s duty?”

  Hollis laughed again. “Be right back.”

  By the time she filled her drink and returned to the table, the food had arrived. Her stomach rumbled again as she took her seat. “I’m starving. Lunch was seven hours ago.”

  Everett wagged his head as he divvied up the crab wontons. “That’s not healthy.”

  “Not healthy, but unavoidable.” Hollis bit into a wonton. Hot cream cheese and flakes of crabmeat filled her mouth with rich flavor. “Mmm. This is delicious.”

  Everett smiled. “Glad you approve of my choices.”

  Hollis dipped an eggroll into sweet-and-sour sauce. “So tell me about your weekend.”

  “Boring stuff. Nothing productive in the end. What about you?”

  Between bites of the pork fried rice, Hollis launched into an explanation of the mess she found on Friday and the extra work she was forced into. Everett made appropriately sympathetic comments. If nothing else, the man was polite.

  “I did take a look at the museum website after we started talking,” he said. “Every week you’re putting up pictures of some of the things you have found in the house?”

  Hollis nodded and wiped her mouth. “We’re putting up an Object of the Week on Mondays. Today’s were World War II documents from Danesfield House in England. It was one of their military intelligence posts.”

  Everett wagged his head. “And you already know all of this stuff?”

  Hollis chuckled. “No. We have to research the items, in part to understand their importance, and in part to assure they are legitimate. But as I said, old Ezra left a ton of notes with most of his acquisitions, so that’s been very helpful.”

  “And the Mystery Items?” he continued. “Do you really not know what they are?”

  Hollis gave a one-shoulder shrug. “Based on experience, and other similar pieces, we usually have a reasonable idea.”

  “But it’s good marketing to say you don’t.”

  “Yep.” Hollis finished her soup, which had finally cooled down from its scald-your-tongue-and-taste-nothing-for-a-week level. “And we are giving away museum memberships to those who guess correctly.”

  Everett leaned back in his chair. “So what’s the deal with that Blessing of the Gods thing?”

  Okay, Sveyn. You were right.

  “It’s very old, we know that.”

  “Are you having it carbon dated?”

  Hollis nodded. “The U of A in Tucson has facilities for that. We sent them a sliver and are waiting in line for the results.”

  “And there is some sort of story that goes along with it.” His brow furrowed. “Something involving another half?”

  “Yeah. There’s a myth that if the two halves are put together that the owner of the completed piece becomes immortal.” Hollis shook her head. “I’ve been told that’s not as much fun as it sounds.”

  Everett’s gaze intensified. “Do you know where the other half is?”

  “No. We’re not sure it still exists.” She met his gaze with a solid one of her own. “Why?”

  Everett straightened and sipped his tea. “Because that legend falls under my general research area. Long life. Immortality. All part of the Calico Labs mission.”

  The light dawned. “So when you say you are researching ancient healing lore, is this what you meant?”

  He shook his head. “Not normally. There are a lot of Native American beliefs regarding immortality. And a bunch of healing methods that twenty-first century scientists are now taking a serious look at.”

  “Uh, huh.” Hollis sucked on her straw, skeptical.

  He wagged a finger to make his point. “But it is interesting, isn’t it? I mean, does the thing emit any sort of energy or radiation?”

  Hollis set her diet Coke down. “We haven’t checked. Mostly it just lays there.”

  “I’d love to see it. Bring in some equipment.”

  “What sort of equipment?”

  “The university has monitors for radiation, electromagnetic waves, seismic waves—”

  “If this thing caused an earthquake we’d know it, trust me,” Hollis scoffed. “This isn’t California. They don’t happen here.”

  “Sometimes the energy is so minute, we can’t feel it.” Everett shrugged and leaned back again. “But if you would rather not know…”

  Well played, Dr. Sage.

  “How invasive are these monitors?”

  “I only have to hold the sensors next to the item. I don’t even have to touch it. But—” Everett Sage gave Hollis the dreamiest look any man ever had in her entire life. “That is not why I am in Phoenix. And it is not why we are having dinner together again. I want to make that absolutely clear.”

  Hollis relaxed a little. “Thank you for saying that.”

  “It’s true. I would never ask you to do anything that you aren’t comfortable with. It’s only to satisfy my own crazy curiosity.”

  Hollis ate the last crab wonton, now cold but still yummy, while she considered her answer. “Let me ask my boss. If she has no objections, then maybe you can come on Saturday.”

  “Saturday?”

  “Oh! Will you still be here?”

  Everett nodded. “I can make that happen.”

  “Good. I’d rather do this when there aren’t a lot of curious eyes in the office jumping to a bunch of ridiculous conclusions.” Hollis wrinkled her nose. “Does that make sense?”

  “It certainly does.” Everett grinned. “Trust me, I hear it all the time. Most of the legends truly are myths in the end.”

  “But it’s that one time when the stories prove true that makes all the frustration worthwhile.” She nodded. “I get it.”

  Everett opened his calendar on his phone. “If your boss—Miranda, isn’t it?—gives you the go-ahead, what time are we looking at?”

  Hollis did the same, impressed that he remembered her curator’s name. “Well, it’s a Saturday first off. And it falls at the end of a long and exhausting week, so…”

  “Noon? And grab lunch afterwards?”

  She smiled into his warm brown eyes which had a faint ring of green around their edges. “That sounds great. And I’ll accept the lunch date, no matter what Miranda’s answer is.”

  *****

  “I wish there were some sort of wager we could have made,” Sveyn gloated. “One with a prize that I could actually enjoy.”

  “Stop. His interest is scientific. It’s part of his research.”

  “Did he tell you how nice you look this evening?”

  No he didn’t, as a matter of fact.

  “Of course.” Hollis pulled into her complex. “He said he likes this color on me.”

  Sveyn snorted. “Blue always complements red hair and blue eyes. At the least he could have said something original.”

  Or anything at all.

  Stop it.

  Hollis looked at the clock on her dashboard. “It’s almost ten. I’m going straight to bed. I’m beat.”

  She parked her car and got out. Pressed the lock twice to hear the co
nfirming beep. Opened, then closed and locked the condo door.

  She picked up the remote. “What channel?”

  “Old movies again.” Sveyn sat on the couch.

  “Good night.” Hollis turned toward her bedroom, wondering if it would be better or worse for her to say what was on her mind at that moment.

  “Hollis?”

  She turned back around. Sveyn was draped casually across her sofa, his long legs resting on the coffee table, and his leather clothes hugging his lean, powerful frame. His dark blond hair spilled over his shoulders. His ocean-blue eyes met hers.

  Why, oh why, can’t you be really here?

  “What?”

  “I won’t be thinking about you in that particular manner tonight.”

  Could he read her mind after all? Crap.

  “Why—why do you say that?”

  “You are very tired. And you have much on your mind. I want you to know that I will not interfere with your slumber this night.”

  His kindness was deeply moving. “Thank you for caring about me, Sveyn.”

  His expression intensified in an arousing way. “How could I not? Sleep well, my love.”

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Thursday

  October 15

  Hollis didn’t ask Miranda about Everett’s request on Monday.

  Or on Tuesday.

  She told herself it was because she was too busy to have the discussion. In reality, she just thought the request was weird.

  “I mean honestly, Stevie. Wood and metal can’t emit waves of any kind,” she said to her friend yesterday morning before heading to the Kensington house. “Can they?”

  “I don’t know. I wouldn’t think so.” Stevie handed her an envelope. “By the way, Miranda got this late yesterday.”

  “What is it?” Hollis looked at the blue-and-red “A” by the return address. “The carbon-dating on the Blessing?”

  “It is indeed, my skeptical friend.”

  Hollis unfolded the document inside.

  “Six thousand years?” She looked at Stevie. “Six thousand years? How is that even possible? There was no steel at that time, and the wood would have disintegrated—or petrified.”

  “Either the test is wrong, or you should probably let Everett have his way and scan the thing.” Stevie flashed an impish smile. “And then I can meet him.”

  Stevie’s opinion was obviously based more in meeting Everett Sage than in good science. But Sveyn was surprisingly torn on how he thought Hollis should react to the request.

  “If the man’s machines show some sort of unearthly activity, then you will believe at last,” he stated.

  Hollis didn’t try to explain that radiation, electromagnetism, and seismic waves were all completely earthly activities. “And if there is nothing?”

  “Then I would suggest that the power comes from joining the pieces.”

  The man was consistently stubborn in his beliefs; there was no point in arguing about them with him. So when she returned from the hoard yesterday afternoon, she brought Everett’s request to Miranda at last.

  “I know it sounds weird, so if you want to say no, I’ll totally understand,” Hollis back-pedaled.

  Miranda shook her head. “No, I think it’s fine. I mean, it does sound weird, don’t get me wrong, but the carbon dating is clearly screwy.”

  “He says he won’t even have to touch it,” Hollis qualified. “Just hold the sensors near it.”

  “That’s reasonable. When will you bring him in?”

  “To be honest, I’m swamped with the last of Ezra’s stuff and don’t want to waste any of the interns’ time.” Hollis was not exaggerating that situation. In fact, she was thinking they might need to work overtime on Friday to finish. “I thought I’d bring him in on Saturday when the office is empty.”

  “Keeping this quiet is probably a good idea,” Miranda agreed. “If nothing turns up, then no one needs to know we even entertained the man’s ideas.”

  “And, of course, nothing is going to turn up. So…” Hollis left the sentence dangling.

  “Just let me know on Monday how it went.” Miranda chuckled. “And please don’t say anything to Tony. He’s still on a rampage.”

  Hollis grinned. “Will do, boss.”

  *****

  “Saturday?” Stevie groused. “That’s not fair.”

  “Miranda doesn’t want a bunch of witnesses to the probable insanity.” Hollis packed fresh gloves, booties, and masks into her duffle bag. “We only have today and tomorrow to finish up and I can’t spend any time on this dopey scanning business before that.”

  Hollis’s intercom beeped. “Ms. McKenna?”

  “Yes?”

  “I have a gentleman here who has a delivery for you.”

  Hollis shrugged and gave Stevie an I have no idea look. “Okay. Send him back.”

  Sveyn disappeared from his spot in the corner, moving straight through the wall and out into the hallway. Hollis felt a surge of affection for the Viking. Even though he had no physical presence, he still tried to protect her as best he could.

  And advance information was always helpful.

  “Are you expecting something?” Stevie asked.

  “No. But whatever it is, I hope he hurries.” Hollis zipped the duffle. “Time’s a-wastin’!”

  Stevie snorted. “Even Arizona natives don’t talk like that.”

  The door to the hallway opened and Hollis walked to her office doorway. “Back here—Everett!”

  Sveyn walked behind a grinning Everett, who was carrying a large basket with a Muffin Manny sticker on the cellophane wrapping. “As a thank you to Miranda, I thought I’d treat the office to some freshly baked gourmet muffins for your morning coffee.”

  Stevie pushed past her. “How nice to meet you, Everett! I’m Stevie Phillips. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

  Everett stopped and faced the petite blonde. “And I about you, Stevie. It’s my pleasure.”

  Miranda obviously heard her name, because she appeared at her doorway immediately as well.

  “Doctor Sage, I assume?” She stepped forward and accepted the hefty gift basket.

  “This certainly wasn’t necessary,” she demurred. “But it certainly is appreciated.”

  Hollis held out a hand. “Everett, this is Miranda Hertz, our museum’s curator.”

  Miranda grinned. “No relation to the cars.”

  Everett flashed his unassumingly charming smile. “It’s my pleasure to meet you. Hollis says nothing but good things about you.”

  Hollis bit her lip. As nice as this surprise visit was, she wondered how to get on her way without sounding ungrateful or rude.

  She smiled at Everett with her eyes more than her mouth. “Thank you so much for the muffins. They look delicious.”

  “You’re very welcome.”

  Hollis clasped her hands together under her chin. “I’d love to show you around but—”

  “—But you have to finish sorting the hoard. I know. I’m leaving.” Everett slid a hand around her waist and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. “Have a good day and I’ll talk to you tonight.”

  As the hall door shut behind him, Stevie poked her in the back.

  “Don’t mess this one up,” she warned.

  “I agree.” Miranda was holding the basket with one hand and unwrapping it with the other. “He’s gorgeous and considerate and smart.”

  “And he likes you,” Stevie added. “I can see it in his eyes.”

  “Your mouth to God’s ears,” Hollis murmured, avoiding Sveyn’s somber gaze.

  Smiling, she went back to her desk to retrieve her duffle. The day was still going to be miserably long, but Everett’s unexpected thoughtfulness had lifted her mood exponentially.

  Friday

  October 16

  The sun was retiring in a blaze of yellow-streaked orange, disappearing behind Papago Park’s volcanic mountains, when Hollis and the interns returned to the museum with the last of the color-coded bin
s.

  “I owe you all pizza,” Hollis told them as they loaded the van at the Kensington house. “I’ll order it now, so we don’t have to wait too long when we get back.”

  As hoped, the pizza arrived about ten minutes after they did, giving the quartet time to wash up, and another ten minutes of breathing room before the museum closed for the night. Hollis tipped the driver and carried the boxes to the staff break room.

  “Dive in, guys. Don’t be shy.”

  “Thanks, Ms. McKenna,” Tom said, his cheek bulging with a big bite of cheesy pepperoni sustenance.

  “Thank you guys,” Hollis replied, serving herself some of the salad she ordered to make the meal healthy-ish. “You all worked hard and did a great job.”

  “The storage area is still a mess.” Tom swallowed his pizza. “Do you want us to stay and stack the boxes?”

  The other two interns looked each other as if Tom had suggested they work the entire weekend just for fun. While wearing Speedos. And clown noses.

  Sveyn whispered in her ear, “He likes you, Hollis.”

  Hollis waved an imaginary fly away from that same ear. “No, Tom. That can wait until Monday. In fact, you guys don’t need to come in until noon.”

  The reprieved interns high-fived each other.

  Tom scowled a little. “Are you sure?”

  Sveyn snickered. “He has a bad affliction for you, Hollis.”

  Hollis turned her back on the apparition. “Thank you for the suggestion Tom, but I’m exhausted. After I shoo you guys out, I’m going home for a shower and watch some old movie on TV.”

  *****

  Hollis and Sveyn stood in the huge storage room, considering the massive volume of what Ezra Kensington the Fifth had bequeathed to the museum.

  “If he hadn’t given the money for the wing, there’s no way they would have been able to accept all of this without it being a major hardship,” she said.

  Sveyn rocked on his boot heels. “Because of the museum’s mission statement. I heard you say that.”