by Lisa Kessler
Hunter chuckled and kissed her temple. “Don’t sound so surprised.”
Trinity patted Erica’s knee under the table and whispered, “I need to talk. Outside.”
Erica nodded and followed her out, enjoying the way Reed jumped when she grabbed his ass on her way past him. The playful spark of mischief in his eyes had her aching to get him alone.
Once she and her roommate were on the porch, Trin closed the sliding glass door and met her eyes. “I know how the Order found out who we are, and it has nothing to do with the LLC we used to buy the theater.”
Erica frowned. “What are you talking about?”
Trinity’s dark eyes shone with tears she’d never let fall. “I’ve known since the televised press conference Belkin held to introduce their new CEO, but the Order had stopped harassing us directly so I didn’t think it mattered.”
Erica shook her head. “Wait, didn’t think what mattered?”
“It’s my fault.” Her voice wobbled, but then she cleared her throat. “You could’ve been killed today, and they knew who you were because of me.”
“Why would it have anything to do with you?”
“Because when I watched that press conference, and Ted Belkin Sr’s son stood at the microphone…I knew him. From college.” Trin searched her eyes. “I started researching Belkin Oil. Most of their rigs are offshore, and they own a couple in Texas. That’s where they used to have their corporate offices.”
As Erica processed the information, a chill began crawling slowly down her back. “So the college boyfriend you told me about, the business major from Texas who switched schools and dumped you, that Ted is Ted Belkin of Belkin Oil?”
“Yeah. I should’ve put two and two together much sooner, but Ted’s family was in Texas. He didn’t have a good relationship with his father, so he never really talked about them much. It never occurred to me his dad was in oil or that they’d moved the corporate offices from Texas.” Her eyed moved to the door and back to Erica. “Now, I don’t know what to do.”
“You can start by going back inside and telling everyone.” Erica took her hand. “This isn’t your fault, Trin. And if you knew him, you might have information that could help us.”
“Nia is dead. He only knew she was a muse because of me. I told him about the crazy dreams of Greek muses and theaters. He transferred schools right after I told him I was going to move to California. I showed him pictures of the theater in Crystal City. This is all my fault.” Her usually velvety smooth voice was thin, choked with emotion. “And now they’re after us again.”
“We lost Nia because we didn’t know the Order existed.” Erica searched her eyes. “We’re not going to let them hurt anyone else.”
Trin’s lower lip trembled. “They almost shot you today.”
“But they didn’t.” Erica forced a smile. “I’m still standing, and so is Reed. We’ll get through this. But you need to tell them, Trin. A secret like this will eat you up inside.”
“I don’t know if I can.”
Erica squeezed her hand. “You’re one of the strongest people I know, and I’ll be right beside you. No one at that table is going to blame you for Nia’s death.”
Trin searched her eyes and started to nod. She pulled in a slow breath. “Gods, I hope you’re right.”
She opened the door, and Erica followed her back to the table. They took their chairs, and Callie looked up. “Everything okay?”
“Not so much,” Trinity replied. “I discovered something recently, something I should’ve told you all sooner, but I…” She shook her head and looked around the table. “I feel like an idiot, but I didn’t make the connection until I saw Ted on TV during the Belkin Oil press conference after Belkin, Sr. died. I’ve been so focused on the theater and my music…” She picked at her fingernails. “When I was in my sophomore year of college, Euterpe came alive inside me and I started dreaming of this theater and Greece.”
She stared at her fingers. “I thought I was going nuts, and I confided in my boyfriend at the time. He thought it was a sleep disorder at first, but he started encouraging me to share the dreams with him. He was the only person in the world I could talk to about it. Then all of a sudden, he switched schools. We broke up and lost touch.” She swallowed, her voice dropping. “He was just Ted from Texas back then. He had a dysfunctional family and didn’t really talk about them. I didn’t even know he was named after his father.” She shook her head. “We’re in California. I hadn’t even thought about him until I saw him on TV.”
Callie glanced at Hunter and back to Trin. “You dated Ted Belkin?”
“Yeah. And I did some digging on Belkin Oil. They moved their corporate office right after Ted ended it with me. He figured out about Crystal City before I did. He must’ve been watching for me and looking for all of you. I’m so sorry.”
Callie shook her head. “Even if you never dated him, he might’ve found us, anyway. There’s something bigger than us happening here. Don’t you feel it? The muses are together again, and our Guardians are being drawn to Crystal City, too. That’s not our doing.”
“So you’re saying Kronos and the Titans would’ve led the Order here with or without me?” Trinity asked.
“I don’t know, but I think it’s possible. There’s an energy when we’re together. Inspiration gives birth to hope, and there’s no greater power on Earth.” Callie glanced at Erica. “Except maybe love.”
Erica froze in her seat, her gaze sliding to the other end of the table. Reed was staring right at her. His eyes locked on hers until her heart was racing. She stood up. “I told Trin she might have information on Belkin that could help us. Why don’t you guys start talking about that? I’ll be right back.”
Erica moved past Reed without touching him and went down the hallway to the bathroom. She locked the door and stared at herself in the mirror. Was she so transparent? Could everyone tell she cared way too much about Reed? Gods, could he tell?
Indecision tore at her heart. She turned on the water and splashed some on her cheeks to cool herself, struggling to clear her head. Once she was calm enough, she opened the door.
Reed was standing right outside. Without a word, he took her hand and led her farther down the hall until they could duck into the guest room.
He closed the door and pressed her back against it, his eyes never leaving hers. “I need to tell you something, but you’ve got to let me finish before you try to talk me out of it.”
She could lose herself in his dark eyes, especially when they were burning with desire like they were now. She ran her hands up his chest, needing to touch him. “Okay.”
He searched her face and whispered, “When that guy lifted his gun, nothing on Earth was more important to me than protecting you, and it had nothing to do with being a Guardian or a muse.” He swallowed, his head tilting lower, his lips dangerously close to hers. “I’m falling for you, Erica. When I’m not with you, I’m thinking about you. I can’t stop it.” A smile tugged at his mouth. “And before you start accusing me of the whole obsession thing, remember that I caught you staring at me, not the other way around.”
She laughed as his lips met hers. She pulled back, resting her forehead on his. “I thought you didn’t want a relationship, either.”
“I didn’t.” He sobered. “And I’m man enough to admit that I’m still scared…but I’m willing to risk it if you are.”
She slid her arms up around his neck. “You did pull me out of a burning building…”
“And I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”
“Good to know.” She kissed him again, savoring his taste, the heat simmering between them as her blood pounded in her ears.
His teeth grazed her lower lip. “How soon can we get out of here?” he growled.
“Fast.” She grabbed his hand and tugged him back to the main room. “Reed got a lead on the case. We’re going to have to run.”
Callie stood up. “All right. I’m going to get the carpenter out to the theater
next week. We’ll need everyone there to make sure we’re in agreement with his recommendations.”
“Will do.” Erica headed for the door, dragging Reed with her. “Just let me know when.” She looked over at Trin. “I’ll see you at home.”
Trinity nodded. “See you soon.”
Once they got to Reed’s truck, he wrapped her in his arms and kissed her, his tongue parting her lips, teasing her until her entire body wanted the same treatment. He broke the kiss, running his finger along her jaw. “It’s going to kill me to go back to the station tomorrow.”
He opened the door, and she got in. When he jogged around and slid behind the wheel, he glanced her way. “Can you and Trinity stay over at Callie’s while I’m at the station on base? Just to be sure Jack doesn’t pay you a visit. We know he’s watching you.”
“Apparently, so is the Order.”
He started the truck. “Is this theater really worth all this trouble?”
“Yes.” She rested her hand on his thigh. “Callie was right about this being bigger than us. I’m the only one of us who grew up in Crystal City. When the dreams came on, the rest of them traveled here from all over the country. The theater is going to change the world. We can all feel it. It’s worth the risk.”
“Can I see it?” he asked.
“It’s getting dark…”
“I have a big flashlight behind the seat.”
Erica smiled. “Sure. Let’s do it.”
Reed parked in the pitted back lot, his headlights shining on the chain-link fence surrounding a round, two-story building. It had a gaping hole in the roof, and the stucco on the outside was cracked and broken in a few places.
“Looks great,” he said.
She chuckled. “You’re a horrible liar.”
He got out and pulled the seat forward to get his flashlight. “It definitely needs some work before it’s ready to change the world.”
“We told you that already. But it’s going to be amazing!” She caught his free hand as he clicked on the light. “Come on, I’ll show you around inside.”
He looked back over his shoulder at the parking lot. No other cars were around. No sign of her stalker. He faced forward again and realized his ankle wasn’t burning, either. Relaxing, he followed her to the locked gate.
She fiddled with her keys and finally got the lock open. “We had to put up the security fence after the Order broke in and planted C-4 under the stage.”
His eyes widened in surprise. “They were going to blow it up?”
She nodded, pulling open one of the doors. “Yeah. Nate found it before anything happened, but we installed security cameras and a fence after that. Like I said, the Order has been quiet for a few months now, though.”
“Could they really know about the Guardians?”
She shrugged. “It’s possible. Clio did find the parchment with the prophecy on it about men being marked by the gods to be Guardians, but she may not have been the first to translate it.”
He couldn’t stop seeing that gold mask and the barrel of the gun being lifted. If he didn’t have his gift, if he hadn’t broken the shooter’s hand, they could both be dead right now.
Inside the future lobby, Erica rattled off where everything would be. Even in the dim lighting from his flashlight, her features were animated, her eyes bright. Damn, she was beautiful. This was another side of her passion, and it had nothing to do with sex and everything to do with inspiring others to find something they love.
There was going to be a large meeting room, as she’d mentioned to him earlier, and she was planning a wall of quotes and song lyrics designed to encourage dialogue and dreaming. She made it easy to believe that anything was possible. With her help, people would strive for their passions and make them realities.
His chest warmed as she reached for his hand and led him through another set of double doors. The theater’s auditorium was lined with seats that had seen too much rain and sun, but through Erica’s eyes, they were new and inviting.
She dragged him down the aisle toward the stage, then pulled back the tarp covering it and ran her hand along the edge of the stage. “See how smooth it is? We sanded it down to the original hardwood. Once we get the roof fixed, we’re going to seal it, and then we’ll start on the stage curtains. Have you ever been center stage before?” She took him over to a set of stairs on the right side of the stage.
He chuckled. “Nah, I was too busy surfing.”
They walked on the tarp to stand at the center. He cast the light over the rows of empty seats. It probably seated 750 people—a good size.
She nudged him. “How’s it feel to be the center of attention?”
“Feels fine.” He swept the seats with the beam from his flashlight. “This is my kind of audience.”
“Are you saying you get nervous in front of a crowd?”
He shrugged. “I’ve never had a burning desire to try it.”
She walked to the edge of the stage and sat down, dangling her legs over it. He followed, sitting beside her. She glanced over at him. “You know all about my creepy ex, but who made you so leery of relationships?”
“Shit.” A pit knotted in his gut. The question had come out of nowhere. “We were having a good night.”
She chuckled. “Sorry. Just curious. You don’t have to tell me.”
Erica started to get up, but he caught her hand. “Her name was Lila, and I was young and stupid. She used me until I had nothing left to give, and then she was gone.”
Erica rested her head on his shoulder. “I’m guessing that’s the short version.”
He kissed her hair. “That day Hunter pulled me out of the ocean changed me. Until then, I’d always been a ladies’ man. Hunter and I would double-date, never really getting too serious with anyone. But after the near-death experience, I started looking for the person I was supposed to protect. She must’ve seen me coming from a mile away.”
“Ugh. I hate her already.”
He laughed, shaking his head. “I was blind. I just wanted my life to mean something, you know? My dad was a Navy SEAL. I thought I’d be one someday, too, but she changed all that. So Hunter ended up being the SEAL.”
She lifted their joined hands and kissed his knuckle. “I saw the SEAL coin in your medicine cabinet. That was from your dad?”
“Yeah. I lost him to cancer a few years ago.” Reed stared at his shoes. Physical intimacy was his comfort zone, and this kind was far from it.
She caught his chin, turning him to face her. “You don’t need to tell me anything you don’t want to, okay? I won’t push.”
That tiny act of mercy broke a barrier inside him. He bent to kiss her lips and then forced the words out. “I was about to join the Navy when Lila told me she was pregnant. She said it would kill her if she had to raise our baby alone. After some research, she pushed me to apply for Federal Fire instead. I’d still be on base and helping the military, but I’d never be shipped out.”
His words vanished into the echo of the theater.
“There wasn’t a baby, was there?” she whispered.
“No. Once I got hired at Federal Fire, we got married and she told me she had a miscarriage.” He swallowed the lump in his throat. “She started drinking and partying, and the money disappeared faster than I could make it. I threatened to leave, and suddenly she was pregnant again. So I stayed.” He ran a hand through his hair. “I mentioned I was young and stupid, right?”
“I’m so sorry, Reed.”
“I don’t want pity. Hunter could see she was draining the life from me. He pointed out that if Lila was on my health insurance, I should be getting statements and bills from the doctor’s office for her appointments for the pregnancies and the miscarriage.” He cleared his throat. “But there weren’t any. She never went to see the doctor. That’s when I finally left, but by then, my dreams had passed me by. I had a few years’ seniority in the department, so leaving for the Navy would mean losing what I’d started to build here.”
&
nbsp; “Being a firefighter wasn’t your dream.”
He ran his thumb over the back of her hand, the softness of her skin easing his pain. “No. But I like it much more than I thought I would. If I’d chased my dream, I would have been forced to take lives in order to save them. Honestly, I’m not sure how I’d handle that. I enjoy helping people.”
Erica lifted her head, her eyes on his. “I’m sorry you gave up so much for someone who never appreciated your sacrifices.”
He sighed, breaking the eye contact. “I just wanted you to know why I’m cautious. When the divorce was final, I swore I’d never let another woman into my heart. Love made me weak.” He forced himself to look her in the eyes. “I’ve never met anyone like you, and today, I would’ve died for you and wouldn’t have regretted it for a second.”
He fused his lips to hers, pulling her in close. He threaded his fingers in her long hair. He’d gotten through it; he’d shared more with Erica than he had ever shared with anyone. His pulse raced, fear and desire heating his bloodstream.
He broke the kiss. “Let’s go back to my place.”
“I promised Trinity I’d go home first. She’s pretty upset about Belkin.” She kissed him once more and whispered, “Thanks for telling me about Lila.” She rested her hand over his heart. “And just so you know, I would’ve taken a bullet for you, too. No regrets. The world would be a darker place without you in it, Reed McIntosh.”
He got to his feet and helped her up. “Let’s go check on your roommate.”
“Thanks for understanding.”
He leaned in close, his lips brushing her ear. “You can pay me back later.”
Her lilting laughter was more than enough, but he kept that to himself and walked her back out to the truck.
CHAPTER 12
When they came out the door, the familiar wash of heat hit Reed’s face. Fire.
“Dammit! Not my truck!” Flames shot up from the pavement. The asshole must’ve poured gasoline all over it and under it. Fuck.
