The Tulip Terror

by C L Bauer

  “What about you, brother?”

  Dev looked over at Lily. His eyes gave her an answer she wasn’t expecting. “We are going back to the hotel. You go have your fun, secret agents. Three really is a crowd with you two.”

  Lily bowed her head in thanks and prayer. She kissed Claude on each cheek and promised they would see her before they left Paris. Lily wasn’t actually sure that would happen, but it was a good promise to make.

  “Well then, au revoir, Lily.” Ari blew her a kiss. Lily playfully grabbed the air kiss and placed it over her heart.

  “Ari, we will always have drugs and a dinner buffet,” Lily joked.

  Ari threw his head back in laughter as he walked down the hallway, followed by a much more resolute and serious Jackson.

  “Will you be alright, Claude, if Dev and I leave?” Lily touched another tear that had just fallen and wiped it away with another tissue.

  “Oui. I just want to sit here at my desk and wait. I’m sure your husband has called someone in to take care of me.” She looked toward her friend and saw deep eyes, sad eyes. “You two go on. Drink champagne, walk back to the hotel, and salvage what is left of your honeymoon.” The woman was done.

  Lily joined Dev and shoved his shoulder. “Say something to her.”

  Dev’s left eyebrow lifted. Exactly what was he supposed to say? Hey, everything is fine. You helped get our friend killed, but it was for something important like a two thousand-years-old vase. No problem, we’re good.

  “Claude, we will see you before we leave. INTERPOL will take over the drug investigation and one of their supervisors will be here in minutes to talk to you. I’d suggest an attorney, unless INTERPOL knew all along what you were doing. I’m sure I’ll never know. I just need a little time, well a lot of time, to digest all of this.”

  “I understand, Devlin.” Her soft voice included an unspoken apology.

  “Sometimes we all do things we aren’t proud of, and I understand that completely, but my heart is a little battered tonight. Art and history are worthy of saving, but acquiring those items and paintings through diamond and drug trades isn’t something I’m willing to do. What is the greater good? I don’t know. I just know what I can and can’t live with, how I have to live in order to sleep at night. Goodnight.”

  He grabbed Lily’s hand in his and raised it to his lips. “Let’s get out of here.”

  Neither one of them looked back at the sad woman, sitting at the very large desk, surrounded by art, old pottery and several Egyptian sculptures. She was small among those items. She was tired from all the secrets. She was indeed finished.

  Dev reached the main foyer and grabbed two glasses of champagne. He handed one to Lily as he downed the liquid. She was busy watching the rain that was falling. It wasn’t heavy, just constant.

  Dev had already grabbed another glass. “Rain? Really?”

  “We could wait until it clears? I can’t get this dress wet.”

  “I want out of this place. Drink your champagne. I’ll be back.”

  Lily took a sip and stopped. Champagne and she were not having a loving relationship with each other lately. Ever since Claude had taken her shopping that day. Poor Claude. Lily saw a passing server and placed her glass on his tray. Drinking champagne and watching the rain while standing in the Louvre was just too, too much. Dreams were made of such events in your life. Ce magnifique!

  Soon Dev returned with an umbrella. “Here’s the plan. I’m going to carry you and you are going to carry the umbrella over yourself and me.”

  Lily shook her head negatively. “No, you are not carrying me.”

  Dev lowered his head, his forehead touching hers. “Yes. I am. No grumblings.”

  “But you don’t know how much I weigh.”

  “I have a pretty good idea by now, honey.” He winked. Lily blushed.

  “Fine, but if you blow out your back it’s not my fault.” Dev grabbed her hand and began pulling her down another hallway.

  “Come on. We’re going to the farthest exit down here and then we’ll go out. It’s the closest to the hotel.”

  There was an armed guard at the door, but he smiled when he saw the couple.

  Dev shrugged his shoulders. “The rain, we need to leave here to get to our hotel. We need to get to our hotel.” He winked at the man.

  The man understood completely. He’d been in love once, well many times with many different women. There were those times the rush of love resulted in a rush to the nearest hotel. He opened the door and wished them a very good night.

  “So, how does this work?” But before Lily could say anything more, her husband picked her up in his arms.

  “Umbrella, please. That’s your only job, darlin’.” She opened it and held it over them. He began to run through the rain with his precious cargo.

  In a matter of minutes, they were at the hotel and in the main lobby. Dev lowered Lily slowly and grabbed the umbrella, shaking out the rain.

  “That went well.” Lily looked at his back. He was drenched.

  “I hope you can get the deposit back on that tux.”

  He tossed his hair. “But we saved the dress. Let’s get something in the bar, maybe an Irish coffee?”

  “Coffee? Oh yes, please.” Lily sighed. She didn’t care if she stayed up all night. She needed that warm liquid to sort out everything she’d seen and heard tonight.

  The darkened bar was filled with the light sounds of a piano. The man at the keys was playing a romantic song. Dev sought out a secluded small table against the wall. Lily slid in first into the red crushed velvet booth, and Dev sat next to her.

  “Is it bad to order Irish coffee in Paris?”

  Dev smiled. “I’m not sure. Maybe we just tell them we want coffee with whiskey, a little whipped cream--”

  “Oui, monsieur, an Irish coffee for you?” The server was hovering over them.

  “I guess you can order an Irish coffee,” Lily answered.

  “And for you, madame?”

  “Un creme, s’il vous plaît.”

  “Oui, madame, merci.”

  Dev removed his soaked jacket. He looked at his wife. “My, my, we have become very French in a few days.”

  “We have become very tired of being very scared of everything. I was afraid to go with Claude to find a dress. I was afraid to go to a gala. I was intimidated and afraid of your friends and your brother. I was afraid tonight. And, I’m tired of finding drugs everywhere.”

  Dev took her hand in his and kissed the inside of her wrist. “The DEA needs you.”

  She watched his lips place feather-light kisses up her arm. “I could replace Mort.”

  Dev’s head shot up. “How is Morticia?”

  “Very happy living with Abby. They are a great couple. I texted Abby a few days ago. It seems as though the shop and she are doing well together.”

  “How’s Jeremy? Has anyone heard lately?”

  Lily sighed. “He’s great. Tom stopped by the shop before I flew out and said the boy is excelling at school and in his extra duties.”

  Lily shivered causing Dev to place his arm around the back of her shoulders. “Better?”

  “Yes, much. That was wild tonight.” She paused as their coffees were placed on the table. “What will happen to Claude? I mean, will she lose her job at the museum? What are they going to do about all those drugs?”

  “I’m not sure about any of it. That’s for them to sort out. I’m sure Claude will still have a job saving artifacts and old sites. There are those who will do anything to preserve the past. Besides, Claude may be working on some scale with INTERPOL. Remy will be brought up on charges. I’m certain about that. Our dear friend Khalid will probably be stalked by our other dear friend, Ari. The drugs will probably be confiscated by the French government.”

  “What about Jackson?”

  Dev took a drink and scowled. “Jackson does what Jackson does. He’s on loan from the FBI division of arts and antiquities. We have reciprocal relationships with
many countries, and he is a professional when it comes to art. I always wondered how his art degree would serve him in his life. He has done well. This partnership with Ari has me baffled, but I’m sure there’s something. I just can’t believe he owes Ari a favor.”

  Lily turned her head to the side to consider her new brother-in-law. “Maybe Ari owes him the favor.”

  “I hadn’t thought about that scenario. That could happen, not sure how, but it could.”

  “So, you are DEA, and he is in the FBI? Wow. You two just couldn’t be plumbers or architects?”

  Dev smiled shyly. “Just that overachievement thing, and liking a little danger, and hating a desk job.”

  Lily remained quiet for a few minutes. “What about Ari? He never gave any indication he had a wife or a daughter when we talked.”

  Dev tightened his arm around her shoulders. “He’s never shared, but I heard the story from a contact in Israel. Khalid and he are actually related, but as you heard, he has a complicated lineage. Ari’s wife and child were specifically targeted. The day of the attack was on the little girl’s second birthday. Khalid apparently planned it so that Ari survived, but was near when it happened. He is a sick--” Dev stopped short of describing his true feelings for the terrorist. “He likes to make it personal.”

  Lily took a drink of her very tasty coffee. She loved the fresh cream in it. “Husband of mine, what is in store for us tomorrow?”

  Dev kissed her cheek. “We are going to sleep late, then maybe shop? I’m sure you have a few more places you just have to hit.”

  “Yes, please. Tonight, I heard someone say it might snow. If it really does, can we just go for a walk in one of the gardens or across one of the bridges? I’ve always had this fantasy about taking a walk in the snow in Paris.”

  Dev growled. “Is that the best fantasy you can come up with?”

  “Yes, because my reality lately is pretty over-the-top.”

  Dev laid money on the table and stood up. He grabbed his jacket and reached his hand out for Lily’s. “Come on. I have some fantasies of my own to fulfill, and now that you’ve had caffeine, I’m thinking you can stay up all night.”

  Lily playfully retreated from his hand. “I’m not sure I want to go with you. You get me in all sorts of trouble. In fact, Ari is tame compared to you Pierce brothers.”

  Dev smirked. “It seems you find your own trouble, Mrs. Pierce.”

  When he winked, she laid her hand in his. On the way up in the elevator, their hands were stuck firmly together. They were shoulder to shoulder. Lily leaned her head on his arm and yawned.

  “Lily, you had caffeine, you can not be sleepy.”

  Dev’s wife saluted him with her left hand. “Yes, sir. I will not be sleepy for at least another hour.”

  “Make it two.” Lily’s mouth gaped open at his command. He was saved by the door opening and the appearance of another couple waiting to enter the elevator. Dev pulled her slowly down the hallway to their corner room.

  As soon as Lily entered, she kicked off her shoes and began to remove jewelry. Dev threw his jacket on the chair and continued through the room as he removed his tie, cufflinks, shirt, shoes and socks. He began to unbutton his tux pants when Lily plopped on the sofa and looked at him. She had a very unusual look, one that reminded him of his mother for some bizarre reason.

  “What, Lily?”

  “Well, I was thinking and then I was wondering something. Why did you give up so easily tonight? I mean, you always want to be part of the chase, don’t you? I’ve seen you grimace in pain when we were in Key West, but you were there in the hunt. You couldn’t be stopped. But you gave up tonight. You let Jackson and Ari go, but you stayed.”

  Lily’s eyes were boring a hole through him. Dev smiled. His wife was one smart cookie. He walked over slowly to sit next to her.

  “Jackson and Ari do a fine job. It wasn’t my jurisdiction after all. They didn’t need me. Besides, they played me, the entire bunch. I don’t play well with others when they sacrifice me that way and place you in danger.”

  Lily brought her legs up and turned her body to face her bare-chested husband. She laid her hand on his shoulder. “The other day, Claude had you look at some materials in her office. You have been in some sort of a loop. So why give up?”

  “Damn, can’t you let it go?”

  “Have you met me, Dev Pierce? I have to know everything, especially if I can’t be in charge of anything. I was definitely not in charge of this chaos tonight. There is no possible list I could make to organize this mess.” Lily didn’t look at him. She studied a scar on his left arm. It seemed as though she found a new scar from some injury on a daily basis with this man.

  “Fine. It is a mess, but tonight I learned how to back off. I made that decision when I saw how afraid you were, again. I have gotten you in some real messes, and this one was out of control. When I was holding you, when it was all over, I decided we needed to get out. You are all I need,” Dev murmured. He grabbed her other hand and held it. “I also needed to get back to our honeymoon.”

  “It hasn’t stopped you before, your work in our relationship. In fact, our relationship has always been entwined with your work. So, what don’t I know?”

  Lily cuddled closer to him. He laughed out loud. “You are too smart for your own good. What you don’t know is--” He paused as if he was going to offer up the secret to the largest magic trick in the world. Instead his head lowered, and he kissed her full on the mouth. His lips lingered on hers as though he was attempting to keep her quiet.

  After he was finished, he stood and lifted her up against his body. “You don’t need to know everything. Knowing everything is not always a good thing. Now, come with me.” He began to pull her to the bedroom.

  “And why do I want to do that?” He never turned to face her until they arrived at their destination.

  Dev spun her around and began unzipping her dress. “Because you need to get out of this dress and into that bed. If you don’t, I will throw you in it.”

  Lily turned around and walked out of her dress. She laid it softly on one of the chairs. “You wouldn’t dare, Dev.” She saw his twinkling eyes. I can’t say no to those eyes, ever.

  “You really want to go up against me, wife? It’s a very small room and I can catch you very easily.”

  Lily smiled. “That’s true. You are the one that goes running every morning. I might as well surrender right now.”

  “You’ve become so French!”

  “Oh, that was bad. I’ll only surrender to you.”

  Dev had enough of the games and headed toward her, but Lily took a dive into the bed. “No need to attack. I’m in the bed.”

  “Where’d you learn to do that?”

  “Years of practice. Anytime in a hotel, I always do a dive onto the bed. It’s just something I do, even when I’m alone. There was this one time, I dove, and I bounced. I ended up on the floor.”

  Dev leaned over laughing. “I have never laughed with anyone as much as I do with you.” He undressed and slid in beside her. “You have a few more articles of clothing to remove, including this.”

  “Watch it, mister. This little foundation garment has kept this body in check all night. It won’t be pretty if you remove it. Parts might go all over the place.”

  He kissed her neck. “Oh, I’m counting on that.” His whisper was passionate. Dev reached over and turned out the light. “Could you do one favor for me tonight?”

  Lily turned and kissed her husband. “Anything.” As soon as the word left her lips she regretted it. Anything with him could mean absolutely ANYTHING.

  Dev moved on top and began to lower one strap and another, making sure to lay a kiss where the material had been. “Please don’t look at the Eiffel Tower while we make love. I feel like I’m in competition with an inanimate object. I’m not sure I’d be the winner.”

  Lily patted him on the back. “I can do that, as long as you keep me completely entertained. When I get bored, I look at
the tower and I begin to make lists in my head. You know like, get Abby her own box of macarons, make sure I get some more of that lavender soap, and I want to get a photo on that one bridge I love so much.”

  “Alexandre III.”

  “Yes, that’s the one. Do you think your dad would like some wine? We can get that at the airport, right?”

  “Lily?” Dev looked up into her face.

  “Yes?”

  “Fermez la bouche.”

  “That sounds lovely, but I think I remember you just told me to shut my mouth.”

  Dev kissed her forehead, her nose and then lightly pecked her lips. “Oui. Just stop. I want you, all of you. No tower, no lists, no talking. It’s just you and me. Je t’aime.”

  Lily blinked twice. What had she gotten herself into? Possibly heaven? No nightmares tonight.

  “And that means you love me. That is so nice.”

  As Dev made his way down to remove the foundation of woven elastic, Lily was finally quiet. It was definitely time to get back to the honeymoon. But she was almost too quiet. She wasn’t asleep, was she?

  He slowly looked up. She was still awake, but she had her head turned slightly. “You’re watching the damn tower.” He added a growl.

  “It’s so pretty, Dev. I have you and the Eiffel Tower. What more could a girl want? Could you do me a favor?”

  Dev rolled over on the other side of the bed. “Sure,” he answered exasperated.

  Lily left the bed to remove the remainder of the killer underwear and hopped back in quickly. It was getting cold in the room.

  She leaned over him and took in the view. There was just enough light in the room to see those eyes and full lashes, that jaw and muscular neck. She touched his chest. It was solid, but she didn’t mind sleeping on it.

  “What was the favor?”

  “My, you are Mr. Impatience. Actually, you already did it.”

  Dev was now totally confused. First, she wouldn’t shut up, then he was uprooted in her affections by an original eyesore on the landscape of Paris, and now her vagueness was infuriating. “What did I do?”

  She leaned over and kissed him. His arms took her down on top of him. When she broke from the kiss, she whispered, “You got on your back. Now I need a full two hours, soldier.”