He sighed and gazed up at the ceiling. He probably deserved this.
A glance to the right showed him an empty bathroom, the lights extinguished. Looking to the opposite side of the room, he saw sunlight flooding in through the bedroom window and frowned. It appeared to be later than he’d expected.
The clock told him he’d slept until almost 10 A.M.
Kees cursed and sat up, throwing back the covers. He remembered exhaustion weighing down on him when he carried Ella to bed in the middle of the night. They had both dozed off on the sofa after that amazing bout of lovemaking, but he’d woken after a few minutes and realized they would both be more comfortable in her bedroom. He recalled settling her gently onto the mattress before crawling in beside her. The last image in his mind was the sight of her hair spread over the pillow as he curled himself around her and drifted into sleep.
Why hadn’t she woken him?
He didn’t find her in the rest of the apartment, but he did find a note. Not propped on the pillow, the way a lover might leave it, but stuck to the door of the microwave.
Kees frowned as he reached for it. True, it was a good place to catch his attention, since even Guardians ate during their waking cycles, but it struck him as a little cold. As if she was trying to put distance between them.
The tone of what she’d written offered little reassurance.
Kees,
I had to be back at work before 9:00. I plan to call Fil from there and let her know what we need. I don’t imagine she’ll say no, but I’ll catch you up tonight.
Also, I think it would be a good idea for me to learn some more useful spells in case we run into more nocturnis. Maybe we could work on that during our lesson tonight. I marked a couple in Alan’s books I thought looked interesting.
—E.
What the hell?
Kees snarled and crumpled the paper in his hand. That was all she had to say to him? Last night she had told him she loved him, and this morning all she wrote about what their mission. As if they had nothing more between them.
His first instinct urged him to head right over to the museum, drag her into the nearest dark corner he could find, and demonstrate for her with brutal clarity exactly what they had between them. She was his, damn it, and she needed to understand that.
Sanity held him back.
He knew his little human well enough to realize that interrupting her at work and exposing her private relationship to public scrutiny wouldn’t win him any points. Ella held herself a little apart from most people, and he had learned that she valued her privacy. As much as he wanted to demand she explain herself to him immediately, waiting for her return and discussing the matter here would probably get him an answer faster.
And without feeling her shoes against his shins.
The thought was almost enough to make him smile. His anger still simmered at the idea of her sneaking out while he slept and leaving him with no more than a terse, impersonal note, but he could bide his time for a few hours. Paging through the books she had left him might help.
Besides, he thought, shifting back to his natural form and smiling until the tip of a fang peeked out from between his lips, if they resolved their differences here, maybe Ella could help him understand something. There was a term humans used that had always made him curious. Tonight, maybe Kees would finally discover the definition of something called “make-up sex.”
* * *
Ella pinched together a bite of bread and rolled it between her fingers while the phone rang in her ear. She’d like to blame her lack of appetite on nerves over calling someone she hadn’t talked to in more than five years in order to ask for a favor, but not even at her most delusional would she ever buy that lameness. The knots in her stomach had nothing to do with her college classmate and everything to do with the monster she’d left in her bed.
And she wasn’t referring just to his penis.
“Bonjour.”
Distracted by her own thoughts, Ella hadn’t even noticed that the phone had stopped ringing. She almost choked getting out a hasty reply.
“Uh, hi. Is this Fil? Er, Felicity?”
She knew that English was the woman’s first language, but living and working in Montreal would make a French greeting pretty normal.
“Yeah, who’s this?”
“Um, hi,” Ella repeated nervously, wondering how she was going to explain things to her old friend, or if they ever were friends. Would friends have lost touch for so long? “I know this is totally out of the blue, and you might not even remember me, which would be really embarrassing, but you and I went to school together, and I—”
“Oh my God. Ella Harrow, is that you?”
Oh, wow. Maybe Fil did remember her.
Ella let out a relieved laugh. “Yeah, it’s me.”
“El, this is awesome. I haven’t heard from you in, like, forever. How are you?”
The warmth in Felicity’s voice made Ella’s heart swell. She’d liked the other woman from the first moment they met in a Renaissance art class during their sophomore year, but she’d never been very good at making friends. Since she’d gone into foster care, she learned that losing people hurt too much, and keeping them at arm’s distance was just easier. She and Fil had worked together on several projects and occasionally grabbed coffee or a snack together, but they hadn’t maintained contact after graduation.
Ella had to admit that was probably her fault.
She knew her own weaknesses, and she remembered how Fil had dealt with them—mainly by ignoring their existence. As far as Ella could remember, all of the time they had spent together outside of their assigned class projects had been at Fil’s instigation. For some reason, Fil had never taken offense at Ella’s quiet reserve. Most other people thought it meant she was a snob or cold or unfriendly, but Fil had just acted as if the distance wasn’t even there.
Nothing Ella had done—or more precisely, not done—had managed to push the other woman away. Fil had dug in her heels and decided the two of them were friends, so friends they were. Even the accidental revelation of Ella’s magical secret hadn’t frightened her off. Since the magic terrified Ella back then, back before she’d known what it was, that had left her speechless.
The girls had worked late—until well after midnight—on a project at the university library. By the time they left the building to return to their respective dorms, it had been pitch black and silent in the wooded section of campus that separated student housing from the library. Fil—practical, rational Fil—had seemed unfazed by the creepy atmosphere, but something had set Ella’s nerves on edge.
She’d felt eyes on her from the moment they first left the library, but seen no hint of any other people along the trail. Telling herself it must be her imagination, she had tried to push aside the feeling, but her skin continued to crawl as they walked through the quiet night.
When one of the overhead lamps that illuminated their path blinked out without warning, Ella had jumped out of her skin. Whirling around, she peered into the trees at the side of the path and saw something move. Then she lost it.
The door walling off her magic had sprung open and the force of the power breaking through had tossed both women onto their asses. Maybe Ella’s scream had scared away the figure in the trees, but by the time Fil had leapt to her feet and shouted for whoever was scaring her friend to show himself, the odd menacing feeling had disappeared. The night air felt entirely normal, and Ella felt like an idiot.
Fil had just grabbed her hand and helped her to her feet, given her a hug, and told her it was fine. There had been curiosity in the other woman’s eyes when she stepped back, but she hadn’t said a thing about what knocked her down, and she never brought up the incident again. Still, Ella always remembered it, and it had made her even more self-conscious when they saw each other. When graduation separated them, she felt something almost like relief.
“I’m good, Fil,” she responded, her mouth relaxing into a smile as she focused again on the pr
esent. “How are you?”
“Oh, you know. I’m still waiting for fame, fortune, and Chris Hemsworth to show up on my doorstep, but other than that, things are pretty good.” There was a slight pause, and the woman sighed. It was a good sound, relaxed and mellow. “It’s good to hear from you, Ella. I’m really glad you called.”
Once again, Ella felt a surge of pleasure. She got along well with people, and she knew she could probably call Bea a friend, but the easy acceptance of the woman on the other end of the phone warmed her. It also made her a little sad when she realized that she still didn’t let many people get close to her. Maybe she needed to change that.
You know, once the fate of the world no longer hung in the balance.
“I hope you still think that once I tell you while I called,” she said, trying to inject some levity into her voice.
“Totally. If you called to ask me a favor, I’ll just make another call specifically so we can catch up and gab part of my price.” The comment was so typically Fil that Ella grinned into the phone. “Whatcha need, sweetie?”
“Nothing too crazy,” Ella assured her. “I’m trying to get some information, actually, on a piece of statuary I heard might be in one of the museums out near you.”
“In Montreal, you mean?”
“Yes.”
“You still in BC?”
“Vancouver,” she confirmed. “Hence the need for the favor.”
“Sure. Tell me more.”
And here’s where things got tricky. Ella called up the story she’d rehearsed in her head earlier and tried to keep her voice casual.
“I’m at Vancouver Art and History now, and—”
“Whoa, isn’t that the place that just got robbed?”
Crap. Ella had been hoping the news hadn’t spread all the way across Canada yet. She’d have to regroup fast.
“Um, yes. Actually, that’s part of this whole thing. I think the piece we lost might have a companion out there in Montreal. Something with a similar theme and style.”
Ella heard the rustle of paper on the other end of the line before Fil said, “Something in a twelfth-century limestone grotesque, perhaps?”
Her snooty French auctioneer impression made Ella laugh. “Exactly.”
“I can’t say I’ve seen anything like that around, but there’s always the chance someone has it tucked away out of sight. Or, if the two pieces are related, they may be tucking it out of sight right now. Although, how someone steals a half-ton statue without leaving a single clue makes me think I’m reading one of those locked-room mysteries.”
“You and me both.” Ella didn’t mention that it made a lot more sense when you knew the statue was alive and those wings really worked.
“What do you need me to find out?”
“Just if someone’s got it and where it’s at. Can you do that?”
“Does a bear shit in the woods? What’s going on? Does your director want to buy a replacement for the one you lost?”
Ella forced a laugh. “‘Lost’ makes it sound like someone dropped it behind the sofa.”
“Semantics. So?”
“Um, I’m not sure,” Ella hedged. “I’m just gathering info. I don’t know if it’s for insurance or replacement or what. But if you can let me know, it would be a help.”
“You got it, sweets. Want to hear about today’s special pricing plan?”
This time a genuine laugh escaped her. “Sure, Fil. Just remember I’m a poor, underpaid art historian, though.”
“Well, right now we’re running a one-for-two offer,” the other woman teased. “I do you this one favor and you promise me two things.”
“Shoot.”
“Okay, first, you give me your number, address, and e-mail right this very minute and promise me never to let it go this long before we talk again.”
Ella’s throat tightened. She had figured Fil remembered her warmly enough to agree to do her this favor, but she had never expected to be embraced like a long-lost friend. She hadn’t thought she was anyone’s long-lost friend. It felt good to be wrong.
“I promise,” she managed after a short pause, then recited the information while Fil scratched it down.
“Perfect. Now, for number two.”
“Lay it on me.”
“Promise you’ll come visit.”
Ella froze. Go to Montreal on a friendly visit? In between being targeted for fricassee by minions of evil and learning how to cast magical spells against said evil minions. Sure, no problem.
“Uh, things are a little … crazy right now, Fil.”
“What’s the matter? You got a new guy you can’t climb off of?”
Her choked gasp spoke for her.
“Holy hell, you do!” Fil roared with laughter. “Way to go, little Miss Retiring Flower. Is he hawt?”
Fil’s outrageous mouth had always been able to make Ella smile. This time, it also made her cheeks flame. “Yes, not that it’s any of your business.”
“Well, then bring him along. But, seriously, I didn’t mean right now. We’re not college students anymore, right? We have to worry about things like jobs and vacation time and airline prices and all that crap. Just tell me you’ll come see me.” Her voice softened. “I miss you, El. I really am glad you called. Even if it was to ask for a favor.”
“I am, too. Thanks, Fil.”
“No worries. I’m delivering a finished portrait to the Heath Gallery tomorrow, so I should have time in the next couple of days to check out the big boys.” Montreal had several museums with collections that could include a statue the size of a Guardian. “As soon as I find something, or decide there’s nothing to find, I’ll give you call.”
“You’re the greatest.”
“I know,” Fil replied matter-of-factly. “And now I know how to find you, so don’t think you can hide from me, Ella Marie.”
“No, ma’am.”
Fil laughed and hung up with a cheerful good-bye. Ella turned off her cell phone and stared at the blank screen for a few minutes. Her old friend’s warm greeting and enthusiastic conversation had taken her completely by surprise. She hadn’t expected a reaction like that, not after all these years.
Lately, it seemed like nothing turned out quite the way she expected it would, from phone calls to mind-blowing sex.
Which circled her mind right back to Kees.
Not that he was often far from her thoughts these days. In fact, he seemed to occupy a part of her brain that was large and growing.
Not to mention very, very confused.
What was she going to do about him? Every time she thought she had the gargoyle figured out, he changed the rules on her. First he told her he felt nothing for her, then he proceeded to devour her like a starving man, and then he spent the next week treating her with as much warmth and attention as a piece of furniture. That hurt her, a lot, but she’d seen the writing on the wall, and she had backed off. She hadn’t pushed him, hadn’t demanded to know how he could fuck her one minute and ignore her the next. She had just bitten back the pain and moved on.
Until last night, when the rules had changed again. Even after they’d talked in Alan’s kitchen, even after their souls had been magically bound together, she hadn’t pressed him. She’d thought she knew where things stood, and she’d been prepared to live with that. And then he touched her, seduced her, made her world tilt and her heart slam in her chest. He made her fall in love with him all over again.
The Guardian blew hot and cold, and Ella just couldn’t keep up.
She’d known she was acting like a coward when she sneaked out of bed this morning. The instant she opened her eyes, she’d felt Kees’s arms around her, his long, hard body snuggled up against her back, heating her more thoroughly than an electric blanket. Every moment of the night before had come flooding back to her, and she remembered the way he had taken her apart, inch by inch, touch by touch.
She remembered saying, “I love you.”
Her stomach had clenched, and she felt p
anic well up inside her. She had told him, hadn’t been able to hold it back, and in speaking, she handed him the only weapon he needed to destroy her. She heard her words again, and heard his answering silence.
She couldn’t stay there. She couldn’t remain in that bed, feeling his arms around her, feeling him hold her as if she were precious to him. She couldn’t lie there and wait for him to wake up and see her next to him, then watch him turn right back to stone.
She wouldn’t survive it again.
Like a coward, she’d peeled herself out of his arms and fled to the bathroom. Getting ready for work had been her excuse, her shield against him, but he remained sleeping while she took the world’s fastest shower and dressed like fugitive. Or a ninja. Never in her life had she managed to move so silently, and she doubted it would ever happen again.
In the end, it was two hours too early when she’d left the apartment. She didn’t need to be at work until nine, so she made the trip on foot, taking her time, even stopping on the way for a cup of coffee and a pastry. The coffee at least had warmed her cold hands, but she’d picked at the pastry with disinterest and ended up feeding most of it to the pigeons in the little park down the street from the museum.
A glance down at her desk told her the overindulged bird would have made better use of her lunch as well. She’d taken one bite of a sandwich and managed a couple of pieces of fruit, but her appetite remained elusive. At this rate, she’d be able to market the latest diet craze—the Gargoyle Gut-Buster! Guaranteed to shave inches off your hips in as few as seven days!
With a muttered word to herself, Ella tossed the remnants of her food in the trash can and pushed out of her chair. It was time to get back to work. Her next tour group was due in a few minutes. She only hoped that a class full of nine-year-olds would provide enough of a distraction to let her spend at least an hour or two of her day not brooding over the man waiting for her at home.
A girl could dream, right?
* * *
By seven o’clock that evening, Kees had made a list of the spells he thought Ella should concentrate on, eaten two meals, tidied the kitchen, made the bed, indulged in a shower—though he’d needed to be in his human form to squeeze into her small tub for that—and watched a fascinatingly horrible television program about vampires who attended high school and appeared to have remarkable amounts of sex. He shook his head over the idea that the myth he remembered being used to frighten villages earlier in his existence now appeared primarily aimed at selling automobiles and alcohol.
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