Legend of Love

by Kessler, Lisa

  She shook her head. “Then here comes Zeus, causing all kinds of drama by comingling with humankind. He fathered bastard children with the other goddesses and even slipped down to earth to seduce human women. With half-human half-god children running around, suddenly the human world was contending with vengeful gods and goddesses. Our best guess is that the guys in gold masks are still worshipping Kronos.”

  Hunter took a long drink of his water and stared out the sliding glass door. “Why would they want to hurt you?”

  “It’s probably two-fold: they can hurt Zeus by killing his daughters, but even more so, if they really want to free the Titans, they would need to reach the Earth’s core.”

  His green eyes met hers. “You lost me again.”

  “When we get our theater open, we’ll be inspiring not only the arts but the sciences. More electric cars and alternative energy means—”

  “No more drilling?” he finished.

  She nodded. “Most likely. And somehow they know we’re the reborn muses. I don’t know how yet, but they do.” She broke eye contact, staring at her glass. “They killed Nia, the reborn Muse of Astronomy. We’re being more careful now. That’s why all the security cameras were installed.”

  She waited, but he remained silent. The time on her phone flashed at her. “I need to get ready for work. I probably don’t have to tell you this, but just in case, please don’t tell anyone. I could lose my job, and we can’t complete our work on the theater from a padded room.”

  He chuckled. “Who would believe me anyway, right?”

  Bryce slid his key card into the back gate of Belkin Oil and stashed the bike in the warehouse. His heart still hammered against his rib cage. He’d planned to get into her place and steal some of the plans for their theater, a token for the ceremony inducting him into the Order of the Titans. But instead of blueprints, he had a cracked rib or two.

  He pulled off his helmet and hung his robe and gold mask on the hooks to the right of the door. Carefully, he lifted his shirt, wincing at the round black-and-purple bruise on the left side of his chest. Bitches. Every last one of them.

  Because they… He frowned. Now he wasn’t sure. But he knew they had to die. And they would.

  All his life he’d wanted to fit in, and now he finally found a mission and purpose. Tonight he would become the new enforcer for the Order of the Titans. No more graveyard shift for online tech support. Now he had a far more important job: to help bring back the Golden Age of Man.

  He shifted himself in his jeans. Just thinking about it gave him an erection.

  But first he needed to come up with a story for Ted Belkin, Jr. Bryce couldn’t bear the thought of having his new title ripped from him. No. He didn’t have the theater blueprints, but he had gotten a good look at the man in shorts and dog tags. With some digging, he could probably get a name. And if the soldier got in his way again, then he would kill him, too.

  Bryce smiled as he made his way toward the office building. So far, power was a damned fine drug.

  CHAPTER 7

  Hunter walked Callie into her office and then caught a ride with Reed back to his SUV. His thoughts were jumbled as he replayed his earlier conversation with Callie. Muses, Guardians, and dangerous wackos in gold masks…

  “You’re quiet. Everything okay?” Reed asked.

  He glanced over at his friend and nodded. “Yeah. I think it will be.”

  “Hope so.” Reed pulled into the lot and pointed at the surfboards in the rental car. “Have you been practicing? Little rusty on your board?”

  “Even rusty, I could out-surf you.” Hunter grinned and drank in the normalcy. He and Reed had spent all four years of high school on the surf team, and each year they’d alternated bringing home the individual championship trophy.

  “Bullshit.” Reed smiled. “I’m ready to prove it anytime.”

  “Tomorrow?”

  “Done.” Reed parked beside Hunter’s SUV. “Read anymore minds lately?”

  Hunter’s gut twisted. He’d already told his best friend more than he should have. “Nah, I think I was imagining it.”

  “Maybe you took a serious bump to the head on that last mission.”

  “Maybe.” He got out and added, “Six o’clock tomorrow morning, right here.”

  “Loser has to buy breakfast,” Reed said. “So bring your wallet.”

  Hunter laughed, shaking his head. “Be sure you’ve got enough room on your credit card. I’ve got a good appetite.”

  He closed the door and watched Reed drive away. Being off on missions with his team kept him busy, and the pressure made it tough to think about anything else. He hadn’t realized how much he missed his friend. Or his family.

  Hunter drove to the base hotel and got out of the car. The boards could stay put a little longer. He needed a shower before he got on with his day. He had promised his Mom he’d come for dinner tonight, too, and the least he could do was show up clean. And according to the text she sent him earlier that morning, his sister and her boyfriend were coming, too.

  Now he really wished he’d gotten out of it.

  Callie caught herself watching the clock during her last two appointments. The intruder in her bedroom had shaken her up more than she’d wanted to admit. And even though she gave Hunter a crash course in muses and Guardians, there was still a lot he didn’t know.

  By the time her workday finally ended, she was jittery and achy. She pulled out her cell phone and called Mel.

  “Hey, it’s Callie. Do you have a minute?”

  “Sure, just grading papers. What’s up?”

  Callie clicked the end of her ballpoint pen over and over. “That Navy SEAL I mentioned the other night? He has the same mark, like Nate’s, only it’s on his wrist.”

  “Uh, shouldn’t this be a good thing?” Mel asked.

  “No. Yes. I don’t know.” Callie paused. “One of the guys in the gold Kronos masks was in my house this morning.”

  “What?” Shock was plain in her voice. “Did you call the police?”

  “No. He ran off before Hunter could catch up to him, and I’m not sure how we can keep our secret with the police digging around.”

  Mel groaned. “Callie, I’m marrying the police in a few weeks.”

  Callie rocked back in her chair. “You’re marrying one detective. That’s hardly the entire police force.”

  “Nate’s not going to let anyone find out about us. Besides, they’d believe we were blood-sucking vampires before they’d believe we’re vessels for the nine daughters of Zeus.” Mel chuckled. “God, it sounds even more nuts when I say it out loud.”

  “What would Nate be able to do anyway?” Callie stared at her desk, wishing she could forget the moment she’d found the man wearing the golden Kronos mask in her closet. “He got away and we never saw his face.”

  “Nate could dust for prints.”

  “He was wearing gloves.”

  “What about DNA? Maybe he lost a hair in your house.”

  Callie rolled her eyes. “With all seven of you coming over to my place all the time, how would we ever know if we had an intruder’s hair?”

  “Fine.” Mel huffed. “I still want Nate to come by. He can meet your Guardian and they can team up or something.”

  Callie shook her head and sighed. “I can’t believe this is happening. We’re so close.”

  Mel lowered her voice a little. “Hate to break it to you, Cal, but we still don’t have the permit to fix the roof, and then we’ve still got to find a bid we can afford to gut the interior and refurbish everything. We’re not even close to ‘close,’ and right now, we need all the help we can get.”

  “And how is Hunter Armstrong going to help us? Think he can hang drywall between catching waves?”

  “Hunter Armstrong…” Mel’s tone lightened. “Sounds sexy. Have you broken your no-dating pact yet?”

  “No.” Callie shook her head even though no one could see her. “He may be my Guardian, but I’m not planning on dating hi
m. In spite of that, we’re apparently connected anyway. He can hear people’s thoughts if they’re about me.”

  “Can he hear yours?”

  “No.” Callie smiled. “Thank the gods.”

  “You’re not going to date him, but you’re having impure thoughts about him?”

  “Trust me, Mel. If you saw this guy in board shorts, you’d know it’s impossible not to have impure thoughts.”

  “But you’re not going to date him?” Mel repeated.

  “No.” Callie swallowed a whine. It wasn’t Mel’s fault. She just didn’t understand. None of them did. Their muses enhanced parts of their personalities. Hers ruined her life.

  Mel paused. “Nate gets off in an hour, and he’ll come by your place to see if he can find any evidence.”

  “Okay. I’ll call you when I get home.”

  “And Hunter?”

  Callie groaned. “You don’t give up.”

  “Can’t wait to meet him.”

  Callie shook her head, ending the call. Maybe it would be good for Hunter to meet Nate. They still didn’t know how many Kronos worshippers were lurking out there. For all she knew, they were hopelessly outnumbered, but if all of her muse sisters found their Guardians and put up a united front, maybe they could win this.

  The thirst for confrontation, for battle, had her stomach churning. She popped a TUMS in her mouth and crunched it up quickly, mentally telling her muse where she could stick it.

  She pulled out her cell phone, glaring at it. Ugh. This morning she had rushed into the office so fast, she’d barely told Hunter good-bye, let alone discussing when they might see each other again. At least they weren’t dating, so there were no strings, no commitments.

  But if she invited Hunter to her place again, he’d never believe it was just to meet another Guardian. She set her phone down. Yet, if Mel was right and the Guardians could work together… She picked it up again, found Hunter’s number, and punched in a text.

  After lamenting over her wording, she finally hit “send.”

  Call me when you can.

  She packed up her paperwork and removed her purse from the drawer when her phone rang. Hunter’s name flashed on the screen. She steeled herself and answered.

  “Thanks for calling me back,” she said.

  “No problem. Are you all right?” His deep voice was laced with concern.

  “Yeah. I’m going home.”

  “Do you…” He hesitated and finally chuckled. “We never talked about what our boundaries are here. In my line of work, if I’m your Guardian, that means I take the lead and enter the building first to clear any insurgents.”

  She smiled, grateful no one could see. “Actually, Mel’s fiancé is a police detective and he’s coming by my place to see if the masked man left any evidence behind. I thought you might want to meet him since he’s a Guardian, too.”

  “Yeah. We should meet. But…”

  He trailed off, and out of the blue her mind filled in the blank. He had a date. She frowned. It was none of her business if he dated. In fact, it would be tough to believe he wasn’t seeing someone. With that confident smile and those bright-green eyes…

  She stopped herself and blurted out. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to encroach on your plans for the night. We can do it some other time when you’re not busy. No big deal.”

  “Don’t misunderstand.” His voice was calm, soothing her frazzled nerves. “I’d much rather be with you. I’m having dinner at my mom’s house, which would normally be all right. I miss my little sister and I’ll get to see her, but apparently she has a secret boyfriend no one told me about and now my mom wants us to meet. If I don’t show up, it’ll hurt her feelings, but damn, I’m not ready to be the odd man out.”

  “Family is important.” Callie stared at the ceiling, blinking back tears. Her family hadn’t spoken to her in years. “We can do it another time.”

  “Wait.” He shifted the phone, his footsteps coming through now. “Why don’t you come with me? You’ll be my excuse for bugging out early, and then I can meet your friend.”

  Her brain seized up for a second.

  “Callie?”

  She shook her head vehemently, even though he couldn’t see a thing. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

  “Why not?”

  She sighed. “Your sister will be with her boyfriend. Everyone will assume I’m your girlfriend.”

  “Who cares what they think?”

  And there it was in the stark light. “I care what you think.”

  “Man…” He blew out an exasperated breath. “Do you push everyone away this hard, or is it just me?”

  “It’s men in general.”

  “No offense, Doc, but you might have some issues all your own.”

  She chuckled in spite of herself. “You have no idea.”

  “Tell you what? I’ll pick you up from your office. I’m just a couple minutes away.” His car door slammed. “Be my wingman at my mom’s dinner, and you have my word I will not get confused and think you’re interested in me in the slightest.”

  “Fine.” Laugher bubbled from her lips, surprising her again. “How can I resist an offer like that?”

  She locked up her office and headed out. When she got outside, Hunter was already waiting at the curb in his SUV.

  He smiled at her over his sunglasses. She refused to acknowledge the flutter in her belly as she came down the steps and got in.

  She buckled her seat belt. “So what’s our cover story for your family?”

  “We eloped in Vegas and you’re now Mrs. Armstrong.”

  Judging by his expression, her face must’ve paled a few shades.

  He chuckled and pulled away from the building. “Ease up. I was just kidding.” His attention focused on the road. “How about I’ve been teaching you to surf?”

  “Yeah.” Callie smiled. “That works for me.” She rubbed her hand across her abdomen. “Speaking of surfing, I understand why you have abs of steel now. I hurt all over.”

  He glanced her way. “Hopping to your feet over and over like you did this morning definitely builds up your core. You were a woman possessed.”

  “Adventure. The muse feeds on it.”

  He raised a brow. “And you don’t?”

  She shrugged. “I do. Or maybe I did before, but since the Muse of Epic Poetry woke up, adrenaline is like a drug.” She looked out her window, her voice dropping. “It scares me sometimes.”

  He made a right turn, eyes on the road. “Why?”

  She shook her head and faced forward again. “Because I wonder if the muse will ever be satisfied.”

  “But you’re in charge, right? She’s in there, but you’re still you.”

  Callie gripped the sides of her seat, suddenly uncomfortable. She’d already shared more with him on this drive than she’d ever told anyone. Probing any deeper would hurt.

  “Right.” She struggled to change the subject. “I’m fine. Maybe next time I’ll stay up on the board longer.”

  He parked in front of a white single-story house and grinned. “Glad to hear there’s going to be a next time.”

  He got out before she could amend herself. Oh well. Surfing again wouldn’t mean anything.

  Ah, who was she kidding? She was about to meet his family. How had Hunter roped her into this?

  She took a deep breath and got out. They walked up the cement path to the front door. He knocked, and seconds later, a beautiful woman opened the door. Her eyes were a striking green like Hunter’s. No one could miss the family resemblance.

  His mother offered her hand. “Hunter didn’t tell me he was bringing…”

  “A friend,” Callie finished for her. “He’s been teaching me to surf.” She shook her hand. “I hope I’m not intruding.”

  “Of course not.” His mother backed up so they could come inside. “I’m thrilled to meet you. Hunter’s never brought a…friend over before.”

  Callie’s gaze cut over to Hunter, but his attention was o
n his mom as he replied, “Oh come on. Reed used to practically live here.”

  His mom swiped at the air. “Reed doesn’t count.”

  He grinned. “I’ll tell him that next time I see him.”

  They bantered back and forth until Callie’s heart ached. Her father used to tease her like that. She didn’t want to count how many years had slipped by since they last spoke.

  She never should have agreed to come here. As they rounded the corner into the kitchen, a slender woman with long, dark hair stirred a pot on the stove with one hand and gripped a crutch in the other.

  Hunter stopped so fast Callie almost slammed into his back.

  The woman dropped the spoon and opened her arms. Hunter rushed to her, swooping in and spinning her around, her crutch crashing to the ground.

  Their mother picked it up, her eyes brimming with tears as she glanced at Callie. “The last time Hunter saw his sister, she was still in a wheelchair. We didn’t know if she’d ever walk again.”

  He set his sister down carefully, handing her the fallen crutch. She slid her arm through the clasp.

  Her smile brightened her entire face as she looked up at Hunter. “Surprise!”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked.

  “Seems silly now.” She shrugged with a sheepish grin. “But I wanted to be able to see your face when you found out. I didn’t realize how long it would be until you came home again.”

  For a moment, his brows pinched together, but he recovered quickly. Callie had seen that expression on many soldiers who walked through her door after a long deployment, or several. It was universal—the guilt at not being there and the regret that life had moved on in their absence.

  What surprised her was her own reaction, her desire to ease his burden. This wasn’t a professional urge to get him to talk about his feelings. This was personal. Seeing him hurt made her ache inside.

  She took a step away, giving them more space, her heart pounding in her ears. Somewhere along the way, she’d missed a line in the sand.

  She hadn’t kissed him. She hadn’t slept with him. She’d shut down any flirting.

  But it didn’t matter. Somehow she already cared about him more than she should.