Her palms broke into a clammy sweat. She’d nearly destroyed the last man she cared about. The last thing she wanted was for Hunter to be next.
CHAPTER 8
His baby sister was walking. Surprised didn’t begin to describe how he was feeling. He was happy for her, sure, but damn, there was a lot of bitterness brewing, too.
How could they not tell me? I should’ve been here.
Guilt and regret swelled, smothering the anger. He shook his head slowly. “I’m sorry, Alicia. I wanted to come back.”
She blinked back tears. “You’re back now. That’s all that matters.” She turned around and pulled a guy forward. He was a few inches shorter than Hunter, with straight, dark-brown hair and matching eyes. “This is Curtis. Curtis, this is my brother, Captain Hunter Armstrong. He’s a Navy SEAL.”
His sister was beaming, but Hunter couldn’t take his eyes off her boyfriend. This was the man who had stolen her heart. Hunter clasped Curtis’s hand, tight, baiting him to match his grip. He didn’t, but there was a small spark in his eyes.
Good. Alicia deserved someone who would fight for her.
Hunter cleared his throat. “Good to meet you.” He released her boyfriend’s hand, glancing at his mom. “I hear you two met in college?”
Alicia nodded. “Yeah, we kept sitting at the same table in the library for weeks, and finally, Curtis talked to me.”
Curtis’s expression softened when he looked at her. “It took me some time to work up the courage.”
Alicia glanced past Hunter to Callie. “Looks like you have someone in your life now, too.”
Callie was a step behind him. Hunter caught her hand, trying not to smile at the fact that she didn’t smack him for touching her. “This is Dr. Callie O’Connor. She works on the base. I’ve been giving her surf lessons.”
“Surf lessons?” Alicia grinned. “Did Hunter tell you he won the state championship in high school?”
“You should definitely raise your rates.” Callie nudged him with her elbow. “I didn’t know a champion was watching me fall over all morning.”
His sister went back over to the pot. “Dinner’s almost ready.” Her gaze caught Hunter’s. “You’ve got time. Go show her all your trophies.”
His mom joined in. “I haven’t touched your room except to dust since you left for the Navy. The pictures and the poster are still up, too.”
“The poster?” Callie smiled.
Damn, he was a sucker for the mischief in her eyes.
He chuckled. “Yeah, they made a poster of my last ride. It’s no big deal.”
“I think it is.” She squeezed his hand, her touch insistent. “Come on.”
He glanced at the others. Alicia was busy cooking, her boyfriend was engrossed in something on his phone, and his mother was getting plates out of the cupboard.
“Fine. We’ll be right back.”
In the other room, Callie pulled her hand free of his. He did his best not to take it personally. Until this tiny ball of fire came into his life, he’d never been denied a kiss, and he damned sure never met a woman who didn’t welcome his touch. It dented his pride, but at the same time, it also intrigued him. As a SEAL, he knew all too well that “the only easy day was yesterday.” Missions, and training for them, never came easy. You struggled until you had nothing left to give. And something about her determination to keep pushing him away only fired him up to try harder.
Maybe he really did need therapy.
He guided her to his childhood bedroom. Opening the door was like stepping back in time. His surfing trophies and medals lined the back wall. Photos and the poster from the state championships covered the other, with his bed in between.
And tacked to the ceiling over the bed was a bikini-clad bombshell. Heat crawled up his neck making him roll his eyes. He was fucking blushing. What the hell was wrong with him?
Callie walked ahead to look at the photos. He followed her over, shaking his head. “Good thing we’re just friends. I forgot about the blonde over my bed.”
“It’s good to know you have a thing for blondes.” She grinned up at him. “Means I’m safe.”
“I’m not so sure about that.” The way she looked up at him had his blood pumping. Without thinking, he ran the back of his finger down her soft cheek. “See, I met this brunette. She’s smart, beautiful, and she’s got this fire. I saw it in her eyes after she tamed her first wave.”
She didn’t push him away, but she broke eye contact, staring at his surfing photos again. “We should get back to your family.”
He caught her chin, bringing her attention back up to him. “Who is this safe chick in my bedroom?” A flicker of life in her dark eyes. He pressed a little harder. “That woman taking on the waves this morning? She didn’t back down from what she wanted.”
“Stop baiting me.” She pushed him back a step. There was the fire. “I’m saving your ass from heartbreak.”
He raised a brow. “Since when did I ask for your protection?”
“I like you, okay?” She let out an exasperated groan. “You’ve sacrificed for people you’ll never meet. You protect your team and country. I have no doubt you’d lay down your life for your friends, and you deserve a woman who will love you just as fiercely forever.”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “I don’t get why you push everyone away.”
“This isn’t the time to talk about this.”
“Should I set up an office visit?” He dropped his hands to his sides. “If you’d just give me a straight answer—I’m too tall, my voice makes you queasy, I’m an asshole, you hate Navy men—I could deal with that, but there’s something here. I feel it, and I think you do, too.”
She stared up at him, her expression a mixture of pissed, turned on, and maybe a little regretful. What kind of demons was she hiding?
Finally, she rolled her eyes. “Shit. No woman is strong enough for this much temptation.”
She grabbed his shirt and pulled him down to her. He didn’t hesitate to wrap his arms around her, pressing her body tight against his. Her lips were even softer than he’d imagined, and as she opened her mouth, his tongue found hers.
Damn, she tasted like honey. He’d never get enough.
Backing her up toward his dresser, he tipped his head to deepen the kiss and cleared the photos and signed baseball off the top with one swipe of his arm. He lifted her up, setting her on the dresser so they were the same height. Her fingers tightened in his hair, hungry for more. He nudged her knees apart, sliding his hips between her thighs. She wrapped her legs around his waist, pressing his erection against the warmth of her body. He growled into her delicious mouth. Fuck. He’d never wanted anyone so urgently before.
One of her hands wandered from his hair, molding down his back until she cupped his ass pulling him in even tighter. He rocked into her, and she moaned. He almost lost it.
“Hunter?” His mom’s voice came from the other room like an instant ice-cold shower.
He grudgingly broke the kiss and called toward the door. “Be right there!”
He rested his forehead against Callie’s, staring into her eyes. Her legs slid down from his waist. She was already smothering the fire. Dammit.
He shook his head, his whisper rough and raw. “Don’t talk yourself out of this.”
“You don’t understand.”
He kissed her again, tender and slow. “King of bad ideas here, remember?”
The corner of her full lips twitched as she fought a smile. “You deserve so much better than I would ever be able to give you.”
“That kiss…” He searched for the right words, but there weren’t any that could do justice to the intensity of the connection he’d just experienced. And they still had all their clothes on. “You’ve already given me better than I’ve ever had.”
Before she could argue, he lifted her off the dresser and set her feet on the ground. He gestured to his straining zipper. “I need a couple minutes.”
She pressed
her lips together. Not helping.
He went over to the wall of pictures, looking for a distraction from the ache for her. His gaze landed on a picture of him and Reed on graduation day. Seemed like lifetimes ago.
He pointed at it. “This is my best friend, Reed. We were like brothers.” He glanced back as she came closer.
“Are you still friends?”
He sighed, staring at the picture again. “We hadn’t seen each other in a few years until yesterday. But yeah, he’s still Reed.”
She came up beside him. “You have one of the toughest jobs in the world.”
“I still should’ve been here. I…” The image of his dad driving away filled his head before he could push it away. “We better get in there before my mom is knocking on the door.”
He let her pass through before following her out. His high school trinkets were still lying on the floor. He could never go back again, but somehow he had to figure out how to go forward.
He took a seat at the table beside Callie, across from his sister and Curtis, with his mom at the head. After his dad had been gone a year, she’d finally gotten rid of the chair at the other end. Good riddance. At the time, Hunter had been sick of seeing the constant reminder that his dad had left them, not by accident or death, but by choice.
His sister and Callie chatted as the food was passed around, but Hunter had a hard time keeping up. His wrist was throbbing again. Under the table, he unfastened his watch, running a finger over the raised skin.
And then he heard it.
I’m sitting at the same table as a muse.
Callie put some potatoes on her plate and glanced at Alicia. “Hunter told me you recently graduated from college. What’s your degree in?”
“Liberal Arts,” she answered. “I’m working on my teaching credential now.”
Callie smiled, trying to focus on the conversation, but Hunter had gone completely still beside her. “That’s great. What grade are you hoping to teach?”
Hidden beneath the table, Callie rested a hand on Hunter’s thigh, giving him a what-the-hell-is-wrong squeeze, but he didn’t spare her so much as a glance.
Alicia poked at her food. “I want to teach middle school English. I think it’s a great age to get kids fired up about reading and writing.”
Callie nudged Hunter. “Your sister is going to be an amazing teacher.”
“Yeah.” But his gaze was locked on Curtis.
Curtis typed something into his phone and set it beside his plate before lifting his attention to Callie. “You’re a doctor, right? What’s your specialty?”
“I’m a psychologist. I’m a civilian, but I work for the Navy on the base.”
Hunter’s hand moved to cover hers. “She’s surrounded by armed officers all day.” His voice was deep and tense.
Curtis shifted in his chair, and Callie wondered about Hunter’s odd insertion into the conversation. What was going on here that she was missing?
“And what do you do, Curtis?” she asked.
He looked grateful for an excuse to break eye contact with Hunter. “I’m a historian. I specialize in Greek mythology.”
A chill crept down her spine, but she did her best to keep it from showing. Hunter’s grip on her hand tightened. “That must be…interesting,” she said.
Curtis almost smiled. “I love my work.” Suddenly the phone buzzed next to Curtis’s plate. He checked the message and turned to Alicia. “I’m sorry, but I have that meeting tonight.”
“I remember.” She nodded. “You’ll come back and pick me up afterward?”
He bent over and kissed her temple. “Of course.” He dropped his phone into his pocket and glanced around the table, stopping before he reached Hunter. “Great meeting you, Callie. And thanks for a lovely dinner, Colette.” He took a couple of steps away before he added, “Good to finally meet you, too, Hunter. I’ve heard so much about you.”
Hunter’s eyes narrowed a little. “Funny, I didn’t hear anything about you.”
His mother frowned. “Hunter. We already apologized…”
Curtis headed for the door as though Hunter’s verbal jab had never happened. “See you in a little while.”
Once the door closed, Hunter’s full attention shifted to his sister. “How well do you really know that guy?”
Alicia straightened in her chair, smile fading. “That guy drove me to physical therapy and cheered me on to walk again.”
A muscle jumped in Hunter’s cheek.
Callie cleared her throat. “Not to be a killjoy, but I actually have a repairman coming to my house tonight. It was the only time I could get, so I don’t want to miss him.”
Hunter’s mom frowned. “It’s after six o’clock.”
“I know.” Callie nodded. “Apparently plumbers are busy guys. He told me he’d be there between seven and eight.”
“I’m sorry you have to run,” his mom said.
Hunter got up. “Curtis is hiding something, Alicia. I just don’t want to see you get hurt.”
“He was nervous to meet you, that’s all. No, wait.” She slammed her hand on the table. “You know what, Hunter? You don’t get a say in this. I’m a grown woman, and I love him.”
He shook his head slowly. “But do you really know him? What’s this meeting he’s running off to?”
“Screw you.” Alicia got up and carried her plate into the kitchen. When she returned, her nose was red. “For your information, Curtis has a meeting once a month with the council on preserving Greek history. He’s a good guy, and you’d know that if you were ever here.”
Callie caught Hunter’s hand, his piercing gaze landing right on her shoulders. She didn’t shy away. “I’ve really got to get home.”
He nodded slowly. “Yeah.” Shaking his head, he sighed. “Sorry for being an ass, Alicia. Just…a lot has changed since I left.”
Alicia came around the table and embraced him. Callie stepped back and waited while he hugged his sister and then his mom.
When he pulled back, he came up beside her, his hand heavy at the small of her back. He waved to his family. “See you soon.”
Hunter was silent all the way out to the SUV. Callie got in and glanced his way as the engine started. “What happened back there?”
He met her eyes, his expression guarded, eyes narrowed. This was the soldier, the warrior. His voice was even, but every word was forced. “My sister’s boyfriend knows what you are. Who you are. How is that possible?”
Her throat closed up for a second. “The Kronos worshippers.”
“That’s not what he called it.”
Her heart galloped. “You could hear his thoughts?”
He nodded. “They were all about you. He was texting them.”
“Who?”
He faced forward and pushed on the accelerator. “The Order of the Titans.”
CHAPTER 9
Sweat ran down Bryce’s face behind the golden mask of Kronos. Ted gave him details about the ceremony during the drive to the remote campsite, but his nerves were still frazzled. The bonfire roared, sending black smoke up into the night sky.
Ted Belkin, Sr., their leader, stood on a raised platform in his black hooded robe, his gold mask glowing in the firelight. He lifted his arms toward the sky, his son standing quietly at his right side.
Their leader chanted in a deep baritone. “We call to our Father Sky, Uranus, and our great Mother Earth, Gaia. Bless us this night.”
The gathered group echoed back. “Bless us.”
Bryce looked over the Order from the shadows. They all wore the golden masks of Kronos. He had no idea who they were, and they didn’t know him. It was freeing in a way. He could be whoever he chose. And they were about to accept him and welcome him.
He’d spent his entire life as an outsider, but not anymore. Now he had a mission and a purpose.
Their leader bellowed to the heavens. “We are closer than we have ever been to releasing your son, Kronos, and your Titan children from their fiery prison.” The
bonfire snapped in answer. “We are ready to welcome the Golden Age of Man back to this world.”
He turned toward Bryce. His cue. He stepped out of the shadows to take his place beside their leader. Belkin, Sr. took Bryce’s hand and held it high. “Welcome our new enforcer. He will be your new brother. While we further the mission to free the old gods, he will stop the daughters of Zeus. Les Neuf Soeurs theater will never open.”
Cheers rose up from the crowd, and Bryce smiled behind his mask, adrenaline lighting up his bloodstream.
“The muses will no longer inspire mankind to continue on this path of peace and clean energy. Once the Oceanus rig is repaired, we will keep drilling until the Titans are free once more. We will taste immortality!” More cheers. “The Order will be remembered for generations as the few who returned mankind to a world of milk and honey. The sacrifices we make now will bring back the Golden Age of Man!”
The members of the Order roared, raising lit torches over their heads as Bryce knelt at their leader’s feet. He rested a hand on top of Bryce’s hood. “May the old gods bless you with strength, purpose, and fortitude. Now rise.”
Bryce stood and turned toward the other members of the Order. There were only about a dozen of them, but they were going to change the world. He could feel it.
And he would buy them the time they needed, starting with destroying Dr. Callie O’Connor.
Hunter pulled up in front of Callie’s house, scanning the street for any signs of danger. His sister’s boyfriend had seemed harmless enough at first. Just a history geek. But his thoughts were anything but. He hadn’t told Callie everything.
Curtis had been texting someone about an “enforcer” and that they would need to monitor Callie to figure out when she would be alone. He sounded just like the guy who had been watching them talking at the beach the other day.
Callie unlatched her seat belt. “Are you coming?”
He pointed to the car in her driveway. “You recognize that car?”
She nodded. “Yeah, it’s Nate’s. He and Mel are waiting inside.”
Callie had told him about Nate—a police detective and a Guardian. He relaxed—a little. Their kiss had left him rattled, even before hearing Curtis’s thoughts. He was trained to deal with danger, but nothing could have prepared him for the surge of emotions that one kiss had ignited.
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