Perfect Storm

by Romy Lockhart

  “I just thought...” Sky sounds disappointed. Then she turns back to Eden. “You mind if we stay the night? I’d like to see what makes this town so hard to leave.”

  “Um...” Eden starts.

  “Great. We’ll go pick our room.” She gets up and heads up the stairs.

  “Sorry,” Lawson mutters on his way past.

  “No, it’s fine,” Eden says, getting up and following him. “You can show me how to do that thing?”

  He laughs. “You’re obsessed.”

  “And I won’t stop bugging you about it until you show me.”

  He shakes his head. “Fine. We can practice at breakfast. Sky’s a late sleeper.”

  He wanders off and Eden comes back to us.

  “That thing better not be a sex thing?” I joke, knowing it must be something Goddess related.

  “He’s going to help me learn how to read minds.” She smiles as my jaw drops.

  “You can read minds?”

  “Not yet,” she says.

  “She read my mind once while we were in L.A.” Eli mentions.

  “She did?” Well, this is interesting.

  “I just don’t know how I did it. I thought maybe my powers were growing, but it didn’t last. Maybe being around Lawson just boosted them or something.” She shrugs. “But we can’t talk about it in front of Sky. She doesn’t know.”

  “Will she be allowed to find out?” Eli asks, clearly thinking along the same lines I am.

  Eden shrugs. “I guess, maybe? I don’t know how any of this works. Lawson knows way more than I do.”

  We’re all silent for a few moments. Then I see the sadness settle into Eden’s gaze again and I squeeze her hand.

  “What happened this morning?”

  She sighs softly. “Blake has been killed.”

  Blake? My stomach plunges. The doctor I let in yesterday. The guy who was going to be Eden’s fourth. He’s been killed. What the hell? I put my arm around her. “I’m sorry, Eden. He seemed like a good guy.”

  I exchange a look with Eli. He’s definitely thinking along the same lines I am. What are the chances that Eden’s fourth would be killed the day after she decided to start seeing him? I don’t like this. Who’s trying to hurt her now?

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Eden

  Lawson and Sky take their sweet time picking out a room. If this was Sky and anyone else I’d know the reason for that, but she hasn’t slept with Lawson yet so they must be talking. The thought makes me wince. She’s mad at me for not jumping into her joint tour idea with both feet. He knows why I’m hesitating. He poked into my mind while I was trying to think of the right words to placate Sky without committing myself. I know Nick and Eli are fine with whatever decision I make, but Asher doesn’t even know I was thinking about going back to work soon. I need to speak to him before I give her an answer. My cell starts to ring. When I see the call’s from Amy, I decline it.

  That’s only going to make her blow up my phone. I turn it off so I don’t need to deal with her harassment. It’s the last thing I need right now.

  “I think I’ll go get stuff for dinner. The fridge is looking kind of empty,” Nick announces, kissing me briefly on the lips before he gets up. He turns his gaze on Eli. “Look after our Goddess while I’m gone.”

  Eli nods, brushing my hair back from my face and stroking my cheek softly with his thumb. “She’s in good hands.”

  His voice is filled with such promise it makes me quiver. His dark eyes gaze into mine before focusing on my lips. It makes my heart begin to race.

  “Don’t have too much fun without me,” Nick whispers in my ear, his lips brushing my neck as Eli’s mouth meets mine.

  I shiver as Eli pulls me into his lap. I want them both, and I want them now. Desire rushes through me, my body heating under Eli’s touch. When I hear the door close I break away with a heavy sigh. Nick is gone, and we have visitors. Sky and Lawson could come back into the room at any moment. I slide forward to straddle Eli, enjoying the feel of his hard body pressed against mine.

  “Too bad we’ve got company,” he murmurs, gazing hungrily at my lips.

  “Understatement of the year,” I mutter back, pulling him in for one last searing kiss.

  Who cares if they walk in on us? Would it really be so bad to unzip his jeans right now, and... Clearly I’m in some kind of sex-trance. My body is so desperate for his touch that I’m a breath away from screwing him when our guests could walk back into the room at any given moment. Let them watch, maybe they’ll learn a thing or two. I pull back and force myself to stand up, putting some distance between us.

  I hug myself and clear my throat. I’m breathless and throbbing between my legs. “Why the hell did Sky have to decide to stay?”

  He smiles wryly. “I’m sure they’ll need to go out sometime.”

  Why can’t sometime be now? I have to calm my racing heart down. Or I’m going to throw caution out the window and do something too scandalous to recover from. I really don’t think straight when I’m turned on. I should know that from my sexcapades in L.A. with Nick. We didn’t really risk being seen by the crowd, but the thrill of someone catching us outweighed the fear of being caught. It’s a bad move for a household name to make. I really need to get this stuff under control before the entire world knows I have three lovers.

  “Okay. I’m going over here,” I move toward the kitchen.

  He laughs. “You’re running away from me?”

  And he’s following me? “Stay over there.”

  He shakes his head. “Relax. I’m not going to start something we can’t finish.”

  “You kind of already did.”

  “I didn’t think a kiss would get you so hot.”

  “Liar.”

  I put the counter between us, rushing behind it when he goes for the breakfast bar part with the stools. He laughs again and the sound makes me smile.

  “If you’re going to hide back there you could put on the coffee maker.”

  “I could.” I wait a second before I do it. At least it’s giving me something to do with my hands. I make his coffee and decide to have one too. I’m feeling rattled. By the tour, by Blake’s death. It feels like the world has gone crazy. “Any news yet?” I look back over my shoulder.

  Eli shakes his head. “I’ll call in again soon. Hopefully they’ll have a lead by then.”

  I hope so. The waiting is torture. I need to know what happened. It won’t change things, but the closure would help a little. Sadness wells up inside me again. Who am I kidding? It’s not going to help at all. He shouldn’t be dead. I can’t stand the thought that he’s gone. I hear Eli get to his feet and the next thing I know his arms are around me. I lean into the hug and stifle the tears that want to fall.

  “We’ll find out who did this,” Eli tells me, holding me close. “I promise.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Eli

  When my least favorite deputy shows up at Eden’s door for the second time, I’m glad she’s busy pouring coffee at the counter. I don’t want her to have to deal with this guy. The sooner I can get him off of her doorstep, the better.

  “You have an update for me?” I raise an eyebrow at him.

  He looks me over, a sneer pulling at his face. “Actually, I’m here for Miss Masterson.”

  “Well, she’s busy. What do you have?”

  He’s silent for a minute, and I know he’s considering his options. He has a mildly pissed off pensive expression on his face. I’m about to remind him who his boss is when he opens his mouth.

  “I’m here to take her in for questioning. She’s a suspect in the murder of Dr Blake Lewis.”

  Well, that’s unexpected. It’s also complete and utter bullshit.

  “What evidence do you have?”

  “You’re off duty.”

  “And you’re out of line. Tell me everything you know. Now.”

  I glance back and Eden locks eyes with me. Her smile freezes and I bite back a curse. Sh
e must be wondering what’s going on. I smile back before I push Ben out of my way, come outside and close the door behind me. My hand stays on the handle, knuckles white.

  “You’re dating her.” The glower of disapproval he wears is utterly infuriating.

  “That’s not your business. Tell me what you found.”

  “I don’t know,” he says. “You’re not going to be objective about this.”

  No, I’m not, and I couldn’t give a shit. “Tell me.”

  “She was the last person to see him alive. She lied about that. There was a note in his personal journal, something he wrote after he was here.” He sounds pleased with himself, as if that’s concrete evidence. I know he’s not that stupid, so I wait for the other shoe to drop. “And I found a witness who saw her leaving his office this morning, covered in blood. He said she had a knife in her hand. We’ll be filing for a search warrant if she doesn’t allow entry.”

  I pick through his story. Eden did lie about seeing him, but that doesn’t mean anything. It wasn’t when he died. So I’m not going to worry about that. What does worry me is the ‘witness’ and his testimony. When I get his name I’ll be a step closer to finding out who’s got it out for Eden, so at least there’s that.

  “Eden hasn’t left this house in more than a day. She has security guards who can testify to that. And she has me. Your witness didn’t see what he thinks he did. Who is he?”

  Ben frowns at me. “With the evidence I have it’s my job to take her in for questioning.”

  “You have nothing, Ben.” I try to keep calm, but I can feel the anger inside me sparking furiously. He’s coming close to making me snap and that is not going to help things. “Where did you find your witness? Who is he?”

  He sighs before passing me his notepad. I snatch it out of his reluctant grasp and flip through pages of old scored through notes. Some of them look like grocery lists. I stop at the name and address details of the witness. I have to find out who he is. Chances are this guy’s the one who killed the doctor. I just need to lean on him, make him crack, and this nightmare goes away.

  “Give me five minutes.”

  He puts his hand out but I keep the notepad as I return to the house. Eden glances up at me, a deep frown darkening her features. “Everything okay?”

  I nod. “I’m going out for a bit with my deputy. See if we can get to the bottom of this thing. Will you be okay here with Lawson and Skyler?”

  Her eyes widen. “You found something out?”

  “Not quite yet.” I don’t want to get her hopes up or make her worry. There’s still a chance this might be nothing. Some people are highly suggestible. If Ben was wandering around town asking questions indiscreetly, he might have asked the wrong person the wrong thing. He might have created this mess on his own.

  Eden nods. “Well, be careful.”

  “I will.” I kiss her briefly in passing.

  “Where are you going?”

  “I’m suiting up. Might need to talk to some people.”

  “Oh. Well, don’t let me slow you down, Sheriff.” She smiles.

  I know she likes the uniform. Maybe later, when everything’s settled, we can have some fun with that. Right now, I need to get moving.

  Sky and Lawson are on the landing when I get up the stairs. Eden’s best friend shoots me a questioning glance as I dart past them. “Who lit the fire under his ass?”

  I stop and look back at Lawson, hoping he’s doing his mind-reading trick. “Look after Eden, okay? I’ve got a job to get to.” Someone’s trying to hurt her. She’ll be safer with you than anyone.

  A tiny sliver of doubt enters my mind the moment he nods emphatically and heads down the stairs with Sky. It’s kind of weird that he’d show up here the same day that Eden’s fourth is killed. If I’ve learned anything in this line of work, it’s that coincidences don’t really exist. I keep moving, though now I’m torn. Maybe she’d be better off being taken to Haleton station for questioning. That might at least keep her out of the path of the person who’s trying to hurt her.

  Or it might be playing straight into their hands. Maybe their end game is to land her in prison for murder. There are many paths to destruction, as Eden’s guide explained to her some time ago. Locking her away would prevent her lovers from getting close to her to comfort her in any tangible way.

  My anger has flared to full on rage by the time I’m dressed and carrying my weapon. I don’t like any of this. I hope to hell Lawson isn’t the one behind this shit, because he’s not going to be easy to take out if it turns out to be him. I’ve seen how Gods can control mortal men. I’ve seen the fucked up shit they can make people do.

  I go back downstairs and relief hits me as I see Nick at the counter, taking food out of a bag and tossing it into the fridge haphazardly. I feel much better about leaving Eden now. As much as I know she can take care of herself, I also know how much she’s hurting over the death of the guy she thought was going to be her fourth. She’s not okay right now. She’s vulnerable, and the person who’s doing this might use it to his advantage. Nick might only be mortal, but I know he’ll keep Eden happy while I’m gone, and I can’t ask for more than that.

  Nick raises an eyebrow as I come his way. Sky and Lawson are back in the living room with Eden, the TV playing in the background now. Good. It’s loud enough to drown us out.

  “What’s up?” he asks as he glances at me. “You look all agitated. And kind of like a cop.”

  “Someone is pointing the finger at Eden for that doctor’s death.” I keep my voice low.

  He frowns. “What?”

  “My deputy picked up a witness. I’m going out to find out what’s going on.”

  “What? Why would someone want to frame her?”

  “I don’t know, but don’t say anything to her right now. She doesn’t know. Just stay close to her. Hopefully I’ll be back soon.”

  “Well, we’ve got Lawson so I think we’ll be okay.”

  “I don’t trust Lawson. I trust you.”

  He nods slowly. “Go do your job, Sheriff. We’ll be here when you get back.”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Nick

  Okay. So Eli doesn’t trust Lawson? I glance at the guy as I stack the last of the food into the fridge. I wonder if something happened, or... Fuck me sideways. Those two showed up this morning, the same day Blake was killed. That’s kind of suspicious now that I think about it. But what would Lawson have against Eden?

  She helped him save Skyler. The woman he’s supposedly in love with. Though they haven’t slept together yet. Which is kind of weird considering Sky’s usually a dive in head first kind of girl when it comes to sex. But I’m getting off track here.

  Wait. I think I might be overlooking the obvious. He’s a God of Love. Eden’s a Goddess of Love. I wonder if there’s an attraction there, one sided, of course. I’m not worried about Eden falling for her best friend’s guy. She just wouldn’t. But him? I don’t know the guy. I can’t rule it out.

  “Nick, are you coming over?” Eden glances back at me from the couch.

  I shake my head. “I was going to ask what you might want for dinner. I should probably start prepping everything now.”

  I don’t want to be sitting too close to Lawson while I’m still having suspicious thoughts about him. Mind-reader or not, my face tends to tell someone what I’m feeling about them whether I really want it to or not. I’m not a good liar unless I’m being funny and then no-one knows if I’m pulling their leg.

  “I’ve got stuff for a curry or a stew.” According to the recipe book that’s partially destroyed from my last attempt at making an edible meal, at least. My first attempt wasn’t exactly successful, but that hardly matters. I’m only trying to avoid being near Lawson, not win chef of the year.

  “Curry,” Sky casts her vote, glancing at Lawson.

  He nods. “That’s fine with me.”

  “Sounds good,” Eden chips in. “Don’t go crazy with the spices. A little goes a lon
g way.”

  They go back to idle chatting while watching some trashy reality show. I try to keep my mind on what I’m doing. I shouldn’t really be starting this shit hours before Asher’s due home, but I don’t know what the hell else to do. Nerves kick in within half an hour and I almost drop the chicken into the mango chutney instead of the marinade I just mixed up. Almost done and I can’t stop wondering when the hell Eli’s going to be back. So far Lawson hasn’t done anything other than dote on Sky and grumble about the shitty shows she keeps picking, but every time he shifts in his seat I just about jump out of my skin.

  So when he gets up to use the john, I make sure my eyes are on the counter. Everything’s prepped so I’m just fucking around now, trying to come up with an excuse to stay out of the way. I breathe out a sigh of relief when he passes.

  Then I start making Unicorn Fuzz cocktails. They take a while to mix to get the right consistency so it keeps my busy while I wait for Eli to return. And if Sky’s unquenchable thirst when it comes to them is anything to go by, keeping up with her demand for more should take up the rest of my day.

  I don’t hear him come back, so I almost drop my mixer when Lawson leans in and quietly asks, “Why do you think I have something to do with a dead body?”

  I bite back a curse and shake my head at him as I put the mixer down. My body’s already tensing up in anticipation of a throw down. I’m no stranger to a fist fight, but this guy isn’t mortal. If he tells me to stop, I have to obey. Hell, if he tells me to start punching myself I’d be forced to do it. I’m not stupid. I know I have no hope to win against someone like him. I have my fingers crossed it doesn’t come to that, but I’m ready to give it all I have if it does.

  “I’m not here looking for trouble,” Lawson says, keeping his voice low as he takes the mixer and uncaps it, his gaze drifting to the couch where our women are still concentrating on the TV.

  Yeah, because creeping up on me like this isn’t suspicious at all.

  He sighs. “Nick, I don’t know what’s going on here, but it would be better for everyone if you just told me.” He picks up a glass and pours the cocktail. It’s ready, purple and shimmering.