by Ashley Meira
Crystarium was Santa Fae’s most exclusive restaurant. They had a small cafe attached for patrons who weren’t in the mood for a heavier meal.
“Crystarium charges too much,” Sandra called. “And their coffee isn’t as good.”
Jeffery scoffed. “You just have bad taste.”
Sandra and Ollie looked like kicked puppies at his words.
I glared. “What is your problem?”
“Don’t worry,” he said. “It’s not your fault. I can teach you to appreciate the finer things in life.”
“Yeah—” I crossed my arms “—if I ever want to learn how to come into someone’s place of business and act like a total knob, I’ll call you.”
He scoffed again. “I’m only being honest. It’s not my fault your friend’s little establishment doesn’t convey the level of class I am accustomed to.”
Fiona’s chair screeched as she rose. Her cotton candy scented magic filled the room, and her hands glowed pink. “Get. Out.”
Jeffery might have been an ass, but he wasn’t stupid. I knew he was a mage, but I’d never seen him in action. Was he strong enough to take us on? If his magic was anything like Adam’s, yes. But Adam was a man of action. Jeffery was one of those people who had servants feed him grapes and fan him with giant leaves.
“Whatever.” He shrugged. “I’ll be waiting outside. Hurry up, babe.”
Sandra nodded, all her peppiness gone. She waited until he’d crossed the street and entered his car before coming over to us, fake nails digging into the top of her bag. Ollie followed behind her with my cocktail. He had a forced smile on his face, and his spiced cider magic was flat on my tongue. It made me want to go and punch Jeffery out.
“Sorry,” she said. “He didn’t mean anything by it. He just doesn’t understand.”
From what I’d heard, Sandra wasn’t born into money. Her mother had remarried into it a few years ago. And maybe she was right about Jeffery. But….
“Doesn’t give him the right to speak about people like that.”
“I know,” she said more to the ground than me. “I’ll talk to him.”
“You have to talk to him a lot, I bet,” Fiona mumbled before shooting her an apologetic look. “Sorry. It’s just hard not to notice he doesn’t treat you very well.”
“Jeffery is really nice to me. Honest,” Sandra said. “He just prefers to show his affection in private.”
“Still doesn’t excuse how he acts in public.”
“It’s—”
A horn shattered the moment. Jeffery’s head stuck out of his Mercedes’ window.
“I should go.” Sandra gave us all a shy smile and exited the cafe, nodding to the man who was entering.
“Excuse me?” the man said. “I’m looking for the owner of Adrienne’s Antiques? There was a note on the door saying to come here.”
“Oh.” Adrienne perked up, shoving the last piece of cake into her mouth. “My shipment of nullifying beads is here.” She gave each of us a hug. “Have fun in Egypt, Sophia.”
I ignored her pointed look. “Have fun with Thomas.”
When she exited, Ollie said, “There’s still food on your plate.”
“Acting like my mom won’t stop me from kicking your ass,” I said. “Jeffery stole my appetite.”
He slid a fruity cocktail over and kissed my cheek. “This will help you forget. Now, I have another pie to bake.”
“He owns us,” I said as he entered the kitchen.
“He owns you,” Fiona said. “So, what really happened with the wonder brothers?”
I told her. By the time I finished, neither of us wanted to keep eating. I forced myself to finish the burger and fries, though. I learned long ago how important it was to stay nourished.
Fiona ran a trembling hand through her hair. “Do you think you’ll find something?”
“I don’t know,” I said quietly. “Honestly, I’m more worried about Adam finding something. Any chance you can open a portal into the ocean and shove him in it?”
“Yes, but based on his reputation, it wouldn’t stop him.”
“What are we going to do? I don’t want to leave. We have a home here. We finally started to have the life we swore we’d have and now—”
She took my hand and laced our fingers together. “Now, we have a chance to learn more about our past. That’s all we know for sure. Let’s take the rest by ear.”
I sighed. “I’m worried about what we’ll run into. Who knows what we’re going to face?”
“You’re tough,” she said. “Plus, you’ll have Mr. Uber Mage by your side.”
I groaned. “I’m going to have to bring the entire mountain down on him if he finds out the truth.”
“Truth about what?” Ollie asked as he set a piece of key lime pie in front of me. My favorite. Maybe I could eat a little more.
“Um….” Fiona looked to me.
I picked up my fork. “Fiona’s not a natural redhead.”
“Hey!”
Chapter Nine
“Relax. You’re like a dog that’s afraid to get on the furniture.”
I glared at Adam. “I am on the furniture.”
Perched, actually. On one of his seats. Adam’s plane was nicer than my house. Cream-colored leather seats that felt like paradise were strewn about the place, and a huge couch took up a corner in the back. He even had a bar up here.
But I didn’t touch that. Alcohol impaired the senses, and I needed all of mine to survive Adam. Instead, I distracted myself by eating his delicious muffins. Rather, the muffins he’d brought along with him on the plane. I finished my fourth one but didn’t grab another. Thinking of “Adam’s delicious muffins” had ruined my appetite — and awakened another.
“You’re huddled on the furniture,” he said from the seat across mine.
“I feel comfortable enough to take my shoes off.” So I could properly curl into a ball on this chair.
“That’s because I dosed the muffins.”
I snorted. “Careful. Dogs bite.”
His smile was the most indecent thing I’d ever seen. “Tell me more. Where exactly will you be biting, and what will you be wearing when you do?”
I grabbed another muffin from the plate in front of me. Eating my feelings was just as good as being sarcastic about them. “Go away.”
“We’re in the air.” He took a bite of his salami sandwich. There was a plate of them next to the muffins. We’d reached a silent agreement not to cross each other’s territories.
“Your brother turns into a dragon. I’m sure what you can turn into can fly too.”
“How sure?”
I swallowed the last of my muffin. Whoever decided to put nuts in banana bread was a genius. “Prove me wrong. Jump out of this plane and shift.”
He grinned and handed me another muffin. I felt suspiciously like a sheep getting fattened up. “They’re not actually dosed.”
“I know.”
“Do you?”
“You’re still alive, aren’t you?” I took the muffin, watching my toes curl around the edge of my seat. We still had hours before our flight landed and finding a way to occupy the silence filled me with dread.
He went to the bar and grabbed two bottles of water. “Unless you want something stronger?”
“Water’s fine.” I took the bottle and watched him sit down. I’d hoped a good night’s sleep would clear my mind and make me realize I’d been blindsided by Adam yesterday, that he wasn’t actually that handsome.
I was disappointed on both fronts. My entire night was spent tossing and turning, and Adam was even more gorgeous than I remembered. Dying sunlight from the window enhanced his strong features and highlighted his dark hair. It looked soft. My fingers itched to test that theory. I dug them into my water bottle instead.
Adam quirked a brow. “You’re supposed to drink that, not strangle it.”
I twisted the cap off and drank. Geez, even his water tasted better than the regular stuff. “So, what do you shi
ft into anyway?”
He leaned forward. “I could show you.”
“Sure. Jump out of this plane and shift.”
He laughed and sat back, the warm sound making me smile. I hid it behind my bottle. “I’ve heard that before.”
“Can’t imagine where,” I said.
“Total mystery.” He grabbed another sandwich. We had a love of food in common, at least. Which didn’t matter, because we’d never see each other again after this job. “Can you shift? Is that what’s different about your magic? Are you some sort of rare breed?”
“If I say yes, will it get you off my back?”
“If it’s the truth.”
I rolled my eyes. “I’m not a shifter.”
He sniffed the air.
“Stop that. It was creepy enough when your brother did it,” I said. “Besides, you said you’d get off my back if I told you the truth.”
“You’re not telling me the truth. What are you?”
“A mercenary.”
“And…?”
“A tracker mage,” I ground out. Had to give him something.
“And?”
“Adorable?”
He grinned. “Definitely.”
I checked my phone for what felt like the millionth time. “How long until we land?”
“A few more hours.”
“I’m going to nap,” I said, making my way to the couch. “Wake me up when we get there.”
“You’ve only been awake for—”
“Didn’t sleep well last night.” I stretched out with a satisfied groan. Holy crap, this thing was more comfortable than my bed. “Good night.”
I was out before he could say another word.
A helicopter was waiting by the time we landed in a small airfield near the mountain. I wanted to ask Adam how he’d arranged all this, but I decided to just roll with it. The less time I spent in coach and scaling colossal mountains, the better.
We disembarked from the helicopter half an hour later, and I caught the sunrise while Adam spoke to the pilot. The mountain walls dwarfed me, but Adam looked as tall as ever. Maybe it was his presence. He certainly knew how to claim a room. Why should a mountain be any different?
I jolted when Adam placed a hand on my back. He’d been holding in his magic so well I could barely sense it. His control made me jealous, but I didn’t feel comfortable asking for his advice. And I was too comfortable with his touch.
“You ready?”
I forced myself not to lean into his hand. “Yeah. The magic leads north. It’s not too far.”
“Lead on.”
The terrain here wasn’t very rocky but couldn’t be considered a trail by any means. Then again, who needed a path when you could follow the magic?
After twenty minutes of silent trekking, Adam asked, “Are you sure we’re going the right way?”
“Ask me why I work alone,” I said as we slid down a small slope.
“Because you enjoy cramped flights and spending hours rock climbing?”
“Rock climbing is good exercise.”
“You must do it a lot. Haven’t broken a sweat yet.”
That’s because I couldn’t get hot. “Neither have you.”
His eyes darkened as they met mine. “This isn’t nearly stimulating enough.”
“If you’re waiting for me to ask, you better have a book to read.”
“I don’t need you to ask. I just need your imagination to run wild.”
Oh, it was. Vividly. I resisted the urge to fan myself. Apparently I could get hot. “It doesn’t do that.”
“Then I’m going to need you to ask.”
I almost did. Fortunately, the next corner turned into a slope that led to a deep crack in the rock face. It was wide enough for a person to fit through, but imposing enough to stop most of them from trying. Now that the Council had put enchantments back up, all of them would stop trying. Except….
I turned to Adam. “There are no enchantments.”
He frowned. “There should be.”
“The old enchantment was here.” I could smell the magic. Rot mixed with sulfur — Eau de Demon. There was also a newer signature overlapping with the older one. “The new one was here too, but it’s disabled.”
“You’re a very good tracker,” he said. “I can barely sense the older protections under the new ones. Then again, maybe that’s a good thing. Are you okay?”
“No.” I grimaced. “I hate the scent of rotting flesh more than anything. Even Jeffery.”
He chuckled. “They lowered the enchantments for Damien’s people. The magic was interfering with his trackers. They should have been put back up.”
“Who was in charge of that?”
“Thomas.”
I groaned. Of course. Unlike Adam, Thomas Corbin’s father died a few years ago, leaving him to take the family spot on the Council.
“It’s possible someone else breached the enchantments,” he said.
“Wouldn’t the Council be alerted if that happened?” The last thing I wanted was to have Council agents appear.
“They’d need time to get here.”
“Then we better hurry,” I said. “If people did break in, they were mages. But I can’t sense their magic yet.” The demonic magic was drowning everything out.
“If someone’s here, we’ll sense it as we go further.” He nodded toward the crack. “Ladies first.”
Talk about a literal rock and hard place. I went anyway. I was small enough to fit, but Adam had to squeeze through. He did it flawlessly, and I found myself stopping to stare at him. Despite all his muscle, his movements were lithe and supple. The man wore sexy like a second skin. It was completely natural too. He couldn’t have turned it off if he’d tried.
It was suddenly very hard to breathe.
His shoulder bumped mine. “Are you okay? Did you get stuck?”
Blood rushed to my face. I quickly turned away and resumed walking. “Magic.”
A blend of it came from further ahead. Mages. A lot of them. We made it out of the crevasse, and a cave entrance greeted us.
“Twenty,” he said. “At least. None particularly powerful, but in a group….”
I grinned at the prospect of a fight. “It’s a good thing I’ve got backup.”
He raised a brow. “Backup?”
“Mhm.”
“Let’s go. I’ve been looking for a chance to impress you.”
Great, now my grin was never going to go away. “Have you been here before?”
“Yes,” he said flatly. “In between managing Pierce Incorporated and curating my family’s security, I’m Indiana Jones.”
“I’m the sarcastic one in this relationship.”
He leaned down, his lips grazing my ear. “Relationship?”
“Partnership.”
He smiled against my skin.
“Professional partnership.”
The smile hadn’t left his face. “For now.”
I punched his arm. “Ow. Dude, lay off the weight training.”
His throaty chuckle was twice as devastating right against my ear. “Feel free to hit me harder. But later. After we clear this temple.”
Yeah, because I was in perfect shape to fight a horde of mages now.
I let the Heart’s magic guide us. Moss and dry grass had overtaken most of our path. Torches lined the cracked walls, lit by the mages who’d come before us.
I was used to moving silently, but Adam’s grace once again surprised me. My Fire was rushing around, eager to absorb all the magic those mages contained, but it seemed more interested in finding out what other things Adam did gracefully. Maybe I was projecting.
That was another concern of mine. Sure, I could absorb any magical attacks that hit me, but I always tried my best to avoid them. You never knew who was watching. I’d always been agile, but I’d gotten even faster over the years. It was a skill that served me well, but it wasn’t foolproof. I still got hit on occasion. If Adam saw me absorb any magic, he would f
igure out I was Fireborn.
And it would all be over.
Adam nodded toward a large archway at the end of the corridor. We crept forward and hid by either side of the entrance.
A vast ritual chamber was ahead. Mountainous piles of gold lined the room like a glimmering moat. The ceilings were crumbling, leaking dust over the numerous mages plundering treasure. A large ritual table stood in the back of the room. Desiccated offerings littered the surface, leaving an empty space in the middle — the Heart’s former resting place.
“I count twenty-two,” he said. “They’re on Fairy Dew.”
The syrupy scent reminded me of Cyrus. Gross. “All this gold laying around, and your brother took the creepy ancient heart thing?”
“We have money.”
“But no hearts?”
“You stole mine.” He winked.
“Now is not the time.” I scowled, ignoring the heat in my cheeks. “It’s like they’re looking for something.”
“I agree. But what?”
“Maybe they lost the Heart in one of those piles?”
He raised a brow. “I thought you said it only passed by here.”
I bit my lip. Being around him made me stupid. “It did.”
“You’re cute when you try.”
I glared at him.
“And sexy when you’re angry.”
“There’s no winning with you.”
“Considering I like you no matter how you are, it is a win.”
My heart fluttered. “You haven’t seen all of me.”
His smile was radiant, and his stare was filthy.
I growled. “Shut up. You know what I mean.”
“Is that an offer? Because if it is, screw these guys. They can plunder whatever they want.”
“Maybe you don’t know what I mean.”
“My hearing does tend to be selective,” he said. “So, I’ll go left and you go right?”
“What?” My brows knitted together. “Is that some weird upper-class sex thing?”
“Huh? Oh. No.” He chuckled. “I meant our plan for dealing with the mages.”
Screw the plan. I was going in there and hoping they killed me.
“Hmm. Embarrassed is a nice look too.”
“If we weren’t in a small corridor, I’d kill you.”