Chasing Adonis

by Gina Ardito

  Without warning, a thumb flicked out to catch the tear rolling down her left cheek, and she shied from such intimate contact as if his finger was aflame. “It doesn’t matter what it was. It had nothing to do with you.”

  In a protective stance, she folded her arms over her chest, hugging herself to keep the shudders at bay. “Yes, it does matter, Shane. It matters a lot. This is just like last night when you told me not to worry about the money we spend. We’re in this together, so if something affects you, it affects me, too…”

  Her argument floated into nothingness when Shane’s lower lip disappeared between his teeth. Aha. She’d struck gold without trying.

  “Money?” she asked. “Is that what has you worried? The money we’re spending?”

  He shook his head, but his teeth continued to dig into his lip. Any deeper and he might draw blood. Well, his head might say, “no,” but those teeth screamed, “yes.”

  Giggles bubbled into her throat, partly from relief, and partly from the ridiculousness of the situation. But she swallowed them and set a serious expression on her face. The one she reserved for her boss at evaluation time, or the officer who pulled her over for speeding one night. “Okay. How much money do we have?”

  “A little over five thousand dollars.”

  Picturing that much money stuffed into a billfold nearly staggered her. “In cash?”

  “Mmm-hmm.”

  “So, then what’s the problem? Our room is paid for until two weeks from now. I mean, I know the money won’t last forever, but it will keep us going for a good long while, especially if we’re frugal about it.”

  “The problem is, how am I going to pay all this back?”

  Now, she was completely lost. “Pay what back?” He stared hard at her. “Wait a minute. You think Ted’s going to expect you to pay him back for this?”

  “It doesn’t matter if Pha expects it or not. I have to pay him back.”

  Was that what this was about? Stupid male pride? She clucked her tongue, a schoolmarm correcting her pupil. “You can try, but Ted will never accept money from you.”

  “How do you know?”

  “I just know.”

  “And I’m Prufrock. How do you know?”

  “I just know.”

  Now, he folded his arms over his chest and stood at the entrance to the staircase, as impassable as a brick wall. “We’re not leaving this suite until you tell me, so you may as well come out with it.”

  What should she tell him? Certainly not the truth. He’d think she was bonkers. Better to buy time and change the subject. “We should go get your mom and Tyler. They’re probably wondering what happened to us.”

  She got as far as the top step before his hand clutched her upper arm. “They’ve waited this long, they can wait a little longer. Now I’ll ask again. How do you know Pha won’t accept money from me?”

  Zoinks. Caught. Okay, here goes…

  “Because he, in effect, has hired you to watch out for his beloved. And you can’t put a price on that.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Shane had prepared himself for some kind of nonsense from Adara, but that little bit of logic nearly floored him. Without meaning to, he stepped aside, staring at Adara in open curiosity. “Explain that,” he ordered. “In detail.”

  To his annoyance, she shrugged and headed past him, down the stairs. “There’s nothing to explain, really.”

  “Like hell. What do you mean he hired me to watch out for his beloved? He didn’t hire me. I took this flight upon myself. To protect you and my family.”

  Two steps from the bottom, she turned to look up to where he still stood on the top landing. One eyebrow arched at him in disbelief. “Think back to the conversation in the motel. Who suggested we run first? You or Ted?”

  Pha. The name popped into his head at the same moment he recalled the discussion she alluded to. “Okay, so Pha was the first one to mention it. But why?”

  “Why? I would think that’s obvious. Surely, you’ve noticed that Ted’s not the most macho of men.”

  He snorted. “That’s an understatement.”

  “You, on the other hand, well, you’ll forgive me for saying this but, you ooze male confidence.”

  Taken aback, Shane could do little but study her mesmerizing smile. Was that a compliment or an insult? No way to tell. “Go on,” he grumbled.

  “Ted has placed me in your very capable hands until this crisis is over. The cash in the wallet, this room, it’s all he can do to keep me safe. He’s put his ego in park for now to save innocent lives.” She turned away again, but her last words drifted upward to him. “It’s a shame you can’t do the same.”

  Despite her obvious attempts to derail the topic, he wasn’t finished yet. He took the steps two at a time and crossed the living room to stand in front of her. “Wait a minute. How do you know what he’s thinking? You only met him a few days ago. Or was that a lie? Have you known him all this time?”

  “No, you’re right. I only met him the day of the accident.” She stared at the carpet, kicking invisible dust mites with errant feet. “I-I honestly can’t explain it. There’s some kind of telepathic connection between Ted and me.”

  “Adara—”

  Looking up again, she halted his interruption with an upraised hand. “I know it sounds weird, and under normal circumstances, I’d volunteer for a full psychiatric evaluation. I mean, extrasensory communication? How crazy is that? But it’s true. Think about it. From the moment I laid eyes on Ted, I knew he wasn’t here to harm me.”

  “And I’m still not one hundred percent sure that’s the right attitude.”

  “Even now? After the wallet and this hotel room, you still think he’s a hired assassin? That this is some kind of elaborate web he hopes to draw me into? Send me far away, and then strike when no one expects it?”

  Okay, so she made sense there. It was a little far-fetched as killer-for-hire scenarios went. But what scenario would match these bizarre circumstances?

  She sighed. “What’s it going to take for you to admit you might be wrong? Or do you ever admit when you’re wrong?”

  Stung, he couldn’t help but remind her, “I admitted I was wrong about you with your karate.”

  “True,” she replied with a grin. “And you’re wrong this time, too. Even if you are too stubborn to admit it. As a matter of fact, the more I think about it, the more I believe Ted came here at exactly the right moment because he knew I was in danger. That psychic connection we have was working even then.”

  He was silent for a long time, digesting her argument like an overcooked cheap steak. No matter how hard he tried to swallow it, he still couldn’t get the bad taste out of his mouth. One issue stuck between his teeth, and he knew he wouldn’t rest until he’d heard the truth from her lips. “Are you?” he finally asked.

  “Am I what?”

  “Are you his beloved?”

  “He thinks I am. He even asked me to marry him. And I know he’d pay any amount of money to keep me safe in the eventuality that I accept his proposal.”

  “So you haven’t turned him down yet.”

  “He wants me to have time to think about it.”

  “Very chivalrous of him.”

  “I’m sure he thinks so. Anyway, I’m betting when this is over, he’ll offer to pay you even more than that five thousand dollars. Ted’s an old-fashioned guy, and he looks upon this as a debt of honor. After all, what price do you place on the life of your beloved?”

  She giggled, the sound rippling down his spine in pleasant waves. But the waves did little to soothe the feathers she’d already ruffled. “Having no beloved,” he retorted. “I wouldn’t know.”

  “Well, if he could, Ted would probably pay you my weight in gold.” After glancing down at her hips, she lifted her gaze and offered him a rueful frown. “Which, if I keep eating at all these fast food joints, could make you and your entire family wealthy for generations to come. Now, enough of this nonsense. Let’s go get Tyler.
I’m dying to see his face when he gets a look at his room.”

  With a quick tug on his hand, she drew him into the hallway again, closing both the door and their argument behind them.

  ~~~~

  Tyler’s reaction was everything Adara hoped it would be. From the lobby to the elevator to the suite itself, he oohed and aahed at every detail related to his favorite Stegosaurus superhero. Upon seeing the smoking spires of Dragon’s Lair from the patio, the child screeched in delight. “That’s his house. Look, Adara. See that purple tower? That’s where Prufrock sleeps. Uncle Shane said next month he’ll redo my room, and I can paint it that same purple.”

  Adara fought the urge to cringe before the child’s eagerness. Like a ripe eggplant, the color screamed purple in a big, bold, in your face, hue. “Wow,” she said instead, “that’ll look cool.”

  “I know. And see that pink tower. That’s Salome’s room; she’s the only girl Wasteoid. Once, a long time ago? She used to be a mermaid. But the bad guys dumped chemicals into the water near her home. And she almost died. That’s when Penn and Prufrock found her. They brought her to Dragon’s Lair. Did you ever see that show?”

  Adara had a hard time keeping up with Tyler. His mind flitted from topic to topic, all related to Prufrock, but for someone who’d never seen the show, his devotion was a lot to take in at once. “That particular episode? I think I saw it once or twice.”

  “What’s your favorite one?” Thank goodness, before she could reply, he continued, “Wanna know mine? It’s the one where Prufrock eats the magic leaves and can fly. Do you remember that one? He gets stuck up in a real high tree when the magic wears off, and his feet are too fat for him to climb down. In the end, Penn has to eat some of the leaves to fly up and carry Prufrock to the ground. Do you like that epi-sode?”

  Oh, the effort it took to keep from giggling at his attempt to say the strange new word. “That’s one of my favorites, too,” she said when her humor was under control.

  “Really? So, which one is your very favoritest?”

  “Tyler,” Pauline interjected from the table in the dining room. “It’s way past your bedtime. Say goodnight to Adara now. Tomorrow, you’ll get to see Prufrock in person and tell him all about your favorite episodes.”

  “Okay, but I want to sleep in Adara’s bed, Grandma.”

  Well, this brought up an interesting dilemma. In her excitement over their spectacular accommodations, she’d never stopped to consider the sleeping arrangements. Judging by the frown on Shane’s face, he hadn’t thought much of it, either. Still, it didn’t stop him from taking control of the situation—a little too quickly and efficiently.

  “Tyler and I will sleep in the master bedroom,” he announced. “Mom, you and Adara take the smaller room with the two fulls. Is that okay with everyone?”

  Not quite, Adara thought, but she refused to voice her resentment aloud. Although, she couldn’t keep the angry words from running in her head.

  Nice going, Shane. Using a five-year-old to ensure no intimate contact between us for the next two weeks. You big coward.

  But Adara wasn’t the only one displeased with this arrangement.

  Tyler stamped his feet and whined, “I don’t wanna sleep in the big bed.”

  “Why not, sweetie?” Pauline asked. “From that big bed, you’ll have a view of Prufrock’s castle, even while you sleep. Isn’t that terrific?”

  “I wanna sleep with Adara.”

  Didn’t it figure? If she were five, she’d be thrilled at such devotion. But she wasn’t five, hadn’t been five in a long time. Here she was, two males in the room, one trying everything to avoid her, the other wanting only to be near her. And which one did she prefer? The Great Evader, naturally. No sense in ruining a perfectly good losing streak at this stage of the game, was there?

  “Uncle Shane is right,” she heard herself say. “Men in one room, women in the other. It’s safer that way.” She caught Shane raising his eyebrows at her barb, but she ignored him and turned her attention back to Tyler. “I’ll tuck you in, though, if you like.”

  In reply, Tyler tucked his tiny hand into hers. “Okay. Maybe you could tell me a story, too?”

  Her mouth dried to sawdust. A story? She didn’t know any stories.

  Once again, Pauline came to her rescue. “It’s late, Tyler. Too late for stories. Let Adara tuck you in, and then it’s right to sleep.”

  “It doesn’t have to be a long story, Grandma. I want Adara to tell me about how she beat up the bad guys again.”

  “That is not a story for bedtime.” Pauline’s scandalized tone could shame an egotistical nudist.

  “Let her tell him,” Shane said, drawing surprise from Adara. He shrugged at her quizzical glare. “It’s the only way we’ll get him down tonight.”

  “Come on, Adara,” Tyler said, dragging her down the hall.

  Having no alternative, she allowed the boy to pull her into the master bedroom. Once there, she pulled the coverlet off the bed, drew the sheets back, and helped the boy get settled. If anything, the sheer size of the king-sized bed dwarfed his too small frame. Again, her heart splintered. Such a tiny child, yet he’d already borne so much sadness. Hard to imagine he still found the wherewithal to smile and to enjoy life.

  “Adara?” his squeaky voice broke into her thoughts.

  “Yes?”

  “Are you going to marry Uncle Shane?”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Envy whirled in Shane’s senses as he watched Tyler towing Adara into the bedroom. It had taken every bit of self-restraint to keep from shouting, “Me, too,” when Tyler demanded to sleep with her.

  “So?” His mother’s inquisitive tone interrupted his thoughts of lying beside Adara in that big bed, watching moonlight paint her naked skin in tones of white and gold. “Who is she, Shane?”

  “She’s a material witness in a murder case. Someone’s out to kill her in order to keep her from testifying.”

  No sense in confiding their own dangerous situation to Mom. In all his years in the police force, his father never brought work home with him. And while Shane knew his mother could handle the news, and probably had the right to know, he hated to burden her with it. She’d already suffered so much in the last year.

  “Then why are we here?”

  “I think someone on the force might be involved.”

  Mom gasped and placed her hand over her mouth as if to stifle the sound too late. “Oh, Shane, no! Do you have any idea who?”

  “No.”

  Hoping to change the subject, he flipped open the manila folder the desk clerk had given them and leafed through it. It shouldn’t have surprised him to see four week-long admission tickets to KidLand among the papers, but for some strange reason, it did. What the hell was going on here?

  Pha strikes again.

  Yeah, sure, but how? Reading through the rest of the sheets, he also found invitations to a special breakfast with Prufrock and his pals, passes to an evening Prufrock show at a nearby stadium, and coupons for free Prufrock merchandise at the Prehistoric Palace’s gift shop.

  Apprehensive shivers paraded up Shane’s spine, and the blood chilled in his veins. The bizarre man from Cyprus knew an awful lot about their whereabouts and interests. How did Pha manage all this? And why? Was it, as Adara said, because Pha considered him hired help? Or did something more sinister lie behind his boundless generosity and wealth of personal information regarding the Griffins?

  “Shane?” His mother prompted yet again. “You’re not telling me everything.”

  He never could hide anything from her. Still, he’d keep his concerns to himself for as long as humanly possible. “What do you want to know?”

  “Who is she?”

  “I already told you, she’s a witness in a murder case.”

  Her eyes glistened, piercing green beneath the yellowish light of the Tiffany-style lamp that swung overhead. “She’s much more than a witness, Shane. Even Tyler sees it. Somehow, she’s managed to get und
er that wall you’ve built around yourself.”

  “I haven’t built a wall around myself.”

  “And I’m the Queen of Sheba. You, me, even Tyler. We’ve all built walls. Since Cassia’s death, we’ve all been going through the motions of life, shutting ourselves up in our misery, letting no one get close to us. Adara makes us come out of our shells, if only to please her. I like her, you know. I like her a lot. And I’m amazed at how positively she affects Tyler. I haven’t seen him this animated since his mother was alive. He’s almost his old self again.”

  Shane frowned. “That’s what scares me.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Sooner or later, this little escapade will come to an end. Then what?”

  Mom leaned back in her chair, her posture relaxed. A warning sign that she was going in for the kill. “Maybe someone should make sure Adara has a reason to stick around then.”

  “Stop, Mom. It won’t happen, so don’t even go there.”

  “Go where? I’m just saying, she’d be a wonderful addition to our family.”

  “Then adopt her.”

  “If I have to, I will. But I think she’d rather the offer came from a different Griffin.”

  He stood then, the need to run, to hide, too overwhelming to ignore. “Forget it. Even if I wanted something permanent between us, it can’t happen.”

  “Why not?”

  He shook his head, remaining mute for a moment. Saying the words aloud would make them true, and he couldn’t face the idea of never seeing her again. Not yet. Not so soon. In less than a week’s time, she’d become his strength. And dealing with her eventual loss took more self-control than he owned right now. Probably more self-control than he’d ever own.

  Eventually, he’d have to prepare himself, but not now. Not tonight.

  And never if she continued to look as breathtaking as she had just a few minutes ago. Moonlight’s glow, streaming in from the patio doors, formed a halo around her while she bent to speak to his nephew. If not for Mom and Tyler’s presence, he would have crushed her against him, inhaled the honeysuckle fragrance saturating her skin. He might have tasted every inch of her, drunk in the sweetness that enveloped her, and felt sustained. Deep inside him, a gnawing hunger built.