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  “If he’d let you talk to him, he’d understand why we need to take care of things right away.” Nevan groaned.

  “He’s a scientist. He understands proof and things he can touch.”

  “I think he touched you last night, so why wouldn’t he believe you?”

  “Why are you so caught up in the fact that we slept together? I never thought you cared that much about me.” She shuffled through some of the papers on her desk. An email her secretary had printed out caught her eye.

  “It’s never been you, darling. I don’t really like most people I deal with.” He sighed.

  “I know, Nevan. It’s hard to deal with people when you can see the ghosts surrounding them.” She read the email, then read again slower. “Nevan, a friend of mine sent me an email. There was a jewelry store robbed in Peru.”

  “What does that have to do with us or you for that matter?”

  “Ten million dollars’ worth of emeralds was stolen two nights before Grant’s artifacts were flown home.” She turned to her computer then pulled up the email. “I’m forwarding it to you right now.”

  “Do you think Grant stole the emeralds and smuggled them into the country?” Nevan sounded skeptical.

  “No. I think someone else stole them, then stashed them in some of Grant’s artifacts to get them into the country. Then someone else was supposed to come and get them. Unfortunately, something must have happened along the way. Either someone else found them or they’ve been misplaced.”

  “Shit. I was really looking forward to getting some sleep today.”

  “Why don’t you grab a nap? I’ll run over to see Grant and talk to him about this.”

  “You just want to see him again, but I’ll let you do it. I’m dead on my feet.” Nevan chuckled. “I call you later when I get up.”

  She hung up, then called the museum—it wouldn’t have taken Grant long to clean up his apartment, so she thought he would have headed to the lab.

  “Archaeology lab.” The young voice on the other end of the phone had to belong to one of the graduate students.

  “May I speak to Dr Carson, please?”

  “Sure, just a second.” She heard the girl call out to Grant, “Dr Carson, you’ve got a phone call.”

  “Who is it?” Grant yelled back.

  Before the girl could ask, she said, “Tell him it’s Danielle and I really need to talk to him.”

  The message was relayed and Grant said, “I don’t have time to meet with her now. I’m behind.”

  “I’ll be by after the lab closes to see him. If he’s not there, I’ll track him down.”

  “Um…okay, I’ll let him know.” Hesitation sounded in the girl’s voice.

  “He won’t kill you. Thanks.” After hanging up, she turned to the computer to start her own search.

  * * * *

  Grant looked up when someone cleared their throat. Danielle stood in the doorway, smiling at him.

  “Happiness looks good on you.” He snapped his mouth shut. He hadn’t meant to say that out loud to her.

  “What are you talking about?” She looked puzzled.

  “I was thinking early this morning how happy you looked. Then I realized I’ve never seen happiness in your eyes. You smile and laugh, but your eyes are always sad.”

  Her face was serious for a moment, then the sadness returned. “When you’ve lived as long as I have, there isn’t much to make you happy anymore. Also, the reason for my banishment caused heartache and pain for a lot of us. I remember it every second of my life.”

  She turned away from him to look at some potsherds on the counter. Her red tank top revealed the butterfly tattoo he had seen before. The colorful picture inked on her shoulder drew him out of his seat and over to her. Reaching out, he traced the delicate lines of the wings.

  “Why a butterfly?” Grant asked quietly.

  “Why not?” She seemed reluctant to talk to him about it.

  “It must mean something to you. All of the furniture in your house has some story behind it. You wouldn’t put a butterfly on your body permanently if it didn’t mean something to you.” He pressed his lips to the tattoo, feeling her shudder.

  “Some people see the butterfly as a symbol of rebirth.”

  “Do you?”

  Sliding his arms around her waist, he pulled her close. He looked over her shoulder to see what she was staring at. On the table in front of them were two armbands. He remembered how excited the team had been when one of the grad students had uncovered them. He glanced from the armbands to the vault where the skeleton was. They had been found in situ in the skeleton’s burial place.

  “Where did you find these?” Danielle reached out a trembling hand, but didn’t touch them.

  “They’re beautiful, aren’t they? We found them at the dig site in Peru. They’re the most intricate examples we’ve ever found. I figure the etchings must represent a mythological creature. This is the first one we were able to clean.” He traced the details of a winged man kneeling like he was praying.

  “Was there anything else found with them?”

  “Ah, nothing worth talking about.”

  “You must have been a good kid when you were younger, because you couldn’t lie if your life depended on it. I chose the butterfly for what it represents to me.” She pushed away from him then wandered around the lab. She looked at the artifacts on the various tables, but didn’t try to touch any of them.

  Grant paused at the change of subject, but let it go. “Does it symbolize rebirth to you as well?”

  “Not necessarily rebirth as much as it is a wish to go back to where I came from. A need to be remade into what I once was.”

  “What were you once? Why aren’t you the same person you were before you left your home?”

  Danielle made her way closer to the vault. He remembered Nevan saying that Danielle would know what was in the vault if she got close enough to it. Stiffening, he wanted to run and herd her away from the door.

  She stopped then turned toward him. Melancholy had entered into her eyes. He couldn’t help but go to her and wrap his arms around her. Brushing her hair with his lips, Grant ran his hands up and down her back. He wasn’t sure why he needed to comfort her, just that he did, and she relaxed into him.

  “I was innocent and trusting. That’s where I went wrong. I trusted the wrong person and he led me astray.” Leaning back, she stared up at him.

  “Did he hurt you?” A rush of anger burned through him. No one would hurt this woman if he could help it. Why was he so protective of her when he didn’t know who she really was?

  “There was no one to blame for my banishment except myself. I won’t lay my misfortunes at the feet of others. There’s no point in whining about it though. Nothing will change, so I’ve learned to live with it.” She wound her hands into his hair, then pulled his lips down to hers.

  This isn’t the place for this, his prudish mind thought, but his body overruled it and threw itself into the kiss. He learned the nuances of her mouth and the smoothness of her tongue. Stroking the roof of her mouth made her shiver and nipping at her bottom lip made her moan. He pressed her back against the lab table to wedge his hips between her thighs. Lifting her up so her ass rested on the edge, he rubbed his erection against her mound.

  Her head fell back and Danielle moaned, offering him unfettered access to her throat. He sucked on the pulse beating at the base of her neck. Licking her sweat from her skin, he feasted on the sensitive spot right behind her ear. One nip and all the tension melted out of her.

  “Oh, Grant, that’s perfect.”

  Pushing the short skirt she wore up to her waist, he discovered she wasn’t wearing panties, leaving her pussy uncovered for him. “We rushed the first time and I was still waking up for the second. I think we’ll need to take some extra time to see if you taste good.”

  Kneeling on the floor, he placed her legs over his shoulders and sent a puff of warm air over her clit. Her hips arched and he leaned closer to fl
ick her with the tip of his tongue. Bracing her hands on the table, she pushed her pussy toward him, silently begging for more. Since she was enjoying it, he gave her what she wanted. He took a long swipe with his tongue from her entrance to where her button pulsed. Reaching up, he grasped her hips and held her down while he bathed her with his tongue. With long slow strokes then hard fast licks, he drove her toward her peak.

  “More,” she pleaded.

  He pushed his tongue into her and she cried out. Grant slid his finger in along with his tongue on the second thrust. Moving his mouth back up to her clit, he sucked her in while he fucked her with two fingers, making sure to scrape her sweet spot each time he pulled out.

  Danielle rode his fingers with abandon, her moans and sighs filling the lab. Grant’s cock was so hard that he hurt. He couldn’t wait to ride her again, but he wanted her to come first. Her inner muscles clenched around his fingers and her juices dampened his hand as her orgasm overtook her.

  “Grant,” she cried, thrashing her head from side to side.

  He used soft licks to bring her down as the aftershocks rippled through her. When she was petting his hair instead of gripping it, he placed one last kiss on her pussy then stood up.

  Chapter Six

  “Well, I didn’t think you had it in you, Dr Carson.” Danielle laughed softly.

  She didn’t feel like moving either, but there was something digging into her back. She pushed at his shoulder.

  “You need to get up. I’m lying on something.”

  After shooting to his feet, Grant yanked her to hers. “Shit, did we break anything?”

  She was a little miffed that he seemed more concerned for his artifacts than her. Straightening her clothes, she made her way to the lab door. “I wouldn’t have let you fuck me on a lab table if there were artifacts on it, Grant.”

  She found her briefcase where she had set it down when she arrived. Pulling the papers out, she tossed the folder on the nearest table. “I think these are what they were looking for. Maybe you know where they are. Maybe you don’t, but you better figure something out. Next time they might come after you or one of your assistants. Have a good night.”

  As Danielle stalked out, she didn’t know why she was so mad. Grant might be coming to like her, but he wasn’t going to suddenly declare his undying love for her.

  “Danielle, wait.”

  She turned to see Grant walking up to her. He had collected himself and held out a folder to her.

  “What is this?”

  “It could be the reason why the lab and your apartment were broken into.” She shrugged. “Nevan’s looking into it as well.”

  “Looking into what?” Grant matched her stride as they headed toward the exit.

  “A jewelry store was robbed in Lima two days before your artifacts were flown out of the Jorge Chavez Airport. I think the thief put them in your crates. His partner was probably supposed to get them, but something went wrong and the guy didn’t find them where he thought they would be. Now he’s panicking and I think you might be in danger until he finds them.”

  They waved to the security guard as they slid their identity cards through the reader. Night had fallen while they’d been inside. She took a deep breath of the moist air coming off Lake Michigan. She became lost in the memories of walking in Jackson Park with hundreds of other people.

  A touch to her arm brought her back. Grant was staring at her with a puzzled look on his face.

  “Sorry, I was thinking about something else.” Danielle shook off the lingering memories. “What were you saying?”

  “Do you really think I could be in danger? Why would they come after me?”

  “Yes, I do. There’s ten million dollars’ worth of emeralds somewhere. Right now they think you know where they are.”

  “But I don’t,” he protested.

  “Wrong answer.” A man dressed in dark clothing stepped from the shadows. He grabbed Grant, driving his fist into his stomach.

  “Danielle, run. Go get security,” Grant gasped as the man hit him again.

  “Where are the emeralds?” The attacker drove another fist into Grant’s face.

  Damn. This couldn’t be happening. Danielle froze in a moment when she needed to make a decision. She could stop the attacker without a problem, but she had never used her powers against a mortal, having made a promise to herself that she wouldn’t do that.

  She heard Grant groan and realized she needed to do something before he got seriously injured. Since she had never done anything like this before, she wasn’t sure what to do. She’d have to wing it.

  She grabbed the man’s arm as he pulled it back to throw another punch. She sent a surge through the man’s body, overloading his brain and causing his muscles to tighten. She wasn’t sure how long he’d be immobile, but she managed to pry Grant from the man’s hand.

  “What happened?” Blood dripped from Grant’s nose and split lip.

  “I overloaded his brain with a burst of energy. I don’t know how long it’ll last so we’ve got to get out of here.”

  The level of confusion Grant was feeling was obvious when he didn’t question or argue with her. She grabbed the folder he had dropped when the man attacked him. When they got farther away, she used a little power to draw a cab to them.

  “Is he okay?” the cabbie asked as she stuffed Grant into the taxi.

  “Yeah, he fell.” She gave the driver her address and called Nevan, letting Grant lean on her.

  “What now?” Nevan barked into the phone.

  She didn’t question how the detective knew it was her. “Get over to my place. We had an incident.”

  “An incident? Shit, Danielle, can’t your people stay out of trouble?”

  “Since it was an attack by a mortal, I don’t think you should be pitching rocks at my glass house.”

  “What?”

  “Nothing. We’ll be there in ten minutes.”

  “I’m twenty minutes behind you.”

  Hanging up, she checked Grant. He leaned against her with his head on her shoulder. Digging through her pockets, she came up with a tissue and dabbed at the split lip. He drew in a deep breath.

  “Sorry. I know it hurts, but you’re getting blood on everything,” she murmured, pressing the tissue to Grant’s lip while they headed to her place.

  * * * *

  Nevan arrived as Danielle finished settling Grant on her couch.

  “Why didn’t you run like I told you to?” Grant demanded.

  Sighing, Danielle gave Nevan a long-suffering look. “I wasn’t going to leave you at the mercy of that man.”

  “You could’ve been hurt.”

  Nevan snorted. “You don’t have to worry about Danielle getting hurt. She’s tougher than crocodile skin.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence, Nevan.”

  “Hey, it was a compliment.” Nevan winked at Grant, then sat in one of the chairs.

  “You date some weird women if they take being compared to a crocodile as a compliment.” Danielle pushed Grant’s legs over before sitting on the couch, leaning against him.

  “I really don’t want to discuss Largent’s dating.” Grant realized he sounded grumpy, but damn it, he hurt. All he wanted to do was to curl up and sleep for several hours or until his face stopped throbbing at least.

  She rested her hand on his thigh and a tingling radiated from that area. He didn’t think he had enough energy to feel desire, but as the tingling spread, he started to feel better. Shutting his eyes, he tried to focus on the conversation instead of her hand.

  “I’d given Grant the folder about the emerald theft. We were leaving the museum when this man attacked.” Danielle’s voice trembled a little.

  In his pain, he had forgotten that she had probably been scared as well. He heard the rustle of paper and figured Nevan had pulled out his little notebook.

  “What did he look like?”

  He tried to recreate the man in the darkness behind his eyelids, but nothing happe
ned. “It was too dark. He jumped us in a section of the parking lot that had hardly any lights in it.”

  Nevan grunted. “Why didn’t you notice him, Danielle?”

  The tone in his voice seemed to be blaming her for not seeing the man. Grant struggled to sit up. “Now listen here. She couldn’t see him because it was dark out. He was dressed in black as well. This guy was a professional.”

  She pushed him back down on the couch gently. “I wasn’t paying attention. I got caught up in memories.”

  “You can’t do that, especially if these men are dangerous. Which obviously they are,” Nevan pointed out.

  “I know, but the museum and the area around it has a lot of memories for me.” She shrugged.

  Grant made a mental note to ask her what kind of memories could hold her attention that much. He stroked his palm over her hand and she smiled at him.

  “I know. How did you take care of him? Should I go looking at hospitals in the city?”

  She shook her head. “I hit him with a surge of energy. His muscles froze up while I managed to get Grant away without another altercation.”

  “A surge of energy?” Nevan glanced at her. “I didn’t know you could do that.”

  “Sure, I can do anything I need to save myself. I’ve just chosen never to harm a mortal with my powers.”

  “A mortal?” Grant asked, not sure he was hearing them right.

  Reaching out, she stroked his forehead. The tingling moved from his thigh to his face. The throbbing began to ease and his eyelids drooped.

  “If you’ve never done anything like that before, how do you know if you used the right amount and didn’t destroy that man’s brain? He might be the scum of the earth, Danielle, but he doesn’t deserve to get his brain fried.”

  “I know, but what was I supposed to do, Nevan? If I took off for a security guard, Grant could have been hurt far worse than he was. I’ve been granted a power that I have to use. Even if I didn’t sign on to protect mortals, I can’t let them get hurt.”

  Danielle continued to stroke his forehead, but the trembling seemed to be worse. He wanted to tell Nevan to stop berating her for trying to save him. Nothing came out and he allowed his senses to become submerged in the sensations he was feeling.