Lucius (Luna Lodge #3) (14 page)

“But I’ll still help you,” Dean said.

Lucius nodded to him.

She watched as they made their way to the dance area and wondered if she made a big mistake. There was no avoiding it though. She had to get ready and certainly wasn’t going to spend her time with the one person she had been avoiding the whole week. She stared over at the dance floor one last time. Lord, she hoped it was still standing when she got back.

He didn’t care if they wanted to work with him. The important thing was that they worked hard. Lucius stood on the ladder and handed down the round paper lanterns for the boys to place the cameras on. They were steady, and he was surprised with how quick they could be. The little one eyed him the whole time, but if he was being honest, he liked that the kid had the balls to stand up to him.

After the last placement, he climbed down and surveyed their work. The cameras were only slightly noticeable without compromising the security of the whole place. He glanced over to the boys.

“Nice work,” he said stiffly.

Their eyes widened in shock.

“Look out!” Dean yelled. They all stepped back.

Lucius turned only to be sent back by a fist in his nose.

“You’re a fucking idiot,” Apollo roared. It was rare to see the easy-going hybrid so angry. “You were lucky enough to be a match, and you just piss it all away?”

Lucius rubbed his throbbing nose and glared at the other man. Beating Apollo down wouldn’t help. It’d only piss off Titus and make ensuring security harder if everyone was spun up.

“What the hell are you talking about? She didn’t respond.” He closed his eyes. “Do you know what it’s like to have every instinct in you scream something only to have it be wrong?” His eyes snapped open, and he took a step forward. “Mind your own fucking business,” he growled from deep inside.

The smaller boy stepped between the two men and looked directly at him.

“There’s something wrong with his nose,” the boy said.

Lucius stepped back as if he had been struck.

“Now listen here, you little—” Lucius began.

“He’s right,” Apollo cut in. “If you can’t smell it, something is wrong. Have you seen the doctor?”

Lucius made a face. “She won’t see me. I’ve still got packing in, and she won’t take it out.”

Apollo’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “But she’s the doctor.”

Lucius crossed his arms. “She’s also friends with Hannah.”

Apollo frowned. “Marius needs to get a handle on his woman.”

Lucius snorted. He doubted anyone was going to get a handle on the feisty doctor.

“You boys go finish setting up,” Apollo said. “Looks like we’ll be picking up Hannah together. Do you have your costume?”

He nodded and raised a brow. “I’m confused. Are you here to hit me or help me?”

Apollo grinned. “Looks like I’m here to do both,” he said. “Besides, how many guys get to say they laid one on you? I figure with the audience I just had, my street cred just doubled.” He winked.

Lucius laughed and was surprised by how good it felt. For the last week, he had been living in hell.

“Try and catch me on a good day and see how you do, punk,” he said.

Apollo held up a hand. “I think I’ll take what I got.”

“I don’t see how she’s going to get in the car with me in it,” Lucius said. “She’s been avoiding me all week.”

Apollo scrunched up his face. “Are you a gladiator?”

Lucius grimaced. He hadn’t wanted to be. There was typically too much exposed skin, and he didn’t want to show his scarred chest. There wasn’t much choice. The theme was Rome, and he would stand out if he didn’t.

Lucius nodded.

“Good,” Apollo said. “And helmet?”

He shook his head.

“Well, you can just borrow mine and sit in the back,” he said. “She likely won’t figure it out until it’s too late.”

Lucius swallowed. He just wished that he could have that certainty.

Apollo looked at him for a moment as they walked to the car. “You really do know how lucky you are, right?”

“I guess we’re about to find out,” Lucius said. “If she’ll take me back, then I’m the luckiest man alive.”

Apollo gave a short nod.

“That’s about right.”

* * *

Hannah twirled in the mirror. She wasn’t really feeling like a party, but it would be strange for her not to be there seeing as she was the one who planned the whole thing. If they hadn’t let an enemy hybrid attack stop them, she couldn’t let her feelings over a pig-headed man get in the way.

Another quick twirl in the mirror confirmed the costume looked good. She hadn’t wanted to do another costume dance, but this costume made the whole thing worthwhile. It fluttered around at knee length in a shimmery blue-green gauzy material. The chest had attached on two golden sea shells with golden straps, and she’d chosen to wear thin golden sandals.

The whole thing was set off by the pretty blue-green spherical stone pendant that dipped between her breasts. Hannah unscrewed the top and stared at the vial of liquid inside. She might not know what it would do, but it didn’t mean she wouldn’t take it if it came time. She just needed to corner Rachel and figure out what exactly it actually did.

She jumped when a knock came at the door.

“Just a minute,” she said.

Hannah screwed back on the lid and checked the mirror one last time. She tucked a few stray hairs away.

“As close to the goddess Venus as I’m getting.” She sighed and moved to the door.

When she opened the door, she was a little surprised to find Apollo had gone back to the car, but maybe he was in a hurry. She waved at the car and turned to lock the front door.

A chilled breeze swept through and swirled her dress as she walked to the car. Hannah shivered and wondered if she shouldn’t have brought something to wear over her costume.

Hannah opened the door and slipped in, nodding to the guard in the back.

“Getting a little cool out there.” She grinned.

She had barely gotten the door closed before Apollo was tearing down the drive.

“In a hurry?” she asked.

“Okay, don’t be mad, but you need to talk,” he said.

Hannah frowned.

“Talk? Talk about what?”

“Let’s talk about what a colossal ass I am,” Lucius said from the back.

Hannah spun in her seat and looked at him. He’d slipped off the silly helmet and sat staring at her.

“What the hell?” She turned to glare at Apollo. “What’s he doing here?”

“I’m here to win you back,” Lucius said.

Hannah turned back to him. “What, so you can fuck me, and then tell me you don’t feel anything for me again? Thanks, but we’ve already been through that.”

A lump formed in her throat as she spoke.

“It’s not like that,” he said and leaned forward. “Hannah, please, just listen.”

“No.” She turned around, tears brimmed her eyes. “I can’t do this.”

Apollo patted her arm. “How about this? We’ve got to go see Rachel. Can you convince her to take out the packing in his nose?”

Hannah glanced at him from between the seats. “Why doesn’t he ask her?”

“Because he would like to keep his balls,” Lucius grumbled from the back.

Despite herself, Hannah snorted.

“Fine,” she said. It was against her better judgment, but she couldn’t let Rachel go on like this.

* * *

“No way,” Rachel said as she stormed around the clinic.

Hannah sighed. “You can’t just leave it like this,” she said.

“Oh, yes I can,” she said and shot Lucius a nasty look. “I hope it falls off.”

Hannah wondered for a moment what she was wishing would fall off. His nose or another part.

“What about do no harm?” Apollo asked.

Rachel stopped. Hannah knew that she took her position very seriously and her doctoring even more so.

She looked over to Marius, who was waiting to go to the festival by the door.

“Something is wrong with his nose,” Apollo went on. “He’s not smelling things that he should.”

Hannah noticed the three hybrids look her way and blushed.

“Fine.” Rachel slammed down the book she was holding. “Lie down up here.”

Lucius moved around the table until he was sitting on the table. She moved a little closer when he was lying down and wondered what he must be thinking.

Rachel came over with some forceps and tissue.

“This might hurt.” She smiled sweetly.

Hannah winced when Rachel went in with the forceps. She might be upset with him, but she didn’t want to see him hurt.

When the gauze started to come out, her stomach did a little flip, and she looked the other direction.

“What the hell?” Rachel muttered.

Hannah looked back and swayed a little at the long strip of red gauze gathered outside his nose. Apollo came to stand beside her and placed a hand at her back. A rumble filled the room.

“Relax,” Apollo said.

Hannah turned to him. “I’ll be okay,” she whispered.

Apollo nodded behind her. “I was talking to him.”

Hannah turned to find Lucius had his eyes fixed on the two of them. He looked back to Rachel and glared. “Just fucking yank it.”

“Whatever, big man.” She rolled her eyes and turned to Hannah. “Put your hand on his shoulder, so he doesn’t try to get at me when I do this.”

She moved closer. The hand at her back fell away and Lucius seemed to visibly relax.

“Ready?” Rachel asked.

Before either of them could answer, she yanked hard. Hannah felt her body sway but stayed standing thanks to the strong arm pinning her to the table.

“I’m supposed to be soothing you,” she whispered to him.

His arm tightened around her when he looked up. “You are.”

“What the hell? Is that a fucking chip?” Rachel said.

Chapter Thirteen

Lucius sat up with Hannah still on his arm. He stared at the little microchip hanging at the end of the gauze.

“How…” he started but couldn’t seem to process where to go with the rest of that sentence. It was obvious where the chip had come from but how long had the Horatius Group been using something like that and what was it for?

“My smell,” Hannah said quietly. “You said over and over that you couldn’t smell me.”

Lucius turned to her and took in a deep breath. Everything he ever expected to be there before was. The edging note that called to him. That had been calling to him this whole time and nearly driving him mad.

“What does scent mean to a hybrid?” Apollo asked Rachel.

Lucius suspected that it was more for Hannah’s benefit than his own.

“Well…” She picked up the chip and examined it. “It’s sort of the key element. Hybrids act very much like most canines in that scent is how they do practically everything. This also includes moods, sex, hunting, sickness and a large variety of things. There have been studies done on this and about those that have had their senses messed with in some way. Often they are aloof, skittish and react inappropriately when coupling.”

She stopped talking and fell silent. Every set of eyes fell on him.

“I think maybe we should contact Titus over this,” Apollo said and started to usher the group to the door.

Lucius got up and walked slowly behind Hannah. If they walked through those doors, all hell was going to break loose. Everything that he wanted to say to her was going to be put on hold until they figured out what the chip was and what it meant. Her scent drifted to him, the sweet smell of her he had been missing all this time, the one piece that made him complete.

They walked through the door, and he stopped. He didn’t want it to be like this. The chip could wait. Everything could wait. If he didn’t have Hannah in his life, none of it even mattered.

Apollo turned to say something to him, and they locked eyes. He gave a nod as if he knew what Lucius was thinking. Without even stopping to think, he swooped Hannah into his arms and raced from the building.

Surprisingly, she had remained fairly quiet, but then, maybe she realized there just weren’t many places for them to go. He stopped not far away, in the cover of the trees and placed her feet back on the ground. The sun had set, leaving them under a blanket of stars. Lucius wasn’t sure what to expect from her with all this. After all he had done, she had every right to be mad.

He started to pace as he spoke.

“I just need to talk to you away from everyone,” he said.

Hannah leaned against a tree and raised a brow. He wasn’t really sure if that meant she was going to listen, but he was sure as hell going to try.

“I’ve just been so confused,” he said. “I know that doesn’t sound like much, but from the moment I first saw you, I knew something was different. It was like my heart was battling with every instinct I had ever known.” He gave a bitter laugh. “I guess we know why now.”

Lucius sat down hard on a nearby stump and placed his head in his hands. “I’ve really fucked this up.”

He sat like that, trying to think of some way he could convince her that he would do better. Would be better.

Hannah watched him from the tree as he sat on the stump. All this time she thought he didn’t care when, in truth, he cared so much that even the chip hadn’t been able to stop him. She had been hurt, but so had he. They were both victims of a cruel game, and if she ever found the person responsible, she’d make sure they paid.

Not able to take his pain any longer, Hannah went to him. She sifted her fingers through his soft brown hair. It was amazing to her how such a hard man could have such soft hair. He looked up in surprise, and she smiled. Her love for him wouldn’t be tarnished by some chip. She let her hand slide to his cheek.

“I don’t deserve you.” His voice cracked as he spoke, and she couldn’t take it any longer. Hannah straddled his legs and sat down on his lap. Her whole body wrapped around him, and she smiled when he returned the embrace.