Vision of Seduction (27 page)

Stone smiled, and Alyssa knew her brow furrowed with confusion.

Sometimes the Klatch penchant for beating around the bush could become

trying. The thought had never occurred to her that the guards were

unhappy in any way. They all appeared perfectly content, and she had

never met one who hadn't acted totally loyal.

"My wife hasn't been on Tador long enough to understand what you're

asking, Gavin. However, knowing her as I do, I think she would be open to

the discussions you're suggesting."

"Damn it, Stone," she projected inside his head. "I know this is a matriarchal

society, but you're the king, for God's sake. If there is something that needed to be

fixed, why didn't you tell me?"

"Beloved, it is not my place."

She glared at his familiar answer and vowed to try to bring it up again

when she had the time.

Stone only smiled at her unspoken thought, which, from experience, she

knew he had heard. "It's a longstanding restriction for the guards to be unable

to enter into a relationship. They may provide themselves sexual sustenance, of

course, or provide it for another guard, but no emotional attachments are allowed."

"What?" Alyssa sat up in her chair, her anger at past queens burning hot in

her veins. She looked between Gavin and Stone. "Are you telling me that in

this sexual society, they are essentially treated like priests? No wives, no

girlfriends, or boyfriends? What a total crock of—"

"Don't get me wrong, my lady." Gavin dipped his chin to avoid meeting

her gaze—a royal-guard habit that still irritated her. "We willingly choose

to become part of the guard and are honored to serve the royal family—"

She pushed to her feet and chopped the air in front of her with her hand.

"Bullshit." At Gavin's surprised expression, she added, "Bullshit that you

have to give up having any type of fulfilling relationship to go into this line

of work."

"Your majesty." The sides of Gavin's lips curved up slightly— probably at

her language.

She would bet he'd never heard her mother say "bullshit" as queen.

"The purpose," Gavin said, "was to ensure the guards had no distractions

from their duties and would not be afraid to give their lives for their

charges."

Alyssa frowned at him. "Whatever—I don't buy it. The Secret Service back

on Earth doesn't have rules like that, and they are still able to protect the

President—with very few exceptions." She raised her chin. "So, as of right

now, that old rule is banished."

"However, beloved," Stone added, "if any two guards on the same team are

involved, I would suggest one of them transfer to a new team."

"Fair enough, my lord," Gavin added before Alyssa could comment. "I can

assure you none of our number will object to such a stipulation."

Several of the guards exchanged quick looks, excitement about the change

in rules evident in their expressions.

Stone clapped Gavin on the back. "As soon as we have the triangle in place,

we should convene to discuss the rest of the guard's concerns. But, for

pity's sake, man, once your shift is done, go find a willing maid or whoever

strikes your fancy."

A wolfish grin appeared on Gavin's face. "Thank you, your majesties." The

guard opened his mouth as though he wanted to say more, but then he

closed his lips.

Alyssa raised her eyebrow and pierced him with a questioning look. "As

my loyal guard, I expect you to keep me fully informed on everything,

Gavin. It's too late to hold back now, and I don't want you to."

Gavin dipped his chin. "Regardless of what anyone says, my lady, I see a

great leader in both you and King Stone. With very little preparation, you

have made difficult decisions that might be painful for the people to accept

but are definitely in their best interest. You are both fair and caring leaders,

and I'm proud to serve in any capacity I may." He raised his gaze to meet

Alyssa's—a rare gesture she appreciated. "And, also, regardless of what

Valen said, your parents are extremely proud of you. The entire guard feels

the same and will stand behind you, no matter what."

Thick emotion tightened Alyssa's chest. The comment had blindsided

her—in a good way. How often over the past few months had she

wondered if she was the worst ruler in the history of her planet? What a

nice change to hear that someone thought she was doing a good job—

especially the guards who had been privy to the ruling decisions on Tador

before she had taken over. Granted, those rules had been her parents', but

they had shown faith in her by deciding to relocate to a home in the

country as soon as Alyssa had ascended—most likely to let her carve out

her own niche as queen without feeling as though she was constantly in

their shadow.

She swallowed hard. "Thank you, Gavin." Her voice shook as tears

threatened. "That means more than you know."

15

The sensation of someone watching her made the hairs on the back of Rita's

neck prickle. The same feeling had dogged her every day since Katelyn had

left on her cruise.

Rita had decided to come into work early today because the new pendant

shipment was due. But now, walking along the sidewalk in the early

morning sunshine, the churning in her gut made her feel like this area was

a dark, deserted alley at midnight on a moonless night.

Rita quickened her pace, her purse clutched tight to her chest, and her gaze

darting all around to ensure no one could sneak up on her. She rounded

the corner and immediately froze.

The front door of the shop stood open, shattered glass from the side

window scattered over the sidewalk.

Her heart pounded, and she swallowed past a huge lump of fear that had

gathered inside her throat.

She pulled her cell phone from her purse, flipped it open, and dialed 9 ... 1

... and then a man stepped through the doorway. Rita willed her ringer to

hit the last digit, but for some reason, she hesitated.

He held up a badge and said, "I'm Detective Damien, ma'am. Are you the

owner?"

She would have to trust that it was a Phoenix police badge he flashed

because she hadn't been able to tear her eyes off his face.

By all that's holy, I'm dead, and this must he heaven.

The man before her could only be described as mouthwatering.

His coloring reminded her of the hottie Katelyn had run off with—not that

Rita could blame her friend one bit.

Hair so black it had blue highlights flowed down to the best set of

shoulders Rita had ever seen. She spared only a quick glance for the rest of

his body, making sure it was also the stuff of wet dreams, before her gaze

flitted back to his face.

He had deep purple eyes framed with long, inky black lashes any woman

would kill for, a patrician nose, and high cheekbones covered in dusky,

olive skin. His sensual mouth, curved up at the edges, made Rita think of

hot, sweaty nights with lace teddies and silk sheets.

"Miss?"

His voice was a perfect, clear tenor, and she had a sudden urge to ask him

to sing, but she was afraid that beautiful voice might give her on-the-spot

orgasms. "Uh ..."

"Are you Rita Eldridge?" he asked in a way that said he already knew the

answer.

She managed to close her mouth and nod while she mentally gathered her

scattered brain cells. "Yes, I am Rita." Good job, maybe he'll just think you're

mentally challenged instead of an insane idiot around men.

"We responded to an alarm. Could you come inside and let us know if

anything is missing?" He reached into the back pocket of his black jeans,

which seemed like they had been lovingly painted on, and pulled out an

envelope. "Oh, and this was on the floor just inside the doorway, as though

it had been slipped underneath the door."

Rita's brow furrowed, and her logic cut through several, but not all, layers

of the lust in which she was caught. "We have tight weather stripping on

the bottom of our front door. There's no way anyone could've slipped

anything underneath it while it was closed. Otherwise, during the

monsoon season, we'd be inundated with dust."

He crouched and examined the bottom of the door, his long fingers tracing

the weather stripping until it seemed erotic. He pursed his lips before

standing. "You're right." He handed her the letter. "Can you tell me who

the letter is from? It may give us a clue as to who broke in to your shop."

Rita turned the envelope over in her hands and immediately recognized

Katelyn's writing on the front. She carefully tore open the envelope and

pulled out two pages covered in Katelyn's chicken scratch. "It's from my

partner. She's out of town on a cruise. I'm not sure how the letter got

inside, though."

"She does have a key?"

"Of course, but as I said, she's on a cruise, which would make it difficult for

her to unlock the shop, drop a letter on the floor, and then relock the shop

before someone broke in."

He nodded but not in agreement—more like an acknowledgement that he

had heard her. "Can you come back inside and check to see if anything's

missing?" he asked again. "The apartment above the shop seems to have

been the focal point— it has been ransacked."

Panic clawed through Rita's stomach as she headed straight through the

shop and toward the stairs along the back wall, Detective Damien's voice

trailing behind her. Katelyn's apartment was the only thing up there.

Something was going on with her roommate, and it wasn't good, if the

roiling in her gut was any indication. "Nothing was disturbed downstairs?"

she asked without turning as she took the stairs two at a time.

He must have followed her, because his answer came from close behind

her. "It's pretty bad up here." His voice held a gentle warning.

Rita stepped onto the top landing, and her breath caught. The sapphireblue door to Katelyn's apartment was shattered along one side where the

deadbolt had been forced by someone's shoulder—if the shape of the

indentation in the door was any indication. The door stood half open,

which gave Rita an unimpeded view of the devastation that now

comprised her friend's apartment.

Broken crystals and vases lay scattered across the floor, along with scraps

of paper and chunks of foam that had probably come from the couch and

torn clothing.

"Oh, Katelyn ..." Rita pulled the door all the way open and stepped inside,

careful not to step on anything sharp. She walked from room to room, her

anger growing brighter with the sight of each new act of destruction. When

she reached Katelyn's bedroom, tears pricked at the backs of her eyes, and

her throat was so tight she wasn't sure she could speak.

The mattress had been shoved off the bed, and the chest of drawers had

been pushed over, some of the drawers broken, their contents littered

across the floor. Pictures had been torn off the wall, the glass and frames

smashed, and there were dark smudges along the wall that looked like char

marks.

Tension radiated through Rita, and she fisted her hands at her sides. Her

gaze swept the room and finally stopped on Katelyn's cedar chest, which

sat at the foot of her bed. The dome-lidded box was made of thick cherry

wood and was an antique Katelyn had found and lovingly restored. It

appeared to be the only piece of furniture in the apartment that hadn't

sustained any damage. The dome lid was open, and several small journals

spilled over the top and out onto the surrounding floor.

Rita stooped to pick one up and then flipped the book open.

A child's loopy cursive writing rilled every line of every page. The dates, as

well as Katelyn's name written on the front, confirmed they were hers. Rita

leaned over to look inside the chest and realized that it was full to the brim

with these journals. She flipped through a few more and found them much

like the first.

"I never knew Katelyn kept diaries, especially this far back."

"Do you know why anyone would break in here? Did your partner have

any enemies?"

A strangled squeak escaped Rita as she nearly jumped out of her skin.

The sight of Katelyn's ransacked apartment had chased all thoughts of the

hunky detective from her mind.

"My apologies." He dipped his chin, almost an abbreviated bow, which

made her wonder where he was from. "I didn't mean to startle you."

She swallowed hard and willed her heart to slow to something resembling

normal. "I forgot you were following me. I can't believe someone would do

all this." She gestured to encompass the room. "Katelyn doesn't have any

enemies or even family." She pursed her lips as she glanced around the

room again. "Were these diaries open like this when you found them?"

"Yes. Is there anything in there worth taking? Information that can be used

for blackmail? Anything?" He pushed his hair away from his face, the

movement making the sculpted muscles in his forearms bunch and move.

A desire to run her tongue along the bulging vein in that perfect forearm

ran through her, and she bit her tongue to keep from embarrassing herself.

Instead shook her head to answer his question. "From the dates, these were