AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Seven
Aria stepped into the house,her eyes drawn to an expanse of sea so blue, it looked like a painting. The contrast of it against the pristine plaster of the interior walls and the pale terra cotta tile almost hurt hereyes.
“It’s not very big,” Locke said. “I’m afraid I usually come here alone withElle.”
She’d met Elle in passing after she and Damian had come in from the beach during their one night in La Jolla. The other woman was a perfect match for Locke, with strawberry blond hair, a smattering of barely-there freckles, and a peaceful aura that mimicked Locke’sown.
She could easily see the two of them living barefoot on a beach in Bali. She could just as easily see them here on the island of Kythnos inGreece.
“It’s beautiful,” Aria said, stepping onto theterrace.
They’d risen early that morning and boarded a private plane. By now, she was used to charter flights, used to chauffeured cars and luxury houses and a scowling Cole who either followed them or paved the way in front of them according to some kind of threat assessment she didn’tunderstand.
But even she’d been surprised when Locke had told them to buckle up as he made his way to the cockpit of the smalljet.
He’d piloted the plane next to Derek, a giant of a man with fair hair cut so short she would have taken him for military if she hadn’t known better. It had been one of the smoothest plane rides of her life, and she couldn’t help wondering about Locke Montgomery and the other tricks he had up his sleeve, a question that had been partially answered when they’d climbed aboard a waiting boat in Athens. That, too, had been piloted by Locke, and they’d sped past the ferries making their way to the island, the water like a million crystalline sapphires under theboat.
It would be easy to think Locke Montgomery was some kind of meditating beach bum, but she’d seen the house in La Jolla, the shooting range with its impressive inventory of firearms and enough ammo to hold off the ATF. She’d seen the room on the first floor lined with computer monitors and equipment that looked like it had been lifted from an NSA blackop.
Had seen him pilot the plane and expertly maneuver theboat.
There was something about him, something coiled in the way he carried himself, the easy grace of his movements, the piercing eyes that seemed to see things no one else couldsee.
Underestimating him would be amistake.
The fact that the leaders of the Syndicate had recommended Damian work with Locke was another layer of reassurance. She didn’t know them well, but they’d made appearances when she’d been in the hospital, always bearing gifts and the comforting strength that seemed to be a hallmark of the Syndicate’smen.
No wonder they wanted Damian for New York. She’d felt the same comfort from him the moment he’d stepped into Velvet for his first meeting withPrimo.
Comfort and raw sensuality — another thing the Syndicate’s men had inspades.
They were birds of a feather. It was a wonder they hadn’t teamed upsooner.
“There's a guest house in the back,” Locke said, breaking into her thoughts as he spoke to Damian. “Derek and Cole can bunk there. You and Aria can take the bedroom at the back of thehall.”
“Thank you,” Damiansaid.
She turned to the sound of his voice, catching a note of regret in his voice she didn’t understand. His expression was impassive as always, and she made a mental note to ask him about it later when they werealone.
“I’m going to check in with some of my sources in Athens before dinner,” Lockesaid.
Damian nodded. “I’ll do thesame.”
Aria knew they’d done preliminary digging prior to their departure from La Jolla, knew that both Damian and Locke had called in favors from trusted sources to get the lay of the land inAthens.
“When do we get to work?” Ariaasked.
A strange gleam appeared in Locke’s eyes. “Tomorrow.”
She nodded. “Good.”
Any other time she would have sought the opportunity to lay on the beach with Damian, to feel his body, slick like a seal’s, against hers in thewater.
This wasn’t any other time. They had work to do, and she was ready to have itdone.
Locke’s gaze lingered on her face before he turned to Damian. “We’ll strategize overdinner.”
