Page 12 of Welcome to Bone Town

“I didn’t say that. It’s actually a… good hypothesis,” Roman says, surprising me. “We need to find more before I’ll fully subscribe to it, but it’s… good.” He repeats the word like it pains him.

I can’t help the little thrum of satisfaction that fills my chest.

Bear joins us, immediately reaching for Archer’s coffee like sharing is the most natural thing in the world. By Archer’s surprised expression, it’s clear sharing a coffee is a new development in their quickly growing friendship. But it doesn’t surprise me all that much. Bear seems like the kind of guy who’s overly affectionate and likes sharing. He picked some grapes off my plate when we were chatting yesterday. Though, admittedly, sharing someone’s drink is a bit more personal.

The second Bear takes a sip, he makes a disgusted face and spits in the sand. “What the hell is that?”

Archer kicks the wet sand with his toe. “Cold milk and a blended raw egg.”

“Shit.” Bear makes a face, dragging his tongue along his top teeth. “If I get sick ‘cause of that egg, I’m takin’ it out on you.”

“There’s only a 0.005% chance of getting salmonella from a raw egg. You’re more likely to get hit by lightning,” Archer says.

“It could still happen. And I’d still punish you if it did.”

“How exactly would you punish me?” Archer says, a shy, but playful lilt to his voice.

The thought of what Bear could do to punish Archer has a hot flash much stronger than the desert heat warming my whole body. I fan my face. A perfectly normal gesture in this weather.

“Any luck on the radar?” Roman asks, cutting through the sexual tension.

Bear shakes his head. The ground-penetrating radar machine disappeared two days after we arrived, before we could get any images.

“There is something I want to talk to you all about, though.” Bear glances around like maybe he doesn’t want to be overheard, then jerks his head in the direction of the forensics tent. “Let’s go in there.”

Curious what he could have to say, I don’t hesitate before trailing behind him. Neither does Archer, who walks just a few steps in front of me. He must not realize I’m so close, because when I duck through the flap on the tent, I run into him, stumbling back a step before regaining my balance. The shy scientist is hiding some serious muscle under his clothing—he didn’t even budge.

I step around him to see what made him stop in his tracks. Bear is standing in the middle of the tent, holding a knife.

“What the hell?” Roman says, pushing forward andplacing himself between me and the alpha who’s supposed to be here to protect us.

“Oh, sorry. No, I found this. Last night, while doing patrol, I spotted this knife near Dr. Whitlock’s tent.”

A chill slithers down my spine. “It’s not mine.”

“I figured,” Bear says. “You don’t seem like the type to break rules.”

There are no weapons allowed on the dig site, apart from the ones the security detail carries, but I would never own a knife like that even if there wasn’t a no-weapons rule. It’s not a little pocket knife or steak knife or the kind of thing you’d use for camping—not that I’ve ever been. This is a knife that could do some real damage. The sun glints off the sharp metal like it agrees.

“I already spoke with all my guys, and it’s not any of theirs.” Bear flips the knife around with ease and tucks it into the belt at his waist. “Is it yours?” His piercing gaze lands on Roman.

“Of course not!” Roman scowls.

Bear takes in the archeologist for a long beat before he seems satisfied and turns a softer, questioning look on Archer, who holds his hands up, palms out, and shakes his head. “Not mine.”

“Hm, yeah, didn’t think so.” Bear runs a hand over his neatly trimmed beard. “One of my guys said he saw someone sneaking around a few nights back. Thought it was someone on the crew, but when he approached to try to find out, they were gone.”

“You think someone’s after the artifacts?” Archer asks.

“Not sure, but I spoke to my boss and they’re gonna let me hire a few more guys and buy some lock boxes.Anything you find that’s particularly precious, keep it under lock and key.” He flicks a glance at Roman and me before resting his gaze on Archer. “And no one should be wandering around after sundown. Especially not alone.”

“I like working at night,” Archer says, frowning.

“Tell me when you’re gonna be up late.” Bear’s smile is almost cocky, and I think he might actually wink, though with his face partially turned away from me, it’s hard to be sure.

I suddenly feel like an interloper, one more invested in the look they’re giving each other than I should be. A startlingly hot image of the two of them kissing pops into my mind. They would be so pretty together. My skin tingles with that familiar ache. The one I know there’s no release from. If only my stupid body would have a heat and get it out of my system.

Frustrated, I take a step back.

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