Page 5 of The Magic of Discovery
Fish glanced my way with his eyebrow raised, and I gave a subtle nod. Kai clapped his hand on my back a couple of times in a ‘sucks to be you’ kind of way before he walked around my chair and headed to the door. Cam just nodded at me and followed Kai out of the large double doors, leaving the two of us alone.
“Sir?” I prompted as I lowered myself back down into my seat.
“Sloane, I heard about your trip to Beijing. Thanks to you, we were able to save millions of dollars by extracting that scientist. Their research is unfounded, and your quick wit and professional skills single handedly made that mission a huge success,” Larson praised, sticking out his hand for me to shake.
“Thank you, sir,” I replied, grasping his hand. “But it really was a team effort. I don’t deserve all of the glory.”
“See, Sloane, that’s where we disagree. I’ve been kept apprised of all of your team’s missions. There’s a pattern developing, time and time again, and it’s you that’s stepping up and making the tough calls - the kind of calls a true leader makes. Cam is a solid lead, but sometimes his reserved decisions cost time, and time equals money. You have serious potential to move up in the ranks to a more prestigious role. When you’re done with the spy world, you’re going to want a job that you’ve earned. One that is kinder to your body and really stocks your bank account. With that being said, I would like to offer you a solo assignment, and if you’re able to get this information for me, that will solidify my decision to give you this promotion. When you get to this town, there may be people who can lead us to Laura. I want you to figure out who these people are and milk them for any details you can get. Someone in that town knows something. I’ll check in with you periodically to get updates on your progress.” He stood up, clapping his large hand against my shoulder. “Keep up the great work, son.”
The sound of laughter broke my flashback.Reallaughter. Not that fake shit girls do to try and look sexy or coy. I cleared my throat and side-eyed Fischer, but he was already studying the redheaded goddess as she made her way down the few steps out of the magic shop.
Observant fucker.
Kai was guiding this girl over to our moving truck, and I spied the keys dangling off of her finger.Oh shit, this is the landlady?Cam was a few steps behind them, looming like the huge stoic motherfucker he was.
The threesome reached us and came to a stop just in time for Kai to say, “Saige, these are our brothers, Sloane and Fischer.” He nodded to each of us respectively. Saige’s eyes widened slightly before she schooled her reaction, a smile lighting up her heart-shaped face.
Oh yeah, I saw that, baby. You can’t hide from me.
Fischer stepped forward and held out his hand. “Hi, Saige. Thanks for meeting us so early. I’m Fischer, and it’s nice to meet you.”
Gods, he was always so damn pleasant. I watched Saige with interest, not that you could tell by the bored as fuck look I was broadcasting.I’m good at that, not giving a fuck. She was wearing a t-shirt with an awful pun scrawled across her chest and a pair of faded skinny jeans with cheetah print flats on her feet. I knew she was aware of my eyes trailing down her body because the longer I stared, the more pronounced the flush became on the creamy skin of her neck. Cam cleared his throat.
I realized everyone was awkwardly shuffling around, obviously waiting for me to take this opportunity to introduce myself to her too. Quickly deciding that I didn’t have time for this shit or this woman, I raised an eyebrow at her and smirked. A blush instantly bloomed on her cheeks, and she quickly cast her eyes toward the ground.
And now my cock has a pulse.
I lifted my chin, giving her a bro nod like a royal douchebag, and walked off to the back of the truck, adjusting myself before my dick gave me away.
“Don’t mind him. He’s just... well, he’s a dickhead,” Kai reassured Saige.
“Okay, well, let me show you where the entrance is for the apartment, and I can give you a quick tour. Then I’ll have to get back to The Pig since I’m the only one working today.” Her sweet voice carried to me, and I noticed the strain, no doubt a product of my less than polite attitude. A pleased grin stretched across my face.It truly is the little things in life.
I enjoyed that. Getting under people’s skin. It made my black heart dance in my chest like a virgin about to get laid for the first time. That rush, it fueled me. From the corner of my eye, I watched her as she led the guys away, the way her hips swayed seductively. Damn, the woman was packing hella junk in the trunk, and those jeans were sinful in the way they hugged her lush hips and cupped her ass cheeks. Saige stopped about ten feet short of the entrance of the magic shop and raised the key in her hand to unlock another tan-colored door that must lead up to the apartment.
As sexy as this witch was, we were here on a mission, and I wanted to stay on point so we could limit the amount of time we spent here. I’d already spotted six elderly couples, all walking fluffy dogs, and they all looked like talkers.I fucking hate socializing.
I must avoid those wrinkly fossils at all costs... but on second thought, they probably have a ton of information, and they’ll just love to tell whoever will listen. The sooner we solve this mystery, the sooner we’re out of this boring hell hole and back to doing big boy missions. I’m going to infiltrate their little old chit chat circle. Phase one begins tomorrow.
What a freaking buttlord. A hot as hell buttlord with a smile that was fucking criminal. My face was still burning as I climbed the stairs to the apartment.I mean, honestly, what a jerk.The days of letting smug assholes walk all over me were done. He might be devastatingly sexy, but that was the only pass he was going to get from me. Sloane could kiss my big ass.
Each of them was incredibly powerful. Their magic swirled around them without any effort on their part, invisible waves that felt like pulses of strength. I’d only ever met a handful of magical people who gave off that kind of palpable power. My gran and Laurie were two of them. Shit-lick ex-boyfriend was another. Some people used that to their advantage, giving off a ‘don’t-fuck-with-me’ vibe, and while I clearly knew these men weren’t to be fucked with, I wasn’t afraid of them. The way their energy coiled around me, colliding with my own power like ocean waves seeking out the sandy beach, felt natural and unstoppable. I was having trouble processing exactly where all of these hot mages had come from and why they were renting an apartment in this completely predictable little town. At least Kai was funny, and Cam and Fischer seemed nice enough. My hand trailed along the banister at the top of the stairs as the room opened up into a large open floor plan set up. Gran had hired a contractor a couple of years ago to spruce this place up, and it really was a beautiful apartment. The living room and eat-in kitchen were immediately to the left of the landing. Then there were three small bedrooms, a pull-out sofa bed, one and a half baths, and a large deck with a grilling area and hot tub. Not a bad place to live at all.
“This will be perfect,” Fischer said.
“The kitchen is stocked with essentials. We usually rent on short-term leases, people looking to escape the city for a week or a weekend. Linens and towels are in the closet in the bathroom.” I pointed to the right, down the hallway. “There are only three bedrooms, but this sofa does pull out into a bed,” I explained as I walked around the room. The screen door slammed, and footsteps thudded on the stairs, so I braced myself for Mr. Sunshine to make his entrance.
“Everything looks great, Saige,” Cam assured me as he sat down in one of the navy blue armchairs.
The whole place was decorated in a color scheme of blues, whites, and grays with small pops of yellow sprinkled here and there throughout the place. Kaito plopped down in the other armchair and picked up the remote control, the television kicking on a moment later.
Fischer disappeared down the hallway with his duffel bag, probably to investigate the bedrooms. Sloane looked in all of the cupboards in the kitchen before opening up the refrigerator. I could hear him grumbling about there being no food or drinks under his breath.Jackass.
“There’s the diner next door if you guys are hungry, and then there’s Dinner Thyme, our grocery store, over on Oak Street. It’s a couple of minutes walk from here. They’re open until eight tonight. I do have to get back downstairs to work, so if you have any other questions, just pop on into the shop. I’ll leave the lease agreement here on the island for you guys to review and sign. Drop it off when you’re done, and I’ll make sure it gets to Gran.” I started to make my way back over to the stairs, suddenly feeling overwhelmed being in an enclosed space with the four of them.
“Don’t you think we should exchange phone numbers?” Kai proposed as he turned his body in the chair to look at me. When I raised an eyebrow, he put his hands up with his palms out, trying to convey his innocence. “I simply meant that we’re your renters, and say something were to happen here while the shop was closed. How would we contact you?”
“Hmm. Well, thatdoesmake sense. Here, give me your phone.” He stood to meet me halfway, and I held my palm out. Placing the phone in my hand, his fingers brushed along mine, my stomach flipping at the contact.
