Page 38 of Gwen's Delta
“Yeah, I’m sure you will. As Grams would say, ‘You’re just fishing for compliments now.’”
“I am not. Okay, maybe a little. I don’t mean to be a distraction, but I get it. Whenever I’m around you, I want to kiss you senseless. But you have work to do, so I’ll be over there, looking for more books to add to my collection.”
“Excellent plan. If you have questions, you know where to find me,” she said with a smile.
It wasn’t easy to walk away from her—the pull was strong—but she had to work. Having to look through the stacks of books wasn’t a hardship. It was his second favorite thing to do after kissing Gwen.
The bookstore’s stock was predominantly rare books, so he was surprised to find a couple of sections of current fiction and non-fiction releases. He’d bet it had been Gwen’s idea to expand the stock to include the newer books to bring more people into the store.
As he perused the shelves, his unease returned. Gwen had been excited to see him, but something was bothering her. When she’d opened the door, she’d been so distracted that she hadn’t recognized him. Even when she’d realized it was him and a huge smile had spread across her face, it hadn’t reached her eyes.
Merlin had initially planned to just stop at the bookstore to ask Gwen to dinner, then explore Lancelot while she finished her day. The plan had changed when he looked into her troubled eyes, and his alpha mode kicked into overdrive. Hanging out in the store wasn’t a bad idea, but trying to stay away from her was proving to be more difficult than he expected.
As he wandered around, the quality of the books and the items in the display cases impressed him. The glass-enclosed display cabinets were filled with jewelry, sculptures, and other artifacts her family had collected over the years. Most of the pieces looked Middle Eastern, but there were also some Roman and Russian items.
When they’d had their coffee date, Gwen had mentioned that her parents did most of the traveling. He vaguely remembered her saying they’d gone to Egypt this time. Remembering that piece of information intensified his unease and tightened the muscles in his shoulders. The classified intel from Sand indicated there could be a huge attack in the area. Information he couldn’t share with anyone.
Merlin’s gut told him that Gwen’s parents needed to leave Egypt as soon as possible. But he didn’t have the first clue how to convince her. Even if she could reach them, they wouldn’t listen without a good reason. He wouldn’t under the same circumstances. Besides, Gwen was smart, and she’d want to know why he wanted her to contact them. If he shared any classified intel, his ass would end up court-martialed. Too bad the CIA wouldn’t post a travel alert and ask all Americans to leave the country.
Voices interrupted his pondering, and he listened to Mr. Hopper and Gwen’s grandfather discuss a book about ancient Rome. It was enlightening to hear the two elderly men chat about the Holy Roman Empire with more clarity than any history professor.
While Merlin eavesdropped, he discovered an early edition of Dickens’Tale of Two Cities. He’d just opened the cover when his phone buzzed.
Woof:You okay?
Merlin:Yeah. Why? What’s up?
Woof:You met with Roe, then you didn’t show up at the Mug. Just wanted to check on you.
Merlin:No worries. I decided to visit Gwen.
Admitting he’d come to see Gwen when he got off work said a lot more than the words implied. But it was ridiculous to fight the obvious. He couldn’t get her out of his mind when he wasn’t with her, and when he was, he couldn’t keep his hands or lips off her. The petite redhead had gotten under his skin from the moment their eyes had met.
Woof:When do we get to meet her?
Merlin:Not sure. Probably soon. See you in the morning.
Woof:Copy that.
The guys would give him shit, but they’d be happy for him, too. He was the oldest though not by much. After Zip and Woof had settled down with their women, it had triggered an emptiness that had shocked him. Since meeting Gwen, the ache had eased, and when they were together, the hollowness inside had dissipated. And they’d only known each other for three days.
Just as Merlin shoved his phone into this pocket, it buzzed again.
Jangles:Maybe we should take a road trip now?
Merlin groaned. Woof must be at the Ugly Mug with Jangles, maybe Duff, too. He could picture what would happen, and it wasn’t pretty. They’d strut up to Gwen to introduce themselves and proceed to tell her every embarrassing story about him they could remember. It was way too soon in their relationship for her to have to put up with his team. He needed to put a stop to it before they got any more ideas.
As he tapped out his reply, the phone buzzed again.
Jangles:Just kidding. See you tomorrow.
Merlin:Asshole. Thanks.
Expecting another text, he waited a moment before tucking the phone away. Merlin wasn’t sure if they were going to show up or not, but he hoped not.
“Everything okay?” Gwen asked from behind him.
He smiled as he inhaled her honeysuckle scent, and his cock stirred in his jeans. She shouldn’t have been able to surprise him. Staying alive was all about situational awareness—losing it meant ending up dead. He needed to up his game if Gwen could slip under his radar. Anyone trained would have gotten the drop on him.
