Page 13 of A Rhapsody of Ravens and Revenge

“Must be nice to make the rules and never have to follow them.”

The corner of his mouth kicked up and the blue of his eyes deepened until they were almost navy. “It has its advantages.”

“Am I missing something?” her father asked, looking back and forth between the two of them.

“Robert, I think it’s time you left us alone to talk this out. You’ve set this in motion, but it’s time to let us take it from here. Obviously, Evie and I have a great deal to work out. Like the fact that we’re going to be sticking together like glue until this guy is caught. Atticus has added security in locations unknown to me, but they’re not on the property so it’s just you and me, kid.”

“Get real, Cal. We can’t be together every second of every day.”

“Sure we can, sugar. I’ll scrub your back in the shower. By the way, I sleep on the left side of the bed.”

This time it was her mouth that dropped open in surprise. The look Cal gave her was so hot she wondered how she didn’t combust into flames where she stood. Heat rushed to her cheeks and things she hadn’t allowed herself to feel since she was a teenager overwhelmed her. It was not a good time for her hormones to awaken. Cal had always been at the center of her fantasies. Until he’d killed them. It was important to remember why she’d stopped loving him.

“Now wait just a minute, Cal,” her father said. His cheeks flushed with anger.

“No interference, Robert,” Cal interrupted. “That was your promise when I took the job. You’re the one who’s been meddling in Evie’s life, trying to get her to settle down. I’m just answering the call. You’ve done your part. Now it’s up to the two of us.”

“You’re supposed to be protecting her, not seducing her. I know your reputation better than anyone, son.”

“I will protect her. With my life if I have to. The seduction is just an added bonus.” He grinned unapologetically and she started to worry that Cal was going too far. Her father looked ready to commit murder.

She’d never seen Cal face down her father before. Come to think of it, she wasn’t sure she’d ever seen anyone face down her father. He was the boss. Larger than life. And he was no one to mess with.

“I’ve treated you like a son for most of your life and this is how you repay me?”

“You once told me that family never had to repay anything. You just do things because it’s family.”

“I’m getting tired of the two of you remembering my words of wisdom for once. And that doesn’t negate the fact that you’re talking about my daughter. She’s not someone to dally with.”

“She’s standing right here and she can speak for herself,” Evangeline said, irritated with both of them now. “I feel like you’re about to start bartering cheese wheels and cattle for my hand in marriage. And if that’s the case, then I’m going to have to shoot both of you. Cal and I don’t even like each other, so I don’t think this is going to be an issue.”

“I like you just fine, sugar. You’re the one who knows how to hold a grudge.” Cal grinned. “But in all seriousness, you’re not treating this situation the way you should. The man who’s after you is dangerous, and I’m not going to risk your life because you don’t want your privacy invaded.

“You’ve been a father to me, Robert,” Cal said, turning to the older man. “But you set this in motion. It’s time to step back and let it play out. You know I won’t hurt her. But I’m also not going to stand here and let her manipulate me into letting her call the shots. And if you’d stop and think like the intelligence officer you once were and not the father you are then you’d see that as plain as I do. My first priority is to protect her. My second priority is to get her to stop being so hardheaded and realize that we can work better together than apart. Maybe that’s within a personal relationship or maybe not. But it’s something we’ll have to figure out for ourselves.”

Her eyebrows rose in surprise. She wasn’t expecting something so—mature to come out of Cal’s mouth. Not that she was going to give him the time of day. She certainly did know how to hold a grudge. He’d been right about that. And despite Cal’s talk about personal relationships to her father, there was the little issue of trust to deal with.

What was more surprising than anything was her father nodding his head in agreement. He turned to her and said, “Cal stays. You can’t fire him. Only I can do that. Do what he says when it comes to your safety. If he gets out of line with the other let me know.”

Then he turned back to Cal and gave him a warning. “If you break her heart you’re a dead man. I don’t have time to hide any bodies with my schedule the way it is, and honestly I just don’t want to deal with Atticus. But I’ll do it if you force my hand. Atticus wasn’t someone I liked messing with when he was one of my agents, and I want to mess with him even less now. He’s a mean son of a gun when he wants to be. I think he learned that from me.”

With nothing more than a quick wave goodbye, he exited the room and left them alone. The front door closed behind him, and the silence was palpable.

Evangeline felt the temper she tried so hard to control bubbling to the surface, and her hands fisted at her sides until her nails bit into her palms. The last time she’d felt this much anger and lack of control was the day Cal had taken everything important away from her.

As if reading her mind he said, “So what do you say, Evie? Do you still hate me?”

Chapter Five

Cal knew he was walking a fine line, but he couldn’t seem to help himself. There was something about Evangeline that made him want to keep pushing, to argue with her just for the sake of controversy. Because the rush he got from pitting his wits against hers was better than any of the dangerous missions he’d been on.

He’d kept close tabs on her over the years, so he was prepared to see her again in the flesh. Thought he was prepared to see her again. She sure wasn’t a girl of twenty anymore. The baggy clothes, messy bun, and no makeup didn’t hide her like she’d wanted.

“Seriously?” she asked. “You’re asking if I still hate you after the little stunt you just pulled? You must be out of your mind.”

He winked at her and went to close the sliding glass door, testing the locking mechanism just to be safe. And then he pulled the curtains.

All the entry and exit points in the house made him want to pack her up and get her on the next plane to South Carolina to one of his safe houses, but Cal knew a monster like Victor Taber would find them no matter where they were. There was no reason to take the chance of other innocent civilians getting hurt. It was better to stay put and make his own rules.

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