Page 211 of The Protective Gryphen

Gryphen actually jumped.

You know it had to be freaking scary when a war-hardened Marine jumped in a room.

“Well, that tells us that. She was killed,” Ian said.

That told Gryphen only one thing. He wanted out of there.

“Get whatever that is, and let’s get our asses moving. I’m about to toss you over my shoulder and carry you out of here, Ian. Test me.”

He got it.

“I think I have it,” he said, fishing around in the paper backing with two fingers.

When he pulled it out, and turned around, he caught Gryphen checking out his ass.

“You can’t possibly be thinking about sex,” he said. “You were just scared by the ghost.”

He laughed.

“Want to bet?” Gryphen asked. “Last night, was the hottest night of sex I’ve ever had. You better bet I’m going to dwell on it. As long as the ghost doesn’t get touchy-feely and you do, I’m good.”

He smiled.

“It was pretty stellar.”

If he wanted to get the man back to bed, he needed to get this over with. He didn’t like ghost hunting. It gave him the willies.

Yes, he was a Marine, but still.

It felt all kinds of wrong.

“What did you find?” Gryphen asked.

Honestly, he felt like someone was breathing on the back of his neck, and this time, it wasn’t Gryphen. Only, if he told him that, they were running for it.

“Let’s go out in the hall, and get back to the lit part of the castle.”

That worked for him.

Ian rested the painting back on the pile it was on, and fixed the one that had fallen over. Then, they headed back up toward the renovated rooms. Once there, they saw the true mess they’d made in the dining room.

Jesus.

“I am totally cleaning this up when the sun comes up. I’m a messy eater,” he said, grinning at Ian, and looking at his crotch.

It made him laugh.

“I’m aware. I was the main course,” he said, loving every second of it.

Who was he kidding?

“The note, Mr. Patterson,” he stated. “Then, we can go back to bed.”

Ian carefully opened it, and he already knew what it would be.

Duncan’s name was on the front, and Ceit had signed it.

Together, they stared at the old paper and read it.

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