Page 34 of Protected By Artemis

“Gramoto!Thirty minutes?” she repeated. “And how am I supposed to do that? H, you gotta figure something out.”

“If I had the time, I could,” the god replied. “But you gave me less than half a day. It’s the best I can do for now. Now, do you want to do this or not?”

She stared at the phone and bit at her lip. “Fine. Just finish installing the app. I’ll find a way.”

Rising from the bed, Artemis grabbed her purse and cap, then checked on her reflection. She had put on a sporty outfit of yoga pants, sports bra, and a tank top, plus sneakers. She was going to be riding on an ATV after all, so she had to dress comfortably.

Heading downstairs, she greeted the rest of the group who were already in the lobby. Candice waved her over right away, and they sat in the back of the buggy that would take themto where they would start their ATV tour. To her surprise, Cade was already there, along with the other alphas. He was in conversation with a sandy-haired man wearing board shorts and a white tank shirt.

“Who’s Cade talking to?” Artemis asked Candice as they alighted from the buggy.

“That’s Daniel Philipps,” Candice said, lowering her voice. “Mallory Philipps’s son and heir. Ever heard of them?”

“No,” she lied. “Why? Should I?”

She chuckled. “Well, he is your bedmate’s closest neighbor. His pack is from the Yukon. Technically, they’re Canadian, but Mallory’s pack is so old, they formed before modern borders existed, so they’re considered part of the West Coast packs.”

“Are they friendly with the Alaska pack?”

“I guess, but then again, you know the saying about keeping your enemies closer…” Candice shot her a knowing look. “I mean, it’s no secret that the Yukon pack always thought that Alaska was theirs, even though they never really expanded their den into that part of the land. They’ve always been sore that Cade’s great-great-grandfather was able to stake their claim and grow their pack so quickly.”

“Oh, I see.”Hmmm, that could be a strong motivation to bomb the pack.“Would you excuse me, Candice? I should go over and say hi to Cade.” With a quick goodbye, she sashayed over to him. Heat pooled in her belly, seeing how sexy he looked in his casual outfit of khaki shorts and white linen shirt. Memories of last night flashed into her brain, and if they were alone, she would have probably been all over him.

“Hey, Cade,” she greeted as she approached him, then glanced over at the man next to him. “Hello, Alpha.”

“He’s not an Alpha.” Cade’s arm snaked around her waist possessively and pulled her to his side.

“Not yet,” the other man replied in a good-natured tone. His blue eyes twinkled, and while he looked to be in his thirties, his smile made him look boyish. “But someday. I’m Daniel Philipps. And you are?”

“Taken,” Cade grumbled.

Artemis rolled her eyes at Cade. “Artemis. I came here with Cade.”

“Nice to meet you, Artemis.” He grinned at her. “Cade, you’re a very lucky man.”

“I am.” His arm tightened around her.

“Maybe someday I’ll be as lucky.” There was a wistful tone in his voice, something that told Artemis he was very much telling the truth, and his envy was real.

“And you will make some girl very lucky too,” she added. An idea struck her. “Cade, can I speak with you in private?”

“Of course. Philipps,” he nodded at the other man before he led Artemis away. Once they were far away enough from the group, he said. “Well? Did Hephaestus finish the app? Does it work?”

“Yes. And, uh, kinda?”

Cade released her and turned to face her. “What do you mean, kinda?”

“Well…” She explained everything to him. “And so, you see, the phone needs to be in range for thirty minutes, and you’ll need to be really close, within a foot of him.”

“How am I supposed to stay with him for that long now? If we had it this morning then it wouldn’t have been a problem. And I have to be less than a foot away? What am I supposed to do, sit on his lap?”

“I know. But, I think I have an idea. However, there’s one thing I need you to do.”

“And what’s that?”

“You have to go away. Don’t join the tour.”

“Excuse me?”

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