Page 81 of Dangerous Rhythm

“What is she saying?” Curtis asked.

Agnes stepped forward with a smile. “She’s saying a goat and a rooster may have their differences, but when they respect those differences, they can balance each other well. The goat and the rooster have a strong bond and deep trust in each other. They will need to work to bring out the best out of each other, but their love can thrive.”

“That sounds like a wonderful challenge,” Curtis said.

“A lasting relationship is the one that overcomes its challenges,” Agnes agreed.

Curtis nodded with a smile, thinking of Brandon and Callie, Rae and Dean, his two other brothers, Justin and Ram and their significant others. And though he hadn’t met Chris’ new fiancée yet, knowing that she was Rae’s half-sister already told him Chris had a challenge on his hands.

“I love challenges,” he concluded and took Lina’s hand.

thirty-two

An explosion jarred Lina awake. She flew off the bed, heart racing, as she scanned her surroundings. Bright colors burst in the sky above Victoria Harbor beyond the glass wall of the bedroom.

“Are you okay?”

She looked back toward the bed where Curtis sat up, rubbing his sleepy eyes. She exhaled heavily as she tried to calm her heart rate.

It’s just fireworks.

“Yeah. I was just…” Lina gestured to the view outside as another set of fireworks shot into the sky and exploded into giant, bright flowers.

“Oh, wow,” Curtis breathed out. “We got prime view, don’t we?”

Lina dropped onto the mattress and controlled her breathing. She should’ve remembered there would be fireworks at midnight. It was the new year, after all. But both Curtis and she were so exhausted from family time and jet lag that they'dfallen asleep as soon as they'd gotten back to the apartment. The jumping over continents finally caught up with them.

She rarely let jet lag overcome her when she was working, but she’d broken so many rules on this job. And could she still call this a job? She’d blurred the line between professional and personal to nonexistence.

Curtis’ warm hand rubbed her back and shoulders. She could feel the mattress shift behind her as he moved closer.

“Come here.” He put his arm around her and cradled her back against his chest. He dropped a lingering kiss on the crook of her neck, and her heart rate leveled off at a more normal speed.

Lina leaned her temple against his and absorbed his calming energy as she wrapped her arm over his. It felt so good to be held—just to have someone she could lean on when she didn’t exactly have her shit together. Because she was so tired of holding her own sometimes.

They sat up in bed together and watched the majestic display of art, its immense amount of explosives, charges, and fuses working together. It was sometimes difficult to believe the same things that created this beautiful imagery on special occasions were used to destroy something every day somewhere in the world.

“Oh, man. That’s crazy!” Curtis laughed as an image of a flying dragon emerged.

Lina smiled at the joy in his voice. She loved he could still find his innocence even after witnessing the horrible deeds humans were capable of.

“I’ve never seen fireworks like that before.” His eyes sparkled as the colors of the fireworks reflected on them.

“Sun nin fai lok,” Lina said to him.

Curtis looked at her. “What does that mean?”

“You may understand this one:xin nián kuài lè.”

“Happy new year to you, too.” He smiled. “Do people kiss at new year here?”

“They exorcise evil spirits, worship their ancestors, say a prayer, wish for prosperity, good health, and good luck to others, and they eat,” Lina answered with a chuckle.

“I’d say a kiss is a form of prayer, don’t you think?” Curtis leaned in.

“Or a way to worship,” she supported his line of thoughts.

“Exactly my thinking.” He kissed her.

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