Page 60 of Phoenix Rising

A few minutes later, Caraway faced the other side of the room, and Hunter popped to his feet. “We’ll meet you two back at the resort.” With that, they were gone.

Audria wished she and Reese could go with them. Frankly, she was embarrassed for Guru Phoenix, a.k.a. Elijah, a.k.a. Richard Caraway. This was excruciating to hear and even harder to sit through. He sounded like a bumbling idiot. When he faced them again, he stopped mid-sentence, and his jaw dropped to the floor. Then he held a hand over his eyes to block the glare and searched the auditorium.

With a defeated slump of his shoulders, he ended the sermon to a smattering of applause. He stalked off the stage without the theatrics of darkness.

“Well, that was surreal,” Reese remarked as they climbed the stairs and headed for the exit.

“You could feel his monumental despair when he realized they were gone. It was almost tangible.”

Audria heard whispers around them ofwhat a disappointment, that was horrible,andthat guy was a moron. She noticed no one took a flyer for the retreat. Elijah was tanking his business.

“Audria, look.”

She followed Reese’s gaze to the registration desk, where Helen conversed with a couple and pointed to something on a fold-out map. Behind them, a bald man appeared, looking wild-eyed and frantic. Elijah.

His gaze ping-ponged around the lobby, and then he disappeared.

“I wasn’t sure about Talia and Hunter’s decision to skip out before talking to him,” Audria admitted. “But it was the right call. He’s flummoxed.”

“I agree. They know how to handle him.”

Audria stopped and clutched his arm. “Reese, Paige discovered who he was, and before she could tell anyone, he killed her.”

He put his arm over her shoulder and hugged her to his side. “Yeah, babe, I think so too.”

Chapter Nineteen

A nervous tick twitched Elijah’s left eye. He couldn’t believe he’d found Tina and Henry McKay, only to lose them again. When he’d looked over and realized they were gone, it felt as if someone had touched a match to a wick on a cannon, sending an iron ball slamming into his stomach. His breath had seized in his lungs. Somehow, he’d finished his talk, unsure what he’d said. He seemed to recall something about running from the devil or embracing Lucifer. He’d been so discombobulated that he’d forgotten to turn off the lights to make his exit.

Elijah paced back and forth, trying to figure out what to do next. He thought about running outside to look for them, but they had a head start and would be gone already. Then it hit him—they must have registered. He rushed to the front, only to see Helen conversing with some attendees. He needed to get to her computer but didn’t want to deal with people.

Reversing direction, he headed to the room he’d set up for security and dropped into a chair in front of the monitors. He found the remote for the cameras covering the exit and parking lot and rewound to about when he’d noticed them missing. He hit play and had to fast-forward until he saw a couple leaving. Itwasthem!

Henry had his arm around Tina, and she leaned against him as they strolled to a magnificent Porsche. They stopped by the passenger door, and Henry leaned down and kissed Tina; however, this was no sweet peck. It was carnal and deep, and Elijah fumbled for the remote to switch to a camera right in front of their car for a better look.

Henry was cupping Tina’s ass and holding her against him. Her arms were draped around his neck, sifting through his hair. Suddenly, Henry picked her up, spun around, and trapped her against the car. Tina wrapped her legs around him, locking her feet behind his back as he ground against her, and they continued to devour each other.

Elijah’s body reacted, and he was painfully aroused. Sweat seeped out of every orifice as he stared transfixed, hoping they got naked right there and then. Elijah recalled the images of Henry sans clothes, and he groaned as a climax hit him by surprise. When he came to his senses, it was to see Henry and Tina getting in their car and driving away.

Elijah sat up and grimaced at the wet spot on his pants. He hadn’t lost his load like that since high school. He should probably go to his suite and clean up, but he didn’t want to take the time. Getting in touch with the McKays was all that mattered right now. He was manic with the need to see them again.

Elijah rewound the video to check the license plate, stopping when he had a clear view of the back of the sports car. He jerked upright.What the heck?There was some kind of shield blocking the cameras from capturing the numbers. He smacked his hand on the desk. He wouldn’t be able to track them down that way. Thank goodness attendees had to provide information when they enrolled.

The crowd had cleared out in the lobby, and Helen was gathering her belongings to leave. She looked up and noticed him. “Guru Phoenix, we didn’t get any sign-ups tonight for the weekend retreat. It’s a first, and I’m perplexed.”

Yeah, well, he wasn’t. He’d butchered his sermon worse than a blind surgeon performing open heart surgery. He started to tell Helen to keep her computer on when he noticed her staring at him. “What?”

She didn’t even flinch at the tone of his voice. “Do you feel okay, Guru? You’re perspiring an awful lot. I think you might have a fever.”

Yeah, he most definitely did. A lust fever. “I’m fine.”

“You’re sure? I can go home and make you some chicken noodle soup.”

She was such a gracious lady, but he was on a mission. “Truly, Helen, I’m fine. You can leave.”

“Well, if you’re positive.” She picked up her purse. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Guru Phoenix.”

He watched her walk out the doors. One of the security guards he’d hired returned to the lobby from securing the exits and making sure everyone had left the premises.

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