Page 57 of Muzzled

“Says the guy with the sprawling tattoos,” she teased, taking one of the lighter bins from him. “Okay. If you’re good with it, I’m good with it.”

He scanned the rooftops while they walked through the alley, calling out to Logan as they exited. “Looks like your assistant is making amends.” He grinned, nodding toward Logan, who was sprawled out on the sidewalk, his limbs stretched across as much space as possible.

“Got your spot, boss!” he yelled, sitting up and fanning his arms around when another artist jokingly took a step closer. “I’ll clog your spray cans with baklava if you come any closer, Rich.”

Mike set her stuff down and gave Logan a quick pat on the back. “Could you set up while we scout the place?”

Logan nodded. She grabbed Ryan’s hand and led him to the middle of the street. “I want to make sure we’re in prime location before others get established,” she explained, squinting at a vendor setting up shop by a lounge. “This festival is the big one, so anyone and everyone will be here staking their positions.”

They toured up and down the street, stopping to chat with a few other early bird artists and commenting on the food trucks pulling in, with Ryan tapping quick notes into his phone about their favorites.

It was abnormally normal.

“Hey,” he said, tugging her toward the pet store. “We should grab two more collars and leashes for Bo and Alex in case we need to be around crowds.”

*

Ryan stretched hislegs across the cement and continued to watch Micah organize her canvases and paints, her brushes carefully placed and pastels perfectly aligned on the table she was constantly shifting until it was in its ideal position.

And she said he was meticulous.

He took a bite of his burger and zoned out to the visual of her fingers flitting over the charcoal, each set in order of thickness.

She was right. Serious organization was very, very hot. Especially when she narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips in concentration, her tongue periodically sticking out until she would snap it back into her mouth with a glare.

Checking that the pet store bag was still secured at his side, he cleared his throat and waited for her to look at him. She did, and her expression morphed from intense focus to amusement as he tapped the bag with a grin.

Although sizing had been an issue, they’d managed to find matching collars and leashes for Alex and Bo, with rhinestone butterflies and hearts trimming the thick bands.

The twins could argue over who would get the pink one and who would wear the purple one once they landed in the morning.

“I’m putting all the blame on you when they get here,” she whispered to him with a smile, walking over and crouching in front of him. “Are you sticking around?”

His eyes dropped to her lips. “I need to get some things done, but I’ll be back at sunset,” he murmured, closing the distance between them. “Keep your phone close and call if there’s a problem.”

She picked up his hand and placed it on her back pocket where her cell was, smiling when he held his hand there long after she’d let go. “Be safe, be good.”

He indulged in one last kiss, stood, and passed her the bag of collars, then waved at Logan as he walked back down the alley toward his car. The taste of her lip gloss and toothpaste was still on his tongue when he arrived at the motel and got out of the car, but his contentment washed away as he stepped into the lobby and saw Hades.

He glanced around for Seph. “Is—”

“No, my wife did not join me,” came Hades’s clipped reply as he motioned down the hall. “You and I have some things to discuss.”

Palming his room key, he led his boss to his room, held the door open, and watched as he strode over to the small table and sat. “Alex and Bo are arriving tomorrow,” he offered, pulling off his shoes and setting them against the wall. “I could be back home in under two weeks if all goes well.”

“That’s why I’m here,” Hades stated, poking at the coffee maker before he crossed his arms and sat back. “We need to discuss the little issue of you sniffing around my wife.”

He could feel the color draining from his face as his boss stared him down. “Hades, I would never—”

“Never cross the line,” Hades finished for him. “I’ve never thought you would. But do you think I haven’t noticed the way you look at her? The way you obey her every word, anticipate her every need? I’ve tolerated it for centuries, Orion. Tolerated it because it pleased her, having her little lap dog nipping at her heels. But she’s not pleased with you right now, is she?”

He sat on the edge of the bed he and Micah had slept in, the scent of her perfume still clinging to the blanket. “No, sir.”

“This thing,” Hades continued, waving his hand, “this obsession with her has been harmless, which is the reason I’ve allowed it to go on unchecked and unanswered.”

Inhaling, he clasped his hands and leaned forward. “That…obsession…is no longer a consideration,” he said slowly. “It’s out of my system.”

“I don’t want it out of your system.”

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