Page 53 of Sweetwater and the Witch

“In the Shadow Zone. Ms.Chastain is with me. I may have a lead on the location of whatever it was the dead man found down in the tunnels. My grandfather is working on some photos of the tattoos on the body. There’s a possibility they might be coded coordinates.”

“I’ve heard stories about prospectors and others with something to hide having coordinates tattooed on themselves in a private code,” Gabriel said.

“It’s a lead, but it may be a dead end. I’ll let you know if anything comes of it.”

“Thanks.”

Ethan ended the call and looked at Ravenna. “That’s all we can do. The rest is up to Jones, Arcane, and my grandfather.”

“Are you sure we have to stay out of sight?” Ravenna asked.

“I don’t think you’re in the line of fire now, but I don’t want to take any chances.”

“What about my job? Ms.Ottoway will be very upset if I don’t show up for work in the morning.”

“There’s a good chance this will all be finished within the next few hours.”

“I suppose I can call in sick first thing in the morning if absolutely necessary. It’s never a good idea to do that when you’re the new hire, but if I tell Ms.Ottoway that I’m working on your case, she might let me slide.”

“The prospector must have felt the discovery was so dangerous he was willing to risk an off-the-books deal with Spooner rather than go the standard auction route. One thing is clear—it’s no longer our problem. We’ve done all we can from our end.”

Ravenna smiled. She couldn’t help it. “Love thewe.”

Ethan’s eyes darkened. “I realize it’s my fault you got dragged into this situation.”

“Hey, we’re even. I more or less dragged you into the Garrett Willis problem.”

“I told you not to worry about that. I was happy to do you a favor.”

She raised her brows. “Why?”

“You’re going to analyze my poor dating skills and come up with useful advice. By now you must have some notion of how I could improve my technique.”

She looked at him. “Are you serious?”

He had the nerve to look hurt.

“Damn right, I’m serious,” he said.

She blinked. “In my professional opinion, I don’t think you need to worry about upgrading your dating game. You’re a natural.”

“I sense sarcasm.”

She gave him her most dazzling smile. “Let’s review our evening. We got chased into the Underworld by a couple of hired thugs. We discovered a dead body in an alley. Now we are spending the night in a tacky motel in the sleaziest part of town. And, oh, right, we have a charming view of a quickie Marriage of Convenience wedding chapel directly across the street. You really know how to show a date a good time, Sweetwater. Yep, doesn’t get any more romantic than this.”

He looked around the room as if seeing it for the first time. Frowning, he turned back to her. “To be fair, I feel I was not set up for success tonight.”

The laughter bubbled up inside her and burst forth. She knew it wastriggered by a combination of stress and an adrenaline overload. She was probably having some sort of meltdown. Maybe she was sliding into hysteria. Whatever the case, she could not stop. She laughed until the tears welled up and spilled over.

She leaped off the bed, rushed into the small bathroom, grabbed some tissues and wiped her eyes.

Ethan came to stand in the doorway. “I’m really sorry about tonight. This is my fault. I never should have let you get involved in this thing—”

“Oh, shut up.”

She tossed the tissue aside, moved toward him, and wrapped her arms around his neck. She went up on her toes, but he was still too tall. Impatient now, she pulled his head down to hers and kissed him with all of the adrenaline-generated heat and energy churning inside her.

It was not a tender, romantic kiss. She recognized it for what it was—a kiss ignited by a bio-cocktail of supercharged emotions generated by a brush with death, and the sizzling physical attraction she had been trying to suppress from the moment she met Ethan Sweetwater. This kiss was all thrills and chills. No love involved.

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