Page 77 of Field Rules

“What?”

He barked out a laugh. “I was trying to figure out where I’ve seen that woman. She’s Dr. Lidia Bouras from the Department of Antiquities.”

Olivia gasped. “No way. The one Grant was sitting with at the party? I couldn’t tell if he was schmoozing or flirting.”

“Knowing him, probably both, but he definitely seemed into her.”

For a moment, she almost felt sorry for Grant. Given Dr. Roth’s reputation, he could probably have his pick of women, but he’d chosen the one Grant wanted.

Rick squeezed her hand. “Sorry about all this.”

His apology surprised her. “About what? We both enjoyed it.”

“Not about the sex. That was incredible. But we almost got caught. Isn’t that what you were afraid of?”

She appreciated his concern but didn’t want him to feel guilty. She’d been just as willing as he had. “It’s okay. Even if I’m a little embarrassed, I don’t have any regrets. Do you?”

He grinned. “Nope. Though we should probably cool it with the temple for a while. Good thing we have Athens coming up in a few weeks.”

She squeezed his hand in return. “Good thing.”

When Olivia worked at the House of Heracles the next day, she worried Dr. Roth might take her aside to talk to her about Rick. Or chastise her for breaking into an ancient site, even though he’d been poised to do the same thing himself. But he treated her as respectfully as ever. During the afternoon lab session, he inquired about the progress she’d made with her trench but didn’t mention Aphrodite’s temple.

After nearly getting caught, Olivia knew better than to push her luck. She spent the next few nights with Rick hanging out at camp and talking. The promise of Athens eased a little of her frustration.

By the fourth day of excavation, she’d hit a wall of tiredness. Even if digging at the site didn’t stress her out the way surveying did, it was more physically taxing. When she’d woken that morning, her need for coffee had been so intense she’d been tempted to sprint over to the field house and beg Dr. Roth to make her an espresso. Why did he get to start his mornings with cappuccino while the rest of them endured Nescafé?

Standing outside the chain-link fence enclosing the House of Heracles, she fought back a huge yawn. She turned to Juno, who stood beside her, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. “You know what I miss, Juno? Good, strong coffee. Preferably Italian or French roast.”

“Bah.” Juno waved her hand in dismissal. “Greek coffee is the best. None of this cream and sugar crap. Pure caffeine, right to your veins. That’s what we should have at camp.”

“I’d be up for it.” Olivia usually drank her coffee with a splash of cream, but she’d be willing to adjust. She checked her watch. “I wish Grant would let us unlock the site ourselves. I hate wasting time like this.”

Ever since the excavation unit had started, they had to wait until Grant arrived and unlocked the tall metal gate at the entrance of the property. Control freak that he was, he insisted the morning’s work couldn’t start without him. However, he had no such qualms about leaving early, especially if given the chance to schmooze. Like yesterday, when he’d cut out at three to meet with a couple of archaeologists working near the village of Polemi. Since Olivia’s team had been the last to leave, she’d been charged with locking up the site and dropping off the keys at the field house.

When she’d stopped by, she’d been tempted to ask Dr. Roth if she could have a glass of his delicious iced coffee. But since no one had been home, she’d left the keys in the mailbox.

Around her, the other students sat under a clump of olive trees, trying to avoid the blistering sun for as long as possible. At least today, they’d get some relief from the heat. After listening to everyone complain for three straight days, Grant had relented and asked Rick and Stuart to set up canopies over the trenches.

When Rick approached them, Olivia perked up. He brushed his hand across her shoulder, making her quiver with longing. They hadn’t been intimate since their last visit to the temple, and she was craving his touch.

“Good morning, Olivia,” he said. “Morning, Juno. How are we doing today?”

“Tired and craving coffee,” Juno grumbled as Grant advanced toward them. “Here he comes—Mr. Sunshine himself. Why is he so surly? He gets to drink real coffee instead of shitty Nescafé. If I were him, I’d be in a perpetually good mood.”

Grant strode forward until he reached the gate. When he put the key in the lock, he frowned. Without turning it, he pushed at the gate until it opened wide.

Olivia’s heart seized up. She’d been certain she locked it. A twist to the left until it clicked into place like Grant had shown her. Her drowsiness vanished, replaced by a growing dread. This was her fault.

Grant’s rage was immediate. “Who locked up last night?”

Shit. She cleared her throat. “It was me. But I locked it the way you demonstrated.”

“You must have missed a step. If you’d locked it properly, I wouldn’t have been able to open it. A huge mistake on your part.”

Logan ambled over to join them, looking like he’d rolled out of bed, his white-blond hair sticking up in spikes. “I don’t see why it’s a big deal. All we’ve dug up so far is old pottery and shit. It’s cool and all, but we haven’t found anything worth stealing.”

Grant’s face reddened. “It doesn’t matter what we’ve uncovered, you idiot. The site was left vulnerable. Anyone could have broken in and vandalized it.”

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