Alicia wanted to snort. Magic indeed. “So you believe the legends then?”
He hesitated for a moment. “Yes.”
She blinked. That was it? Yes? No explanation? Was he not used to answering questions either? “Care to elaborate?”
“Why?” He smiled at her. “You’ll learn more than I can ever tell you when you search the internet.”
“Because I want to know why you believe it.” She looked at the Tear sitting on the cloth. This was like pulling teeth.
“I have my reasons.”
Her fists clenched tighter. She really hated that attitude. Every time a man used it on her it made her do something stupid.
Placing the stone back in the bag, she slid it across the desk. Alicia placed her hands against her desk as she pushed herself to her feet, walked to her office door and opened it. “I’d like you to take your bauble and leave.”
“Why?” He looked surprised.
Good. She had him off kilter for once. “I have my reasons.”
He barked out a laugh. “Touché.”
She waited by the door.
“Ask me that question once you’ve finished with your research.”
“You really like yanking my chain, don’t you?” Why did she say that? She was always professional, even when the client drove her crazy. Reacting like that was stupid.
He grinned at her and for a second she thought he would repeat his words from a few moments ago. “My reasons will make a lot more sense once you dig into the legends and learn the true history behind the Tears of the Queen. You have a broad overview of its story but that’s not all of it.”
Damn it. Max wasn’t going to leave her office nicely. She took a step back into her office and let the door close behind her. “Why can’t you tell me what you expect me to learn on the web?”
“I’ve explained that.” He leaned over the top of her desk and swiveled her monitor around. The first link she followed from one search engine glowed on the screen. In big bold letters the title screamed Learn the Truth about the Tears of the Queen.
She crossed to her desk and sat in her chair again. Turning the screen back around, she stared at the picture next to the headline, a magnificent wolf howling at the moon. After reading the first paragraph, she settled in by tucking one leg under her and started to read. Tons of information filled her brain as she surfed from site to site. Alicia didn’t realize hours had passed until Santos touched her shoulder.
“Hungry?”
“This early?” She looked at the clock and felt her jaw drop when she realized it was almost two o’clock. “Where did the time go?”
He pointed to her computer.
“And you stayed here the whole time?” This was, by far, one of the weirdest things she had done. She never lost track of time, yet she got sucked into the legend that fast. Without a fight. How weak was she?
“I promised to take you to lunch.”
And he had to be certifiable. That would explain why he was such a recluse, yet had the time to sit in her office while she read wild tales of werewolves crying diamonds.
“Well?” He gave her a questioning look.
She blinked and sat there for a moment. Then her stomach spoke for her. The moment the loud growl filled the air he smiled that bone-melting smile of his.
“Come on. I know just the place.” He pulled out her chair and clasped her hand to urge her to her feet.
“My coat?” She slipped her feet back into her shoes.
“It’s warm today. About fifty-five degrees. You won’t need it. Your suit jacket should keep you warm enough.” He gave her hand a gentle tug to get her to walk.
Once she started to move she could feel the heat of his hand resting on the small of her back as he gently steered her through the door, down the stairs next to the elevator and out into the busy street. All of a sudden food was the last thing on her mind. His nearness crowded her and her thoughts. She needed distance to collect herself. “I… I’m—”
“You’re going to love this restaurant.” He ignored her stutter and wove through the crowd, guiding her along as if the street really wasn’t packed with late lunch hour traffic.
“But-”
“Best I ever had.”
“Listen—” When he started to interrupt her for the third time she stopped walking. “Do I get to speak at all?”
“Have I been dominating the conversation?” He stopped beside her and gave her another one of his smiles. She didn’t like the way they made her knees feel weak.
“Yes.”
“You seemed to be lost in thought.” His hand rested against her back again, urging her to continue walking. His touch made it hard for her to think straight. “I thought you were still caught up in what you read.”
“I tried three times to interrupt you and was ignored.” Did he have to walk so close to her? She could feel the heat of his body, smell that earthy smell she noticed before. It affected her and she didn’t like that.
“Really? I didn’t notice.”
That was the problem, he was too busy talking to hear her. Normally, she would just let her clients speak so she didn’t have to, but with Mr. Santos she felt she needed to assert herself.
“We’re here.” His smooth maneuvering had them at the restaurant in no time.
She wanted to slap him. Childish or not, stomping her foot would have felt good, too. Instead, she let him lead her into the small Irish pub, fighting the anger that she felt toward him.
The head waitress batted her eyelashes the moment she spotted Max.
“Oh, Max, so good to see you. I’ve saved your favorite table.” She led them to a nice quiet booth in the back.
“Come here often?” Alicia asked when the waitress stepped away.
“When I can.” He waited until she slid into the booth before climbing in beside her.
Alicia looked at the empty side of the booth in frustration. Why did he have to crowd her space this way?
“Unbelievable.” She didn’t even try to argue with him to get him to move to the other side of the booth. She knew it wouldn’t do her any good.
“So,” he said, as he turned to her, “what have you learned so far?”
“Aren’t you going to look at the menu?” She snatched hers up and hid behind it.
“I have the menu memorized.” He propped an elbow on the table and rested his chin on his hand. Pulling down the menu, he looked deep into her eyes. “Tell me.”
She lifted the menu back up and started to read. Let him see what it was like to wait. “Very good menu. Never seen such a wide selection before.”
The waitress stopped by a few minutes later. “Ready?”
Her bright smile was a little too much for Alicia. She had the strongest urge to pound the waitress when she winked at Max.
“I’m assuming you want your usual?” She sat down two glasses of water. Her lilt proved she belonged in this Irish pub.
One more mark against the young girl as far as Alicia was concerned.
“Of course.” Max sat back and smiled.
“And the lady?” She looked at Alicia.
“The lady will have the corned beef and cabbage,” said Santos.
She snapped the menu shut. There he went again, taking control. How did he know she liked corned beef and cabbage? Alicia glared at the young woman, but didn’t change the order. “As long as it’s truly home cooked.”
The waitress nodded, took the menu and headed back to the kitchen.
“What about drinks?”
“Margaret is quite good at guessing what people want.” He turned back toward her, effectively blocking her in. “Now, let’s talk about the Tears.”
Boy, he wasn’t going to let this go.
“Everything I read backed up what I already knew, they’re legend and conjecture.” She took a sip of her water. If only he would inch back a little. Her heart beat double time with his nearness and she wasn’t sure if she could take it for long.
“You need to go beyond that.” His big body blocked her view from everything but him. His scent invaded her senses. “Think about the history you’ve learned. What is the common denominator?”
“The look of the Tears.” Her reward was another one of his heart melting smiles. “Each article that touched on the physical look of the stone gave the same basic description.”
“Very good.”
That sounded so condescending to her. “Thank you. I’m quite proud my brain works most of the time.”
He laughed outright at her comment.
She frowned. That wasn’t supposed to be funny.
“Anything else catch your eye?”
“The legend has been around for centuries, all the versions I have seen have been close. Even the ones in old English. But stories didn’t show up in the U.S. until one hundred and fifteen years ago. Some gypsy troupe told it to a small town they traveled through and someone submitted it to a local paper.” She paused as the waitress brought their drinks. “And the legend is born in America.”
“Any information on how long the story had been told before it hit that paper?”
“It goes back at least four hundred years. But I haven’t hit anything to give me the date of origin or the location.” She sipped her drink and blinked in surprise. “It’s raspberry tea! How did she know it’s my favorite?”
“One of the reasons I like coming here.” He waited until she sat her drink back down. “Let’s get back to your research.”
“Look, this is a waste of time.” She needed to stop this before it got any further out of hand.
“Why? You’ve seen one of the stones. You know they’re real.”
“Oh? How do I know that? You’re rich enough to be able to have one created. This could all be a ruse.” That stone was real, but her comment should put him back on his heels. At least for a second or two.
“True, but why would I go through such lengths to do that? If I created one, why not create the whole set. Why would I need you?”
“Because you like to torture those who work for you. I’ve read your history. Most of the projects you hire people to work on are never completed.” She shifted in her seat. The heat of his stare made her uncomfortable. It ignited parts deep inside her she never knew existed.
“Not true. They were hired to gather the information. That’s how I found the first stone.” Santos picked up his glass of water and paused. Holding the glass up, he stared at the ice swirling in the liquid. “Each time I hired your company I searched for the Tears. I just never told the researchers what they were looking for.”
Alicia stared at him. “The first time you asked for me…”
“And you turned me down.” His gaze drew her in.
“You wanted to find some strange little doll created by the Aztecs.” Looking down, she stirred her drink with her straw. She didn’t need to get lost in his beautiful green eyes. “When the researcher who did take the job found references of the artifact you thanked him and closed the account.”
“Yes. The doll had fallen into the hands of an elderly woman. She had gotten it as a gift from her son. She was willing to give it to me if I found her son.” He watched her, waiting for something. “He was an archeologist who had been taken by some guerrilla fighters.”
“I remember that.” She lifted her gaze up to his at the memory. “It was all over the news. Was the stone inside the doll?”
He nodded. “The woman’s son disappeared after he had mailed it to her. The men who took him wanted the gem. They knew its worth and knew it would sponsor their cause for a long time.”
“His life was threatened because of that gem? Why didn’t he just give it to them?”
“He knew if he did they’d kill him, besides he had already mailed it to his mother.” Max had glanced toward the front as he turned toward her. Something must have caught his eye because he turned in the seat so he could focus on the entrance of the restaurant.
“So how did you get him freed?” Alicia wondered what had grabbed his full attention.
“I’ve spent some time in the jungle.” He kept his gaze toward the front. His fingers flexed before Max curled them into a fist.
“You telling me you rescued him? No way.” She paused when he placed the pouch between them. “What are you doing?”
“Something has come up and I need you to take this with you.” He started to slide out of the booth.
“Why?”
“Just trust me.” He stood up. “I should be back in a minute or two, if not take this back to your office and I’ll drop by to get it.”
She shook her head as he walked away. Would anything he did ever make sense to her?
***
Max walked toward the front of the restaurant, pausing near the main door before he stepped out onto the sidewalk. He didn’t need this right now. How did she find him? Why was she lurking outside the pub while he spoke to Alicia? What did she know?
“I know you’re here, Sonora. You might as well show yourself.”
“I see you’re slumming again.” She stepped out of the darkened doorway she had hidden in.
“Only you would say that,” he paused while a couple passed them. “When we know it’s you slumming. You hate the city. Why are you here?”
“You know the answer to that.” She picked a piece of meat from some steak tar-tar she had eaten earlier out of her teeth. Sonora only did that to bother him. “These humans smell. Like dinner.”
“Cut to the chase, Sonora. You want to know if I have found any of the Tears.” He knew she didn’t enter the restaurant because the owner was part of his pack. The family had moved to America years ago, but never forgot their ties.
“They are my tears, Maximilian. I have the right to them,” she snapped.
“You?” He laughed. “You want to enslave the human race so you can have a chew toy whenever you want. I can’t let that happen.”
“Try to stop me.” She smiled at a good-looking man who slowed down to look at her. “I know you have one of the Tears. I smelled it on you when you went past.”
“So. The legend states one must have all of them.” He smiled at her. “One won’t do either of us any good.”
“And if I find the other six? What will you do then?”
“Take them from you by any means necessary.”
***
Alicia sat at her desk and flipped the stone through her fingers. She took advantage of the extra time and ran every test she knew and they all came back the same. This was the clearest stone she’d ever seen. Perfect. And real. It hadn’t been created in a lab somewhere.
What she didn’t get was why Maximilian Santos handed her the stone again after his attention had been drawn to the front of the restaurant. It was almost as if he didn’t want anyone to know he had it out of the vault. And why did he trust her with it? Nothing made sense.
His behavior after he came back to the booth really confused her. He barely spoke, kept her shielded from the casual view and ended up leaving before their meals had been delivered. The waitress seemed to understand. Santos’ meal and been put in a to-go bag. What made him take off like that? She’d sure like to know why.
So deep in thought, she jumped when her phone rang. “Yes?”
“Sorry to disturb you, Alicia, but Mr. Santos is here.” Stacey’s voice sounded apologetic. A few comments earlier alerted her secretary to how much he drove her crazy.
“That’s fine. Send him in.” She straightened her skirt and took calming breaths as her office door opened. This time she wasn’t going to let him affect her.
“Sorry to take off on you like that. Something came up.” He sat down in the chair across from hers. Her large desk rested between them.
What could she say to that? She lifted then dropped his bagged meal onto the center of her desk.
“Thank you.” He smiled as he stood and took the bag, then set it on the floor next to where he was sitting.
Her curiosity had the best of her. He was acting like nothing had happened, but she knew better.
“I assume you came for this?” She held up the small pouch. There, nice and neutral. At least she hoped so.
“Thank you.” He palmed and slipped it into a breast pocket without comment.
Now what?