CHAPTER 18 – SHADOWS
The next morning, as she was absorbed in updating the Samhain schedule, Layla was startled by a presence stepping up to the Concierge desk. Cinnamon-jasmine musk hit her with a smooth shot of desert wind and she caught her breath, her fingers paused at the keyboard. Her gaze tracked up; from Adrian’s charcoal vest with its light blue pin stripes to his rolled-up shirtsleeves, to his open collar and exquisite collarbones, to the light stubble on his jaw. His sensual lips smiled at her as her eyes finally made it all the way past his achingly high cheekbones – getting arrested at his amazing aqua eyes.
He was smiling at her, bemusement on his face as Layla fell into his eyes. Rich and deep like a sunny Mediterranean ocean, Adrian’s irises shifted to azure, then emerald – then flaring gold. Currents heated between them and Layla’s body was suddenly scalding. Her Dragon raised its head with an eager stir, coils simmering through her veins as Layla’s pulse hammered, a scent of spiced citrus easing up around her.
Dusk was off about other matters, but Jenna and Lars were busy at the other end of the desk and Layla straightened, pushing away her keyboard on its adjustable stand and staring Adrian down. His enigmatic smile wilted, his straight dark brows knitting.
“Have I done something wrong again?” He asked, his gaze searching.
“Not yet.” Layla crossed her arms over her slinky royal-blue cocktail dress with the beige lace shoulders, a twin to the one she had in cream and burgundy but darker. She wanted more than anything to reach out and touch him, her Dragon roaring at her to vault up onto the desk and deposit herself in Adrian’s arms. But that was so not going to happen until they got a few things sorted out first.
Things Adam had told her the night before but which Adrian had never brought up.
“What’snot yetsupposed to mean?” Consternation took Adrian’s handsome face as his smile evaporated.
“It means,” Layla lifted an eyebrow, “that I had the opportunity to ask Adam alotof questions last night at dinner.”
“I haven’t spoken to Adam yet today. Why do I have the feeling your dinner didn’t go well?” Adrian’s speech was low, his eyes careful now, and dark.
“Oh, it went fine.” Layla sassed, shifting her stance. “Adam answered all my questions to the best of his ability.”
“About?”
“You. And Dusk.” Layla stared Adrian down.
“I see.” Adrian’s fingertips skated over the polished wood of the desk, his brows deeply knit now. He slid his fingertips over the wood in a circle, blinking a few times as he frowned. And then he tapped the desk quickly, as if coming to a decision. “Layla. Would you be able to step away a moment?”
“Is it urgent?” Layla re-adjusted her arms. It was a tight posture, but she needed some real answers out of Adrian. She also wasn’t at his beck and call. She was at work and she took her work seriously.
“Defending my honor is urgent for me.” Adrian’s aqua eyes were penetrating as he stared her down. “You can decide if knowing some deeper truths about me is worth your time or not. Adam knows some of the truth about Dusk and I, but he doesn’t know everything.”
“Does anyone know everything about you?” Layla sassed viciously, feeling irritated.
“Layla. Please. I’m trying. Take a break for a moment and come hear what I have to say.”
Layla took a deep breath, then sighed. Deep inside her veins, her Dragon roiled with a mix of anger, irritation, eagerness, and flat-out desire. She wanted to listen to him, she wanted to jump his bones, and she also wanted to not be interrupted with private shit while she was at work. At last, curiosity won. With a look at Adrian, she stepped over to Lars and Jenna. Jenna looked up as she approached, her gaze flicking to Adrian as her white-blonde brows rose.
“Do you need to step away a moment, Layla?” Jenna assessed the situation perfectly. She knew Adrian and Layla weren’t exactly a couple, but she wasn’t a fool.
“Yeah, I do.”
“Take all the time you need.” Jenna’s smile was kind. Furies were friendly despite their reputation, and Jenna clasped Layla’s hand then gave her a peck on the lips. Layla was used to it – even Lars kissed her on the lips most of the time. She smiled, then returned to where Adrian waited near the end of the broad, curved mahogany desk.
Stepping around the side, Layla lifted an eyebrow and Adrian led the way up the grand double staircase. Setting a hand to the smooth railing, Layla stepped up after him. Adrian was quiet until they reached the second level, then gestured to an empty meeting-room with mermaids and the Hotel’s emblem carved upon the doors. Layla entered and Adrian shut the doors, locking them so they wouldn’t be disturbed. A fire crackled in the ample fireplace, a small but elegant spread of food in the room as if it was to be used soon for a Hotel departmental meeting. Those were scheduled with Events not Concierge Services, so Layla didn’t know which department or how soon.
But all that mattered was that she and Adrian were alone for the moment. He stood before her almost awkwardly, his hands thrust in his pockets, his gaze still thoughtful. At last, he stepped to where an urn of coffee waited on a side-table. Pouring two cups and mixing cream into both, he handed one to Layla. She’d had plenty today but it was a nice gesture and she accepted it. Adrian stepped to a set of high-backed blue velvet chairs near the fireplace and sat. Layla followed, sipping her coffee. Damn that Adrian – he’d mixed it in the perfect ratio. He knew her, had researched her in so many ways, and yet she knew almost nothing about him still.
Something she hoped to remedy right now.
“So, defend your honor.” Layla spoke as she sat. A brisk autumnal wind rattled the windows, swirling up dead leaves outside. Adrian’s gaze was determined as he set his coffee on a gilded end-table, then faced her.
“First, I want to know what Adam told you last night.” He spoke, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees and lacing his long fingers.
“Well, it wasn’t good.” Layla sipped her coffee then set it aside also, knowing this was going to be a doozy of a conversation if anything Adam had said was true. Even if it wasn’t, it was still going to be illuminating concerning the politics internal to Adrian’s clan. “Adam told me about some of your more clandestine activities, Adrian. Said you deal with bad guys. Tech espionage, smuggling, private security teams that use lethal force.”
Adrian paled, but just like when she’d confronted him about the Hotel’s activities in the restaurant Lark back in Seattle, he didn’t immediately refute Layla’s statements. Her brows climbed her forehead, but before she could say anything, he spoke.
“What Adam said is true. But it’s not the whole truth.” Adrian’s gaze was hard, anger in it now – and desperation. His fingers tightened together, so hard they were turning white as his gaze went complex, his straight brows knit. Layla realized he was trying to hold something in, yet another of his secrets that he thought was too dangerous to tell her. But all it made him look was guilty, and they both knew it.
