"I highly doubt that."
"What's going on here?" Cosimo asked, trying to pretend that the kiss hadn't happened.
"I wanted to wait for you," Bridget said, grinning. "What's that on your cheek?"
"Nothing? What?" he said and scrubbed at it.
"That's my lipstick," Marcella replied without any embarrassment.
Bridget's eyes narrowed playfully. "And what are you doing kissing my dad?"
"I caught her when she went into a swoon," Cosimo began.
"I didn't swoon! Swooning is for sappy girls, which I am not," Marcella said primly, but her eyes were also shining with a teasing light. "If you must know, Bridget, I touched a statue and had visions. I began to faint, and Cosimo was kind enough to ensure I didn't hurt myself. I kissed his cheek to say thank you."
Bridget's grin was impish. "I suppose thatisa good excuse to kiss him, if you needed one."
"Can we get on with it?" Cosimo asked, his neck heating to the same color as Marcella's lipstick.
"Sure thing," Bridget said, her grin getting wider. "This way, Marcella."
Marcella put her hands in the pockets of her dress as she wound through the labyrinth of the library. She paused every now and again, and then quickly hurried to catch up to Bridget.
Cosimo's amused laugh was a little smug, even to his ears. Marcella shot him a glare over her shoulder.
"I told you that you are welcome to explore the library when time allows," he said, enjoying the wistful looks she kept directing at the stacks.
"I know, but this is exquisite torture," she complained.
Cosimo wanted to say now she knew how he felt whenever she was around, but he wisely bit his tongue.
Bridget grinned at Cosimo and gently brushed against his mind.You see why I wanted to wait for you? You're loving that this is impressing her.
She frustrated my research efforts all year, and I'm enjoying frustrating her right back,Cosimo replied.
Yeah, I can tell just how frustrated you both are.
Cosimo's neck turned hotter.Focus Bridget. We have grimoires to find. No time for matchmaking with two people who have already said they are just friends.
Ah, huh, she replied unconvincingly before breaking off the connection.
They went up a set of stairs to a study nook that they had repurposed for the grimoire search.
"So, Dad thought it would be a good idea if we combined what you have done research-wise with his own," Bridget explained as they entered the nook. "I printed out the stuff you sent me, and we dragged his lot out of his tower yesterday, and voilà."
"Voilà..." Marcella whispered. She started at one side of the room, which was Caterina's grimoire, and the other, which was the Medici's. "You did this all yesterday?"
"I had time," Bridget replied with a shrug. "We all chipped in because we want to help you find them."
"I didn't want you to think I'd break my end of the bargain just because I needed to prioritize finding Maria first. We really can do both with a family this size," Cosimo explained.
Marcella's hand went to the pendants on her neck. "I feel like I'm going to faint again."
Cosimo was beside her in an instant, his hand going to her lower back. "I've got you."
Marcella laughed, and he escorted her to an armchair Bridget had placed so both sides could be viewed at once.
"You have really done an excellent job, but that doesn't surprise me, considering the books you have written," Bridget said and went to Cosimo's side of the board. "There is a lot of overlap with what you were both doing. You can really see where you two have been chasing each other's tails. I've done my best to minimize having the same information up here but left where they link. Like the problem of Da Vinci."
