I took a deep breath and ground my molars. “Give Jean and Myra some of those stickers. Ryder, I’ll take you back to our place so you can pick up your truck. Then can you get Hatter and Shoe and Kelby some stickers, too? Just in case?”
“Yep. But that leaves you without a phone,” he said.
“I’m just going over to Than’s kite shop to meet with him and Frigg. I’ll be fine.”
Ryder held my gaze for a minute, then stepped close to me. The others headed to their vehicles, Crow deciding to ride with Jean.
“You sure you’ll be okay?” he asked. He was in my space, the scent of him heady, his attention warm and hypnotizing. I couldn’t take my eyes off him. Didn’t want to.
“I think I really need a vacation,” I breathed.
And oh, how he smiled. “Yeah, Boss,” he said low and sexy. “You do. So get those god powers moved over, and I’ll meet you outside the kite shop. Deal?”
“I thought you were riding with me.”
“Deal?” he asked again.
“Deal.”
Ryder pulled away and jogged off toward Myra. “Hey, future sister-in-law. Can I bum a ride?”
Myra, of course, already had the engine running and the door open, waiting for him.
I watched them drive off and watched the kids head back into the garage, heads together arguing about where to spend the money. And then, just as fat drops of rain began to fall, I headed off to see a god about some powers.
Chapter Ten
“Storm,”I heard Frigg say, as the bell above the kite shop door jingled. “Bigger than last night’s.”
“What?” I said. I reached for my phone in my pocket, remembered it was currently dissolving in the belly of a dragon.
“Hey, Delaney,” she called out cheerily from the back room. “You’re late.”
The sign on the door said the shop was closed. The door hadn’t been locked, but with the lights turned down a bit, I was pretty sure no one would step in while we were in the middle of the freaky stuff.
God power. God power was the freaky stuff.
“Hey, Frigg.” I threw the lock, just in case. “Sorry I’m late. Been chasing down some cursed objects.”
Frigg leaned out so she could see through the open doorway between the front and back room. “I thought I smelled something weird. What objects?”
I strolled back. “Pandora’s. A whole storage unit full of them.”
“And they got out onto the street because…? she asked.
“Because Crow is a jerk.”
She barked a laugh. “Oh, you are not wrong. Come sit down. We have cocoa.”
I entered the back room.
Than sat with Frigg at a little round wooden table with a lace tablecloth and a plate of nuts and cheeses. A large, sterling silver decanter sat to one side with several smaller silver pots and pitchers spread out around it. The scent of chocolate and cinnamon and caramel was intense and wonderful.
“This is fancy,” I said. “Are any of these going to be the container for the powers?”
Than paused with his cup and saucer halfway to his mouth. “Your imagination is staggering.”
Yep. There he was. Mr. Delightful.
