Tekgrrl (28 page)

“I know I said that Lainey and I’d take patrol tonight, but is there any way you can go instead?”

“Sure,” Paul said. “Why, where are you going to be?”

“I’m taking Fantazia with me to do a little investigating about Simon’s people and the Dragon. We’re going to see what information we can scare up through the magic community. I’d like to believe that it’s just a sting operation, but my gut says otherwise.”

“I know what you mean,” Paul replied. “We’ll keep our ears open when we’re out on the streets too. Don’t worry about patrol; I’ll take care of it. I’ll see if Mindy wants to tag along and test her Shocker. Maybe even test her powers.”

“Take Toby too,” Wesley said. “Just in case she has another episode.”

I bristled.

“She’s doing a lot better,” Paul said, coming to my defense. My hero!

“Better safe than sorry. Where is she, anyway? Has she shown up yet to work on your projects?”

She’s currently crouching behind the bed in yesterday’s clothes,
I thought.

“She hasn’t shown up for work yet,” Paul said. “She’s probably slept in or something. She can be a bit lazy at times.”

I could hear the teasing in his voice, but he was going to pay for that.

“Well, tell her you’re all going on patrol tonight when you see her,” Wesley said. “I’ll talk to you again before Fantazia and I leave. Maybe we can try to sneak into our headquarters when we’re out. I’m sure Simon’s got the place under heavy surveillance, but if we go in with an invisibility spell for a quick jaunt, I doubt we’ll be detected. I’ll try to grab a few of yours and Mindy’s inventions while we’re there. If there’s anything left that wasn’t incinerated.”

“Unlikely, but it wouldn’t hurt to check,” Paul said. “Thanks.”

I waited until I heard the door close again before I got up, stuffing my underwear in the pocket of my skirt. “Lazy, huh?”

“Oh, Mindy, there you are. Wesley says we’re going on patrol tonight,” Paul said with a smile. “So glad you decided to show up for work, finally.”

“Yeah, this really hot tattooed guy I know? He suggested I call off today.”

“He sounds like a bad influence.”

“He’s the worst,” I agreed.

“Well, now that you’re finally here, how about we go to breakfast? Or lunch? Whichever one we’re closer to.”

“Sure. Give me a minute to go change my clothes and get into some semblance of order,” I said.

“Yeah, I know what you mean,” he remarked, gesturing to his clothes, which were barely rumpled. “I’d like to get cleaned up before going out in public again too.”

“Hey, on that subject, can I ask you something personal?” I said.

He shook his head. “Absolutely not. Nothing personal whatsoever. I don’t think we’re on that level.” He rolled his eyes. “Yes, Mindy, you can ask me whatever you want.”

“You obviously work out. You’ve got a really nice body hiding behind those layers of dress shirts and undershirts and jackets. So, why do you hide it?”

He ran a hand over his hair. “Ugh. I have to work out to not make an embarrassment of myself in our uniforms, but that doesn’t mean I want to flaunt it the rest of the time.”

“Well, why not? ‘If you’ve got it, flaunt it,’ as they say.”

“Yeah, well, I didn’t exactly have it when I was thirteen, and I think the ghost of that fat kid has followed me around for the rest of my life, all right? I was the typical science geek: chubby, thick glasses, bad acne, the works. And God, that’s probably something I shouldn’t be admitting to you right now.”

“Oh, come on, Paul, everyone’s hideous when they’re thirteen. You saw me then, remember?”

“Trust me, you weren’t hideous. And please, let’s not go bringing up the fact that I knew you then. I was twenty-five at the time. That creeps me out.”

I put my arms around his waist. “Paul Christian is a terrible, evil cradle robber.”

He grinned. “Shut up.”

“Make me.”

He kissed me hard, and I responded in kind.

“Do me a favor,” I said when we broke apart. “Wear something a little more casual to breakfast. Preferably something that shows off the tat.”

“I’d have to buy a new wardrobe,” he complained.

“Don’t tempt me.” I winked at him. “I’ll see you in a few.”

“Don’t take too long, babe,” he said, watching as I walked out the door.

Once in the hallway, I looked around. Ugh. Time to do the walk of shame.
Please God, don’t let anyone come back this way,
I prayed, and hurried as fast as I could without drawing attention to myself to my room.

I had my hand on the door handle, ready to open it when it opened on its own and Kate stepped out, almost bumping into me.

“Gods, Mindy, I’m sorry,” she said.

“It’s okay,” I replied, starting to bolt around her.

Her viselike grip caught my arm and I looked up, alarmed. She was staring at me as if seeing me anew. Or like she was looking right through me.

“Kate?” I said, a bit spooked.

“Oh, my,” she breathed. She looked like I had punched her in the stomach. “I knew you two were having a bit of fun, but I didn’t know…”

I blanched. “Um, Kate? Can we talk about this inside? And can you let go of my arm?”

She looked down at her hand, as if for the first time noticing she had it in her grasp. “Sorry. Go ahead.” She stepped aside so I could pass.

I stripped off my clothes and threw on a fresh tank top and hip-hugging jeans. I wasn’t wearing those killer boots anymore, and I stuffed my feet into the sneakers. Since I didn’t feel like messing with the magic showerhead, I pulled back my hair into a ponytail and noticed Kate watching me in the reflection of the mirror. I sighed. “It just happened, okay?”

“I know,” she said, her voice soft. Was it my imagination, or did she sound like she was in pain? “I didn’t see it on you until now.”

“It’s no big deal,” I said, even though it was. I made a halfhearted attempt to repair my makeup in a hurry.

“I’m happy for you two—really,” Kate said. “I’m glad he finally has someone that deserves him. Someone who loves him like I never could.”

I paused, lipstick poised in front of my mouth. “Pardon me?”

She gave me a sad smile. “Oh, Mindy. Don’t try to deny it. Remember who I am. I can see when love has blossomed, okay? You two are in love, I can see it. And I really am happy you’re able to give him what I never could.”

I stared at her in shock. Don’t get me wrong, I really liked Paul. That much was clear now. And I knew he really liked me, too. And last night had been the most incredible night of my life. I half wanted to ask Kate why she had been crazy enough to cheat on him and toss him aside. Because, wow. But love?

“I, uh, gotta go,” I said to Kate, throwing the tube of lipstick down. “Paul’s waiting for me.”

She nodded. “Of course.”

“And don’t say anything to anyone yet.”

She nodded again. “I understand. You want to tell them yourselves.”

“Something like that, yeah.” I headed for the door. “I’ll, uh, see you later.” I closed the door behind me, my stomach flipping. It was way too early in our relationship, and there was way too much insanity going on right now for that kind of intensity.

I stepped into the common room, and Paul was standing there talking to Luke. He was wearing jeans and a polo shirt, looking somewhat casual. When he saw me, he absently scratched his arm, pushing up his sleeve to reveal the tattoo. He shot me a grin and then said something else to Luke before heading in my direction.

I shook my head at him, sharing a small smile. Now was
not
the time to be falling in love. Not with anyone. We were outlaws, and I had crazy people talking in my head.

So why did I get a giddy feeling in the pit of my stomach just from Paul smiling at me?

“I feel like a ninja dressed like this,” I complained.

“Ninjas are silent assassins,” Toby reminded me over the headset as we patrolled. “You couldn’t be silent if your life depended on it, Min.”

“Hardy-har-har,” I responded, brushing my hair back as I pressed the button that allowed us to talk completely undetected on any frequency.

“Toby’s right, let’s cut the unnecessary chatter,” a stern voice said over my headset. And then over my shoulder in a low voice, “Ninjas don’t wear bright red lipstick when they’re working, either.”

I depressed the button to speak into the headset and said, “We’re heroes. We’re supposed to quip.” Then I turned and asked Paul, “What exactly’s wrong with the lipstick?”

“It comes off, for one thing,” he replied, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “It looks hot on you, but not so much on me. Leave it off next time we’re out.”

He leaned forward to kiss me again, but I ducked. “We’re supposed to be working, remember?” I said with a teasing smile. “I have this mean boss who’ll be on my case if we don’t at least attempt to catch some bad guys.”

“You really shouldn’t talk about Wesley like that,” Paul said, catching me by the waist and trapping me. “He’s not so bad, really.”

“Okay, seriously, how long do we have to be out here?” I asked, both over the headset for Toby’s benefit and to Paul in person.

“What’s wrong, Mindy, you have a hot date tonight?” Paul retorted over the headset. At the same time, he slid his hands places entirely inappropriate for work.

“As a matter of fact…” I replied. Then I leaned close and whispered in his ear, “I want to go home and rip your clothes off.”

Paul’s eyes widened, and a mischievous smirk broke out on his face. He started to say something in return, but Toby’s voice over the intercom interrupted.

“The only thing Mindy has waiting at home is her latest erotica novel, but I’ve got an actual man coming to meet me at some point, so I agree: Can we wrap this up?” Toby groused.

“Wait, I thought Forrest wasn’t coming until tomorrow,” Paul said.

“He’s not. He’s meeting me here. Nearby.”

“How nearby?” Paul asked.

“Relax. He’s at a nice hotel about ten blocks over. You know, the kind that has champagne and strawberries for room service. And whipped cream…”

“Getting a little too detailed there, hon,” I said. To Paul, I whispered, “I know this store nearby that has chocolate body paint.”

“I’ve never been into food products,” Paul said, shaking his head. “However, scented massage oil…”

“Ooh, I know where we can get this great sandalwood one that heats on contact.”

“The champagne sounds like a good idea,” Paul mused. “Do you think Fantazia still has some left?”

“Maybe, but I don’t want to ask her for it. She’s cranky and scary.” I shivered. “Let’s offer to make sure Toby meets up with Forrest okay, then we’ll go to the store.”

“Yeah, what’s up with
them?
”

“Um, they’re in love?” I shrugged. “Did you need me to explain the details? When a man and another man really care about each other…”

“Are you guys still there?” Toby asked over the headset. “Where are you?”

“Is it a good idea to be having liaisons with Forrest before we find out what he knows?” Paul asked him.

“We’re going to
find out
what he knows. If you want, I’ll ask him straight off and then we’ll continue our reunion. You’ll be the first person I report back to afterward. Besides, I thought we had decided we were going to trust Forrest.”

“We hadn’t decided anything yet,” Paul said.

“By the way, thanks, Toby, for your commentary on my love life,” I put in, trying to defuse the tension building between the two men.

“You’re the one still holding out for Luke, sweetie.”

I turned red under Paul’s gaze. “Totally not the case, Tobe, and you know it.”

Paul shook his head. “You’re never going to live that down.”

“Whatever. It’s dead out here tonight. I think even Wesley would agree to that, and he’s the one who’s so gung ho on us patrolling. No offense, Paul.”

“None taken. Up until Wesley and Lainey starting pushing for it, I thought nightly patrols were a big waste of time too.” Paul sighed. “But I want it known that it’s not my job to handle your personal lives…”

“Duly noted,” Toby said.

“Um, it kind of is,” I whispered to Paul. “Since you’re the one debating the virtues of chocolate body paint versus scented massage oil.”

“But I’m okay with wrapping this up and letting Mindy get back to whatever her big plans are for tonight,” he said into the microphone. “Massage oil and champagne definitely,” he told me.

“You’re the boss.”

“That’s right.” He leaned in and kissed me again, obviously no longer caring whether or not my lipstick would smear off. All I could think about was getting rid of Toby, seeing him off safely to Forrest, and getting Paul home as soon as possible. How sick was it that Fantazia’s world was rapidly becoming home?

That’s when the whole world seemed to shake.

I moved slightly away from Paul. “I’ve heard of kisses making the earth move…”

“Great. Just great,” Paul said, looking over my shoulder. “Toby!”

“I see it, I see it.” Toby cursed over the headset. “There go my plans for the night.”

I turned around to see what they were gawking at, and my mouth fell open as something giant and green went running past. “Mine too.”

“I’m calling the others at headquarters,” Paul said, flipping a switch on the headset and speaking into it.

We followed the growing sounds of chaos. There was a giant man-lizard wandering the city streets, knocking over cars and making a general mess of things. As we turned the corner of one building, we could see it break a light pole in half.

“What is that?” I breathed.

“It’s got to be one of Doctor Chaos’s creations,” Paul said, referencing a notorious villain whose human and animal hybrid experiments were his modus operandi for taking over the world. “No one other than him is so Hollywood.”

“I thought he was in jail.”

“A lot of people are supposed to be in jail, including us and Simon Leasure,” Paul said. He kissed me again. “Be careful, babe.”

“You too,” I said, and we turned to face the monster.

“Hey, ugly!” Toby called. As the monster turned, he punched it in the face. The creature reared back but didn’t fall. It growled, flashing sharp teeth, and swiped a clawed fist at Toby. Toby just barely dodged, and his chest caught part of the blow, his shirt getting torn to ribbons.