Protective Ink (Urban Fantasy) (6 page)

“I’ll walk you guys home,” Jackson said, grabbing his jacket off the back of her plush, burgundy chair. He barely spared her a glance before nodding at Cameron and following Dory and Garrett out.

“Well, he does look a lot better. That’s a relief.” Cameron sat on her couch and seemed intent on making himself comfortable. She just wanted him to leave. She would rather be with her three friends than entertaining this all-too-handsome, older man. He was smooth in a way that made her think of champagne and moonlight walks, cruises and pâté. If she were ever ready to dive back into the dating pool, though, she was pretty sure she was going to want meat, potatoes and beer. Someone who didn’t look perfectly pressed even after all this commotion. Someone who would take her face in his hands and kiss her until she could barely stand. She couldn’t imagine Cameron doing any of those things. She shook her head at herself. It had been a long night and she was being ridiculous. As her business associate, Cameron was off limits anyway, so it was a moot point.

She really just wanted to go to bed. After everything that had gone wrong the previous night and now her flop of a party, she wanted to get on with the day-to-day basics of running the shop. This venture was going to work well because she damned well wanted it to, not because of any good or bad mojo.

“I really should turn in, Cameron. I’m booked solid tomorrow and want to make sure I’m fresh when I’m down there.”

“How about a quick cup of tea? Settle down and relax for just a moment. You must have gotten a bit of a shock when Garrett took ill.”

How could she say no? She wanted to—badly—but there was no good way to do it without offending him. “Sure. I’ll be right back. Cream and sugar?”

“Just a splash of cream,” he said as he leaned back into the couch cushions, slinging one arm across the top.

She busied herself in the kitchen and thought at least four times about simply shoving him out the door with a to-go cup. But she didn’t. Instead she carried a tray out into the living room with cups, saucers, cream and a steeping pot of Earl Grey tea. They’d make polite conversation and then she was definitely going to kick him out if it got too late.

He said things and she politely murmured in all the right places. He was probably making small talk about the grand opening, maybe about how it had been a success even after the way it ended. To be honest he could have been reciting Shakespeare for all she knew and cared. Her heart and her brain were across town with Garrett, willing him to recover quickly and fully from whatever had been done to him. And wondering what—who—was at fault.

Chapter Five

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Jackson did not want to hover like a helicopter parent, but Garrett still looked a little rough. His hair was tousled on top and though the tops of his ears were red, the rest of his face was about two shades too light.

“I’m good. Whatever Dory did is working the sickness out of my system.”

Dory kissed him on the forehead. “You don’t have a fever anymore, either.”

“See?” Garrett rested back against the couch in the living room of his apartment. “Almost as good as new, though whatever the hell that was, it was some nasty shit.”

Pacing was not helping Jackson, but he couldn’t think of anything else to do that didn’t involve hunting the culprit and ripping their throat out. The chances of Garrett just randomly getting sick in the middle of a party where no one else took ill were slim to absolute zilch, particularly after the attack that had been made on him the previous night.

“Do you think it might have been the punch? It was the first time I tried it. Maybe there was something in it I just couldn’t handle.” He gave Dory a slight smile. “We all know how my palate isn’t quite as sophisticated as other people’s.”

Snuggling into his side, Dory laid her hand over his heart. “I’ve toned down the spices in my cooking, remember?”

“The punch was fine,” Jackson said with his hand on the back of his neck. “I tasted it myself. Everyone else was drinking it, too, and no one had the reaction you did.”

“You don’t think one of the people who’s after Garrett was there tonight, do you?” Dory asked quietly from beside Garrett. Her hands were twisting over and over each other in her lap. Jackson had the urge to lay his hand on top of them to make her quit. But Garrett was faster.

“Babe, I don’t think so. Lissa knew everyone there tonight. She’d know if someone wasn’t on the up-and-up.”

But Jackson had his doubts about that, and he’d already worked out a plan to ferret out some intel.

“You make sure to get rest tonight, guy. Don’t go out looking for trouble. The city can live without you for one night. I’m going to do some hunting of my own. Dory, keep him here.”

“Aye-aye, Captain,” she said with a smart little salute. He was becoming right fond of her. She was a cheeky thing, with much more depth than he’d suspected when he first met her. Garrett had made a great catch. Now it was Jackson’s turn to see what he could catch, though he was looking for a dastardly fish, not a woman.

He waved himself out of the apartment and made a beeline for Lissa’s place. He wanted the guest list and he wanted her to spill everything she knew about every person who had shown up tonight, no matter how small. And if it took all night, then so be it.

He loped up the stairs to Lissa’s apartment after having let himself in downstairs. He had a key to the outer door but not for the inner door. He’d jimmied the lock last time, but this time he didn’t want to. Which was probably just as well because when he got halfway up the stairs he heard Cameron’s voice droning on. Seriously? The guy hadn’t left yet? It was bad enough that she’d let him come up to see Garrett. But for Cameron to still be here after all this time was ridiculous.

He refused to acknowledge the jealousy lurking in the back of his mind as he lifted his hand to knock on her door. Before he had a chance, he heard footsteps approaching the door.

The desire to hide rushed through him, and he felt a whoosh in his blood. This time, he did feel something different when he went invisible. Little bubbles seemed to burst in his blood as he focused on keeping out of sight. He still had no idea how this worked, but he’d felt no after effects last time, and now was not the time to be seen.

“Thanks, Cameron, but I have an early morning tomorrow,” Lissa said as she pushed the door open. “As much as I appreciate the company, it’s time for you to go.”

It didn’t sound like she had enjoyed spending time with the stuffed shirt. He wouldn’t have been too surprised if Cameron hadn’t heard the edge in her voice, since it was subtle. But Jackson had known her for years and was on more than friendly terms with her many moods.

“Aren’t you going to walk me down?” Cameron said with a smile that only bowed his lips a little bit. Smarmy bastard.

“Fine, but I really have to get to bed.”

“Don’t let me keep you.” He laid a hand on Lissa’s arm. It was all Jackson could do not to stick out his invisible foot and trip the asshole down the stairs.

“You’re not.” Lissa walked down the stairs in front of him, which kept Jackson from planting his boot in the guy’s ass.

When they reached the bottom of the steps, Jackson let himself into the apartment to wait for her. She wasn’t happy right now, and him breaking into her apartment—again—wasn’t going to improve her mood, but he wasn’t about to stand out on her staircase and bear witness to hear goodbyes with Prissy Boy.

* * *

“Maybe we should wait for word from Garrett on his condition,” Cameron said. Lissa clenched her teeth firmly together to prevent herself from telling him to get the hell out.

“No, really, I’m sure he’s going to be fine. He already looked better when he left.” Not a complete lie. Not exactly the truth, either, but she had to get rid of this guy.

“If you’re sure. But call me to let me know how he’s doing, okay?” He took her hand in his and kissed the back of it, his dry lips barely making an impression.

“I’ll do that.” She let Cameron buss her on the cheek as he left then locked the door behind him and thanked her lucky stars that she’d thought to change her shoes as she raced back upstairs.

Lissa sighed as she closed the door behind her and leaned back against it. Another night that had not gone according to plan. Maybe all of this had been a horrible mistake. She loved the thought of owning her own shop, being closer to Garrett and hopefully becoming friends with Dory. But she hadn’t counted on these complications, nor had she counted on how strong her attraction to Jackson would be. When he had stood over Garrett earlier—arms crossed, biceps bulging and eyes serious—it had done something to her. He was a protector of those who were important to him. She’d always been important to him to some extent, but just for a flash tonight, she had wanted something more.…

He had even snaked his way into her olfactory system. Her whole stairway seemed to smell like him, or at least it had when she was busy trying to kick out Cameron. God, that guy. While she appreciated all he had done, he just wasn’t for her, and she hoped to the goddess that he wasn’t interested in pursuing her. And wouldn’t it make Jackson happy to know that.

“Big ape,” she mumbled to herself on her way to the kitchen.

Where she found the man himself leaning against her counter again.

“How the hell long have you been here?” She looked around the small room. The window in here was locked and so were all the others. No way had he snuck past her on the stairs—she had come up right after locking the door behind Cameron. Had he been here the whole time?

She quickly ran back over everything that had happened since he’d left, or since she’d thought he left. Fortunately there wasn’t anything for her to be embarrassed about. So she fumed instead.

“You were not invited. And you were supposed to walk Garrett and Dory home. How did you get in here again?”

One dimple flashed on the left side of his face. “If I told you I had a key, would you believe me?”

“I’d tell you to give it back.” She crossed her arms over her chest.

“But you gave me a key to the front door, darlin’.”

“To use in case of emergencies, not to invade my space every time I turn around. Anyway, you don’t have a key to the apartment.” She turned her back to him and put on a kettle of water. It was like déjà vu of her teatime with Cameron. And wasn’t this a scary thought: Jackson was the exact opposite of everything she didn’t like about her investor.

He put his hand on her shoulder. “I needed to talk to you and wanted to give you an update on Garrett.”

She didn’t turn around because she was afraid to face him when he was this close. Not right now when she felt so on edge. “The phone has always been good enough for us. Hell, before I moved here I hadn’t seen you in more years than I’d care to count and now I’ve been seeing you almost every day.”

He was silent for long enough that she did turn to look at him.

“What?”

“Nothing. I guess I can go if you want. I just wanted to tell you Dory’s thoughts about tonight, but you’re right, I shouldn’t have barged in like that. I’ll leave and call you on the way home.” He strode out of the kitchen, and she took two deep breaths before following him.

“Don’t be an idiot. You’re here now. Just say whatever it is you have to say, because I really do need to go to bed.”

He shoved his hands into his pockets and hunched his shoulders. Now she was ashamed of herself. What the hell was wrong with her?

“I’m sorry. It’s been a long day and, yet again, an event I’d looked forward to didn’t go the way I’d hoped it would. Let me finish the tea and we’ll talk. Come on into the kitchen.”

He followed her back into the small galley kitchen and the room shrank to the size of a postal mailer. Leaning against the counter, he took up half of her usable space and then some.

“Now what does Dory think happened?”

“She wondered if the person or persons who are after Garrett were at your party tonight. I think she might be right.”

Lissa shook her head. “No way.”

“How can you be so sure?”

They stared each other down for what felt like an eternity.

“I knew every single person here tonight since it was by invite only,” she said as she stood bunny-slipper-shod feet to steel-toed boot with him. “Not a single one of them would willingly hurt another person. I’d stake my life on it.”

“Yeah, well, you staked Garrett’s life on it and look what happened.”

She bunched her fist and planted it in his chest. “How dare you! I would never willingly put Garrett in danger. I’ve done everything possible to keep him out of it. I begged you to help him turn himself around. I’ve tattooed him over and over again to give him more power, every single time he’s asked. Garrett’s the one who makes the tattoos work by absorbing darkness to change his tattoos into weapons as real and solid as I am, but I make them able to do their work. I infuse them with incantations, mixing his blood and ink to perfect the combination, and draw on the powers that exist inside him. I’ve done everything I could to help. Ever since the first day he came in here with his bitch of a mother, I’ve tried to only use a fraction of my powers on everyone else. All I can think about is how I thought I was doing something good and it turned out so horrible. Why on earth would I put him into harm’s way again?” Tears threatened, but she’d be damned if a single one fell. Screw him and his protective ass. He could rot for suggesting she would allow anything to happen to Garrett.

She took a deep breath. “You’ve said your piece, Jackson. Maybe you should leave now.” The kettle gurgled behind her. Busying herself with the task of setting up her cup, she was surprised when he yanked her around.

“You think you can just dismiss me like that?” His grip tightened on her upper arm. “This is serious shit, Lissa. Someone made him sick tonight. He hasn’t even had a cold in I can’t tell you how long. The only time he’s even approached throwing up is when he couldn’t figure out how to get rid of the darkness, and tonight he puked his guts out while you were making nice with Mr. Cameron Priss. Don’t turn your back on me when I’m trying to tell you how bad this whole thing has gotten. Someone has it out for our boy.”