“How?”
She lifted her head in time to see Jeff grimace. The comb started stroking through her hair once more.
“Let’s just say that if Travis ever looked at me like that, I’d find the deepest, darkest hole I could find, plant my headstone behind it and dive in. Then I would sit there and pray for someone to come and fill in the hole.”
Travis got dressed as quickly as he could, but he wasn’t fast enough. She’d disappeared into the den with her twin, and the locked door told its own tale. He huffed out a frustrated breath and was headed for the kitchen and breakfast when his cell phone rang. “Hello?”
“Travis?”
He held the phone between his shoulder and his ear and grabbed a coffee mug, placing it next to the pot. “Yeah, Morgan?” He heard the sound of the den’s door opening and peeked into the living room.
Jamie and Jeff were still murmuring to one another as they took seats on the sofa.
“I just went by your house, and…”
“And what?” He stared at Jamie, only paying half attention to what his operative was telling him. He was still confused as hell over what had happened in the bathroom and he didn’t like it one little bit.
“It looks like someone put a hose in every room and turned them on.”
Jamie sat with her head close to her twin’s, whispering back and forth. He would give anything to know what was going on in her head. That little scene in the shower that morning had left him hard as a rock and stunned out of his mind. She was avoiding him. Damn. I think I fucked up. He’d pushed too hard too soon, and now she was running from him.
“Hello? Are you listening, or are you mooning over my sister again?” Morgan’s voice crackled with annoyance.
That got his attention. “What did you say about my house?”
“Water. Damage. Hope you have insurance.”
He frowned, his attention finally diverted from Jamie and Jeff. “Water damage?”
“I went to your place to deliver the papers on the Solberg case, remember? You were supposed to meet me there this afternoon.”
The cop, right. They’d only gotten the case a week after Jamie had entered the hospital. The wife was firmly convinced he’d left her for another woman, and wanted solid proof before she filed for divorce.
From everything Morgan and Magnus had been able to gather, she was right. Magnus said he’d taken pictures of the man fucking an unknown blonde woman and had, in fact, moved in with her.
“Anyway, I arrive, open the door, a metric ton of water sloshes out and you owe me new shoes.”
“Fuck.” This day just kept getting better and better.
“It looks like every pipe in your house burst all at once. Freakiest thing I’ve ever seen. Water spraying everywhere, and the worst part? All your wards are blown.”
“I do not need this shit right now.” He rubbed his eyes tiredly, wondering how the fuck Grimm had gotten through his wards to wreak his damage.
“Yeah. Listen, you might wanna come over here, take a look around. Trust me, you’re not gonna believe it until you see it. Don’t worry, I turned the water main off. By the way, your carpet was apparently filthy. Have you never heard of Rug Doctor? You owe me new jeans too.”
“I’ll be there as soon as I can.” He hung up the phone, his gaze tracing the back of Jamie’s head lovingly. “Jamie, I have to head out for a little while. I have a small problem I need to take care of.”
She turned. Those eyes of hers seemed to see right through to the heart of him. “Grimm?”
He nodded. “Seems the Old Man did something to the pipes in my house. The entire place is flooded, and from what Morgan said the damage is pretty bad.”
“It’s a set-up.”
He nodded. “I know.” He turned. “Logan—”
“No.” Jeff stood and stretched. “I’ll go.”
Travis didn’t miss the relief on Jordan’s face, or the annoyance on Logan’s. He nodded anyway.
“Let’s go.” He walked over to Jamie and leaned over her, balancing on the stump of his right arm. Taking her face in his hand he leaned down, kissing her with all of the pent-up passion she’d left him with in the bathroom. By the time he was done they were both breathing hard and her eyes were once more glazed over. “Be good.” He kissed the tip of her nose before walking away. It took every ounce of his self-
discipline not to limp from the hard-on he was sporting.
A man had his pride, after all.
Logan stared thoughtfully at the closed door to the condo. “Y’know, I have something I need to take care of. Why don’t you guys order in enough pizza for the whole gang? I’ll call the M and M’s and Vlad the Impaler. Make sure you get extra hemoglobin, ok?” Logan sauntered off into the den, shutting the door behind him.
“Vlad the Impaler?” Jamie snickered, wide eyed, as Kir frowned after Logan.
“He never asks to order in pizza.” Kir got up and followed Logan from the room, leaving the girls alone on the chaise.
Jordan quickly dialed the pizza place, ordering enough to feed an army. Jordan and Kir shared the same unhealthy pizza obsession, so Jamie wasn’t too surprised.
Jordan turned the television on, but kept the volume low. She switched it to Lifetime. She raised her voice slightly, glancing at the door to the den. “How about a good victim of the week movie while we wait?”
Two male groans of disgust sounded from the den.
“Good. That should keep them out for a bit.” Jordan scooted closer to Jamie, a big grin on her face.
“So. Travis. Is he as good with his tongue as I think he is?” She waggled her eyebrows, giggling when Jamie smacked her on the arm. “C’mon, sister to sister. Is he, y’know, enough to keep you satisfied?”
From the way Jordan held her hands apart Jamie had no problem figuring out what she meant.
“Jordan!”
“What?”
“Logan is a bad influence on you.”
“Is Travis a bad influence on you?”
“I turned him down.”
Jordan stared at her blankly.
“Seriously. I totally panicked. I said no.”
“Did the word no leave your lips at any time?”
She thought back. “Um, no, not actually.”
“Good. Because I’d have to smack you silly if it had.”
“But I didn’t say yes, either.” Jamie groaned and put her head on her big sister’s shoulder. “What am I doing?”
Jordan didn’t even hesitate, her arms wrapping around Jamie’s shoulders in a big hug. “You’re claiming the man you’ve been in love with since you were sixteen, that’s what you’re doing.”
“But does he really want to be claimed?”
Jordan smacked her on top of her head.
“Ow.”
“That’s what you get for being stupid.”
“He never seemed interested before.”
“Well, he sure as hell is interested now.”
“And in the future?” Jamie cuddled in closer to her sister’s warmth and wished, not for the first time, that she could contact their mom. She didn’t even know if their mother knew who their father was, or anything that had happened to them. She hadn’t shown up at the hospital, nor had she tried to contact any of them since before Grimm attacked her. It was odd, because their family was usually pretty close. Maybe whatever power Grimm had used to sway the Aesir had been used on their mother? “How do I know he doesn’t just feel sorry for me?”
Jordan smacked her on top of her head again.
“Ow.”
“I tell people my momma didn’t raise any stupid children. Stop trying to make a liar outta me.”
Jamie bit her lip, barely holding back her grin. “So you think he’s really into me?” She grabbed Jordan’s hand before she could smack her again. “A simple yes would do.”
“Yes. Duh.” Jordan sighed. “The last time I saw a man look at a woman the way Travis looks at you, I found myself secretly married.”
Jamie gulped. “How do you deal with…you know.”
“What, loving two men?”
“No. Two gods.”
Jordan sat her up. “Is that what’s holding you back?”
Jamie nodded. “He’s a god, Jordan. He’s been alive for, what, thousands of years? How many women has he loved? How long will he live? Will he even remember me when I’m gone?” She frowned. “Why hasn’t he dated a redhead before now?”