Accessory: The Scarab Beetle Series: #4 (The Academy) by C. L. Stone Page B

we’re looking for.” He took a sip of his drink and then settled more in his seat, looking at the contents in his glass. “You and I, we’re going to have to agree to be completely upfront with each other.”
    “That might be harder for you than me,” I said.
    He lifted an eyebrow. Then his gaze started at my face and worked slowly down my body and then back up to my eyes. It made me self-conscious of what I was wearing again. “Sweet little Kate needs to remember she lied, too, and that she lied first.”
    I cringed at remembering the old name I’d used when I had first met him, right after I’d picked his pocket for his wallet. “If we’re going to work this close, we’re going to have to forget about that for now.”
    His voice lightened, sweet like honey. “Darling, I’m willing to start over with a clean slate at this point.” He took a sip from his glass. It was the first time I noticed the watch around his wrist. It wasn’t silver exactly, maybe platinum. There were diamonds around the face and the telltale emblem in the center: Rolex. He lowered his hand and then distracted me with his eyes that were focused intently on my face. “Can we do that?”
    “Nice watch,” I said, unable to commit, unsure I could hold my tongue if he started talking about the past again. Part of it was my own guilt, too. I did feel bad for blowing up a lot of perfectly good food from his kitchen. His yacht had been okay. It wasn’t the yacht’s fault.
    He smirked. “I guess that’s as good an answer as I am going to get.” He put the glass down on a side table and then edged closer until he was sitting with his knee against my thigh. His arm went behind my shoulders and he remained there, really close. “So, co-lead, should we get a room together tonight to discuss what we need to do?”
    “Why don’t you tell me now what you need to tell me?” I asked, frightened by how easily I was lured by his coy smile and his constant badgering to go somewhere quiet with him. For the past couple of weeks, the guys had been rather aloof. Not one comment about a relationship, nothing more than a casual hug. At first, I’d been sick and wouldn’t have wanted anyone to touch me, anyway, but then it started to grate on me. It was strange how I hadn’t thought of this until now. “And then I’ll do what I can to convince the guys that they should stay and work with us. And if they don’t leave, you’ll be on your best behavior until we can get to the bottom of what’s going on?”
    “And what happens if they do leave?” he asked. “Are you going to stay and help if they won’t?”
    I bit my lower lip, unsure of my answer. Would they refuse? I wanted to believe they’d stay if they were helping other people, but I wasn’t totally convinced. They’d say I was too worn down from the last catastrophe to participate in this. They would say they were too close, perhaps. That they were unprepared. They may not want Blake anywhere near here. However, it was only going to be information gathering and we didn’t have to go through with anything else.
    Was I just creating a bigger mess getting them onto a ship together for a few days?
    But still, the money… That could set us all up for years. They wouldn’t have to work for anyone, Academy or not. I wouldn’t have to work, either. We’d be set. After it was all done, we could do whatever we wanted. Wouldn’t that be amazing?
    Blake continued to gaze at me while I was thinking. His hand shifted, until he was rubbing my shoulder. “Sweetheart, you’re not answering me.” He leaned in to catch my eyes, the gold in his flashing. “You know, when I got your message and tried to call you back, that’s when I knew something wasn’t right. I felt it before when I tried to visit you in the hospital and they refused to let me see you.”
    My eyes opened wide, staring at his face. I hadn’t heard there were people at the hospital to see me. It was true that I hadn’t felt