Guardian by Sam Cheever Page B

carefully, I saw the light of realization come into his pretty brown eyes as he glanced down and lifted one foot to look beneath it. He reached down and picked up his sword. Then he grabbed my hand and tapped the tip of the faery sword on the ground three times. “Later, guardian.” And we were off, traveling silently through time and space.
    When we landed on the street outside his building I still wore a wide smile at the look of shocked surprise I’d last seen on Etta’s monster face.
    She’d been really pissed.
    It was a good day.
    I held my fist out to Ian for rock knuckles and he tapped it with his. Then he looked at me and frowned. “We need to get cleaned up before we go to the meeting.”
    I glanced down at my slime covered clothing and nearly black hands. “You think?”
    He peered toward his building and frowned. “We need to backtrack a bit. Go in another way.”
    I frowned. “Why?”
    He shrugged, “My layer is being watched.”
    He threw a small amount of faery dust over our heads and pointed toward his building. Two faeries lurked in the layer between us and it.
    Ian leaned close and spoke in my ear. “My guards.”
    I frowned. “So are we going around them or through them.” Even as I asked I wanted to weep. I was already exhausted from our battle with the harpies.
    “Around them.” He grabbed my hand. “Come on.”
    We backtracked to the next street over, then down a few blocks, and slipped across in the shadows to the side of the street where Ian’s building stood. He took me into an alley and jumped onto a rusty, metal ladder at the side of the building. The jump looked to be about eight feet high but he’d done it effortlessly.
    I frowned. Something about Ian Lavelle just didn’t add up.
    He stood on the bottom rung and reached a hand toward me. I grasped it and he pulled me up easily.
    Unfortunately I ended up in his arms, both of us clinging to the bottom of the creaking ladder.
    Before I knew what he was doing his lips were on mine. My eyes widened in quick shock but then I quickly succumbed to the drug that was Ian. My limbs melted beneath his touch. My body arched into his and a low, drawn out moan emerged from my throat unbidden.
    I forgot where we were and let go of the ladder, wrapping my arms around his neck. I deepened the kiss as Ian slid his hands down my back and rubbed my lower back and buttocks in slow circles that made me tingle in all the right places.
    I clasped my hands behind his neck and dragged him closer.
    Something clanged below us and we jerked apart.
    A mangy cat sauntered by, glaring up at us and hissing.
    Ian laughed huskily. “You go up first.”
    I studiously avoided his gaze as I reached for the next rung and quickly climbed the ladder. We jumped from building to building until we reached the roof of his building.
    A moment later he was letting us into his apartment.
    He moved directly to the window overlooking the street, pulling aside the curtain. After a moment he swore softly.
    I joined him at the window, looking over his shoulder. “What is it?”
    “They’re watching me. That’s not good. They must suspect something.”
    I strained to see. There were several people walking and milling around on the street below. Only one person seemed separate and distant from his surroundings. He stood against the brick wall of the coffee shop across the street. His arms were crossed over his chest, one foot rested against the wall, and his ball cap was set low on his face. Something about his posture screamed surveillance. He just seemed too casual slouching there. “Who is he?”
    Ian glanced at me, dropping the curtain. “He’s one of them. And I need to stay away from him until I’m ready.” He turned and headed toward the back of the apartment. “Come on. I’ll get you something to wear. You can shower first.”
    I lifted the curtain and peered around it. The figure across the street raised his head and, for just the tiniest fraction of a second, I