“Dude, I’m right here,” Zev protested. “You know the family knows no boundaries stuff applies to love and war, right? I’m not afraid to take a cousin down to protect my woman.”
Noah splayed his hands and said, “I meant platonically.” He headed down the hall, and Bandit bounded after him. Noah turned, walking backward as he said, “Or did I?”
“Get out of here, you fool.” Zev laughed. “Bandit! Come here, buddy.”
Bandit circled back to them, tail wagging.
“When did you get so possessive?” Carly asked.
“When I realized what a dummy I was for leaving the only woman I’d ever love open to being hit on by guys like him.”
She couldn’t resist pushing his buttons. “Noah’s cute. Does he live around here?”
“For now,” Zev said with narrowing eyes. A slow grin spread across his face, and he hiked a thumb in the direction Noah had gone. “I hear he’s got a micropenis. If you’re into that sort of thing, I can probably catch him in the parking lot for you.”
She burst into laughter. “You’re terrible!”
“I was kidding.” He hauled her into his arms and said, “I’ve seen the dude naked, and you, my sexy little kitten, are never going to get an eyeful of that.”
“The only man I want an eyeful of is holding me captive and refuses to tell me why we’re here. What did Noah mean that he had everything set up for us?”
“You’ll see.”
“He sounded serious about you joining them. Is that something you’re considering?”
“Nah. That was just talk.” He pulled open one of the double doors and waved her through. “After you, beautiful.”
Carly walked through the door, surprised to find herself in a sparkling-clean laboratory. Her eyes swept over marine tanks and workstations, microscopes and shelves full of equipment. On the far wall were two large chalkboards. One was covered with notes and equations. It had been ages since she’d set foot in any sort of lab, and the sight of it brought a wave of memories, of hopes and dreams that she’d tabled when her life had spiraled out of control. “Is this Noah’s lab?”
“Yes.” Zev took her hand, leading her through the laboratory.
Bandit sprawled out in a splash of sunlight pouring through a window.
Zev stopped beside two workstations, each set up with a concretion, pneumatic air scribes, and other tools. Carly’s pulse quickened. Between the workstations was a table with two computer monitors, each displaying several X-rays. It took only a second for her to realize they were X-rays of the concretions, showing what looked like coins, a spike or a handle to a tool, something rounded that was hard to make out, and—holy cow—she spun toward Zev, so excited she could barely speak. “Zevy! Are these from…? Is that…?” She saw the answer in his eyes before he said a word.
“The concretions are from the wreckage I found off Silver Island. I’m hoping something in them will tie them to the Pride. I shipped them here right before the wedding. I was going to tell you about them when we were at Silk Hollow, but I decided to surprise you instead. It’s been killing me to hold it in.” He pointed to an X-ray and said, “I don’t know what that coiled thing is. A decorative item, maybe?” He pointed at another X-ray and said, “I’m ninety-nine percent sure that’s the trigger guard on a pistol, but it’s deep. There’s no way I can get anywhere near it this week, but I wanted you to see it. I thought you might want to help extract the artifacts that are closer to the surface of the smaller concretions.”
Her jaw dropped. The full weight of what he was offering nearly brought her to tears. “You want me to help? You trust me? I haven’t done anything like this in years.”
“I trust you, babe, and if you can’t remember how to do it, I’ll show you.”
“Oh my gosh. Zevy? You want me to….Yes. Yes! Oh no. What if I screw up? This is big. Huge. This is the mother of all things. Our childhood dreams coming true!” She was rambling, laughing, shaking, and unable to hold back her excitement. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him hard. “Thank you! But I can’t. I don’t want to mess up your chance at fame.”
He laughed as he kissed her. “You won’t screw up. Remember the club digs we went on? You were overly cautious around artifacts then, and you’ve only gotten more careful. Carly, this