Chapter 14
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Dathan gritted his teeth. No fucking way he was going to let his panic win.
He had to find Eos.
But he stood in the roaring sand like his legs had turned to stone. Memories of another storm bombarded him.
Then arms wrapped around him from behind, and he jolted.
Lips brushed his jaw. “Got you.”
Eos grabbed his hand, and he squeezed hard. Thank fuck. He wondered if he was breaking her fingers.
“Come on,” she shouted.
They pushed against the wind and finally reached the opening. It hadn’t been far, only a few feet ahead. He pushed her in front of him, and soon they were in a cave-like space. The sound of the storm was muffled.
“Jesus.” He was shaking. “When I lost you…” He pulled her into his arms, pressing his chin to her sand-dusted hair. She was safe. They were both safe. That’s all that mattered.
“Let’s get away from the door,” she said.
He led her deeper into the room and urged her to sit. She should never have been in that storm. What the hell had he been thinking? He should have planned better. Monitored the weather conditions more closely. He knew better.
He tapped his Sync. “Nik? Zayn? We were forced to take shelter.”
There was no response.
A muscle ticked in his jaw.
“The storm’s blocking communication?” she asked quietly.
“Yeah.” Tension strung his muscles tight. He couldn’t stay still. The howl of the wind was a sound he hated. He eyed the opening and the sand ripping past. He started to pace the small space. He could only manage four steps before he had to turn.
“Dathan?”
He grunted but didn’t stop his movement.
“Come and sit down.”
He shook his head.
“Hey.” She held out a hand. “I don’t know what happened to you in that sandstorm on Sha’ra, but let me help. I’ve leaned on you plenty.”
Pausing, he took a deep breath and glanced her way. He stared at her outstretched hand. He wasn’t used to leaning on anybody. His brothers, sure, but a lifetime with his father had taught him that it was better to depend on himself.
He stared at the delicate swirls on her wrist, then he put his hand in hers.
She pulled him down beside her. “We’re safe here. We’ll wait it out.”
He gave a tense nod.
“Want to talk about it?”
“Not really.”
She rubbed her cheek against his shoulder. No pressure. Just a quiet support he’d never had before.
He pulled in a breath. “I was looking for the ruins of al-Hamra on Sha’ra.
I had a local guide and a small team of porters.
” His chin dropped to his chest. “I was so damn cocky. Building a name for myself. A few of the boys were barely in their teens. So excited to be on an adventure with a treasure hunter.” He ran a hand through his hair, dislodging some sand.
“It came out of nowhere.” God, that horrible sound.
“We didn’t have a chance to find shelter.
I buried myself in the sand as much as I could.
I yelled for the others to do the same, but in seconds, I couldn’t see them anymore. ”
She wound her fingers into his.
“It took two days for the storm to clear.” His chest rose and fell.
Two days of hell that had felt like years.
He’d heard the boys screaming, had tried to reach them.
“I was the only one who survived. Dehydrated, with some sand scouring. But the boys…” All that had been left was bloody bones. “They died, and I survived.”
“You blame yourself.”
“I was the expedition leader. I wanted to push on.” He’d taken stupid, selfish risks. Just like his father. “It’s my fault they died.”
“You were with a local guide and people who knew the planet. They should have warned you.” Her fingers curled around his biceps. “You’re good at what you do, Dathan, but no one’s perfect. You need to give yourself a break.”
The storm was loud in his ears. “I should have bloody well learned from my mistake. You could have died out there.” He imagined her smooth skin scoured away and shuddered.
“We’re okay,” she said again.
He stared hard at the back wall. On Institute digs, she’d have a security team keeping her safe. With him, she had nothing. She didn’t belong on a treasure hunt.
As he continued to stare at the wall, he frowned. A patch of rock was darker than the rest and rectangular in shape.
He pushed to his feet.
Striding to the far wall, he thumped a fist against the stone. The clang of metal rang out. A piece of metal was skillfully painted to blend with the rock.
“What is it?” Eos moved closer.
“Something…” All his attention was on the wall. His instincts were screaming. He gripped the metal and yanked.
It didn’t budge.
He tried again and it shifted with a small groan. She edged in beside him to help.
The metal finally gave way—
Exposing a neat doorway leading into a yawning black cave.
“Amazing,” she breathed.
Dathan leaned into the opening. The darkness was thick and unforgiving. He flicked on his flashlight and shined it around.
The light gleamed off golden metal.
“Follow me.” He entered, Eos close beside him.
Narrow shelves lined the walls and on the first one he saw all kinds of artifacts lined up like space marines. Some made of silver, gold, others of materials he didn’t recognize.
“Holy Suva.” She raised a hand to a necklace lying on the shelf. She stroked the golden surface.
Many of the objects looked like everyday items. Electronics, household items, personal treasures. It wasn’t the treasures of the New Louvre, but they were very old and very valuable.
He picked up a small jug made of beaten silver. “They stockpiled their personal treasures here.”
“You think they knew something bad was coming?”
“Yeah.” He flashed the light around. More items were dumped on top of one another on the floor against the back wall. “They knew. They didn’t have much time, but they brought what was important here.”
She arched her head back. “This was some sort of natural cave.”
“Makes a solid depository.” He continued deeper into the shadows, searching the rock-hewn walls. “Might be the place to store your priceless treasures as well.”
But there was no doorway, no vault, like he’d hoped. Still…he scooped up what he knew was called a smartphone. It was an early precursor to the Sync. “I can get a good price for most of this.” He knew lots of private collectors hungry for Terran history. “A very good price.”
Eos snatched the smartphone from his hand. “How can you collect pieces of the past and have no respect for it at all?”
He welcomed the fight. He needed something to take his mind off the unsettled feelings left from the sandstorm.
“The past is dead and gone, Eos. Just a reminder of the crap life throws at you.” He gripped her wrist and forced the phone in front of her face.
“This is a reminder of the fact its owner probably died a horrible death and is now a dried-up old mummy for you to ooh over.”
“The past is more than that. It gives us a foundation—”
“Bullshit.” His fingers tightened on her wrist. “It’s just a reminder of your failures—” He broke off and spun away. Air sawed in and out of his lungs.
A light touch on his back. “You have so much more in you than you realize.”
Dathan pressed the heel of his palm to his eyes. “Don’t delude yourself, Doc.” He tried to pull away from her.
Her arms wrapped around him, her cheek to his back. He didn’t pull away, just absorbed the feel of her.
“You have to accept your past to have a future,” she said quietly.
If only it were that simple. “That’s rich coming from you.”
She pulled back. “Do you want to clarify that?”
He felt raw, angry. “You’ve immortalized the past. You let it rule your decisions, even your career choice. Obsession’s just as bad as denial.”
She shoved at him. “I’m doing something worthy with my life.”
He backed her into the wall. “Oh, and I’m not?”
“You cruise all over the galaxy. Pick and choose important artifacts to sell off for your own benefit.”
He angled in close. Her cheeks were flushed, and dammit, she smelled so good. “I may not have some lofty degree, or a stuffy office at the Institute, but my work isn’t that different from yours.”
She scoffed. “Oh please—”
“You think I don’t know about the Institute Archives? Millions of artifacts from around the galaxy, languishing. Some rotting away from neglect, never ever seen by anyone.”
Her mouth snapped shut.
“No response? I’ve rescued thousands of artifacts about to be destroyed by natural disaster, warring factions, or black-market dealers. I’ve sold them for profit, yes, but they go to legit museums and collectors who care for them and look at them every day.”
Her shoulders sagged. “You’re right.”
He blinked. “What?”
Her golden gaze lifted. “You’re absolutely right. I’m sorry.”
His own heated anger dissolved under her honesty. “Damn you, Eos. Just when I have you pegged, you go and surprise me.” He pressed his mouth to hers. It was a long, scorching kiss that left them both hot for a different reason.
He gripped her legs and boosted her up. She wrapped her legs around his hips, her hands sliding into his hair.
“Dathan.”
“You hungry, Doc?”
“Yes.”
He swiped a hand down her shirt, sending a couple of buttons skittering across the floor. She moaned and then he worked at her belt buckle while her hands scrambled for his waistband.
The sandstorm still raged outside, and here in this cave of old treasures, there was only the storm between him and this woman.
Eos heard her own cry echo in the cavern around them.
Dathan nudged her against the wall, his hands pushing her wrists against stone. Then he ripped her trousers and panties down her legs.
“Hard and fast,” he growled, his teeth savaging her neck.
Bright, jagged pleasure skittered through her like electric shocks. “Yes.”
He pinned her, nudging her thighs apart. She felt him brush his hard cock against her, then with one thrust, he speared inside her. Her body bowed at his invasion, but soon she adjusted, and when he started to thrust. Pleasure was a bright flare.