Chapter One #3
Damn it, trying to win an argument with Darcy was the dictionary definition of futile.
Huffing a cloudy breath, Gigi absently rubbed her arms, trying to keep her blood circulating in the frigid air.
“What exactly does being a Secret Special Deputy Liaison entail? Is there training? Support? A handbook? A dozen burly Enforcers assigned to masquerade as my shop assistants to keep me and my customers safe?”
“Well, about that.” Darcy gave Canary one last pat before straightening.
“Seriously? Nothing?”
“Not nothing. There will be a briefing at some stage. Once I get Elijah’s clearance to bring you completely up to speed. You’ll need to know all the potential players involved so you can look for anomalies or spot danger as you go about your normal daily activities.”
“Can I just refuse this unexpected, unwanted, and quite frankly, alarming honour you wish to bestow upon me?”
“Gi, think about it. Someone with deep pockets knows enough about you personally to send two highly skilled, nefarious infiltration specialists, both toting incredibly toxic poison, into your place of business. They could have gone after Gaia’s chutney and relish products.
Second cousin Laniel’s herbal teas. Great-Aunt Amy’s bakery.
Or any number of shops and restaurants that the family frequent.
They chose to target your place twice. Something on your calendar is important to them. ”
“Please, I have nothing but social club gatherings and family parties scheduled for the foreseeable future.”
Darcy clicked her fingers, a small unsettling smile tilting up the corners of her lips.
Her Spider Mage frequencies were clearly firing.
“The future! We’re dealing with deities here, and we know the Fates are involved somehow, either willingly or unwillingly.
Congrats, you just made the grade; bippity, boppity, boo, welcome to the team - Secret Special Liaison Deputy. ”
“I hate you.”
“Damn, I was aiming for equal parts fear and love. In the meantime, keep up the good work. Act natural. Just go about your daily life like before. And call me if anymore dead guys get dead. Or if you come across anything suspicious.”
“Wait. What about the bodies?”
“I can’t see either one of them complaining about having to spend more time in your freezer.
Besides, I have hookup plans with Declan after this, and they do not involve the two of us disposing of any bodies.
Not this time anyway.” On that note, with a flip of her short black hair, her micro plaid skirt twirling out sassily, Darcy made to exit.
It was not a good precedent to allow Darcy to have too many wins on the board, otherwise her cousin would totally lose all respect for her.
“Fine. I just want you to remember that I have Nell’s baby shower scheduled for three weeks’ time.
You know, the one your mother has been laboriously planning for the past five months.
It would be a pity, if I was so consumed or distracted by all my new secret deputy duties that the event failed to live up to your mother’s exacting standards.
Not that I’m worried. We both know who’ll she’ll point the finger of blame at. ”
Darcy swung back around, clear blue eyes blazing with annoyance, but also a smidge of respect.
Yeah, that jab had landed deep. Darcy and her mother, Sarah, were both strong-willed women who liked to get their own way.
The twosome pretty much at loggerheads since the day Darcy was born.
And it was no secret that anything to do with the birth of her first grandchild was critically important to Sarah, and that she was for some reason holding her youngest child responsible for ensuring Nell’s pregnancy went smoothly.
“Well played.” Taking a deep breath, a fleeting pained micro-expression crossing Darcy’s beautiful features for a nanosecond.
“Just know you brought this on yourself. I have enough on my plate. A mother to placate. A niece to welcome into the world. A meld mate to annoy and boink. Asshole, power hungry deities to destroy. Not to mention a tricky matchmaking Great-Aunt to hookwink, bamboozle and ensure receives a hefty dose of her own bitter medicine.”
Damn it, Gigi had just been trying to prove she wasn’t a pushover; instead, she’d made herself a target.
Just what heinous, beyond bad thing was Darcy planning for her now?
Oh, Goddess, the number forty-eight smile tilting up the corners of her cousin’s lips made Gigi’s stomach dip in trepidation.
That was Darcy’s - I love you, but this will definitely hurt you more than it will hurt me - smile.
“You’re right. I’m not being fair, am I? I know what will help ease your burden over the next few weeks, a partner.”
Excuse me? A partner? Someone qualified to kill bad dudes and deal with all the deity ‘take-over the Earth’ crap?
That sounded… wonderful. Gigi could concentrate on her shop and catering business, and this mysterious partner that Darcy intended to assign her could deal with all the deadly stuff.
Except, this was Darcy she was talking about here, and that number forty-eight smile wasn’t shifting.
A partner? Someone who Darcy considered suitable?
Crap.