Sun God Seeks…Surrogate? (Accidentally Yours #3)(26)
Author: Mimi Jean Pamfiloff

He’d been searching for this golden-haired beauty, now staring at him from the screen, for over five centuries—the same number of years that she’d haunted him day and night. He’d searched the ends of the earth for any clue that might lead to her—prophets, psychics…he’d even slept with that despicable creature Cimil once—a scary, scary endeavor that involved pink jelly beans and some very loud music from a group named Fun. while Cimil called him by the name Eric. A complete waste of time. After Cimil had her way, she merely said his future was blank.

What the bloody hell did that mean, anyway?

Did it really matter now? He’d found the woman. He bloody f**king found her! Her smiling image was staring right at him.

And you’re letting the only person on the planet who knows where to find her get away. And the girl is being hunted by Maaskab.

Viktor’s body jerked. Oh crap!

He sifted out the door and followed her scent around the corner just in time to see the back of her head through a taxi window, with a very recognizable redhead driving. He blinked and the cab was gone.

“Son of a bitch! Cimil!”

CHAPTER 16

Kinich burst through Niccolo and Helena’s penthouse door and stormed into the wide-open living room, ready to rip the head right off of Andrus’s body for having let Penelope leave.

Andrus quickly appeared, armed with a gleaming sword in each hand and a soiled burp cloth over one shoulder.

He caught sight of Kinich and rolled his eyes. “Oh, here we go. Princess Sun Goddess is going to have one of his infamous temperature tantrums. May I remind you, Nick,” Andrus said with a sharpness that indicated he was saying “Nick” but really meant “asshole.” “That there are children present.”

“How could you let her leave? You son of a bitch! I’ll kill you.” Kinich lunged for Andrus.

A hand whipped out, plucked Kinich from thin air, and deposited him on the other side of the room.

“Back off, Sun God!” Helena snarled. “No one touches Andrus! Not when he’s here to protect me and my baby while Niccolo’s away training your”—she poked him in the chest—“Uchben army. And don’t forget Cimil was the one who put Andrus here.”

She was right. And he couldn’t afford to cause conflict among allies, especially now. But that didn’t diminish his anger.

Kinich was about to apologize when Helena cracked a big smile and began laughing. “I thought you said that you didn’t like Penelope. But you do. Don’t you Kinny-Kins? Huh…?”

Kinich felt his face turn red hot. “I happen to care for the woman. This is true. But may I remind you that I care for all humans. Vampires, not so mu—”

The front door flew open and a red-faced Penelope scrambled in. “Monsters! Help! Oh my God! Monsters.”

She jumped into Kinich’s arms, hurling him back several feet. The raging fire inside him instantly cooled.

Thank the gods she is all right. Oh hell. Why am I so happy to see her?

“What happened?” He tried peeling her off him, but her death grip was remarkable. She reminded him of that cat Cimil had once taken swimming in her pool. A long story. He hated Cimil’s party games.

Panting, Penelope released her grip, doubled over, and pointed toward the giant floor-to-ceiling windows that were flush with the front of the building. “Monsters…they…I can’t breathe!”

“She’s hyperventilating,” Helena eased her up, and then lifted her chin and stared into her eyes. “Slow down. Breathe slowly,” she said in a calming voice.

Kinich frowned. Helena was glamouring Penelope. He found that irritating. Maybe because he hadn’t thought of it first and he wanted to be the one to help her.

Penelope sucked in a lungful of air. “Oh. Wow. Thank you.” She said to Helena. “Much better. How’d you do that?”

Helena shrugged. “It’s a gift. I do it with the baby sometimes.”

“That would be super helpful when I’m teaching. Could you show me how—”

“Penelope!” Kinich barked. He couldn’t believe the two ladies were pausing for a little chat.

Penelope blinked and then shook her head as if trying to dislodge something from her ears. “Right. Ummm.” Her face turned a ghostly shade of white. “Monsters! Oh my God! Monsters!” She jumped up and down.

“Calm yourself, woman.”

“Stop calling me ‘woman’! That’s so archaic. And annoying! You don’t see me calling you Minotaur despite the fact that—”

“Well, that would be ridiculous,” Kinich declared. “The Minotaur was a violent, misunderstood creature that should never have existed. Damn Cretans.”

Penelope blinked. “I—I was referring to the fact that the Minotaur has a giant bull’s head. Or was it a bull’s body?” She stomped her foot. “Dammit. It doesn’t matter! And stop distracting me. The point is, you’re constantly dishing your pompous bull crap!”

Kinich was inches from turning the woman over his knee and giving her a very, very nasty sunburn on her bottom. “Pen. El. Op. E. What happened?”

“Fine. But this conversation isn’t over, Minotaur!” She took a quick breath. “There was a blond man chasing me—he was huge. I mean huge! And I was going to go to my friend Anne’s house, but the cab pulled up, and it was her! Your sister. She started yelling, saying that I was doing it all wrong. That I messed up the future, and she couldn’t see it anymore!” Penelope paused and frantically fanned her face with her hand. “I don’t know! I don’t know what she meant! But she said I had to come back here or the world would explode or something. She pulled up to the curb downstairs—oh my God, why is your sister driving a cab? That’s crazy. Isn’t she rich?—and then I was going to run for it, but one of those monsters came out of nowhere! I screamed. I mean, there was nothing else I could do. Right? But when the monster grabbed me, the blond man showed up and tackled him—how’d he get there so fast? Am I in some alternate universe? This isn’t right. Then a van pulled up and these three guys in black leather jackets with fangs grabbed me. Cimil jumped out of the cab and tossed them, I mean…tossed them across the street—what the hell does that woman eat?—I ran inside the building and dove into the elevator!”

Kinich’s mind reeled through the frantically delivered story. It was like that time they’d played charades while blindfolded. Underwater. Again, with that poor, poor cat. He’d have to chat with Cimil about her stance on animal rights later.