Sweet Seduction ✔︎

|17| 𝑶 𝑫𝒂𝒏𝒏𝒚 𝑩𝒐𝒚

Fucking fireworks.

Gavin gritted his teeth. A spray of red and gold flared across the sky from the boat stationed several miles off-shore. The guests gasped and ohhed with astonishment as the display began.

Much as he hated the noise and flare, Gavin took consolation in the fact that everyone, even the kitchen staff and assistants, were all a safe distance from the villa and entirely focused on the surprise of the fireworks.

"All rooms are clear, sir." John hurried to his side.

Gavin nodded, his attention on the computer displaying the path of the remote sensor they'd sent into the front room. Tension thickened the air. The laser flashed onscreen as the device approached the suspicious package.

"Detecting liquid materials, but no chemical agents, sir," one of the men said. "No electronics, radioactivity, or smoke either."

The robot picked up the package as the laser and x-ray scanned the interior. A green light flashed on the screen: all negative for hazardous material.

One of the men moved toward the door. Gavin held out a hand to stop him.

"Sir..."

Gavin's shoulders tightened. Fuck if he wasn't going down with his ship, if need be. He knelt beside the package, which the robot had put on the floor. The overly sweet smell hit his nose, the oily patch on the paper spreading. He unfastened the tape and tore it off the package.

The box contained a set of essential oils, incense, and candles. One of the bottles was broken, leaking through the box and paper. Gavin tossed it aside and stood, giving the others an all clear signal.

"Sweep the rest of the area," he ordered.

He left the villa and crossed to the garden, every one of his nerves still on high alert. They'd done a thorough sweep of the grounds earlier that day, but the fact that something had gotten past him-

Fireworks blazed in the sky, a riotous display of color and light. Music danced through the air along with the hum of conversation and laughter. Gavin took a breath, glad at least that the scare hadn't affected his friend's wedding.

He made his way through the crowd, keeping one eye out for Freya while he listened to his men verifying the all clear throughout the villa. Where was she? He was an ass for having snapped at her in the adrenaline-charged moment of discovering something had slipped his attention.

He'd known she was focused on her friend's happiness, that it wasn't her job to relay important communications. And yet he'd hated the implication that this wasn't their project, the one they'd made happen together, with her eye for beauty and his security expertise. A manifestation of their two worlds.

If they could create it through a wedding, then maybe-

He returned to the villa and paused on the terrace, which gave him an overview of the mingling guests. He could have picked Freya out of a stadium crowd. The fact that he couldn't find her among the wedding guests made him increasingly uneasy.

She had to be outside. He'd ordered her to get out of the villa, and he didn't care how harsh his order had been. All he cared about was her safety.