Magical Midlife Meeting (Leveling Up 5)

I stared at the note for a second and thought about laughing. And then thought about crying. Why did he have to seem so human? To do what I needed to do, I had to think of him as a monster.

I opened a small black velvet box, and a note fell out and fluttered onto my lap. The white-gold ring boasted a translucent, emerald-cut ruby bracketed by two diamonds. I bent to grab the note.

Red diamonds are the rarest in the world. They are absolutely priceless. Just like your magic. Full disclosure: I stole this one. The owner was a real dickhead. Don’t worry, someone else has killed him since. You’re free and clear.

I looked closer. I hadn’t even known red diamonds existed.

The box with the name I didn’t recognize, Piaget, yielded a gorgeous watch with a deep blue face marked with what looked like white-gold numbers, surrounded by white-gold casing inlaid with baguette diamonds. The deep blue leather band matched the face. It was probably ungodly expensive, but it looked simple and elegant.

The note: Just a pretty, everyday watch I thought you might like.

There were notes with each and every thing, explaining why the gift was in the basket. They were all thoughtful. They all implied he knew me.

Bose earphones. To drown out the others while you are confined in this tiny cave.

A box of Swiss truffles: This is the best chocolate I’ve ever had. I am submitting it to you for your assessment. Everyone knows women are the chief experts in these things.

The last thing I pulled out was a fountain pen shaped as a quill, its stand designed to look like a bottle of ink. The note: I confess, I got carried away. I thought it was cool until I got it. Online ordering, what can you do?

“Hey…” Austin poked his head in. “You okay?”

“Yeah.” I placed the—actually quite cool—fountain pen back into the basket and started loading everything else up. “What’s up?”

“Did you get any good stuff?” He walked in, cool and confident, the swagger of a king. “You should see the watch I got. It’s a Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime out of his personal collection.” He searched my blank face. “No? Well, trust me, it is a helluva watch. He somehow knew I was a watch guy.”

“You’re not freaked out about that fact?”

“No. He just wants us to know he’s done his homework. He has the home-court advantage, and he’s showing it. I’ll wear it to dinner tomorrow night.”

“You can’t wear it to dinner tomorrow! It’ll look like he has the upper hand. Or like he’s buying us. We can’t accept this stuff.”

“Wearing it will show that I am taking all of this in stride. Which I am. I don’t care about these little things. The food, the accommodations, the note in the room next to yours, where the watch was waiting for me, suggesting I place the second most powerful person in our crew there, since I’ll be sleeping with you…” Austin looked around the room and then shrugged out of his jacket. “This is much nicer than I was expecting. More spacious and defensible, too. We’re trapped in here—there are no exits save the door we came through—but there is a limit as to how many people they can send after us. The bodies will pile high before they can get through the door. They’ll create their own barricade.”

“Gross.”

He laid his jacket across the back of one of the chairs and undid the cuff link on his right sleeve. “We’re going to be okay. We’re going to get a good night’s sleep tonight, we’ll explore a little in the morning, looking for exits and places we can sneak the gargoyles in, and tomorrow night we’ll assess the danger with the other mages. You might actually be able to make a few connections while you’re here.”

I blew out a breath. I felt too jumpy to network. Like I’d try to karate-chop anyone who came up to me.

“Remember,” he continued, shutting the door and throwing the lock. He undid his other cuff link before starting to unbutton his shirt, walking toward me. “Everyone here is in the same boat.” He pulled his shirt from his muscular shoulders, exposing his perfectly cut torso. He worked at the button and then zipper on his pants, pushing the fabric down and stepping out, toeing off his shoes and then his socks as he did so. He stood nude before me, his hard length at attention. “Elliot Graves has been missing from the magical world for a long while.” He stepped around me, and I felt his lips on the curve of my neck, his fingertips like butterflies across my back before they took hold of my zipper. “Before that, he was the most cunning, ruthless mage the world had ever known. The crime boss of all crime bosses.” My zipper whirred as it lowered, the fabric of the dress loosening and falling open across my back. “He killed, maimed, and stole his way to an empire. He never took on a partner.” My dress slid across my skin, silky smooth, until it pooled at my feet. “For the first time it seems like he’s inviting people to work with him, and everyone here will be as eager as they are cautious.”