Lucas glanced down. Their matching gold rings gleamed in the shadows.

“Always knew you had a romantic streak buried under all those gruff layers,” he said.

“I wasn’t talking romance. I was stating facts.”

“Right.” Lucas smiled. “Speaking of romance, it occurs to me that you and I have not had a real vacation in five years. What do you say we book a week or two in Hawaii?”

The notion of a vacation was such a novel one that Victor had to take a moment to adjust his focus.

“Huh,” he said. “Now that you mention it—”

The ringing of the telephone stopped him in mid-sentence. He turned to look at the device on his desk. It rang again. Frissons of awareness went down his spine.

Lucas exhaled. “No one calls at this time of night unless there’s a problem.”

Victor crossed to his desk and picked up the phone. “Arganbright.”

“This is Fallon Jones. I operate a small investigation agency for an organization called the Arcane Society. Harlan Rancourt contacted me.”

Chills electrified the back of Victor’s neck. “How do you know Rancourt?”

“He did some odd jobs for me in the past. That talent of his is scary as hell, but it makes him useful in certain situations. The monsters never—”

“See him coming. I’ve heard that. Are you telling me you’re in the monster-hunting business?”

“Among other interests. You know what they say. It takes a psychic—”

“To catch a psychic. I’ve heard that, too.” Victor angled himself on the side of the desk. “Why are you calling me in the middle of the night, Mr. Jones?”

“Rancourt says we should talk. Seems to think your Foundation and the Arcane Society have a number of mutual interests.”

“He may be right.” Victor looked at Lucas, who was watching him with an intense expression. “Why don’t we set up a meeting here in Vegas?”

“When?”

“Two weeks from now,” Victor said. He did not take his eyes off Lucas. “My husband and I are on our way to Hawaii in the morning.”

Lucas smiled.

Jones fell silent for a beat. “Isabella has been telling me we need a vacation.”

“Who is Isabella?”

“My wife. Great plan, Arganbright. Two birds and so on. We’ll meet you in the islands.”

“What? Wait—”

Victor realized he was talking to himself. He looked at Lucas. “Some guy named Jones just hung up on me.”

Lucas’s eyes lit with amusement. “Sounds like the two of you have a few things in common. Let’s go pack for Hawaii.”

CHAPTER 55

Olivia was using a pair of kitchen shears to snip the sharp points off the tips of the leaves of two plump artichokes when she heard the front door open. She put the implement aside, wiped her hands on a dish towel and went down the hall.