Kissed by Darkness(84)

“I can’t. It might be important.” His voice was rough, breathing labored. It thrilled me to my toes that he was as affected by me as I was by him. “Stay here, OK? Don’t move.” He gave me a quick, hard kiss before pulling on his jeans.

Still lost in the afterglow, I just gave him a dopey smile and sank back into the soft couch cushions. I’d probably kick myself for my sheer lunacy later, but for right now I was living in the moment.

As he disappeared into the other room, my gaze shifted back to the amulet which he’d left wrapped up in its velvet cover sitting on the coffee table. Curiosity got the better of me so I wrapped myself in the throw we somehow managed not to dislodge from the back of the couch. Then I reached out and gently lifted the folds of cloth away from the amulet, the Key of Atlantis. I wondered vaguely why Darroch had called me the Key. Probably a slip of the tongue.

It might be next to useless without the Bloodline, but it was still pretty. A sudden urge came over me, that same urge you get when they offer you free samples in a chocolate shop. I couldn’t help myself. I reached out and caressed its surface, smooth and cold under my fingertips. As my fingers brushed the center stone, a blaze of rich blue light suddenly shot out of the gem, bathing the room in blue fire just as Jack returned.

“What the heck?” I jumped back a good ten feet at least. “It’s glowing!” I screeched. “Why is it glowing? Is it supposed to do that?”

Jack just stared at me, face white and eyes wide. He opened his mouth, closed it then fell to his knees. “My lady,” he whispered, his voice gone hoarse. He bowed his head and placed his right fist over his heart in the same salute I’d seen in my dreams. “My lady, I am yours to command, now and always.”

I glanced from Jack kneeling on the wood floor to the glowing amulet in my hand and I suddenly understood. Or thought I did. Apparently Jackson Keel, former Templar Knight, immortal Sunwalker, Guardian of the Key of Atlantis, had finally found a member of the Royal Atlantean Bloodline. And she was standing in his living room. There was really only one thing I could say.

“Oh, shit.”