The Nymph's Curse: The Collection Read Online Free Page B

know that’s only a myth, right? You can’t believe everything you hear.”
    A half-grin flickered across Beau’s tanned face, making him look incredibly sexy.
    “That’s a nice vase.” He motioned to the container. “We’re finding similar works at the Minoan level, but nothing that well-preserved.”
    Does he really think he is hiding something?
    Ariadne reached over the edge of the container and centered the vase in its cushioning. Her sleeve moved up her arm.
    “Hey.” Kaden peeked over the edge of the container. “Sweet tattoo. When did you get it?”
    She pulled her sleeve down over her wrist. “Thanks. I’ve had it a long time.”
    Kaden looked over at his father. “I think you should let me get a tattoo.” Kaden smiled for the first time since she had met him.
    “Is it a snake?” Beau asked, as he ignored his son’s plea.
    “Uh, yeah.” She tugged her sleeve into her hand and covered the head of the snake in her palm.
    Kaden eyed her with admiration. “You must really like the snake goddess.”
    She leaned in close to the teen and whispered so that only he could hear. “You have no idea.”
    Beau picked up another small vase and compared it to the first.
    “Now, Beau.” Ariadne stepped toward him. “About the Labyrinth. What pointed you in the direction of Gournai?”
    The door behind them flew open. Ariadne turned around. Kat was standing in the doorway. Her mouth was open and her hand rested on her hip. “Ariadne … ” she growled. Her gray eyes flickered with anger.
    Ariadne looked at Beau and Kaden. “Sorry, gentlemen, but I think the behind the scenes tour is over.”
    “Thanks for sharing this with us, Ariadne.” Beau sat the artifact down into the box. “If you want, you’re welcome to come visit my site sometime. You might find something there that’ll spark your interest.”
    “Yeah. You gotta come see it,” Kaden added. “It’s awesome.”
    A sardonic grin flickered on Kat’s face. “Oh, don’t worry, boys. Ariadne has a way of getting around. I’m sure you’ll get a turn.”

Chapter Four
    Beau rubbed his hands together and looked at the place where Ariadne’s fingers had touched his. It felt strange to be haunted by a memory that probably meant nothing to her. It was only an accidental touch. He closed his eyes and thought about her fingers, long and dainty, her skin soft. It would feel so good to have her run them down his skin, around his waist. He stopped himself. He was at work. This wasn’t the time to daydream about some teenage crush.
    The trowel whispered to him from his bucket of supplies.
    “Hey, professor,” his student, Vickie, called from the far side of the site.
    With a quick wave, Beau turned his back on the over-eager young woman. His assistant could get the students running this morning. He needed to get his mind back on task and avoid all women for as long as possible.
    He pulled out the trowel and sharpened the blade with a thick steel file. It was nice to finally be on site and back to work. It had been a solid week of tourist traps and dinners spent in silence, as Kaden looked anywhere but at him.
    He needed this; to get his hands back into the dirt, to follow his dream, and make things happen. This had to be the place to find the Labyrinth, but if Beau didn’t get back to work and find something he would never know … and he’d never have a job again. It was already a tough sell to convince the University of Texas that he was a worthwhile professor. Anthropology wasn’t a field of study that many students were going into since the economy had tanked.
    Not that he could blame the students for following more stable goals. All they had to do was look at Beau to know what a pipedream archeology was — only a few scientists could have ever been considered newsworthy. Most archeologists were just like him, scrimping by, begging for funds, or else working for states on building projects making sure everything was found in an area slated to