Chapter 2
I sighed, listening to Erskine babble on about Lord Vile. I glanced over at my friend, Lady Myst, and she caught my eye, causing me to smile. Lady and I were good friends; we had been since the Sanctuary's lead detective introduced her to me. Skulduggery Pleasant and Erskine kept shooting ideas back and forth, none of them sounding very good. A tentative knock at the door caused a break in the boredom. The Administrator peeked in. "Grand Mage, there's someone to see you," she murmured softly.
I tensed, laying my hand on the white wood handle of my whip. The man who stepped into the room was tall; maybe around twenty-five with soft brown hair fell across his deep green eyes. He was muscled and tan, dressed in a black tee-shirt and jeans that accented his muscles. He looked like he could hurt someone easily, but his aura was more relaxed, gentle. He nodded to Erskine, and then to Lady, who was staring at him.
I stifled a giggle and winked at her when she glanced at me. I got a glare in return. Erskine sighed. "Everyone, this is Aleron Crevan. He will be assisting us with Vile," Erskine said. I nodded in welcome, taking my spot on Erskine's left side. "Any other news?" No one answered. "Good. Meeting adjourned." He turned to the man and I stepped back so he could introduce him. "I hate those meetings," he grumbled.
"Then why do you talk so much?" Skulduggery asked. Erskine glared at him. I smiled.
"He's got a point," I said, cautious about going to him because of Aleron. The others knew of our relationship, just not the rest of the sanctuary. Erskine glanced back at me.
"Sparrow, you're the one who wrote that speech," he grumbled. I laughed lightly, letting him know I was only teasing. He sighed then turned to the rest of the small room. "Skulduggery, Aleron will be working with you and your group." Lady's eyes widened and she hastened the skeleton out of the room.
"Oh, dear, wait till Valkyrie and Fletcher hear about this," I murmured. Aleron bade us good-bye and left. Erskine smiled, locking the door behind him.
"Well, we have the rest of the day to ourselves," he said, striding over to me, catching my thin waist in his arms. I laughed, looking up into his sparkling, dark eyes. I was almost a full foot shorter than him. I stood up on my toes and kissed his throat. He gave a slight groan and lifted me up to kiss me on the lips. His kisses were always deep, threatening to overwhelm me. I pulled back, burying my head against his chest, laughing with an odd sense of delight.
"Not here, love," I murmured.
"The door's locked," he grumbled, letting me down.
"Yes, but with our luck, someone will attack the Sanctuary while…" I trailed off, feeling a slight blush light my cheeks. He just laughed.
"Well, I do have some work to do, so I guess you're right."
"I'm always right, silly," I said, kissing his cheek and watched him settle down to his desk and papers.