Page 51 of Risky Obsession

The fair was much more fun than I expected, and it was all because ofhim. Kane seemed to be on a mission to make sure my day was not boring, like the make-believe day job I’d told him I had.

Occasionally, his frustration over not finding anything mirrored my own. Then we would turn a corner and find another maze of antique shops, and his eyes would light up again.

The sun was beginning to dip in the sky, casting long shadows over the cobblestone streets. The weight of failure wanted to settle on my shoulders, but I reminded myself that this was just day two of our one-month mission in Europe.

Day two with Kane, and nearly every moment was an exploration in sensory overload. Sights, smells, sounds, taste, and every fricking time Kane touched me, my damn libido spiked. My body was getting more of a workout than it had when Grant Hughes had tried to kill me.

That already seemed like months ago.

I made a mental note to remind Aria that I needed all the news on that bastard, good and bad.

As we exited yet another shop, Kane squinted at the darkening sky. “Damn, we’re running out of time.” He ran his hand through his sandy-blond hair, and his thick waves swooped right back into position.

“Lucky we have our hotel sorted for tonight,” I said.

“That’s true. Come on, let’s try up there.”

I followed Kane through a narrow alley that connected two streets. Beneath my sneakers, the old cobblestones were so worn, they were slippery. “How old do you reckon this road is?” I asked as we merged onto a small square surrounded by more shops selling their wares under colorful awnings.

“Five hundred years old at least,” he said without pause.

I puffed out a breath. “It’s hard to fathom when our oldest buildings are about two hundred years old.”

“Yeah. Even though the Indigenous cultures of Australia have a historyreaching back thousands of years, long before the first European settlements were established, our oldest building is just two hundred and thirty years old. Many of the items we’ve looked at today are much older than that.”

I shook my head, trying to fit all that into perspective. “Maybe that’s our problem. Everything here is too old.”

“We’re not giving up yet. There’s still a heap of shops to explore.”

“That’s the other problem. Too many shops, not enough time.”

He met my gaze, and I had a rotten feeling I’d revealed something that blew my cover. “Are you suggesting we split up?”

No way. I would probably miss a clue to the treasure. “No, we have all day tomorrow too. Come on. Let’s ask that lady if she knows who would have maps.”

Marching ahead of him, I strode toward a young woman in a red dress with more layers than a wedding cake. She stood behind a stall overflowing with colorful fabrics and handcrafted trinkets.

“Excuse me, ma’am,” I called out as I approached, hoping she spoke English. “Do you happen to know if any stores around here sell old maps of this local area?”

Her round face crinkled into a friendly smile.

“Maps? Yes. Your best bet is Müller’s Antiquitäten.” Her English was excellent with barely any accent. “Gunter has been collecting them for decades.”

“Fantastic.” I grinned at her. “Can you point us in that direction?”

“Just follow this street two blocks to an alley, and you’ll see his shop on the right.” She spoke to me, but her eyes were on Kane.

“Thank you so much.” He flashed his impossible grin.

“Let me know if you need help with anything else. I’m glued to this table all day.” She giggled so hard it was a wonder she didn’t topple over.

When Kane turned to me, he obviously had no idea how much that woman was drooling over him.

Strolling side by side, we walked in the direction she’d indicated.

“There it is.” I pointed to a sign for Müller’s Antiquitäten dangling over a doorway.

The shop stood out from the rest with frosted glass windows that concealed what was inside, and unlike every other shop, this one didn’t have tables stacked with wares out the front and the door was closed.