Read Cassandra Pierce - Diamonds in the Sand [The Aquans 2] (Siren Publishing LoveXtreme Special Edition) for Free Online

eyes to her. “Won’t we?”
    “Depends on what kind of progress I make with the research. Let’s play it by ear.”
    They stood, and Maura started back toward the bungalow. Daq followed her for a short distance then stopped. She couldn’t resist looking back at him.
    “If you need anything at all, don’t hesitate to come back to the house,” he said. “At least one of us will be there.”
    “I’ll do that.” She knew he wanted to say more, maybe to discuss what had happened between them all in the sea and where it left their relationship—if that was an accurate name for their frenzied encounter the night before. In any case, such a philosophical discussion would have to wait.
    Turning, she headed back to the jumble of scholarship they’d abandoned. This time, she took a more systematic approach, sorting the books and papers into neat little piles. She began to read through the material one stack at a time. More than once, she had to push thoughts of the guys out of her mind so she could concentrate.
    She felt a little guilty about invading Septimus’s privacy. Still, he could be in trouble—surely he would understand that they had to take every precaution.
    She paged through several journals, dating back a year or so. Unfortunately, some of Septimus’s notes didn’t make a lot of sense, thanks to his cryptic handwriting. What she could untangle suggested nothing of the great discovery he had hinted at with such excitement. Frustrated, she put the notebooks aside and mined the loose notes instead. These yielded more of the same.
    Time to attack the computer. It was an older model, probably one Septimus had used for many years. As soon as she turned it on, a password-protected screen came up. Cursing, she spent several minutes trying to override the security software. Apparently, she didn’t know her old mentor as well as she thought, since she was unable to guess the password. Eventually she gave up, turned the machine off, and leaned back in the chair with a sigh.
    Only from that angle did she spot the photograph tucked under the keyboard. Curious, she pulled it out and examined its faded surface.
    The black-and-white snapshot showed a woman seated on the beach, wet from swimming, her long, dark hair trailing loosely over her shoulders. She posed with both arms wrapped around her bent knees, dressed in a two-piece swimsuit that seemed a bit skimpy for the days of black-and-white photos. The background showed Septimus’s house, which hadn’t changed much. Maura turned the picture over but found no notation on the back.
    Maura doubted this was any sort of clue. For one thing, the picture looked at least fifty years old. Still, Septimus had kept it close at hand while he worked. She had nothing to lose by asking about it.
    She took one of the journals, tucked the photo inside to protect it, and started back toward the house. As she crossed the beach, she spotted Tagin and Ejan pulling up to shore in a blue-and-white bowrider, presumably the craft they’d had serviced in town. When they got close enough, Tagin jumped into the water and tethered the boat to a submerged mooring. Maura waited for them both to wade ashore. She wondered what they’d been up to all morning. Surely they had no idea how she and their friends had been entertaining themselves.
    She fought back a blush as Tagin approached her, grinning. Maybe he did have some inkling.
    Hastily she produced the photo. “I found this in Septimus’s office,” she said, holding it up for both of them to see. “Do you know who it is?”
    The two squinted and bent down for a closer look. Ejan shrugged, but Tagin peered at it for an extra moment before shaking his head. “Sorry, no. Maybe it’s someone from his family.”
    “I’d say it was taken right out here,” she said, gesturing toward the sand under their feet. “Look at the background.”
    “Not surprising,” Ejan said. “He grew up here.”
    “Coming in for lunch?” Tagin asked