“If that’s the plan, then we shouldn’t be loitering around here anymore. Someone might notice and get suspicious,” Corrie said.
“You’re right. Let’s head back. And remember, trust no one,” Ford said.
“We can trust each other, though, right?” Ethan asked. “I mean, I think I trust the two of you, but I’m sure we all have our own motivations for being here . . .”
Fair question. Though she could trust Ford. Whenever they weren’t in the field, they were in his bed. She would have noticed by now. Not that she wanted Ethan to know that.
And Ethan was as honest as the day was long. Like that time he’d admitted to their professor that he hadn’t done the assigned reading instead of bullshitting his way through the answer like the rest of them.
“What are you trying to say, Ethan?” Ford asked, his voice growing impatient. “I know where I was last night. Do you?”
“I’m just trying to say . . . it seems like something’s been bothering you lately. You’ve been even more irritable than usual. Is there something else going on that we should know about?”
Ford’s nostrils flared and his eyes widened. Oh no.
“Perhaps I’m irritable because of accusations like this. Or maybe I’d just like to get out of this goddamn jungle sometime before the end of this year.”
“I’m not accusing you of anything, I just—”
“Save your feigned concern. We’ve got work to do.”
Ford stormed off to the camp, leaving Corrie and a stunned Ethan in his wake. Irritable was only the half of it. Just a week and a half in and she’d seen all sorts of reactions from Ford. But none like this. Ethan had questioned his integrity, and that clearly didn’t sit well with him.
“I didn’t mean it to come off that way,” Ethan said to her once Ford was out of earshot.
“Well, what way did you mean it to come off? Because to me it sounded like you were accusing Ford of being the thief.”
“He’s still acting weird. And not in his normal Ford way. Like last night . . . again, with the calls . . .” he said, his voice trailing off.
Corrie debated revealing Ford’s confidences for a moment. On one hand, it wasn’t any of Ethan’s business. But on the other, she had to clear Ford’s name.
“It’s his mom. She’s really sick, Ethan. And he’s worried he might not make it back before she passes away. He’ll never forgive himself if that happens.”
“Oh no . . . God, I’m an asshole. Why didn’t he say anything?”
“Because you know how he is.”
“I know, but I thought he and I were friends. I mean, I know I asked you to talk to him, but I can’t believe he’d tell you all this but not me. It hurts, you know?”
She shrugged. “Maybe he feels like I already pass enough judgment on him, so what’s the difference if he reveals his insecurities to me, too.”
“Well, do you think those insecurities might cause him to do something extreme?”
“You mean break into the storage structure to steal the artifacts he’s been hired to find?” Corrie lifted her brow. “No, Ethan, I don’t.”
“But how do we know that?”
There was no way around it. Ethan needed an answer, and Corrie couldn’t lie to him.
“Because I was with him.”
“Wait . . . what?”
Corrie sighed. “Last night. I stayed the night with him. When you found us this morning, I was getting ready to leave. That’s how I know. He never left the tent. I was with him the entire night and would have noticed if he’d left.”
Now Ethan was the one with wide eyes.
“Are you going to stand there staring at me without saying a word? Go ahead. Let’s have it,” she said, palms face up and waving as if to say, Bring on the teasing comments.
“I . . . I have no words. Just, wow. How long has this been going on?”
She sighed again. “Oh, I don’t know, Ethan. I mean, there’s always been something lurking between us, I suppose. But as far as this dig is concerned, a couple of days.”
“I can’t say that I’m surprised. I always knew he had a thing for you. I mean, it was obvious that your beef with each other was fueled by your sexual tension. I’ve never seen two people who needed to fuck more than you.” He smiled, causing Corrie to laugh and easing her nerves. “And I have to admit, when I asked you to talk to him, I sort of hoped you two would finally bury that beef. I love you both, and I know you two never wanted to see it, but you’re pretty perfect for each other.”
Corrie smiled. Yeah, she could see it now, too.
“I hope you can understand why we didn’t say anything about it earlier.”
“Of course, Corrie. Your sex life is no one’s business but your own.”
“I know, but people talk. And I don’t need anything to give actual cause to the reputation that I have.”
“Still with that magazine spread?”
She rolled her eyes. “Always. Seriously, you’d think I’d posed for Playboy.”
“I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but for any archaeologist or aspiring archaeologist over the age of fourteen, it was better than Playboy.” He tried to make light of the situation. “Seriously, a living, breathing, gorgeous woman interested in digging up bones and playing in the dirt? You’re young Indiana Jones’s wet dream. The Latina Elsa from The Last Crusade. Or, better yet, a real-life Lara Croft.”
“Did you just compare me to a Nazi?”
“You know what I mean. Come on, Corrie. I’m trying to lighten the mood.”
“I know you are. But look . . . I don’t want anyone to know about this, okay? It’s bad enough that Ford got picked for this job instead of me in the first place. The last thing I need is for word to get out that we slept together, giving people another reason not to take me seriously.”
“Your secret’s safe with me. Now, come on. Let’s go look for some bones. Unless you’ve had your fill of bone hunting for the day,” he said with a sly look in his eye.
Corrie laughed and rolled her eyes. “I’ve always got time for a bone hunt or two.”
Chapter
Sixteen
When were they going to find some goddamned bones on this dig? Or that tecpatl? Something? Anything aside from boring household items that could have belonged to anyone? Maybe on any other dig, Ford would have been ecstatic upon finding a wooden bowl, but not now. Not when the stakes were this high.
Everything Corrie had predicted was right. An adobe structure hidden in a bowl-shaped landscape. The cave. The river. But after seven days straight of digging at the new site without a single day off, they still hadn’t hit the jackpot. And the cave hadn’t resulted in jack shit.
Unless the thief had gotten to it first.
Ford had been on edge ever since they’d discovered the storage hut had been tampered with. He didn’t want to believe that someone on their team could have been the culprit—they’d been a family these last three months. Even Vautour’s guys. He enjoyed talking with Lance as much as he enjoyed his time with Ethan. And you didn’t steal from family.