Free Sex, Lies and Midnight by Tawny Weber

deep breath. Before she could let it out, the door swung open.
    “Well, hello,” intoned the redheaded Amazon in a throaty voice. “You’re Maya. And you—” she gave Simon a slow, appreciative once over “—are delicious. Please, join us.”
    The woman was wearing heels, making her easily six feet tall. Her dress was a midnight blue with tiny silver stars embroidered along the bodice and teeny gold planets along the hem. Crystal earrings as big as Maya’s fist glinted in the porch light through an abundance of fire-engine-red waves of hair.
    Wow.
    “Cassiopeia, isn’t it?” Maya asked as she stepped out from under Simon’s arm to cross the threshold. “You did a great séance and tarot reading for my senior class event. I still remember how accurate and, well, a little scary, your words were.”
    Taking Maya’s hand in her own, Cassiopeia offered a smile that was oddly reassuring. “Just, as I imagine, this evening feels to you now. But take heart, it’ll all turn out just fine.”
    It wasn’t so much her words that sent a chill through Maya. It was her tone of voice. Knowing, intense and just a little eerie.
    Maya’s smile stiffened and she pulled her hand free. Then both women looked back at Simon, who was still on the porch looking dumbfounded. At Maya’s arch look, he cleared his throat and held out his own hand.
    “Simon Harris, it’s a pleasure,” he said.
    “I can’t wait to learn all about you, Mr. Harris,” Cassiopeia said, holding his hand in hers as she closed the door. Then she gave Maya a naughty wink, and led the two of them down a long magenta hallway.
    “Darlings,” Cassiopeia said as she entered the great room first. “Our guests have arrived.”
    Before Maya could get a look around, or even gauge how many people made up Cassiopeia’s darlings, she was enfolded in a tight bear hug and swung off her feet in a wide, stomach-arching circle.
    All thoughts, and thankfully her nerves, at looking for her father disappeared.
    “Caleb,” she squealed, her face buried in a hard shoulder. He smelled the same. Like Irish Spring soap, coffee and, well, like her big brother. His arms were tight around her waist as he set her to her feet and gave her a thorough inspection.
    His eyes, the exact same shade of gold as her own, narrowed, like he saw something that worried him. Then he smiled, his teeth white against the dusky five-o’clock shadow he always seemed to sport.
    “Hey, little girl.”
    “I missed you,” she murmured, ashamed that her eyes filled with tears, but unable to stop them. “It’s been so long.”
    “Too long. But that’s done. Now you get to see me a minimum of three times a year, whether you like it or not.”
    “Three?”
    He shrugged. “Arbitrary number. I’ll take more, but refuse to settle for less.”
    “Bossy.”
    “Better believe it.”
    They grinned at each other. The old patterns, the teasing, the simple and easy affection. They were still there. A tiny part of Maya’s heart, one she hadn’t even realized she’d tucked away, sang in relief. Her entire body sagged with the joy of having her brother back in her world again.
    “I want you to meet Pandora,” Caleb said, stepping aside to take the hand of a slender, auburn-haired woman.
    Maya stared. She’d had a solid idea of what kind of woman it’d take to bring down the mighty Caleb Black. Someone a little hard, a lot sexy, wild and in-your-face strong.
    But while Pandora was sexy, and looked strong enough to handle Caleb, she was anything but hard. Instead, she looked…sweet, Maya decided. A soft fall of auburn hair brushed shoulders covered in a black velvet dress, hazel eyes looked back at Maya, both happy and just a little nervous.
    “Maya, I’m happy to meet you. I remember you from school, but doubt you remember me,” she said, stepping forward to offer her hand.
    “That’s my loss, then. And now I owe you,” Maya said with a grin. “You not only snagged my brother, but you’ve got