Free The London Deception by Addison Fox Page B

upset all of a sudden.”
    “No.” She mentally hunted for a topic, settling on something he’d just mentioned. As responses went it was fairly lame, but it kept her from admitting the truth. Somehow telling him she was fantasizing about running her lips over his neck while unbuttoning his shirt wasn’t the best way to kick off their partnership. “I think you’re right about the public’s perception of Egypt. It’s why this gallery is the most popular in the museum. Everyone loves to imagine the Egypt of myth, full of flowery and dramatic overtones.”
    “I don’t think the Egyptian tourist board minds much.”
    “No, but it does diminish the region’s rich history.”
    “That’s why we do what we do.”
    Rowan was caught by his comment. “How do you mean?”
    “The myths of ancient Egypt might have been what got me into what I’m doing, but it’s the reality of preserving pieces of history that keeps me in the game.”
    “That’s rather poetic.”
    That grin flashed once again. “It’s also rather lucrative, so I can hardly complain. I’m one of the lucky people who gets to combine what I love with my career. It doesn’t get much better than that.”
    “No, it doesn’t.” She took a few steps around the base of the statue until she could look up at the vertical rows of hieroglyphs that ran along the back of the statue and extended her phone toward Finn. “You’re taller. Can you take some photos for me?”
    Even with Finn’s added height—nearly a foot on her—the statue was considerably higher than both of them. He took the phone, his large fingers brushing over hers as he took the small device. All her effort to disregard his effect on her fled at the warmth of his touch.
    Electricity ran the length of her arm and she couldn’t stop the desperate urge to look at him. Those large shoulders, framed by the tailored cut of his suit jacket, held her attention longer than was necessary. Nor was it professional.
    But it was the raw hunger in his gaze that prevented her from looking away. His observation was that of a lover—complete and absolute—and Rowan fought another shiver as that sultry stare came to rest on her lips. Something flashed in his eyes—regret?—before he turned away from her and lifted the phone. “Let me take a few and you can look at them to see if they’re what you need.”
    “Of course.”
    Even though the statue was still too high to get a full-on photo, Finn’s longer reach enabled him to get the majority of the writing in view. “Here. See what we’ve got and if you can do anything with these.”
    Rowan flipped through the images Finn had captured, discarding a blurry one and another that didn’t fully capture the hieroglyps in the frame. It was as she came to the last two photos, though, that she knew he’d captured what she needed. “These are great. I’ve got the full inscription.”
    “What’s it say?”
    “Pretty much what’s been reported. His name and title are included along with a dedication to Amun-Ra.”
    “That makes sense. Worship of Amun-Ra was at its height during the reign of Ramesses and his father, Seti the first.”
    Rowan expanded the images on the phone, manipulating the screen until she could see several of the glyphs near the bottom. “The last few glyphs suggest something more personal.”
    “Can you read it?”
    “It’s a little faint and I’d like to compare it to some textbooks.”
    “This statue has been evaluated top to bottom, for nearly two centuries. It’s not possible that no one’s figured the words mean anything more than a listing of his accomplishments and a prayer.”
    A dull excitement throbbed in her veins. It was the knowledge that something was just out of reach. “No one’s discovered the secret cache in Nefertari’s tomb before, either.”
    “You think there’s something more to it?”
    The jovial camaraderie she’d felt from Finn since they’d entered the Egyptian hall had vanished, replaced