by Julie Kenner
Bracing her hands on each side of his shoulders, she straddled his hips and leaned forward so her lips brushed his in the sweetest, softest kiss. “I don’t believe that for a second. I can tell by the look in your eye and what you don’t say that you love your son. And something tells me you didn’t fake your death so Cerek would stop pestering you. You left to spare him from seeing his father in the throes of a nightmare he didn’t understand. You can love, Ari. You already do.”
She moved back to his side, rested her head on his chest, and curled into him. “Love is a blessing, not a curse. You just have to choose it.”
Her breaths slowed as she drifted to sleep beside him, but Ari knew he’d find no sleep. Because as he looked into the flames on the far side of the room and her words of love echoed in the air around him, he knew he couldn’t keep reality at bay any longer.
Zeus would never let her live. Not with the way she’d sacrificed her duty for his enemy. By now his Sirenum Scorpoli had probably already shared what had happened in those woods. And that meant every moment she spent in this hold put her life in that much more danger.
His chest pinched so hard it stole his breath. Rolling to his side, he wrapped his other arm around her and pulled her in tight to his chest. Gods, she awed him again and again. She believed in him when she had no reason to. Cared for him when others would turn away. Loved him even when he didn’t love himself.
She was wrong. Love wasn’t the blessing. She was the blessing. And he would do whatever he had to do to keep her safe.
Even if that meant becoming the savage she didn’t believe him to be.
* * * *
Daphne slid out of bed at dawn, tired but in need of caffeine. She hadn’t been able to sleep much, thoughts of the Sirens and Athena and Zeus and the Sirenum Scorpoli sifting through her mind. She knew that wasn’t the last they were going to see of Zeus’s secret sect, and as much as she hated to leave Ari naked and asleep in that big bed of his, she needed to talk to Sappheire about what their next move should be.
She found one of Ari’s huge button-down shirts in the closet, tugged it on, and headed for the hall. Voices echoed from the kitchen, and her brow lowered as she tried to figure out who Sappheire was talking to.
“And I bet that’s something you do regularly on Olympus,” a familiar male voice said.
“Actually,” Sappheire answered, “it’s not. I can’t tell you the last time I went out on a date. The only males on Olympus are gods who aren’t interested in anything but casual sex. And, no thanks, I don’t need to be another notch on an immortal’s bedpost. The males I encounter in the human realm won’t even come near me when they discover what I am.”
The male chuckled, then the refrigerator door opened and closed, and as Daphne listened, she realized it was Silas, back from his supply run a few days early. “Maybe it’s not what you are but the way you look. Gorgeous females are more than a little intimidating to the average guy.”
“It’s not real,” Sappheire said. “It’s part of the whole Siren gig. Immortal glamour to create the perfect female. The old me isn’t anything like this, believe me. Daphne’s the only female I can remember in all the recent classes who wasn’t altered. Nymphs are so genetically blessed. It’s disgusting.”
Silas chuckled again. “Something tells me you’re wrong. Zeus doesn’t pick the homely girls for the Siren Order. I’m sure he was fully impressed before your transformation.”
“Well, I did always have great tits. Those didn’t change.”
“See?” The sound of a knife hitting a cutting board echoed from the kitchen as Daphne drew close, but it was the smile she heard in Silas’s voice that piqued her interest. “There you go.”
“Are you agreeing with me?”
“I’m definitely not arguing. They’re more than nice from where I’m standing.”
They both looked up when Daphne stepped into the room, Silas from the stove where he was cooking, and Sappheire from the counter where she sat on a stool sipping a cup of coffee with a silly grin. The Siren was still wearing the same pants she’d had on yesterday, but the light-blue T-shirt hanging off her toned shoulders had to be Silas’s.
“Oh, there you are.” Sappheire’s smile wobbled as she set her mug down. “I was just telling Silas here about your irritating genetics.”
Silas grinned. “She doesn’t give her own genetics enough credit. Nice shirt, Daphne.”
This wasn’t one of the shirts Silas had picked out for her before he’d left, which meant he knew where she’d gotten it. And how. Daphne knew she should be a little embarrassed, but she wasn’t. Not at all.
“How’s the patient?” Sappheire asked.
“Fine.” Actually, he was better than fine, but Daphne didn’t want to share that with her friends. Some things were meant to stay private. She crossed to the far side of the kitchen, pulled a mug from the cupboard, and poured herself a cup of coffee. “He was more than surprised to learn you were here though, Sappheire.”
“I bet he was,” Sappheire mumbled, lifting her cup again. “Not as much as this guy though.”
Silas chuckled. “You shocked me, I’ll admit it.”
“But it was a nice kind of surprise,” Sappheire said with a smile in her voice. “Wasn’t it?”
Daphne turned. Sappheire sipped her coffee, and looked right at Silas with that same silly, mischievous grin. His gaze held hers, and he smiled too, then went back to chopping. “Yes it was. A very nice surprise.”
They were flirting. Daphne looked between the two, amused and, yes, surprised herself. Ari’s caretaker and Daphne’s mentor. Who would have guessed? In all the years Daphne had known Sappheire, she’d never known the Siren to flirt. Sappheire didn’t even use seduction on her victims, like the other Sirens in her Order. Just arrows.
Silas’s grin faded, and he turned toward Daphne. “Sappheire filled me in on what you discovered about Zeus’s secret Sirens. It makes a lot of sense. Makes a shit ton of sense.”
The secret Sirens. Right. Daphne needed to remember why she’d come in here, not get caught up in someone else’s romance.
“The question is what are we going to do about it?” Sappheire asked. “No one’s ever confirmed the Sirenum Scorpoli actually exist. That tells me right there that anyone who knows about them is dead. Which means we’re at the top of Zeus’s shit list. It’s only a matter of time before he finds this place.”
“I was thinking the same thing.” Daphne bit her lip then looked toward Silas. “Ari’s not safe here. The only place where Zeus can’t get to him is Argolea.”
“But his Sirens can,” Sappheire pointed out. “That won’t protect you or me from Athena’s retaliation, or any of us from Zeus’s evil bitches.”
“No.” Silas braced his hands on the counter. “It won’t. And if Zeus sends his assassins into Argolea, it’d turn into a blood bath. Thousands of innocents would die.”
Silence settled over the room as each of them considered. Finally, Daphne said, “We could contact the Argonauts. Ari’s son serves with them. I know they would send help if they knew he was still alive.”
“No one’s contacting the Argonauts.” Ari’s voice echoed from the archway to the hall.
He’d pulled on loose-fitting jeans and a black T-shirt that stretched seductively across his broad shoulders, and as Daphne took in the sight of him, her skin warmed and all the delicious things they’d done to each other last night rolled through her memory. But there was a hardness to his mismatched eyes she hadn’t seen last night, and remembering their conversation about his son, something in the back of her mind whispered not to push him too hard too fast. “It’s the smartest option we have, Ari. I know you’re not ready to go back to Argolea yet, but if Zeus comes here—”
“Then I’ll deal with him.” His gaze didn’t waver from hers. “The same way I’ve dealt with his secret sect all these years. But you’re right. The three of you need to leave.” He looked toward Sappheire. “Take her back to Athena. If you te
ll her what happened, I’m sure Athena will protect her.”
Oh no. He wasn’t sending her away. Not now. Not after everything that had happened between them. He’d tried that once before and this time she wasn’t leaving.
She set her mug on the counter, moved behind Silas, and crossed to stand in front of Ari, still in the doorway. “You’re not getting rid of me that easily. If you’re staying, I’m staying.”
“This isn’t up for discu—”
His words died as he lifted his head. Every muscle in his body went rigid. Before Daphne could ask what was going on, his eyes shifted from their mismatched blue and green to deathly black.
“Oh shit.” Her stomach clenched with fear. For him. “Ari?”
He darted to the window and looked out at the early morning light.
“What’s going on?” Sappheire slipped off the barstool. “Do you sense something?”
Ari darted to the next window, his gaze scanning the cliff beside them, then shifting to the valley far below. A low growl built in his throat. “Sirens.”
Silas and Sappheire exchanged worried glances, but Daphne was too focused on Ari to care what they were thinking. Rushing to his side, she reached for his hand. “Ari, stay with me.”
He rounded on her so fast she gasped, and when he looked down at her with those crazed eyes, his features twisted with fury, fear shot through her chest. But in her heart she knew this was the same male who’d touched her and loved her so thoroughly last night. And she wasn’t about to let him forget.
She gripped his hand tighter. Forced him to look at her. “Stay with me. You can fight it. You fought it yesterday. Focus.”
He squeezed her hand so hard, pain shot up her arm. But she didn’t pull away. Instead, she watched his eyes for her cue. Held on. Said his name over and over. His eyes flickered between black and blue and green. Then slowly they shifted to the familiar colors she knew so well.
“Yes,” she whispered, squeezing his hand, knowing she had him back. “I’m right here.”
Before she could wrap her arms around him, he pulled his hand from hers and looked toward Sappheire. “Take her back to Athena now.”
Panic pushed at Daphne’s chest when she realized he meant to stay here and face Zeus’s evil Sirens alone. She darted in his way, blocking his exit toward the hall. “I’m not leaving you.”
He glared down at her. “Too fucking bad. You don’t have a choice in this.”
He tried to step around her but she moved in front of him again. “Yes, I do. I said I’m not leaving, and I’m not.”
His jaw clenched down hard. His eyes flickered. She could feel the insanity bubbling just under his control, but she wasn’t backing down. She hadn’t been there when her village had been attacked. She wasn’t leaving Ari now to the same fate.
“I’m not going anywhere without you,” she said again.
“Yes, you are.” His eyes flashed to black and held. “The Sirens trained you well, female. You were a good fuck and a decent distraction, but I don’t have time for your games anymore, and the last thing I need is another person hanging on me, hoping for something I don’t have the power to give them. I ditched my son for way less than you, so don’t think for a minute that you’re anything special. I don’t want you anymore. Deal with it and get lost. All of you.”
Daphne’s mouth fell open, but he stepped past her before she could stop him.
Long, silent seconds passed. No one in the room spoke.
“We can’t go to Olympus,” Sappheire finally said quietly. “Athena will never side with us, not against Zeus. Not even if she knows about his secret sect. We wouldn’t be safe there.”
“We can’t stay here,” Silas said.
“No, we can’t,” Sappheire answered.
“I know who can help us.” Strength gathered inside Daphne as she turned to face them. A strength she hadn’t even known she possessed until just this very moment. “A Siren who would never say no to an Argonaut in need.”
Sappheire’s brow lowered. “You’re talking about Skyla.”
Daphne nodded.
Sappheire’s jaw clenched. “She hates me.”
“Doesn’t matter. She’s bound to an Argonaut. She’ll be able to get the help we need.”
Sappheire and Silas exchanged glances, then Sappheire looked back at her. “Are you sure about this? If we do this, they’ll find out he’s still alive, and he clearly doesn’t want that.”
“I’m more than sure. That little speech of his was complete bullshit. He might say he knows what he wants, but I know what he needs. We’re not leaving him to Zeus alone.”
“Well done, nymph.” A slow smile spread across Silas’s face. “Very well done.”
Chapter Ten
“Come on.” Cerek tapped his palm against his bare chest then held his arms out wide. “Hit me. Ever since you and Skyla were bound, you fight like a pussy.”
A low chuckle rumbled from Orpheus across the mat, rising in the ancient gymnasium toward the upper seating levels of the oval-shaped stadium that showcased some of Tiyrns greatest sporting matches. The Argonaut tipped his head and shot Cerek a pointed look. “I know you’re scared of females and all, big guy, but let me tell ya a secret. Pussies don’t fight. The good ones give nothing but pleasure.”
Cerek swiped the sweat out of his eyes with the back of his marked forearm and scowled. He wasn’t afraid of females. His reasons for avoiding them were his own and no one else’s. But just the fact Orpheus seemed to make it his personal mission in life to razz Cerek about his lack of female companionship only fueled Cerek’s desire for blood. “Fine, then you fight like a fucking girl.”
“My girl’s a Siren.” Orpheus grinned as he dropped his bare shoulder and shifted his feet on the mat. “Or was. She’d take that as a compliment.”
Orpheus charged and plowed his shoulder into Cerek’s ribs. Locking his arms behind Cerek’s back, he lifted Cerek off the floor. Air whooshed over Cerek’s spine just before he cracked hard into the mat. Pain spiraled across his back, but before Orpheus could get the upper hand, Cerek flipped Orpheus to his stomach, grabbed the back of Orpheus’s head, and slammed the Argonaut’s face into the ground.
“Son of a fucking...” Orpheus shoved his elbow hard into Cerek’s ribs, knocking Cerek back a step. “That’s my godsdamn nose, you prick.”
“Let me guess.” Skyla’s voice echoed from the doorway that disappeared beneath the spectator area. “My mate was giving you a hard time.”
Cerek pushed upright and glanced toward the former Siren. Skyla’s blonde hair hung in a sleek wave past her shoulders, and her green eyes sparkled with amusement as she watched her mate roll to his back and pinch his nose to stop the gush of blood.
“I warned you not to taunt him,” Skyla said to Orpheus. “Clearly, you didn’t listen. Again.”
A goofy grin slid across Orpheus’s face as he peered up at Cerek. One that told Cerek loud and clear that the bastard had intentionally pushed him right to the edge just for the fun of it. “It’s not really a workout if it doesn’t get the blood pumping.”
Fucking idiot. Orpheus was a deadly warrior in battle, but he liked to stir the shit at home. He always had.
Cerek held his hand out to Orpheus and pulled the Guardian up. “Next time I’ll break your arm.”
Orpheus flashed bloody teeth. “Next time I’ll get my girl to break yours.”
Skyla sighed. “My hopes for either of you to grow up just crashed and burned. Listen, children, we have a situation.”
“What kind of situation?” Cerek’s gaze snapped to Skyla, his focus zeroing in on the Siren and her real reason for being here.
“A very serious one.” A female wearing slim black pants, boots, and the baggiest T-shirt Cerek had ever seen stepped up next to Skyla, her auburn hair, streaked with gold and brown, hanging past her shoulders like a luxurious mane. Beside her, another female moved into the room, this one much shorter, with long, dark hair, dressed in nothing but a man’s
oversized shirt.
“Whoa,” Orpheus muttered. “Siren.”
“Both of them?” Cerek’s brow lifted in surprise. Sirens didn’t often visit their realm. In fact, he could only remember one time in the last ten years that any Siren other than Skyla had shown up in Argolea.
“No, just the one on the right,” Orpheus muttered. “The other’s a nymph.”
Cerek’s gaze ran over the nymph, and his back tingled when her focus locked solidly on him. He’d never met her before but something about her made the hairs on his nape stand at attention and a whisper of worry rush down his spine.
“Don’t get any ideas, daemon.” Skyla shot her mate a pointed look. “The nymph’s already spoken for.” She turned toward the nymph. “Don’t worry. He’s harmless.”
Grinning, Orpheus stepped off the mat and slid an arm around Skyla’s waist, then leaned down and kissed her cheek. “Totally harmless.”
“Ew.” Skyla grimaced and leaned away from him. “You’re covered in blood and sweat.”
“Never bothered you before.”
Skyla rolled her eyes. The Siren beside her looked Orpheus over with speculation. “This is the male you left the Order for?”
Skyla frowned up at her mate. “Yes. The one and only. Sometimes I can barely believe it myself.”
Orpheus held out his hand toward the Siren. “Orpheus the great and powerful.”
Skyla crossed her arms over her chest and huffed. “In your dreams, daemon.”
Orpheus’s bloody grin only widened. The Siren returned his handshake cautiously. “Sappheire.”
“Whoa.” Orpheus’s stupid smile faded, and he looked back at Skyla. “The same Sappheire who—”
“Yes,” Skyla answered quickly, turning toward Orpheus and widening her eyes in a shut-the-hell-up signal only a moron could miss. “The same Sappheire I served with on Olympus. Amazing, isn’t it?”
From his spot on the mat where he watched the banter, Cerek couldn’t help but chuckle. Even Cerek had heard Skyla’s stories about the Siren who’d constantly challenged Skyla’s status as Athena’s right hand on Olympus. Leave it to Orpheus to stir the shit for his mate when the female in question was standing in the same room.