“Montana?” Titus thought that was a strange place for an ancient god to live, but then he met Apollo in Buffalo, so anything was possible.
“Paulie found a ranch house where he could see the sunrise every morning.” Apollo was chuckling again. “You might thinkthat sounds silly, or even whimsical, but to me it was a huge indication of how much Zeus changed, all thanks to Paulie. Gods will do a lot for their mates if asked.”
That’s handy to know, I guess.Although Titus was quite capable of looking after himself and his mate. “So this app just goes on your phone?” Titus slowed, flicking on his indicators, waiting for some cars to pass before pulling into the warehouse parking lot. “I haven’t seen you with a phone.”
“Hmm. That’s a good point.” Apollo was looking around as Titus took the truck around to the back of a large warehouse and backed up to a large roller door. “I should probably have one, seeing as you insist we’re in a relationship, and you use yours.”
“Insist we’re in a relationship?” Titus chuckled and shook his head as he pulled on the brake and turned off the engine. “Apollo, beloved, according to you, you’ve been in love with me for months, and while you might have loved a million people before me, I can assure you, babe, I will be your only forever. A mating’s not a relationship, it’s a solid vow, and I take that sort of shit seriously.”
Apollo’s eyes widened, just a fraction, and a dash of pink grazed across the sharp line of his cheeks. “I’d better get that phone then.”
“With you being a god and all, I’m guessing that’s not a cue to divert this truck to the nearest appliance store. I’ll let you organize a phone while I go and get this order loaded. Will you be okay here for the next ten minutes?”Please don’t disappear on me. I really don’t want to wolf out in front of a client, but I will.
Maybe something of Titus’s concern showed on his face. “I won’t go anywhere,” Apollo said. His voice was low and full of promise. “But tell me, wolf, seeing as this is something I don’t want toask Paulie. How long does it take a man with dual spirits to love their mate? Are we talking hours, days, weeks, months…you know, just so I can have a rough idea of when feelings might be reciprocated.”
“We’ll be making our first stop in Cleveland – just for a break and a chance to stretch our legs. It’ll take about three hours to get there, provided traffic’s in our favor,” Titus said with a grin. “I’m guessing falling for you won’t take that long. Now sit tight, be back shortly.”
You’re getting a bit generous with the love terminology, aren’t you?he thought as he grabbed his clipboard and opened the door. And yet, Titus could see where that would make sense. His wolf was already committed, and while Titus had never believed himself in love with anyone outside of family, before that morning at least… Apollo was worth making an exception for.Just don’t fall into bad habits,he reminded himself.Mates are going to want breakfast in the morning.
Chapter Nine
Why don’t people travel like this all the time?Apollo found he enjoyed riding in a truck. Because of the height of the vehicle, he got a chance to see more than he did stuck in traffic in the back of his town car. There was more room for his legs in the cab of Titus’s truck, and the seats were wider, allowing Apollo to sit more comfortably. It helped that he was the passenger, not the driver, because he doubted he’d be able to maneuver the large vehicle as competently as Titus was doing. The trip also gave Apollo a chance to think.
From the moment he’d first seen Titus on that television screen, Apollo had been determined to stay away from the man – always putting Titus’s wellbeing ahead of his own feelings. And yet, within hours of meeting him, Apollo was now sharing a cab with him. The man was within touching distance. Such a huge difference to the infrequent sightings he had previously - a few minutes here, a few minutes there, sometimes not even that. Just passing flashes of light highlighting a man who walked into any space as if he owned it.
I dreamed I could be up close and personal with him, but I never thought it would actually happen. I was determined it wouldn’t.Being apart was the point.Is it possible this mating business will make a difference?Apollo wasn’t sure, and it wasn’t something he wanted to ask Paulie about. In the meantime, he would take joy from watching as Titus seemed to know exactly where he was going and what he was doing, from maneuvering the large steering wheel, to applying brakes, and adjusting his speed in accordance with the traffic.
Titus had said they were traveling on the I-90, and while that didn’t mean anything to Apollo, he alternated between watching Titus and the scenery as they sped down the road. Once outsideof Buffalo, there were still plenty of small townships, or were they villages? Apollo wasn’t quite sure what they would be called in modern day, but there were various groupings of houses and businesses, getting more sparse the farther out of Buffalo they got.
It was fall, and Apollo always loved that time of year. There was still enough warmth in the sun to make it enjoyable to sit outside. And yet the colors on the leaves were at their best as they slowly morphed from green to orange to red and then to the deep brown before they collapsed off the tree.
Apollo loved walking through the piles the discarded leaves would make – the crunch and rustle of the crispy leaves and the sense that for the tree, the circle of life was working. The decaying leaves would send nutrients into the soil, feeding the tree to help it bloom with new growth in spring.
Anything like that filled Apollo with a sense of joy, of contentment. It helped that Titus wasn’t pushy with him – whether it was bombarding him with questions or giving in to physical urges. There were a few moments when Apollo wished Titus had given into those urges – Titus seemed to vibrate with it.
No wonder Artemis was uncomfortable around him,he thought with a grin. Titus’s power seemed to emanate from his skin like a cologne. What Apollo loved about it was that for Titus, it seemed effortless. He wasn’t trying to be an alpha – he just was.
But Apollo appreciated the wolf’s control. Perhaps it was easier for Titus when he was focused on his driving. That was something Apollo would never attempt.No, gods can’t do everything,although Apollo reasoned he could probably directthe truck to where it needed to go – or zap it – in an emergency…provided he didn’t get distracted.
His new phone was sitting snugly in his pocket. While Titus was busy doing whatever a truck driver did with goods, Apollo had sent a mental message to Coda – a form of message ball – and within minutes, he had a new phone in his hand, already connected to the Zeus network with a new number. Coda also informed him that the Paulie app and the god location app were installed automatically, but that otherwise he could use it as a regular phone.I’ll have to watch Titus and see what he does with his.
He asked Titus for his number when the man got back in the truck, but as Apollo had no idea how to add a contact, he just “told” the phone to add the number, ignoring Titus’s confused look. What was the point of being an ancient god if he couldn’t just speak something into being, like a contact on his phone?
Hugging his knees, Apollo watched the scenery fly past. The outside view was beautiful, but Apollo was also enjoying the concept of being in a bubble, a bubble of existence where only he and Titus existed. Artemis’s betrayal was nothing more than a smudge in the back of his mind. Apollo was just happy to be out of that clinical office.
As the houses got less frequent, Apollo reminded himself that relationships – he was still struggling with that word – weren’t one-sided.I need to know more about Titus.
“I really don’t know anything about you,” he said quietly – not wanting to startle Titus in any way. “What is it you like people to know about you? I know you’re an alpha wolf shifter, that you’re hands-on with your business, and that your business is important to you. You look smart no matter what you’re wearing, and you appear to treat people with respect. I haven’theard anyone honking at us, so I assume your driving skills are competent as well. But what else is there? What do you want me to know about you?”
Titus flicked him a quick glance, although Apollo noticed he was also careful about watching the road. “Isn’t that enough? Mates have claimed each other knowing a lot less. Look, I’m not the type of person who toots their own horn, or alternatively depresses my partners with anything negative from my life. If you really want to know the ins and outs of my personal history, perhaps you should ask that Paulie app you mentioned earlier. Isn’t he supposed to know everything?”
Apollo frowned. He was simply trying to make conversation, something he was sure a mated couple did when they were getting to know each other. But Titus seemed almost defensive just from his question.
He’s hiding something from me.Apollo knew that as well as he knew the color of his own hair. Titus was still giving the impression of a confident, cocky wolf shifter. He was still clearly aroused by Apollo’s presence – the pheromones were impossible to ignore in a confined space - but there was something else there now, too. A flicker of uncertainty and the almost confrontational response – something didn’t add up.
Even the way Titus dismissed an app that he’d been so interested in earlier gave the impression he was daring Apollo to ask Paulie about him.He doesn’t think I’ll do it,Apollo realized. Titus telling him to do it was tantamount to daring him, and Titus clearly thought Apollo would just change the subject.
Mentally shaking his head, Apollo hid his smirk.Someone should tell shifter mates of gods that it’s not a good idea to dare them to do anything. It was curiosity about anything atall that alleviated the boredom most ancient gods suffered from, including himself.
