My phone chimed in my pocket then, but I ignored it. Everyone I cared about was here anyway, so it was either a wrong number or…
Yeah, no time to worry about it now. Whoever had been sending me those messages was about the last thing on my mind today.
Today I was heading to Atlantis to fight some gods.
Good times.
Louis grinned at me like he’d just heard the full array of my half-panicked thoughts, but he didn’t comment. He just opened the step-through. “Tee went across with the Compasses,” he said softly as I moved closer. “But we just found out that we’re pregnant, so I’m trying to convince her that she should be back in Stratford, where it’s marginally safer.”
His confession gave me pause—this was the first time I truly felt that Louis considered me a friend. A friend he wanted to share his happy news with. Letting the others step through before me, I wrapped my arms around the sorcerer.
“Congratulations!” I said with emotion, feeling heat in my eyes. He was one of the best, scariest, more wonderful supes I knew. He’d be the most loving and formidable father ever. “I’m so happy for you.”
I pulled back, wiping at my eyes, and noticed that Asher was still standing at the step-through. He didn’t look angry, but his expression was shuttered, his eyes unreadable but thankfully still green.
“Thank you,” Louis said, and I could hear the absolute joy in his voice. “I never … I didn’t believe this was in the cards for me. But … shit, apparently I didn’t piss off the fates too badly.” He didn’t swear often, and my lips twitched. “Any suggestions on how to get Tee out of the line of fire?” he asked.
Asher made an amused, rumbling sound, and Louis tilted his head toward him. “If your Tee is anything like Maddi, the more you try to protect her, the more she’ll go out of her way to prove she doesn’t need it.”
Louis and Asher shared a commiserating sort of smile. “Yeah, that’s about accurate. And the thing is, just like your Maddi”—my heart skipped a beat at hearing that—“Tee can completely look after herself. She might be more powerful than me. But…” The purple in his eyes turned midnight dark. “I can’t live without her, and the world will cease to exist if she is taken from me. So I’m protecting more than just my heart and soul, more than just our mate bond. I’m protecting everyone in the entire world.”
Asher’s harsh, beautiful face softened. “I understand,” he murmured, barely above a whisper. “I understand more than I wish I did.”
My heart was thundering in my chest. I struggled to get the air in and out. Everything felt thick and heavy, like emotions were almost visible in the air. Unable to handle it any longer, I spun on my heel and rushed through the step-through. Asher caught me just before I crossed the barrier and I gasped as his lips slammed into mine.
That gasp turned into an aching sob as his tongue swept across mine, demanding entry, demanding everything.
I gave it to him, and by the time he was done, I couldn’t feel my legs anymore. Eh, fuck it, who needed legs anyway.
Asher chuckled. “You don’t need them, I’ll carry you.”
My head jerked back. “Did you just hear my thoughts?”
He paused, blinking at me. “You didn’t say that out loud?”
I shook my head. “I don’t think so, but…”
With a shrug, I wiggled to get down, and Asher dropped me to my feet. Louis was still standing in the same spot—he never left until everyone was through his step-throughs—but he was staring off into the distance, allowing us some privacy.
“We should go now,” I said. My body ached, but there was no time for that sort of fun.
Asher and Louis made no move, and I knew I had to go first, so muttering about chauvinistic men I stepped through the doorway, and as energy encased me I tried to shed some of the tensions and frustration in my body. I couldn’t be distracted here. Not if we wanted to make it out alive.
On the other side, the Atlanteans were pacing. Rone was shouting while Larissa pointedly looked in another direction. Those two were on the outs, and I wondered how long it would be before Rone combusted. He wasn’t a fan of the silent treatment.
Jesse cursed loudly when I moved toward him, then wrapped me up tightly. “Fuck, sweetheart, why are you always trying to put me in an early grave?”
I laughed, loudly, because he sounded so exasperated. “Sorry. Louis and I got chatting for a second.”
Jesse snorted. “Yeah, sure, it was Louis that held you up.”
His eyes jerked up over my head as Asher stepped through, and I had to fight not to run to him.Ugh. I had it so damn bad. My heart clenched at the memory of losing Asher, and for a second I couldn’t breathe.
Somehow I managed to lock it back down, because there was no time for PTSD to get its claws in me. Eventually, I would have to deal with the trauma that came with Asher’s “death.” Just not today.
Jesse released me—for his own safety, judging by the look on Asher’s face—and I looked around at our surroundings. “Shit,” I murmured. We were at the gates that I’d entered with Connor. His eyes met mine from where he was standing near the golden statues and I gasped as I finally noticed that the base was now filled with water and moving. The figures danced across the flowing water, jets spouting out around them as they smoothly glided. “It’s beautiful,” I said, moving to Connor. My heart was beating hard, and I felt that tugging sensation in my gut that always came from being in close proximity to this place. “Everything feels lighter now,” I noted, having no sensation of quicksand dragging me down like last time.
Connor nodded. “The spell is gone. The stasis has been lifted.”
