To erase one’s mind of all thought was not a task easily done, especially when there were thoughts that harkened back to the dawn of all gods. However, I set forth an effort to clear them all from myhead,ifeven for a heartbeat or two.
Somewhere in the depths of my awareness, I heard the front door click shut downstairs. Peterson’s polished loafers gently clicked against the gleaming hardwood floors, making himself scarce somewhereintothe depths of the house.
Blessed silence at last.
Yet the sensation of darknessweighed downheavily on me, my mother’s presence. Not in any physical form, but in the rawest of elements unseen on the mortal plane. The same way fear felt cold on your skin, happiness created light in your eyes, and broken pride tasted like acid on your tongue.
The feeling left as quickly as it had come on. Mother had retreated.
Little did I know that retreat was only in preparation to surge forth like a tsunami swallowing the shore.
In the brief reprieve of her absence, everything stilled. Perfect harmony in the quiet. True peace was an elusivestate of mind for me, and often the calm before the storm. Still, despite myself, I craved scraps of it.
Pl-pl-plin-plu-pla-ling.
My eyes snapped open like shades wildly retracting.
The rare moment of equilibrium in my minddidn’tjustshatter,it disintegrated in an instant like the crash of a wave onto a castle made of sand and innocence.
There was no waiting for mybutlerthat time. I rose to my feet, pitching the whiskey glass into the cold hearth. The whiskey left a trail of splatters to the wreckage of broken crystal that evidenced the result of my snapped temper.
Stomping to the study’s door, I flung it inward hard enough to rattle the frame.Didn’tstop moving to check any damage done to the hinges that squealed in protest.
Every step forward resulted in a thud against the flooring thatsoundedthe alert to anyone foolish enough to cross my path before I reached my destination.
I needed a split second to gather my composure when I reached the front door. My hands tugged at each sleeve of my suit jacket, straightening them out forcefully. It was that momentary reset that drew a deeply rooted sense of control over myself,establishinga steel core inside me—cold and unyielding.
Shoulders squared, spine straight, I pulled open the door with more force than necessary.
The sight before me threatened to compromise the walls I had just erected. Not just anyone stood there onmy doorstep, but I was greeted with the sight of a goddess. One of ourkind.
Her beauty was secondary to the shimmer of the air that wafted from her skin. Unnoticeable to mortal eyes, but recognizable to the gods who hailed from Olympus itself.
The muscle in my jaw twitched under the tension applied to it. I allowed her to see just whose doorstep she found herself on. My stormy expression was set in stone, a stark contrast to the ever-changing movements of her facial features. Shock. Awe. Curiosity.
A hint of fear.
That was what sent the thrill of victory through my veins.
My espresso eyes remained on her,observingevery tweak and twitch she made. Her long locks of hair cascaded well beyond her shoulders. The sun captured the rich burgundy of the strands, but it was the wind that rustled them just enough to reveal flickers of a deep shade of pink hidden in them.
The dusting of freckles across her cheeks and bridge of her nose drew my gaze to her eyes. Those fucking eyes. Doe-shaped. Oceanic blue with seafoam green that made them look alive in a way I never knew existed.?
Spice contaminated the air around her, the type designed to heat the blood of a lover. The scent of desire and matters of the heart. Our devoted matchmaking goddess.
The raspberry sheen of gloss caught my attention asher lips moved, her words stuttering in my presence. I ignored them all.
“You,” I pointedly said. It was an accusation of who she was.
She fell silent, wide eyes unable or unwilling to look away from me.
When I spoke again, the words came out in a broken growl. “What are you doing here?”
I wanted nothing to do with her ability to inflict feelings of contentment on others. Those feelings had failed me once before.
“I, uh, well, you know. Business as usual.” Her tentative smile wobbled with uncertainty as my unimpressed expression remained despite her explanation.
“Business,” I repeated flatly. “Here.”
