“You must be tired,” he says, still holding my hand. “And you haven’t eaten much today.”
I let out a slow breath. Griffin’s hand warms mine, making me realize just how cold with worry I’d been.
“I’m not hungry. But I do want to wash and lie down,” I say.
Griffin nods, helping me up. To my everlasting humiliation, I lumber to my feet with a groan. Not long ago, I was walking through fire, riding snakes, and climbing a Cyclops. Today, I suppose I proved I can still move fast when I really want to. Otherwise, it feels like I keep doubling my body weight every time I sit down.
“Gods, Little Bean. You weigh a ton,” I murmur, stretching my aching back. She must already take after her father—big and solid.
Griffin’s mouth quirks up, the small smile bringing some familiar and welcome lightness back into his otherwise drawn features. “I’m assuming I’m not Little Bean in this conversation.”
I snort, taking a shuffling step. My body seems to loosen up once I start moving again—thank the Gods. “You’re Big Bean. Look at you… You’re huge.”
“Not as big as Ares. YourThanos,” he mutters, an undercurrent of jealousy in his growling tone. It’s neither unexpected nor entirely unwarranted. I did jump into the God’s arms.
“He’s too big,” I answer truthfully. “You’re just right.”
Griffin is big and strong enough to protect me, should I need his help. He’s big enough to make me feel feminine. And big enough to overpower me in ways I know I’ll enjoy, since I also know I can trust him. He’s a very large and powerful man by human standards, but he’s not Olympian-sized, and I wouldn’t want him to be.
Gripping my hand, Griffin leads me from the great room and then turns us toward the stairs.
“Why Little Bean?” he asks, using his free hand to snag a torch from a sconce on the wall.
I shrug. “It just came to me. Don’t you think she’s the size of a bean? A really heavy but tiny little bean?”
He smiles more fully this time, and some of the weight lifts from me. Or maybe that’s Little Bean shifting around again.
“You’re a bean.” He squeezes my hand, and I feel even lighter. My heart seems buoyant after being so weighed down. It’s definitely Griffin making me float.
Well, not exactly float, but I do manage to pick up my feet.
“We’re a bean family,” I announce.
He chuckles. “That sounds distinguished. No wonder we have so many followers.”
“Absolutely,” I agree with a nod. “Thalyrians are smart. We’re also not prone to random massacres, which probably helps.”
“Indeed.”
I glance at him, arching my eyebrows. “Indeed?Is that scary warlord talk?”
He narrows his eyes on me, but something in the deep gray suddenly dances in the torchlight. “Indeed,” he repeats.
I laugh, and it feels like years of tension slide off my shoulders.
“Your belly is hardly rounded,” Griffin says, peering at the area in question. His eyes linger, and then he lets go of my hand to lightly draw his fingers over my lower stomach. “I didn’t think you’d feel her so soon.”
“Me either.” I eye my stomach, seeing nothing unusual. I expected to be increasingly aware of her life force. I didn’t expect the physical effects her apparent distress had on me today. “But I can’t say I’m surprised that she’s a special little powerhouse.”
Griffin grunts. I guess he agrees.
“Where in the Gods damn bloody Underworld have you two been?” A flame-haired Harpy erupts from a darkened side passage, storming into our path.
I jump, even though it’s just Bellanca Tarva arriving with the explosive energy of someone about my age butnotpregnant.
“Gods! You nearly gave me a heart attack.” I scowl at her. Ever since that three-headed monster leaped out at me in the ice caves, dark corridors make me nervous. To be fair, they made me nervous before that, but now it’s even worse.
Griffin instinctively draws me closer to his side, even placing me a little behind him. He doesn’t quite trust Bellanca yet, although I think he should.
