I whine.
Cato chuckles and dumps a bowl of water over my head.
I squeal and jolt away, glaring at him, but he just smirks and finishes rinsing the conditioner out of my hair.
How can he be so annoying, yet make it sound so hot that hedrank my bathwater.
When he’s done, Cato brings me a fluffy towel and helps me out.
There, when I’m dripping water and barely have my feet under me, Cato cups my face and presses his lips to mine.
A kiss is too simple of a description for the way he takes my mouth. His tongue sweeps in, his lips commanding, and he tastes sweet and rich, like chocolate truffles.
He caught me by surprise, but just when I start to kiss him back, it’s over as suddenly as it began.
Cato pulls away, leaving me gasping.
“Nowthat’sthe best thing I’ve ever tasted,” he says.
Chapter 38
Hestia
We return to the living room to find the others making breakfast. It’s strange seeing them with clothes on again.
The mattresses have been cleaned off and stacked against the wall. Orion has me sit on the couch near the fire, where Magnus and Henri are watching the cauldron.
“The food will be done soon. I’m sure you’re hungry,” Henri says, smiling at me.
“It smells good,” I say.
I’m not sure how to behave around them now. Do we just go back to how things were before my heat? Should I address what happened?
I try to act casual like they are, just sitting around relaxing as we often do.
Orion hands me a fruit and nut bar, interrupting my internal panic.
“It’s not much, but it’s a nutritious appetizer,” he says, urging me to eat.
I take it since eating means I don’t have to decide if I’m going to talk about sleeping with my bosses.
Of course, after one bite, I realize I’m starving and wolf it down and chug some water.
So much for being nonchalant.
No one comments on my poor manners. Charm simply refills my glass, and Orion unwraps another fruit bar.
They’ve been taking care of me for days, I don’t know how they’re not sick of it yet.
This time I make myself eat slowly. By the time I’m done, Henri is ready with the stew, so I have another excuse to put off talking about things.
We eat quietly until he asks if I’m ready for a second helping.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t able to make any fresh meals during your heat,” Henri says as he gets me a refill.
I’d kind of mentally landed on pretending my heat never happened.
“Everything was great, don’t worry. Thank you for taking care of me,” I say, blushing as I vividly recall theotherthings I ate.
