it out, I got sucked into this world. Some jackass grabbed me the moment I showed up in Aventine and the next thing I knew, I was a slave girl."
I don’t bring up the fortune teller. The King of Pentacles card.
The Lovers card.
God help me, I forgot all about the Lovers card.
All Aron says is, "Mmm."
"What's that 'mmm' mean? That you don't believe me?"
"Why would I not believe you? You are speaking to a god. I know what is possible and what is not."
That makes me turn over. I sit up on my elbows and look down at him. That's right. He is a god. It's evident in his perfect form and coloring, and the way he seems to be just so much more than everyone else he encounters. "You don't think I'm lying?"
He tilts his head and raises one shoulder in a half-shrug. "When I was cast out, I imagine the boundaries between worlds grew thin so I—and my fellow gods—could come through. It stands to reason that you were pulled in through the same circumstance."
That's the most logical explanation for why I'm here, and I feel a little bit like crying and laughing both. I'm not special. I'm not a chosen one. I'm a doofus that wandered through the wrong place at the right time. It makes sense and yet…I'm disappointed because if it's just random happenstance as to why I'm here, there's no grand game plan for how I get back, either. And that's damn depressing. But it's an answer, and I finally have one. "Thanks, Aron."
"For what?"
"For believing me. No one has until now."
"I am a god," he says, as if that explains everything. Heck, maybe it does. He pats my shoulder. "Go to sleep. You keep talking and we will be leaving early in the morning."
As if I'm the Chatty Cathy. I bite back a snotty retort, because it won't do any good. "Going to sleep now."
"Good." His arm goes around my waist and he pulls me tight against him. I'm surprised when a moment later, he sniffs my hair. A hot flush moves over my body as I remember the night in Tadekha's Citadel and how I crawled all over the man as if my life depended on getting his knob. He'd made me come, but every time I reached for him, he pushed me away.
But…he'd been hard as a rock. I distinctly remember how hard he was, how erect every time I touched him. I think of the Lovers card again, and heat floods through me. If he touched me right now? I’d be wet. The realization is shameful.
He sniffs my hair again, and I wonder if he's hard right now. Is he overcome with lust for me?
"You smell bad," Aron says. “When was the last time you bathed?”
Man, fuck this guy.
Morning arrives far too early, and then Omos is there, handing us our packs and is all smiles of excitement. "It is a good day for traveling," he tells me as he helps me put on my pack. "The weather is fair and lovely and there's a nice breeze. The gods are smiling down on you."
I want to retort that the gods are ill-tempered brats and that's why they're on the mortal plane, but I don't. Omos is just too nice. My pack is heavy with food supplies, extra blankets, a change of clothing, and anything else he could think to give us. I'm utterly touched by his kindness. As I look around his little monastery, a fat goat rambles past, heading for the crops, and he immediately chases it down, pushing it back toward the field. I smile at the sight, because this is such a peaceful existence.
Then, I glance over at Aron. There's nothing peaceful about the guy at all. Even standing still, he screams authority and arrogance…and impatience. His big arms are crossed over his chest and his long hair has been pulled back into a tail at his nape. The scars on his face are vivid against the sunlight and his strangely colored eyes look like slits as he watches me. I get the impression he's impatient and ready to be off, but I'm not ready to leave yet.
I like it here with Omos. For the first time in what feels like forever, I feel safe. Like the world's not falling apart around my ears. And for a moment, the realization that I have to leave this safety is too much. I'm overwhelmed.