should toast the fucker, but I couldn’t since I had to be extremely careful with my fires. The God of War’s spies were everywhere. And with so many witnesses around, it wouldn’t look good if I attacked a demigod first. I didn’t want to add more craziness to my reputation.
“I wasn’t ridiculing you,” Paxton said softly as he stopped a few inches before me and reinforced the sound barrier he’d wrapped around us earlier. I was getting better at detecting and categorizing spells even without a formal education. “You’ll have to face every part of yourself one day, and every part of you is amazing. Do not be ashamed of who you are. You’re one of a kind. Embrace your uniqueness.”
I heard nothing but truth and adoration in his words.
“I don’t want that part of me,” I said bleakly. “If I could get rid of it or bleed it out, I would. I’d give my soul to be just a human. I know I’m living on borrowed time with your cousins. I wouldn’t even blame you if you told them about me. I’m just too much of a coward to come clean. But eventually they’ll know and everything will end.”
“It won’t end, Buttercup,” he said fiercely. “It won’t end for you or any of us. I’ll promise that with my last breath.”
He inched closer, his trembling hand brushing a stray lock of hair behind my ear. His scent of male, ocean, and hot beach blanketed me, drawing me in. A deep longing for him that I’d repressed for too long coursed through my blood. He was no longer my enemy. He sure didn’t smell like one. He smelled like a cozy home over the mountains and across the ocean.
I held my breath and stared into his violet eyes.
He was a beautiful demigod even when cruelty etched itself into his every line. But right now, there was no viciousness in him. He looked young, maybe a couple of years older than Axel, and so vulnerable—a gorgeous male whose tender soul was revealed after he’d peeled off his hard layers and shown his true self.
But that vulnerable part vanished in an instant, and he returned to be the powerful, ruthless Demigod of Sea.
We started running again, and I didn’t look at him.
It shocked me that of all people, I’d confessed my fears to Paxton, and I felt lighter for it. He was showing me that I didn’t need to carry my burdens alone; he would carry them with me.
“Let me train you in secret, Buttercup,” he said, my pet name rolling off his tongue as if he savored it. “You’ll need me. I want nothing in return. All I need is for you to survive. And we both know a storm is coming.”
“Storms are always coming,” I grunted.
He smiled at me, as bright as sunlight glinting on the broad expanse of the sea, reminding me that the Demigod of Sea had domain over the oceans.
My heart stuttered and fluttered.
Stupid girl, I told myself.
Yet a swell of warmth swam in my middle.
My old sworn enemy had turned into my protector, and he wasn’t disgusted by my demon blood.
I looked over my shoulder just in time to catch the Dominion soldiers all drop their jaws at Paxton’s stunning smile, even though they couldn’t hear the exchanges between us.
I think the sun is shining out of the sea demigod’s ass this time, Marie mouthed.
I smirked and turned to look ahead.
“I don’t like to owe anyone a debt,” I said. “Even if you help me, you won’t get a piece of me. And I expect you could turn on me anytime.”
“I won’t turn on you,” he said, his smile morphing to a shark’s. “I can swear a blood oath to you if you want. And I won’t expect you to give anything back. I don’t even expect you to forgive me.”
“Did you notice what happened when Ares released his Glory on us?” I asked carefully.
“Of course,” he said. “You held your own. But your power is still like a baby’s compared to what your parents could do. We got lucky last time, as Ares didn’t use his full Glory, but we can’t rely on luck. If he strikes again, there’ll be causalities. So we must make sure to be ready next time. I’ll let my cousins train you on your Titan magic, but I’ll focus on your other powers. You need to merge the two kinds, and then you’ll be able to command every single fire.”
“How