The fountain? That thing must weigh a ton. “It fell on top of him?”
“Yeah. Strangely enough, he doesn’t seem to have any broken bones.”
“That’s good.” Partial relief steadied her budding anxiety. She followed Kaye into the house and down the hall. The party was wrapping up down below. The ice sculpture had melted into a puddle. The band packed its equipment, and people left in groups.
When they reached Parker’s room, he was alone, lying on his bed. Syrinx’s heart melted when she saw him. She knelt by the bed and put her hand on his forehead. “Are you okay?”
He smiled. “I’m okay now.”
She shrugged off his sweet comment. This wasn’t the time for flirting. “What the hell happened down there?”
He rubbed his temples as if speaking about it wasted his time. “I was trying to find the plug, and the floor cracked with my weight and the weight of the fountain. It was just enough to set off the balance and it tipped over.”
Kaye looked him up and down. “How much do you weigh?”
“Haha. Very funny.” Parker glanced away. He didn’t look amused. In fact, he looked pretty uncomfortable. Syrinx decided that was enough Kaye for one night.
“Kaye, why don’t you go ahead alone. I’m going to stay with him to make sure he’s okay.”
Kaye opened her mouth and gawked. “You mean stay the night?”
Syrinx nodded and gave her a please-be-discreet-about-this stare. “You open the store in the morning, okay?”
“Oh. Sure. No problem.” Kaye patted her friend on the back and winked. “You keep an eye on him. I’ll see you tomorrow.” She waved to Parker. “Get better soon.”
Syrinx waited for Kaye to leave, then shut the door and sat beside him on the bed. “Are you sure you don’t want to see a doctor?”
“I’m sure. I’m fine.” Parker sat up. “But it’s nice of you to stay anyway.”
A jolt of panic crept up Syrinx’s spine. What had she gotten herself into? Wait a second. You knew what you were doing. You made your decision. When she saw him lying there, she knew she couldn’t leave him. If it meant she’d stay the night, then so be it. Besides, he was probably in no shape for anything like what she was thinking of, was he?
Syrinx looked him up and down. He looked fine. No, he looked more than fine. His suit coat and tie had been taken off, and the top button of his white shirt was undone, revealing a ripped, bronze chest. Mischief glinted in his eyes. He pulled her closer to him on the bed.
“Wait a second. You’re in no condition to—”
Parker pressed his lips to hers, and she gave in to the kiss. It felt so good to be with him and for him to want her. Her mouth opened, and his tongue probed hers. He tasted like champagne and smelled of woodsy pine as if the forest were all around her.
He pulled away, and she gasped for air. “No condition for what?”
“For that.” Syrinx tried to recover, but the draw to him was too strong.
Parker gave her an apologetic half smile. “I’m sorry. I had to get one kiss in.”
“Before what?” Did he mean for her to stay in another room? Disappointment swept through her, proving to her she wanted this.
“Before we talk. I was interrupted earlier.”
“Talk?” For once, that was the last thing Syrinx wanted to do. Why ruin the mood with sad stories of the past? She wanted to be with him, to feel his body against hers and share something special together. Saturnia was right. Kaye was right. Chastity wasn’t who she was. It was an ideal she’d clung to for far too long. She was so much more than that, and the woman inside her needed to be freed. She’d spent too many long eons alone.
Syrinx tackled him on the bed, and they fell back together. “We can talk in the morning.” She kissed him gently, and he responded as if she’d summoned a raw passion within him. His hands explored her body, caressing her curves. She’d always thought she’d feel cheapened or violated, but instead, she felt more cherished and beautiful.
Has she been missing this all those centuries? Or was she just waiting for the right one? For Parker Thomas?
His kisses burned a trail from her neck to her chest as he reached around back for the zipper. She unbuttoned his shirt, revealing a chest like smooth river stone.
“You sure you want to do this?” he whispered between hungry kisses.
“Yes.” She spoke without hesitation. “I want you more than I’ve wanted anything before.”
He kissed her more passionately, as if her words gave him courage. She looked into his eyes, expecting his loving copper gaze. A sea of green stared back at her, wild with desire. She couldn’t see her reflection, only the trees in an endless forest.
Syrinx pulled back, panting.
Parker threw his shirt on the floor. “What’s the matter?” He blinked, and the copper returned, showing a deep, sincere love. He looked so beautiful, so perfect. How could she have seen such wild desire?
“Nothing.” Embarrassment burned in her cheeks. “It’s just…I’ve never done this before.”
“That’s okay.” He swept her up in his arms. “I know what I’m doing.”
…
Pan had never experienced such joy and ecstasy. He stroked Syrinx’s hair as she slept, his wild restlessness abated. He felt complete. Sure, he’d been with many maidens, but nothing compared with developing a relationship first. Knowing Syrinx as a person only deepened the bond between them, satiating his wild lust and turning it into something more profound.
A dark apprehension crept in as he reminded himself he still had to tell her the truth. He really shouldn’t have spent the night with her first. But she’d insisted they’d talk in the morning, and he’d wanted her for so long, he couldn’t resist her request. He wished to all the gods he could just be Parker Thomas, the mortal. That’s who she really loved. But he was Pan, the one she despised most in the world.
What have I done?
He’d doomed himself to losing her the day he cut off his beard. Back then, keeping her didn’t matter. If only he could have warned himself. Would he have done anything differently? Turned around and walked back into his forest without her?
No.
He’d give up everything to be with her—his maidens, his identity, even his own immortality. If only such an exchange were possible.
But no, he was left with telling her the truth.
Chirping birdsong came from Syrinx’s purse. She stirred, turning on her side. Her eyes met his, and she smiled the most beautiful smile he’d ever seen. “Good morning.”
“Good morning, gorgeous.” He kissed her cheek. “It seems you’ve caught a bird in your purse.”
“My phone!” She jumped out of bed, using the sheets as a robe. “I totally forgot about it. I hope Kaye is all right.”
She dug in her purse and pulled it out, pressing the message button. “It’s a text.” Her voice dropped to a dead tone. “From my sister.”
Pan tensed. Something wasn’t right.
She swallowed hard.
Dread spread through his gut, bottoming out his stomach into a black hole. Coral found a way around the curse. He’d contained her in the god realm, but that didn’t stop her from talking to the other gods. Instead of coming to Syrinx, she must have found Saturnia. He reached out to take the phone from her, but it was too late.
She turned toward him with a heartbreaking expression of horror. “No. It can’t be.” Her face twisted into disgust. “You’re P-Pan?” She said his name as if he was the worst poison in the world, striking him like a bludgeon to the heart.
Pan’s world shattered. Without Syrinx, he was nothing. He couldn’t go back to his forest. He couldn’t be with another maiden after this. He held up his hand. “Wait. I can explain.”
“How did you find me?”
Pan slapped his hand on his forehead. “It was Coral. She told me how she’d helped you get away. She wanted me to have you and get you out of my system so I’d move on to her.”
“I be
t she did. And she’ll get just what she wanted.” Syrinx frowned in disgust.
“No, she won’t. I don’t want Coral, or any other woman. I want you.”
“Cheap words. Is that what you tell all the maidens?”
“No.” Pan grasped at the sheets, struggling to find some way for her to believe him. “It was Coral back on the road. She scared a deer to wreck the car because I was taking too long. She knew I wanted you, and she wanted the truth to come out so you wouldn’t have me.”
“Too bad I didn’t see it sooner.” Syrinx shook her head. “I can’t believe I trusted her.”
She backed to the door as if he was a convicted murderer with an ax in his hand. Lasers shot from her eyes, stabbing him in the chest one by one. “I can’t believe I trusted you.”
“Syrinx.” He said her name for the first time. He’d wanted to say it out loud so badly, but now it came out of his mouth as a regret, not a joy. “Everything I’ve done, I’ve done for you.”
“I bet you have.” She started to glow. Her power blinded him, casting him in judgment. That’s what she was good at—judging others against her perfect ideals. He should have known she could never bring herself to love someone as amoral as the embodiment of nature itself. “You did it all to win your little game.”
Pan covered his eyes before the light blinded him for good. Her hatred destroyed him, pulling him apart until there was nothing left but a weak puddle of triviality with no honorable center, the primordial mud from which he was born.
“I hope it was worth it, you dirty, lying scoundrel. Because I’ll make sure you’ll never see me again.”
Thunder clapped, and she was gone.
Chapter Seventeen Assistance from the Assistant
Pan staggered into Sylvia’s Creations like a man in a desert seeking an oasis. Of course, Syrinx wasn’t there. He knew before he stepped through the door. The place already lacked some of its magic charm. The plants wilted, and the glass of the greenhouse fogged, blocking the brightest rays of sun.
Or maybe Kaye wasn’t doing her job. She looked up from the cash register while painting her nails. “What the hell happened to you?”
He rubbed the stubble on his chin. Did he look that bad? “Has Sylvia come in?”
She blew on her nails. “No. As a matter of fact, she’s late. Did she keep you up all night with her dissertation on shade-loving species?”
Pan couldn’t handle her humor now. Get to the point. Ask for her help. It was the only play he had left. “I don’t think she’s coming back.”
“Not coming back? What did you do to her?” Kaye dropped the hand polish and picked up the scissors. She backed up and held them in her hand as if seeing him for the first time. “Did you kill her?”
Pan narrowed his eyes, completely insulted. “No. I didn’t kill her. I can’t live without her.”
Kaye lowered the scissors but didn’t put them down. “Then why isn’t she coming back?”
Guilt weighed him down until his knees weakened. He felt like some cheap swindler on the side of the street. “She learned the truth about me. I was going to tell her, but I couldn’t find the right time to do it.”
Kaye narrowed her eyes. “What’s the truth? Are you married?”
“No.” This was going to be harder than he thought. Could Kaye really think outside the box? “You won’t understand.”
She gave him her toughest look, which was about as threatening as a bunny rabbit. “Try me.”
He shook his head. There was no other way to go about it than to tell her the truth. She probably won’t even believe him. “I’m Pan.”
Kaye’s mouth dropped open. “As in ‘Pan’ Pan?”
He nodded in resignation.
She looked down at his ripped jeans. “The god?”
“Yes.”
She paced back and forth as if digesting the new information. “So you’re the one who’s been tracking her all these years?”
“She told you?”
“Yes. I know all about her being a goddess and your past together.”
“Great.” That came out more sarcastic than he intended. At least he wouldn’t have to explain why he was stalking her friend.
“Didn’t you make some sort of reed flute in her honor?”
“It’s in my desk.”
“Wow.” Kaye shook her head. “I had no idea. I mean—you look normal to me. Maybe a little hotter than the usual guy, but it’s not like I can see anything way different about you.” She looked him up and down again. “Where are your hooves?”
“If it’s okay with you, I’d prefer to stay in mortal form right now.”
“I see.” She went back to pacing, and he felt as though he was on trial.
“I shouldn’t have followed her here. I should have let her be.”
“Maybe you should have,” Kaye agreed, and he thought his last chance at finding Syrinx was busted.
Served him right. He should have listened to Rutherford. He’d treated the woman he admired like a conquest, not a person. Only when she yanked herself from his life did the depth of their connection reveal itself. She’d severed a vital artery from his heart, a crucial component to who he’d become. Without Syrinx, he was the old Pan. Except now he had no lust, only regret.
He stood up and brushed off his jeans.
Kaye’s words stopped him. “But I still think it’s one of the most romantic things I’ve ever heard.”
He raised an eyebrow. “You do?”
“Yeah. I’d die for some guy to be that into me.” She gave him a pitying smile. “So what’s the plan? How are you going to win her back?”
He tried to summon the sweetest face he could. “I was hoping you’d help me with that.”
“Me?” Kaye’s eyes widened. “How am I supposed to help?”
“She won’t leave for good without coming back to say good-bye. She likes you too much.”
“I’d be pretty angry if she didn’t.” Kaye’s voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper. “But she won’t come back if you’re hanging out here. She is a goddess—she’s got to have a way of knowing these things.”
Pan put up both hands. “So I’ll go back to my place, and you’ll have to convince her to see me.”
Kaye crossed her arms. “And how am I going to convince her of that?”
Pan shrugged. “That’s the part of the plan I was hoping you’d figure out. You’re her best friend. You know what’s best for her.”
Kaye walked up to him and put a finger to his chest. “And are you best for her?”
“I care about her, Kaye. I’ve never felt this way toward anyone before in my life. I can’t exist without her. I can’t go back to my old life. It won’t compare to what I’ve built here with her.”
Kaye sighed. “Oh, this is so romantic. Why can’t there be guys out there like that for me?” She waved him off. “All right. I’ll help.”
“You will?”
Kaye nodded. “Only because you sound sincere.” She walked back to the cash register, then turned around as if she’d had second thoughts. “And if you so much as make her mad again…” Kaye shook her finger. “I’ll come at you myself, throwing pots.”
Pan resisted the urge to laugh. Kaye throwing pots at him wasn’t exactly the most threatening thought. “I promise I’ll be good.”
…
Syrinx sat on a cold marble bench in the Temple of Lament, perched on the farthest cliff of the range dominated by Mount Olympus. She swatted away a cloud of pixies and picked up a stone, throwing it across the patio and down the mountainside.
How had she been so blind? Of course Parker Thomas was Pan. How else could he pay for all of his extravagance? And a fertility doctor—that was sheer genius. She’d been watching for him all that time, and all that time, he was right under her nose. Like a thorn in her side.
And she’d fallen for it. She’d fallen in love, and it blinded her to reality. Parker Thomas, the man she loved, didn’t exist. It was almost as if he’d died. A
deep sense of loss sucked her heart out, followed by anger and burning, embarrassing shame. Shame so debilitating she wasn’t sure she could live with it.
“Don’t throw yourself off the cliff, now.” Saturnia sat beside her on the bench. Her sister wore her usual amalgam of partially see-through veils. She brought a bowl of fruit.
“I’m ruined.” Syrinx pushed the fruit away.
“You’re not ruined. You had a bad encounter with love. It happens. You move on.”
“I can’t be the goddess of chastity anymore.”
“So pick something else like the goddess of botany, or the goddess of flora—wait, that one’s taken. Anyway, it’s not the end of the world. Hades would be roaming around with the undead. Thunderbolts would be falling form the sky. Look at the sky, sis. It’s still blue.”
“Easy for you to say.”
“Hey now. No need to be judgmental. I told you as soon as Coral came to me. I’m sorry I was too late.”
“Coral—” Syrinx couldn’t believe she hadn’t recognized the river nymph on the side of the road. In her defense, it was raining, and the windshield was blurry. And she didn’t expect other gods to be walking around the mortal world. “She’s the one stalking Pan. She destroyed my greenhouse and sent a deer into the road, causing us to crash.”
Saturnia brushed back her auburn hair. “You know she told me just to break you two up.”
“Well, she did a hell of a good job with that.”
Saturnia crinkled her nose. “You really want to let her win?”
“I don’t know what else to do. I’m not going back there. I can’t trust Pan, and I can’t live here. I’ll be the subject of derision and gossip for eons to come.”
“So find another century to live in. Make new friends. And don’t tell anyone—even me—where you’re going. That way, you’ll have complete privacy.” Saturnia turned away as if sad. As if she really made an effort to spend time with her the last few centuries? She was too busy gallivanting around spreading lust.
How could her sister understand? Sure, she’d lost her love way back before Syrinx was born. But Syrinx had lost everything: her title as the goddess of chastity, the man she loved, the home she’d built for herself, and there was no way she’d be able to be friends with Kaye. Not from centuries away.
Pan's Conquest (Entangled Covet) Page 12
