He laughed again. “Fine, lesson number two, then. The punch is always spiked.”
I rubbed my hands over my bare arms, knocking back the goose bumps that his laugh had raised. I forced my feet to move, strode to the door, and jerked it open.
Smithy’s blue eyes raked over me, and I grit my teeth against the way my body reacted. “What do you want?”
He didn’t step forward, didn’t push his way into my space. “I came to give you a warning. I know which hero Hera is calling up this time to face you.”
I swallowed hard. “How bad is it?”
His eyebrows rose even as his jaw ticked. “Bad, worse than the other two combined. May I come in?”
I was being silly. He wasn’t going to throw himself at me. He had the same issue I’d had only a short time before. He believed in his marriage vows, even though his wife, Aphrodite, had no problem working outside of them. He wouldn’t make a serious move while he still had a wife. Smithy was a faithful man. Something I couldn’t say for Remo.
No, do not go there, Alena.
I moved to one side and held the door open for him. He stepped through into the light, and I got a good look at him. His scars were still visible, all the marks of being a blacksmith for thousands of years burned into his forearms and even a few places on his neck and collarbone. Then again, those could be scars from fighting too; he was a warrior from way back when the pantheon was nothing but warfare and chaos. Not that things had changed much, really.
I clamped my fingers together with the sudden itch to touch those scars. What was wrong with me? Ten minutes before I’d been sobbing my heart out about Remo, and now here I was considering just how Smithy’s skin would feel under my own.
A soft voice whispered to me inside my head, and I recognized it for who it was. The Drakaina side of me had been speaking up lately.
You are a siren, and that means your libido is high, and not easily quenched. Your nature recognizes that you are no longer attached to the vampire, even if your heart has not yet accepted it.
Great. Just what I needed.
Smithy walked to the far side of the room and eyed up the stove, even going so far as to flick the gas burner on. He ran his fingers through the flame twice before he flicked it back off.
“Showing off?” I reluctantly closed the door behind me. If it hadn’t been for the mob of Firstamentalists out front, I would have left it open. Maybe it could air out the growing pheromone clouds in the small room. I glanced up at Ernie, who’d plunked himself on the shelf that held the spices, right next to the cupboard with the liquor. He was remaining remarkably quiet, his blue eyes watching us closely.
Smithy turned with a tight smile on his lips. “I like that you work with the flame, and not just an electric heat. A real flame has a flavor of its own.”
I shrugged. “It gives a more even heat distribution, which is important for a lot of recipes.”
“No spikes and drops. No ups and downs, just a steady, burning heat,” he said softly.
I clamped my hands behind my back. I didn’t think he really was talking about the stove. Even I wasn’t that dense. “True enough. Then again, to get a good caramel, you need to bring the ingredients just to the edge of a burn before you get the right texture and flavor. It’s the only way to bring out the sweetness.”
Good grief, what was wrong with me?
His smile widened. “Caramel?”
I cleared my throat. “I’m a baker; caramel is a big part of that.”
“No, you’re a Drakaina.”
Oh, and there was the cold water I needed to cool my jets. “Don’t tell me what I am; I am more than aware of it. Besides, I am a baker at the core.”
“You can’t change what you are, Alena. No more than I can. No more than I will ever be free of her,” he said.
There was a sadness in his voice there that I didn’t want to hear. I didn’t want to feel bad for him . . . because I understood all too well what it was to be married to someone who didn’t love you anymore. Someone who just wanted to use you for your gifts and talents and would cast you off at the first hint of not getting their way.
I cleared my throat and moved to the cupboard where I kept my largest mixing bowls. I pulled two out and set them on the counter. “I thought you were getting a divorce? That’s what Oberfluffel said.”
His lips twitched. “I told Oberfall what he wanted to hear. There are no divorces for the pantheon.”
“Well, if you ask around, there are no divorces for Super Dupers married to humans, but I’ve proved that wrong.” I raised my eyebrows at him as I reached for some basic ingredients, laying them out on the counter next to my bowls. Flour, sugar, baking powder, vanilla, eggs. I just kept grabbing things, not really thinking about what I was going to make so much as keeping my hands busy. Anything to hold my mind on my own business and away from the man—no, god—in front of me.
“Ah, you think it would be that easy?” he asked.
I tried not to notice that he closed the distance between us step by step. I grabbed a bowl and thrust it at him. “Here, hold this.”
He frowned into the empty bowl, and I started throwing ingredients in. Literally tossing them in, forcing him to move the bowl around to catch them.
“If you really wanted out, you’d find a way. Zeus said that Hera wouldn’t allow him to divorce her. That he tried. So maybe you could convince your wife to let you go.” I cracked three eggs and dropped them into the mix. I realized that I was making a sponge cake—at least that was the recipe going through my head. Even if I was putting it together wrong.
“And if I were free of her? What then?” He put the bowl on the counter and tried to capture my eyes with his. Nope, not going there. Nana nana nana nana. I ran the noise through my head, hoping for some help. I glanced at Ernie, who just grinned at me and gave me two thumbs up. Shoot, so much for counting on him to break things up.
Smithy slid around so I had my back against the counter and his hands were on either side. Trapping me even while he didn’t touch me. “What then, Alena?”
“Umm.” I looked over his left shoulder, and he moved so his face was in the way. Double shoot, this was not going as planned.
“Let me guess, he let you go, didn’t he? The vampire ran away from you, citing irreconcilable differences?” Smithy asked softly, his voice tugging at me.
“And what if he did?” I finally locked eyes with him, noting that up close his blue eyes had tiny flecks of silver in them that glinted in the light. That had to be what gave him his trademark icy stare. “You don’t really want to be free of Aphrodite. If you did, you would have found a way. There is always a way if you want something bad enough.”
In a flash his body was pressed against mine, making me gasp as he pinned me to the counter, his large hands covering mine and holding me still. I may have let out a squeak, but I’m not entirely sure, because my brain went on strike as my damn heart went into overdrive with sweet, hot adrenaline.
His face came within kissing distance, his breath fluttering over my lips. “There has been no reason to go through with a divorce, no reason to stir the flames of her wrath.” He drew in a breath and let it out slowly, the rush of it tickling across my lips again. “Until now.”
Sugar cookies, this was not good, even though a part of me wanted it. Like really, really wanted it.
Panic reared its head, and the Drakaina in me fell away, leaving only the truth in its place. I blurted it out, desperate to stop this. “I love him. And I can’t . . . I can’t just jump from him to you. I can’t.”
Smithy closed his eyes. “Damn.”
“He doesn’t love her,” Ernie said from his perch, helpful as always.
Smithy glanced at him, not for one second loosening his hold on me. “You sure about that, Eros? Or are you playing games for your master?”
Ernie shook his head. “Alena’s my friend. Aphrodite is my boss. You tell me where my loyalties lie. If Remo loved her, he’d fight for her, wouldn’
t he? He gave up the second someone said he had to.”
“You’ve played these games with others, setting people up.” That icy glare was locked on Ernie, but the cherub just shrugged, seemingly unbothered by the accusation.
“I’m never wrong. I can see the truth of people’s hearts. That’s kind of my job, you know.” Like he was going to let us forget that his job was to bring people together.
This sounded like an ongoing issue between the two men. “Um, can you ease off?”
Smithy tightened his hold on me, not looking away from Ernie. “Eros. What do you see for her?”
Okay, what was he talking about now? I glanced at Ernie, who’d closed his eyes, his wings stilling. “There is love in her future, a love that will eclipse the sun with its brightness. Aphrodite will hate her with a passion she’s reserved in the past for lovers who scorned her.” He opened his eyes. “You know I can’t tell you details; it doesn’t work that way.”
“What are you two talking about?” I squirmed, but that only bumped my hips up against Smithy. He turned, his eyes latching onto my mouth, his hands tightening once more on mine.
“It means I’m going to break my own rules.” He tugged my hands up so they were around the back of his neck. My fingers automatically curled, brushing against the base of his neck. We were nose to nose. I opened my mouth to tell him to let me go, only my hands didn’t push him away. They pulled him close.
His mouth was on mine, and his tongue slid past my lips. He wrapped his arms around my waist and held me tight to his hard body, his muscles flexing against me like he was restraining himself from squeezing me tighter.
He tasted of caramel, and I fought to not enjoy his mouth on mine, because there was a reason . . . wasn’t there? The Drakaina in me, though, was quite enjoying the new sensations of a Greek god running his hands over my back, hips, and butt. Power crackled where his hands traced, a slow burning fire that called to parts of me I was doing my best to bring back under control. He pulled back, his chest heaving and his eyes full of desire.
I blinked up at him, then shoved him backward hard enough that he hit the far wall with a bounce. “That was dirty pool!”
“That was desire, plain and simple.” He grinned at me, all wolfy and wild. Damn, it made my blood pound, that single thing. I drew in a breath, then another, as I tried to get myself under control. Even with Remo I’d held back, and I’d wanted him from the beginning. What was going on?
“This isn’t like you, Smithy. And it’s not like me, even if I am a siren.” The words slid out of me, and I looked up at Ernie. “Did you shoot him with one of your arrows or something?”
Smithy jerked as though he had indeed been shot. Ernie flew right up to the ceiling. “Now, what would make you say that?” There was too much innocence in his denial, and his blue eyes were far too wide. The fat-bottomed jerk!
I frowned at Ernie. “Ernie! You shot him, didn’t you?”
Ernie was shaking his head, but I saw the glint in his eyes. “Aphrodite doesn’t deserve him, and he’s a good guy. One of the best. And you don’t deserve to be jerked around by Remo. You’re . . . you’re a good friend. Both of you are. I want you to be happy, and there is a lot of possibility there. You two could be amazing together. This is my job, remember?”
“You don’t have to keep reminding us of that. We know it’s your job,” I said, then swallowed hard. How could I be mad at what he was saying? He wanted us both to be happy and thought he could help us along. That’s what friends did for one another.
Apparently Smithy wasn’t so moved by Ernie’s speech.
“You little shit! You aren’t supposed to be shooting the pantheon! It’s against the rules.” I almost asked if it was rule number three but wisely kept my mouth shut.
He moved toward the stove and flicked one of the burners on. The flame shot up far higher than it should have.
“Don’t, you’ll burn my bakery down!” I yelled.
“How about he’ll fry my wings off?” Ernie bit out.
Smithy ran his hand through the flame and coaxed it up into his hands. He rolled it back and forth like a baseball.
“Eros, you’ve gone too far this time.”
“I was really trying to help. I could see that you liked her, that you wanted her. More than that, you respect her!” He held both hands out to Smithy. “I mean, you almost kissed her on your own, without me. We all know it.”
Smithy threw the fireball at Ernie, and the cherub dodged it. Which meant it slammed into my ceiling.
“Stop it!” I grabbed Smithy’s arm, which spun him to face me. I cupped his face with my hands and pushed my siren abilities into my voice. “Don’t hate him for wanting me to be happy. He’s right, this was between us before he interfered.”
His blue eyes softened, then immediately hardened over again. “Don’t try to control me. I’ve had enough of that shit.”
I let him go, pushing away the urge to keep my hands on his face. “Then don’t try to hurt him. He did this because he cares about you. And me.”
Smithy shook his head, turned around, and flicked off the stove, then held a hand up to the ceiling, and the flames went out. He grabbed the edges of the stove and hunched his back. “When did you shoot me, Eros?”
Ernie gave an audible gulp. “This morning.”
I frowned. “I was still with Remo this morning.”
Ernie closed his eyes and rubbed his hands over his face. “The rumor was already out there that he was going to dump you. That the big bads coming into town wouldn’t help him oust Santos if he was still seeing you. I already knew what he’d choose. I knew that he didn’t really love you, Alena. I’m sorry. I’d hoped I was wrong for your sake.”
The back door flung open, and Tad strode in, a grin on his face. “What have you baked up for me today?” He stared at Smithy’s back. “Um . . . what’s the captain doing here? You in trouble again?”
Dang it all, I’d not introduced Tad to Smithy for who he really was. “Tad, this is Hephaestus, part of the Greek pantheon. You and I know him as Smithy.”
“Shit on a brick, that explains a few things.” Tad breathed out.
Smithy turned, his trademark icy glare once more in his eyes as he stared at my brother, any trace of the seducer who’d kissed the bejeebers out of me gone. And then his eyes flicked over to me, softening ever so imperceptibly.
“Alena.” He paused as if he didn’t know what to say, shook his head, and then closed his mouth with an audible click. Not another word passed his lips as he strode out of the room. He slammed the door behind him, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Or was that regret? How much was Ernie’s arrow, and how much was me feeling something for Smithy that I didn’t want to feel?
Did I really want to find out? I had to admit one thing, even if it was only to myself. Maybe there was something that Ernie had pushed forward with his arrow, but . . . maybe that wasn’t the whole reason I felt drawn toward the rugged Greek god of the forge.
He was handsome, and strong, and he’d been brutally honest with me. Honesty was something I valued as much as anything else. Something that I wasn’t sure now that Remo had given me. Even when he’d walked away, he’d held back from being honest. So what was I doing? Wishing Remo were still with me, while considering the kiss I’d shared with Smithy? My mother would be horrified. And she would be right.
I was soooo going to H-E-double-hockey-sticks in a handbasket.
CHAPTER 4
“What the hell just happened there?” Tad looked at me, the closed door, and then back at me again.
“Long story.” I ran a hand over my head, smoothing my hair back.
He laughed. “And? You can’t say ‘long story’ and then not even give me a little bit of it, sis.”
I rolled my eyes. “It has nothing to do with you, so I’m not telling you anything.”
Still laughing, he helped me get going on the recipe. I could never be really all that mad with my younger brother. I’d lost him once when I�
��d thought the Aegrus virus had taken him. And then I’d almost lost him again when Achilles had used him as bait for me to walk into a trap. No matter how Tad might poke at me, no matter how we might fight from time to time, I wouldn’t change it for anything. Our parents might have disowned us, but we had each other.
That was worth all the teasing in the world.
I smiled to myself, thinking about how far we’d come from the sheltered Firstamentalist lives we’d started with. I dumped the batter I’d begun and started the sponge cake over again, focusing on the ingredients instead of what had just happened. I wanted to put a buttercream frosting between the two-layer. Not the kind of frosting I’d laced my vomit-inducing cupcakes with. There would be no venom in this cake.
A thought hit me like a frying pan to the side of my head. The whole point of Smithy coming to see me was to warn me and tell me which hero Hera had raised to kill me this time. “Wait here, Tad!”
“I’m not going anywhere, but where are you going?” he called after me.
I ran out the door and into the parking lot without answering him, knowing I was probably too late. It had been a good ten minutes since Smithy had left.
But there he was on the far side of the road, across from the mob. He sat on a motorbike, gripping the handlebars, his head hanging. The low rumble of the Firstamentalists was the only sound in the night air.
I licked my lips, then sprinted across the road.
“Smithy, wait, please.”
His head jerked up and turned to me, a look in his eyes I didn’t want to dwell on. A look that said he’d been thinking about me and hoping I’d come after him.
The problem was, I hadn’t been lying when I’d said I loved Remo.
But it was also true that Smithy’s kiss had lit me up in a most unexpected way. I was in trouble no matter how I looked at things.
“Is something wrong?” He kicked the stand on his bike and stepped off. I stopped a few feet away, keeping distance between us. The closer I was, the more my libido woke up, and that was something I just didn’t want to deal with at the moment.
Hisses and Honey (The Venom Trilogy Book 3) Page 4
