“He transformed himself into a shower of gold?” Staring at my computer screen with a scrunched face, I slapped my hand over my forehead. “How does one even fuck a shower of gold?”
I’d been researching myths about Zeus for the past several hours and grabbed my third can of Red Bull, swigging more of the energy elixir down my throat. Adjusting my clear framed blue screen glasses, I eyed the open internet tab I’d yet to have the guts to look at: Oizys. He said she was my biological mother. A goddess. Which made me—no. It just couldn’t be real. But not one ounce of deceit flooded from his emotions. He’d spoken with the same conviction as when he declared himself Zeus.
It sparked so many more questions. What was my birth mother like? Why didn’t she want me? Who was the mortal man she spent her time with? Did he know I existed? Was she still alive? Could gods die in some specific way, like vampires or werewolves? Is she the reason for my empathic abilities?
A phantom breeze blew through my hair, making me shiver. Furrowing my brow, I glanced at the windows behind me, knowing full well I’d never leave them open in the dead of winter, but where else would a draft come from?
With a groan, I snatched the can again, tilting my head back to take a swig and frowning when I realized it was empty. Resting the glasses on top of my keyboard and rubbing my eyes, I pushed from the desk, heading for the kitchen for another energy drink. My phone buzzed on the counter, and I swiped it into my hand as I popped the can.
“Hey, Olivia.”
“I’m coming over.”
I made a slurping sound, nearly choking on my drink. “Now? Why? It’s two in the morning.”
“When has the dead of the night ever stopped me? And what do you bloody mean why? I’m bored.”
Throwing a silent temper tantrum by kicking my feet and beating my phone against my forehead, I held back a sigh. I’d planned to spend the better part of the night into the wee hours of the morning inundating myself with information on a would-be suitor. The King of the Gods. It seemed crazy, outrageous, positively bonkers, but he wasn’t lying. The lightning—the sight of it, the feel of it—was undeniable. And the desperation steaming from him as he almost begged me to believe him…that did me in.
“I’m kind of in the middle of something, Ollie. Can we hang out tomorrow?”
“Nope. I’m outside your door. Answer it, hoe bag.” She knocked on my door.
Groaning, I flopped the cell phone back to the counter and shuffled to the door. Olivia waved at me from the other side of it and whisked past before I had a chance to close it.
“What in the hell are you doing? It’s pitch black in here except for the computer—” She gasped and turned on her heel with a wide grin. “Were you watching porn?”
I rolled my eyes and took a swig of my drink before moving back to my desk. “No. I wasn’t. I’m doing research.”
Before I could minimize the window, Olivia darted in front of me. “Research? On Greek mythology?” She clicked through the thirty-two tabs I had open, her eyes widening with each passing website. “And these are all on Zeus. What does this have to do with the case?”
Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
“Ollie, it’s tough to explain.” The can crinkled in my hand as my grip tightened on it.
Olivia stood straight as she raised a thin brow and circled me. “What are you hiding, Miss Bazin?”
“Are you seriously trying to lawyer me?”
She tapped a finger over her lips. “And now you’re sidestepping the question.”
I didn’t have time for this.
“For fuck’s sake. Come here.” I motioned with my head toward the couch, sitting with one leg propped. Zane’s penthouse light came on across the street, and like a moth to a flame, my eyes darted straight to it.
“You’re acting far stranger than normal, Keir.” Olivia slowly sat down with her palms pressed against her thighs.
“Zane isn’t really Zane. He’s Zeus, King of the Gods. And I’m apparently the daughter of a goddess, making me a demigod.”
Could I have done that more eloquently? Definitely, but not only was it two in the morning I was also downing my fourth Red Bull.
Olivia squinted at me before snatching the can from my grasp with lightning speed. She sniffed the mouthpiece, still eyeing me. “Hm. I don’t smell vodka.”
“You would barely smell it anyway.”
Not tearing her gaze from mine, she took a sip and gagged. “Nope. No vodka. Just arse.”
I yanked it back. “Do you think everything tastes like ass?”
“If it doesn’t taste any bloody good? Yeah.”
Repeatedly flicking the tab of the can, I spied Zane’s shadow waltzing back and forth in his apartment. One singular shadow. A peculiar wave of relief washed over me.
“Keira, are you being serious?” Olivia threw her hands at her sides, shrugging.
“Yes,” I said, the word barely escaping my throat, my gaze still drawn to Zane’s window.
Olivia’s palms slapped her thighs as she dropped them. “Huh. I would never under any circumstance call you crazy, but this is all a bit wonky sounding, don’t you think?”
How had I expected this conversation to go?
The only reason I somehow managed to believe it so quickly was because I had ties to their world—my mind, my body, my very bones all sang to me that it was all real. Not to mention my ability to know whether he lied or not.
My ability.
I turned to her, dropping my foot to the floor and resting the can on the coffee table between us. “I’ve never told you this—well, I’ve never told anyone this, but I have special abilities. And until yesterday, I thought it a weird quirk, but apparently…it’s because of my lineage.”
She leaned forward. “What abilities?”
“I’m an empath. A heightened, specialized, empath.” I steepled my fingers. “It’s why I walk to work. Why you always see me in my office alone after I get there. It’s to give myself a break from the surge of emotions that flood this city.”
Olivia’s eyes shifted from left to right. “So, at any point in time, you can tell how I feel, even if I’m saying otherwise?”
“Yes. But I’m around you so often I’ve been able to drown most of yours out. It feels intrusive otherwise.”
She thinned her lips and lifted her chin. “What am I feeling right now, then?”
I rolled my shoulders back, opening my mind to her emotions again—a feat I hadn’t done in years. With her vibrant personality, her emotions tickled over my skin. Holding back a smile, I answered, “Skeptical. And horny. Very very horny.”
How shocking.
She gasped and pointed at me. “You’re good.”
With her emotions open to me like a floodgate again, I let out a roiling sigh and sulked into the couch cushions. “You don’t believe a lick of what I’m saying, do you?”
She gave a half chuckle. “Come on, Keir. I’m trying here. I really am. But—Greek gods? We all know they were mythology made up by ‘Thosecles’ and ‘Homeboy,’ or whatever their names were.”
I could’ve corrected her, but what would’ve been the point?
Grinding my teeth, I pushed off the couch and grabbed my coat.
“Where are you going?” Olivia leaped to her feet.
“For a walk. I need to clear my head.” It came out far more gruffly than I’d intended.
Olivia crossed the room, grabbing my elbow as I slipped the coat over my arms. “Keira, come on. Be reasonable. It’s three in the bloody morning in New York City.”
“It’s not as if I’ve never walked around here this early before.” I plucked her fingers from my arm and slipped the jacket on the rest of the way. “This apartment suddenly feels suffocating, and I need fresh, cold air.”
“Keir, I’m sorry, I—” Her large green eyes blinked.
Remorse. Guilt. Sadness.
I patted her shoulder. “I know you are. And I don’t blame you a bit. I’ll be right back, okay? You have my key if you want to leave. Lock yourself in, alright?”
As she stared at me wide-eyed, I gave her one last pat and exited, heading down the stairs and to the quiet sidewalk outside.
Popping my earbuds in, I cued up a random Spotify playlist and hit shuffle. I started walking in the direction toward work, shoving my hands in my pockets and ignoring the loud chatter my teeth made.
Fuck the cold. I needed its harshness to ground me—to numb me.
The song Hail to the King by Avenged Sevenfold blasted in my ears, making me pause. I gazed up at the sky, the moon peeking through the dark wispy clouds that’d rolled in. Zane was a king. And not just any king…a godly, immortal one that could control lightning. The realization struck fear and lust, mixing, molding together until an ache pooled between my legs. Snarling, I started walking again, this time faster. The song continued to play, and I timed my steps with the rhythm, my gaze glued to the sidewalk.
What would it even mean to be Queen? What would it entail?
I stopped at a crosswalk and shook my head, diving through my mental bank of factoids I’d researched the past several hours. “And wait a fucking minute. Why would Zeus be looking for a wife? Whatever happened to Hera?”
Thank Christ it was early morning, or my out loud thinking may have turned a few heads, even if it was New York City. The walk sign illuminated, and I continued my brisk pace, paying no mind to my knees shaking beneath my thin yoga pants.
No. It all made absolutely no sense.
Maybe he was good at hiding when he lied. He was a damn good lawyer, and I’d heard about people who could fool lie detector tests by controlling their heartbeats. It was as reasonable an explanation as any. And yet—every other emotion I felt from him wasn’t fabricated.
A car door from a parked car suddenly swung open. Someone dressed in all black, sporting a ski mask, grabbed my shoulders and shoved me into the nearby alley with such force it jostled the earbuds from my ears. Fear wrenched down my spine with such ferocity my throat forgot how to scream.
Fear. Anger. Confusion.
The masked person faced me, and I lifted my knee, ready to strike them in the gut, but they grabbed my shoulders and shoved my chest against the stone wall. Cool metal pressed against the back of my head, and my breaths grew shaky, knees numbing—the wall my fingernails clawed was the only thing keeping me upright.
“Don’t scream. Don’t move, or I will shoot you,” the man growled near my ear, the heat from his breath leaking through the mask.
“Alright. Alright,” I managed to blurt out.
I’d gotten several threats since practicing in New York, and one had been severe enough I started to carry pepper spray with me everywhere. Not once had I ever needed to use it. I picked a bad day to forget.
“You put my little brother behind bars, you prosecuting bitch,” the man snarled, shoving the point of the gun harder against my skull, making it ache.
Wincing, I sucked in a breath to keep my voice from sounding as petrified as I felt. “Who’s your brother?”
“Mark Valesco. You remember him? Or do you just ruin lives and dust them under a rug?” He pushed between my shoulder blades, causing my cheek to scrape against the bricks.
Valesco. Murdered three innocent people. One of them was a ten-year-old boy. And all because they happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time when he was fleeing the scene of a bank robbery. I never forgot a case.
“Yeah, I remember Mark. He murdered three innocents.” I gritted my teeth. Stupid. Stupid. Don’t bait this guy.
The gun dug further into the back of my head, and I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from whimpering.
“The judge could’ve given him twenty, thirty years. But no. Because of you, he got life without parole. We’ll never see him outside that damn place anymore, and neither will his baby girl.”
A knot formed in my throat. “I’m sorry.”
I wasn’t sorry for putting a murderer behind bars for the rest of his life, but I was sorry a girl had to grow up without her father because he chose poorly.
“Yeah. You’re going to be.” He shoved his mouth near my ear again. “Hope you’ve made peace with your maker.”
The sound of the gun cocking flashed through my head.
Fear. Indecision.
This guy was just as terrified as I was. I pushed as much of my own fear as I could toward him, hoping it would overwhelm him and make him stop.
“You shoot me in an alley in the middle of downtown, and you don’t think anyone will hear?” I controlled my breathing, slowing my erratic heartbeat.
Hesitation. Questioning.
He blew out two harsh breaths and ran the back of his hand under his nose. “Makes no difference to me. Cops can kill me for all I care. At least I’ll die knowing you’re dead.”
Shit. He was too far gone to allow my ability to seep through. I closed my eyes, wincing, saying a silent prayer to whatever deities existed in the world to do something—anything to stop what was about to happen.
A sizzle of lightning blazed through the alleyway in a blinding flash, sparks flying. The pressure from the man’s hand and gun disappeared. Darkness spilled over the alley, not one single street lamp lit. Slowly, I turned.
Zane stood at the opposite wall, the man in his grasp, booted feet scraping the asphalt as his hands clawed at the one Zane had wrapped around his throat. Lightning curled around Zane’s chest and arms. I side stepped until I stood next to Zane laser-focused on the man in his grasp. Zane’s eyes glowed bright white, the lightning crackling within them. His expression was cold, predatory—deadly.
Anger. Distaste. Absolute fury.
“Zane, don’t.” I lifted a hand to touch his arm but snapped it back when the lightning hissed, swirling around his body faster.
“He was going to kill you.”
The man gagged and gurgled within his grip, what little pale skin that showed through the mask, reddening.
Licking my lips, I stepped closer. “But he didn’t. You stopped him. You can’t do this.”
“Watch me,” he snarled.
“I know you can, but you shouldn’t. There are security cameras everywhere.” My chest heaved, and I moved so close, I could feel the heat from the lightning coursing over him—feel the hairs on my arms standing on end.
“I fried them upon arrival.” Zane’s lip bounced, and he gripped harder around the man’s neck.
The man’s feet kicked harder, and his arms fell limp at his sides.
“Zane, stop,” I yelled.
Silence.
I stared at the man dying with each passing second.
“Zane,” I yelled again, raising my fingers to his shoulder but wincing as the lightning flicked at my skin.
Still such utter silence.
“Zeus,” I said quietly, ignoring the sting from the lightning as I slid a hand over his shoulder. “Please. Stop.”
He rapidly blinked, those brightened lightning eyes turning to look down at me. The lightning curling around his arms fizzled away, and all that remained was the bit ignited in his gaze.
Confused. Shocked. Still angry, though.
Zane lowered the man and loosened his grip but didn’t fully let go. Dipping his face closer, he said, “The only reason you’re still breathing is that I’m trying to get in this woman’s good graces. Remember that the next time you’re seeking petty revenge against a woman who was just doing her job.” He let go of the man’s neck, moving his hand to his shoulder, and making him slump to the ground unconscious.
Anger. Fear. Lust.
I stared up at him as he turned to face me, his blue eyes back to normal. A deep crease formed in his brow, his eyes heavy and sullen as if he were exhausted. He wiped it away as he lifted his chin, not tearing his gaze away from me—waiting to see what I’d do, what I’d say.
I leaped against his chest, curling my arms around his neck and kissing him. He wrapped his arms around my waist, kissing me back, his hands roaming up and down.
That was so fucking hot but so, so fucking stupid on his part.
Angrily I pushed away, beating one fist against his chest before I stepped back. “Why do I always want to punch you and fuck you all at the same time?”
His lazy gaze took me in, his tongue licking his bottom lip, tasting me. “You—” He pointed at me with a wicked glint in his eye. “Called me Zeus.”
I picked at flecks of wood in the doorframe, focusing on it. “You wouldn’t answer to Zane. You were about to kill him. What else was I supposed to do?”
After what I’d just seen, the display he’d given…there was no denying he was who he said.
“How did it feel? Saying my real name? Feeling the lightning sizzle against your skin when you touched me?”
Powerful.
I poked his chest and tightened my jaw. “We need to talk. Now. And you’re going to answer every damn question I have.”
He batted my finger away with a smirk before pulling me against him. The world whizzed past us in a vibrant blur, and within seconds, we stood in the middle of…his penthouse apartment.
