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“I’m… fine,” Pandora sputtered, hastily climbing to her feet. Sol kept a hand on her shoulder, and as much as she wanted to slap it away, she allowed him to steady her. Black spots swam in her vision, and she wasn’t entirely sure she wouldn’t lose consciousness again.
“What was that?” Sol asked. His voice was sober, his dark eyes appraising her, glancing over her body as if searching for a hidden injury. She hadn’t seen him this serious since she’d told him the Underworld had been destroyed.
“I—Nothing. The heat.” Pandora waved a limp hand toward the sun shining in the sky.
“It’s an illusion, Trivia,” Sol said, his eyebrows lowering. “What happened?”
“I don’t owe you an explanation,” Pandora snapped. “As you said, we have an assignment. Let’s get it done so we can be rid of each other.”
Sol sighed and dropped his hand. “Fine. But if you fall again, I will not be catching you.”
He strode forward, but Pandora faltered, her throat tightening. Had he caught her? She raised a hand to the back of her head. If she had fallen, there would have been an injury. But aside from the faint, aching pulse in her head, she felt fine.
Knots of emotion cinched in her chest, but she buried them deep and hurried after Sol.
It didn’t take long to reach the edge of the city. The buildings became more sparse, and rolling hills with vibrant green grass came into view. The concrete faded into a faint cobbled path that led to a secluded cove where rolling waves lapped and pearly sand glinted in the sunlight. It was a small beach, and not a soul was in sight.
Pandora’s mouth fell open at the beauty of it. The lush greenery, the teal and amethyst swirls of water, the…
She frowned. The place looked oddly familiar.
She turned to find Sol gazing wistfully at the scene, and then she figured it out.
“You’ve painted this before.”
He blinked and turned to her, eyebrows lifted. “I—Yes, I have. Beautiful, isn’t it?”
“It really is,” she found herself saying.
For a moment, the two of them stood there, admiring the view. And it was so shocking and yet… so ordinary, to be standing alongside someone and agreeing with them, that Pandora didn’t want to taint the moment. It seemed Sol didn’t want to, either.
Pandora inhaled and turned to face him, intent on asking where the wards ended so they could return to the task at hand. But the words died in her throat as she found him watching her, his eyes gleaming in the sunlight.
“I would paint you,” he said, his voice low and husky, “if I thought I could capture your light.” His hand lifted and caught a lock of her red hair, which burned golden in the light of the sun. He twirled it around his fingers, and her breath caught in her throat.
She didn’t know what to say. Not when he looked at her like that. Not when he said such things.
Her mouth went dry.
Sol leaned in, his breath caressing her face. And Pandora’s heart skittered, her thoughts scattering as every sensible, logical voice in her head was silenced by his nearness and the warmth of his body. She found her eyelids fluttering shut, her lips parting in anticipation.
His nose brushed hers, and a tingle of awareness skittered across her body like a jolt of lightning, setting her blood on fire.
Sol’s lips moved to her ear as he whispered, “Will you join me?”
Pandora’s eyes flew open, the breath whooshing out of her almost violently. Gods above, what was she doing? How had her brain simply shut off like that?
She took an unsteady step back, swallowing hard. “Join you for what?” She was relieved to find her voice was level, despite her racing heartbeat.
His eyes took on a sultry edge as he looked at her. “The water is perfect. I’d like to go for a dip. Will you join me?”
Her heart was practically crashing against her ribcage. It was so loud, so thunderous, she thought surely he would hear it.
She forced a laugh. “Hell, no.”
He shrugged, clearly unaffected by her dismissal. “Suit yourself.”
He ambled down the hill, his feet sliding along the sand as he whipped his tunic off without a second thought. Pandora’s stomach hollowed at the sight of his shoulders, the muscles tightening as he loosened his trousers.
