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She stared at him.
“Go on.”
“Here’s the idea—you’ll chain me to the bed,” he said.
“This is a train of thought I’m prepared to board.”
“Then you’ll go to any room in the house that isn’t this room, as far away from this room as possible. You’ll drink from the kylix there. We’ll meet each other in the fantasy world. Then at some point, if you remember to do it, you’ll tell me something. A line of poetry. A number between one and a trillion. And then when we both come back to our senses, I’ll tell you what it was. Something I wouldn’t possibly know unless you told me. What do you think? Clever plan, yes?”
Lia rocked her head back and forth, as if considering the idea.
“Hmm...no.”
His eyes widened. “But it’s a clever plan. Did you miss the clever part?”
“It’s terrible plan. Stand there silently while I list all the reasons why.” Lia held up one finger. “One, I will absolutely not chain you to a bed and thenwalk off and leave you there. What if the house caught on fire and you were trapped here while I’m off in Narnia shagging Mr. Tumnus?”
“Are we doing Narnia tonight? I thought we were doing Eros and Psyche?”
“Two.” She held up two fingers. “You got yourself untied from my bathrobe handcuffs last night without batting an eyelash. You could unchain yourself some other fancy way you have, Houdini.”
“I thought of that. Set up your phone to video me the whole time. And...” He paused, turned and picked up a white envelope off the nightstand. He opened it to show her it was full of white powder.
“That’s not anthrax, is it?”
She was going to be very unhappy with him if that was anthrax.
“Talcum powder.”
“Why do you have talcum powder?”
“I own leather trousers.”
“Right, of course.”
“I’ll put the key to the lock in the envelope full of talc, and that way if I need to get out, I’ll have the key right there and you’ll know if I’ve gotten into it because, well, I’ll look like I’ve just finished eating a dozen beignets.”
She had to admit the idea was ingenious. But she didn’t have to admit it out loud.
“Three,” she continued. “It won’t work. If you’re in here and I’m in another room, and you’re not talking me through what’s happening—”
“I have never done that,” he said. “Never once. This cup has real powers. This will work.”
“Why do you want me to believe the kylix is magical?” she asked him. “Why’s it so important to you?”
“I want you to believe in magic,” August said. “I want you to believe...”
“In what? The gods?”
“In Eros,” he said, meeting her eyes. “I don’t want you to think I’m a liar or a trickster or a fraud. Or just delusional. You had one taste of the power of Eros with David, and it broke your heart.”
“Beyond repair, I’m afraid.”
He shook his head. “I refuse to believe that. As a duly appointed representative of Eros, god of sexual love, it is my sworn duty to heal your erotically induced wounds.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “Is that part of your mission statement?”
He furrowed his brow as if seriously considering that idea.
