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“We are attending Neith’s court,” Austin said, leaning casually against one of the pillars in my bedroom. “You will soon see that there is no such thing as overkill when you go to a court of the gods. In fact, I’m more worried you might feel underdressed.”
I turned around to face him, grinning at the sarcasm. My smile faded when I realised he wasn’t being sarcastic. Instead, my eyes ran down his body. “And how come you get to go dressed like a normal person?” I asked.
He had replaced his everyday black suit and white shirt with a grey one, and I had to admit, he wore it well. The white shirt looked like it was made of silk, and it draped over his broad shoulders before tapering down to where it was tucked into the trousers, creating a very flattering shape. He hadn’t done up his tie yet, and it hung loosely around his neck, his shirt still unbuttoned part of the way down, revealing a tantalising glimpse of a tanned chest. I had the strongest urge to cross the room and unbutton the rest before sliding my hands inside and over his warm skin. Instead, I turned back around to face the mirror again, shifting Kitty Cat to a different position as my face warmed.
It had been a couple of weeks since we had arrived at the new house in London. Austin’s declaration of love had left me feeling even more confused and messed up inside. I wanted to believe him, wanted to trust him, but after everything, I was finding it hard to open up to him. He had rejected me too many times, and although I was coming out of the really dark place I had been in when I offered myself up to Golden Dawn, I was too afraid of slipping back down into that darkness to risk any more rejection. In fairness, he had seemed to have sensed my reluctance, and while he hadn’t kept his distance, he seemed more open and relaxed. It was almost like being a teenager again, where there might be the odd flirtation or teasing, but nothing more, yet that confused me even more. Surely if he loved me, he’d be trying to get close to me, and yet he wasn’t. So had he really meant what he said, or was it just the heat of the moment that had made him say what he had? I bit down on my lip, trying to stop my mind from launching off into the spinning circles it always did when I thought about Austin. I had enough to get through tonight without taking him and his emotional spaghetti junction into consideration.
“So, tell me again,” I said, turning back around and keeping my eyes firmly on his and not on his gorgeous body. “Just run through it one last time. I really don’t want to mess anything up.”
“You won’t mess it up, Tory. I have every confidence in you. But sure. Neith is the ancient Egyptian goddess of war, wisdom, and weaving.”
“The three W’s,” I murmured to myself.
“Yes. She is also thought to be one of the gods who created the world and the cosmos, though that was a very long time ago, and the elder gods seem to be pretty elusive on the subject. She is the mother of Ra, Apep, and Sobek.”
“So, I get to meet the creator of the world? Damn...” The scale of the night was hitting me hard, and I sank down onto a nearby chair, then I looked up at Austin. “Wait, Ra’s mother? So that would make her my grandmother?”
Austin nodded. “Yes... Though I’m not sure you should really refer to her as much. She’s a little standoffish. But yes, you are directly related.”
“So who’s Sobek and... what was the other one?”
“Apep. Sobek is the crocodile god. I think he might be there tonight, I know he has definitely resurfaced. You’ve actually already heard of Apep. His other name is Apophis.”
I stood up. “Apophis? You’re taking me to see someone when I apparently murdered her son thousands of years ago?” Kitty Cat tensed in my arms and growled quietly.
Austin smiled and reached out to tuck a loose strand of hair back into one of the hidden hair slides, but snatched his hand back as Kitty’s growl turned into a hiss. “Gods don’t work like humans do. And yes, technically you killed Apophis, but you really only sent him to the underworld, to Amenti. Life, death, neither are definite for gods, as you should well know.”
“So Apophis isn’t really dead. Or if he is dead, he’s only dead here and not in the underworld which is a real place,” I summarised.
“Exactly, and Neith does not have a problem with you. You’ve met her many times over the years, so I think if she had a problem, she’d have made her feelings known by now.”
There was a knock at the door, and Wesley stuck his head around it. “Tory, the cars are here, and it’s time to leave. We don’t want to get caught up in London traffic.”
“We’ll be right there,” Austin said, and Wesley nodded, disappearing again. I set Kitty Cat down on the bed. He miaowed, then turned in a couple of circles and settled down.
Austin smiled at me, and then crossed over to one of the tall panels in the wall that concealed a secret wardrobe. He pulled out a long turquoise blue cloak and held it out to me. I turned, allowing him to drape it around my shoulders. He tied the cord at my throat without even looking at it, his eyes fixed on mine. I tried to look away, but that felt too obvious, so I just looked back into his sky-blue eyes until he finished, hoping he hadn’t noticed I was struggling to breathe smoothly at his nearness. I didn’t want to be affected so much by him, but any time he was near, I felt drawn to him, like a moth to a flame, and the strength of the pull was disturbing. I didn’t know how long I was going to be able to fight it. It hadn’t helped that the man in my dreams had told me to open up to Austin, to allow the bond to form. He had helped save me that night on the ship, and I trusted him almost implicitly, but he didn’t know Austin, didn’t know what he’d put me through. Yet as I looked up at him, at those familiar blue eyes I had grown up with, I wanted to trust him again. I wanted it so badly.
He finished tying the cord and rested his hand just below my shoulder. His other hand drifted up to cup my neck, his thumb stroking over my jawline as he stared down at me. “You’re going to be incredible tonight. You always are. You could hold your own even before you remembered who you are, Tory. I have every faith in you.”
I nodded, though my gaze fixed on his mouth and I couldn’t tear myself away. Neither could he, it seemed. I found myself drifting closer to him, and I couldn’t tell if he was urging me closer, or if I was moving of my own accord, but within a moment, I was pressed up against him and his arms were wrapped around me. My hands slid up over his shirt, and I felt the beating of his heart against my palm. It was fast, thudding inside his chest and picking up speed as I traced the bare skin where his shirt opened. I loved the feeling of power I got from knowing it was my touch making him react this way. My own heart was mirroring his, and I looked back up at him just as his mouth found mine.
His kiss was different from before. It wasn’t the passionate, frustrated demand it had been, but a gentle, almost hesitant touch. Remembering the words of the strange man in my dreams, I fought against my fear and went with it. He took control, but not in the aggressive way I had come to expect. His lips moved over mine, his tongue seeking entry, and I parted my lips to allow him in. He sighed, and I felt a flutter in my lower belly. I reached up to cup the nape of his neck, pulling him closer and deepening the kiss. One of his hands slid up and stroked my hair gently, while the other tightened around my waist, pulling me against him. For once, his strength didn’t feel threatening. Despite everything, he risked his life again and again to protect me, and I could feel the strength of that protection now as he held me. I could feel the broad, strong muscles of his chest and the heat radiating from him, travelling through my sheer dress. My heart was racing, and his heat flowed through me.
I realised I wanted him badly. I wanted his arms around me, his hands on my skin, his cock buried deep inside as I fed from him. I wanted every part of him. I wanted to strip him bare so I could see and touch every tiny fragment of him that he’d been keeping from me. Fury and regret flowed through me in such an overwhelming surge, I pulled back from the kiss with a gasp.
He looked down at me with blue eyes that were anything but cold. The heat of desire warred with concern. “Too much?”
I nodded, unable to put into words what I’d felt. He released me immediately, and I felt cold at the loss of his body heat. I ran my hands down my arms, trying to preserve it, and I saw him flinch.
“I’m so sorry, I thought you...”
“No, I mean yes, I did... I do...” I searched for what to say. I didn’t want him to feel like he pushed me, but at the same time, I wasn’t sure how to explain that I felt as though kissing him was like launching myself off a cliff and praying that there was something soft to land on at the bottom.
He looked at me for a moment, then sighed. “Come on, we have a party to get to.” He reached out to smooth my hair back into place, and then stroked his fingers down my arm to my hand. Lifting it, he opened my fingers, and with his eyes on mine, he pressed his lips to my palm. I gasped as his tongue stroked the sensitive skin, sending a shot of heat to my pussy, but I didn’t pull away. He smiled and gestured to the door, dropping my hand. “After you, my queen.”
I smiled at him, liking this new playful side. I hoped it would stay.
The drive to Neith’s court didn’t take as long as I’d expected. We pulled up outside of a huge house in Kensington, only down the road from where my parents were staying. I’d been to see them a few times in the last couple of weeks. My mother was recovering nicely and had more colour in her cheeks each time I saw her. She also seemed to have developed an obsession with board games, and my father kept surprising her with new ones. The time together was clearly doing them good, and they acted almost like newlyweds, completely enamoured with each other. It made me happy to see it, and yet I felt a strange twinge of jealousy. It was crazy. I had four, maybe even five, incredibly sexy lovers. There was no reason to feel jealous, but the insane events of the last few months hadn’t exactly allowed any of our relationships to go smoothly or develop in a normal way. Desire, blood, laughter, and fun had taken up the last couple of weeks as my priests had tried to help me move on from my near eternal incarceration, and I had enjoyed it, but it still felt as though something was missing, and I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.
