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“I used to go running a lot as the sun was rising,” Grace said quietly, her thoughts mirroring my own. “Occasionally, I’d think to myself how pretty those early morning rays were, but that was about it. It was expected, you know? Whatever else was happening, the sun rose each morning and set each night. In hindsight, I wish I’d been more grateful for it.”
I wasn’t entirely sure I agreed. In hindsight, I wished I’d been more scared of Nyx, or at least had a greater appreciation for what she could do.
“Do you ever regret getting in my car that night?” Grace asked. My hands stilled.
“The night we met?”
She hummed in agreement, nudging my hand with her head. I snorted, resuming my combing.
“No. I’ve never once regretted getting in your car, or meeting you, or being bonded to you, or whatever train of thought you’re following. Not once, Gracie. I love you like fucking crazy, okay?”
“I love you too.”
“I know that,” I scoffed. I felt it every day, and it was the best feeling in the world. “Where’s all this coming from?”
Grace hesitated, fidgeting slightly. I’d drop it if she didn’t want to talk about it, but I knew she did. She was just worried that it was trivial. That she wasn’t allowed to be concerned about anything except thebig, save-the-world things we had going on, even though it was all a waiting game right now.
“I know the bond with him is new,” Grace began slowly. “But I think Dare has some regrets. Or maybe regret isn’t the right word—maybe he’s just concerned… Or he doesn’t quite trust me? I guess I’ve been spoiled in that Idon’trecognize how exactly he feels about me, because I never experienced it from you or Bullet or Wild.”
My immediate instinct was to protect Grace, and if that meant punching Dare in the face to knock some sense into him, then that seemed like a totally reasonable option.
“Stop,” Grace commanded softly. “That’s not the answer and not why I brought it up. Maybe I shouldn’t have brought it up at all—”
“No, it’s fine, I have myself under control.” I exhaled heavily. “I can’t speak for Dare, but I know that he’s not the same guy he was the last time I saw him. He’s suffered a lot in that time, and he was alone when he knew deep down that he wasn’t meant to be. Maybe it’s not about you, but trustingthis. Trusting that this is actually real after he wanted it and wondered about it for so long.” I shrugged. “That’s how I’d feel anyway. I think.”
“You’re really wise,” Grace breathed, snuggling further against me. I snorted. “Tell me, oh wise one, do you think we’ll get called back to the sanctuary soon?”
“I doubt the goddesses will make things that easy for us.” Besides, no matter when they called us back, it would always to be too soon and not soon enough. Enough people had been sacrificed on the altar of their anger, and yet the idea of willingly walking into a meeting between two all-powerful deities, of Grace going in there…
There wasn’t enough time in the world for me to be okay with that.
Twenty-four hours later, we hadn’t heard a thing. Eirene had fed us repeatedly with the abundance of vegetables she’d harvested from her garden before all the plants had died, and assured us that Sophia could speak to her whenever she wanted, and that she’d heard nothing.
By unspoken agreement, all four of us had been working to distract Grace. Maybe it was a little unfair of us to keep her in a low-simmering state of horny, but the big, multiple soul bonds-sized bed was making Gracefeelthings. Things she was probably too prim and proper to admit to out loud.
Maybe part of it was just ‘what could have been’. In another life, a normal-ish life, we’d have had a bed like this. Not in Grace’s apartment—now flattened—it was too small. I’d have lived at Underworld if the others wanted to, but I hated being around so many people all the time. Maybe we could have taken over the big house on the Oneiroi Estate again; it had a giant harem-sized bedroom with a bed that comfortably slept all of us in it.
That was probably the innocent, slightly wistful path her mind had started down. Unfortunately, she was bonded to daimons, and we’d all perverted that longing into something completely different.
Or maybe it was Dare’s influence. She’d lost the sharp edge of shyness when it came to sex since he’d been around—it was the gift and curse of the Philotes. While his gifts couldn’tinfluenceagathos or daimons in the way it did for humans, it did draw sexual desire and arousal that was already there to the surface.
“You guys are out of control,” Grace chastised, standing in front of the dark window as Wild wrapped his arms around her from behind, one hand cupping her throat. “This is so not the time.”
“Why not?” Bullet asked cheerfully, laying back on the bed, arms crossed behind his head. “What else are we doing? Eirene asked me over a bowl of vegetable when your last orgasm was because you look so stressed.”
“That was awkward,” Grace laughed, the sound turning into a gasp of surprise, her head tipped back against Wild’s shoulder. I had no idea what he was doing, but she was into it.
“Not awkward,” I disagreed, throwing another log on the fire and perching on the edge of the hearth. “A very valid concern. You’ve gotfourbonded, Gracie. Granted, we appear to be living in the end times, but you should still be coming at least a couple of times a day.”
I could feel her gearing up to protest, but I was pretty sure Wild’s hand slid under her skirt at that moment. Grace curled forward, a soft sigh escaping her, arousal snaking through the bond. Throughallthe bonds.
Dare exhaled heavily, fidgety and restless as he paced in front of me, squirming under the weight of all the sexual desire. Even if he hadn’t been bonded to Grace, his nature meant that he was tuned into arousal like it was his own personal radio frequency, and we wereallin the mood. For Dare, he was practically being prim and proper, still holding himself back, trying to only show Grace the best sides of himself. Soon he’d realize that trusting Grace with his worst sides and watching her fall in love with him anyway was the best reward.
“That is…” Grace rasped, Wild’s body blocking most of hers from our view. “That feels sogood.”
“You’re allowed to feel good, Amazing Grace,” Bullet said quickly, picking up on her flare of guilt. “Take every moment you can to feel good. You deserve it.”
“Hear, hear,” Dare said, trying to act like his dick wasn’t about to bust through his trousers.
