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“To be continued,” Bullet groaned as I pulled out. “I’m going to fucking devour you for dessert, Amazing Grace.”
I could get used to this, I thought, admiring the remote Uluwatu beach we were lounging on after a long morning building a series of homes with assistance from a proud, diligent Hephaestus and a bored-but-useful Ares. Iwouldn’tget used to this because it was just a short break, but a much-needed one.
Bullet was stretched out next to me, hands folded behind his head and eyes closed, and I took a moment to admire the ink on his chest. The image of the bronze shield in the likeness of the one I’d carried in the Battle of Ilion was in pride of place—Dare’s first piece since he’d gotten access to a tattoo machine and one of the portable solar power generators that were now commonplace in the parts of the world that got a lot of sunshine. We’d all got the same tattoo eventually—a tribute and a reminder of the moment the world changed.
“You’re staring,” Bullet murmured, his eyes still closed, lips twitching.
“You’re very easy to stare at.” That was an understatement, and through the bond, we both knew it. Maybe I’d spend some time staring at him later on, tied to the bed for the edging of his fucking life while Grace rode his face. And then his cock. Or both of our cocks, that was always fun—
“Can you not?” Riot laughed, throwing a shell at my back. “You two get horny, then Grace gets horny, then me and Dare get horny, and we don’t have time to fuck it out of our system right now.Andyou stole Grace after her shower this morning, and Dare and I haveplans.”
That was true, and I didn’t regret it at all.
“Besides,” Wild continued. “Foster and Estrella are coming down for lunch.”
“Fine, fine,” I sighed, reminding myself that I liked Foster and Estrella and seeing them wouldn’t be entirely unpleasant. They were ambassadors of sorts, a showcase of an unfated bonded agathos and daimon relationship. Sophia and Arete often sent them to work with particularly obstinate agathos communities, though they were fewer and farther between these days.
It was hard to cling to the conviction that the old ways were right when life was now so much better for so many more people. Yes, everything moved at a slower pace and things weren’t always easy, but there was a sense of community and connectedness among mortals again that we’d once lost.
Grace’s amusement trickled through the bond—she’d been so relaxed, I half wondered if she’d fallen asleep, stretched out on a towel with her shins in the soft white sand, wearing her skimpiest bikini, possibly just to torture us.
“You need lotion, Grace,”I rasped, making a mental note to tamp down my lust. Later. When Grace’s long brown legs and pert ass cheeks were thoroughly protected and cared for. That was my role, after all. I was her defender.
“Any excuse,” Bullet teased.
“Avoiding sunburnisa reasonable excuse.”I squeezed a dollop of the organic, lightly scented sun lotion into my palms, rubbing them together before massaging it into the backs of Grace’s thighs, my fingertips brushing the curve of her ass. Grace squirmed, legs parting for me ever-so-slightly.
I glanced back at the house we were staying at. Dare had taken Quinn back to change into her swimsuit, but they’d be back at any moment and I’d have to start behaving myself.
Grace let out a breathy sigh, and Riot chuckled as he stalked past, heading for the water. “Careful, Gracie. This is a public beach.”
“Pft, no one is stumbling across us here, it’s too hard to access,” Bullet said around a yawn. “I should probably get up and make some bread before Foster and Estrella show up.”
“I’ll help you,” Grace promised. “Let’s wait until Quinn has a little swim first.”
Bullet hummed in agreement. Maybe it was just part of being six, but Quinn was at an age where if we didn’t all watch her do whatever The Thing was, then The Thing hadn’t happened and must be repeated. None of us were complaining—she was a great kid and we were honored that Rogue had entrusted us with her care, and we always made sure to tell Quinn about her mom and kept Rogue’s memory alive.
Like we’d summoned her, Quinn came barreling out of the house, sprinting toward the ocean with roughly zero caution, Dare hot on her heels while Riot stood in the waves up to his knees, ready to run defense if she aimed for open sea. We traveled by boat enough that she was well aware of how dangerous the water could be, but she also thought she was invincible, so we could never get complacent. Hopefully, Poseidon and his nymphs would do us a solid and throw her back on land if she ever got past us.
“Come here, hellion,” Riot said drily, catching her around the waist and throwing her over his shoulder to march her back to the shallows. Quinn giggled and shrieked, a sheet of straight blonde hair just like Rogue’s hanging over her face.
“I’m sure she’s great, but nothing puts me off parenthood more than children,” Estrella said by way of greeting, approaching from the rocky path that led to the beach hand-in-hand with an apologetic-looking Foster.
“She means children are high energy and it looks like a lot of work,” he said hurriedly.
“I mean I don’t like kids,” Estrella replied flatly, raising an amused eyebrow at him. “Except Quinn. She’s okay.”
I snorted at the ringing endorsement while Grace climbed to her feet, pulling Estrella into a hug.
“You guys are early,” Grace accused, no ire in her voice. “We were going to have lunch ready for you.”
“We’ll help, you all work too hard,” Estrella replied, flipping her hand dismissively. “Come, show us this house you’re staying at. The Prophêtis always gets the nicest accommodation.”
Eventually, all of us ended up back at the house, sharing an enormous platter of brightly colored fresh fruit, fried banana, flat bread, and a couple of bottles of wine on the covered deck, the ocean gently lapping at the beach directly below us. I stretched an arm over the back of Bullet’s chair while Grace lounged in Riot’s lap, her legs extended over Bullet’s thighs, Quinn alternating between climbing up to perch on Grace’s stomach like a queen on a throne or trying to drag Dare back down to the beach for another swim.
Foster and Estrella regaled us with stories from their journey on land from Europe through Asia, guided by Sophia and Arete, and we updated them on friends like Orion and Ovie and the Spartoi who we’d seen recently.
And as Nyx’s night fell, I couldn’t imagine a life more perfect than this.
