AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Carrick kisses her again, and she sighs. Her exhale says, “If I died right now, that would be okay.”
But it wouldn’t be okay with me or Carrick, so that’s not happening.
Shooting me a wink, Carrick heads out of the kitchen, grabbing an apple from a bowl on the island. Finley stares after him until he’s out of sight and then turns her besotted gaze on me.
“You’re pathetic,” I mutter.
She gives me a dopey grin. “Can’t help it. He’s perfection.”
I roll my eyes, prepared to point out that he’s a little egotistical, but there’s a huge bang from behind me.
Finley gasps and I spin fast on the kitchen stool, ready to launch power at whatever is threatening us. It bubbles hot, ready to erupt, and then fizzles when I see Maddox standing there.
And I’m sorry, but no demigod has a right to look as good as he does. I’ve thought that from the very first time I gazed upon him when he helped liberate me from the Underworld. His long hair is dark blond, and while Finley and I have been told repetitively we have the most beautiful eyes in the world, Maddox gives us both a run for our money. His are a shimmering green, the color of Irish rolling hills. Tattoos cover his arms, which are thick and muscled, as is the rest of his body. He’s shaved his beard. The last time I saw him, it was full but well-trimmed.
I turn my back on him, indicating he’s not worth my attention, but I didn’t miss the dirt and blood covering his arms, chest, and face, or the fact he holds a battle-ax in his hand.
“Hey, hey, hey,” Finley yells at Maddox as she grabs a towel and a bottle of cleaner from under the sink. “You’re dripping entrails on my kitchen floor.”
She hustles his way as he mutters, “Sorry.”
I can’t help but glance over my shoulder. The ax is gone—presumably Maddox sent it somewhere that’s not here—and Finley is wiping up the floor.
Those green irises land on me, and something glimmers within. I get a trademark Maddox smirk as he moves past me to the cabinets.
“Don’t,” Finley snarls as she rushes toward him. “Your hands are nasty. Don’t touch anything.”
He gives her a grin that would disarm mortals. “Can I bother my sister-in-law for a glass of water? War is hard work.”
“Yes,” she says, her expression softening somewhat. “But don’t move. Just stand there and don’t touch anything.”
As Finley gets him a drink, I ask, “Where did Onyx have you this time?”
Onyx is my sister god, and she reigns over Conflict, which encompasses war and peace. The demigods were created to serve at the whim of the gods and given that Maddox looks like he stepped off the battlefield, I assume it’s at her behest.
He gives a careless wave of his hand. “Some dimension on the verge of political collapse. Apparently, one side has offered up major sacrifices to Onyx, so she sent me there to turn the tide.”
Some dimension, he says, as if this is normal talk, and I suppose it is for him. But this new world of magic and alternate realms is still a shock to my senses.
Finley hands him a glass filled with ice water. He downs it in several long swallows. I watch the way his throat rhythmically moves, making a tattoo of a snake that climbs up the side of his neck writhe from the motion.
“I’ll make you something to eat,” Finley says, moving to the refrigerator.
The minute the fridge is open and she’s rooting through it, Maddox turns his attention to me although he speaks to my sister. “I’m going to take a shower.”
“Okay,” Finley says as she grabs ingredients. “I put fresh towels in the downstairs guest bathroom this morning. When you’re done, put them right in the laundry room.”
“Sure thing,” he voices out loud to her, but then mouths silent words to me as he jerks his chin, his eyes turning dark green with desire. “Join me.”
My gaze snaps over to Finley as my body flushes with heat, but my sister isn’t paying attention. I look back to Maddox, who looks like he’d eat me whole if we were alone. I shake my head furiously, glaring at him. It’s a completely timid human move, the insecure woman in me not knowing how to handle someone so alpha and domineering. It’s been that way from nearly the beginning and hasn’t abated in the year we’ve been sleeping together.
If I were truly a god, I’d snap him into another dimension for his temerity, but instead, all I can do is bear the weight of his smirk.
His hand reaches out, a silent demand for me to come with him. I can imagine, with utter clarity, all the things he might do to me in a hot shower, and it’s not because I have a good imagination. I’ve had my fair share of hot showers with this demigod.
But that’s done in private and not under the potential view of my sister.
It’s my secret. No one knows what I have with Maddox.
