AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The first hint of a smirk played across his lip before it vanished. He sat up and reached for me, but yanked his hands back before even a single finger had a chance to brush my skin. And I was showing a lot of it. My sleep shorts were no joke. Couple that with the thin tank I was sporting, and I was actually a little insulted his eyes hadn’t wandered to check out my lack of clothing.
He shoved a hand through his hair. “Are you okay? How are you feeling?”
Was I okay? Boy howdy, that was a loaded fucking question. No, I wasn’t okay, for so many reasons. So, I skipped to the second question.
“I’m feeling fine. Maybe a little sore.” I wiggled my ass on the table, and finally his gaze dipped. The sound that rumbled out of him when he got a look at me set every hair on my scalp on edge. “Other that than, I’m good.”
If I’d had it all to do over again, the only thing I would change about running into him was the part where I’d cried in front of him. I shoved the memory of that weakness away and settled all my attention on him.
“I brought you coffee,” I said, nodding to the mug by my hip.
It was right there. I could have handed it to the man, but I wanted him to lean forward to take it. He did, with a look that heated my blood. He didn’t touch. Didn’t let his hand graze even a fraction of an inch of my exposed thigh. By all appearances, he was the perfect gentleman.
“Thank you.” He brought the cup to his lips and sipped. His eyes slipped closed for a beat, and I would swear I heard him hum in approval. “It’s good.”
It damned well better be. I splurged on a handful of things in my life, and coffee was on that list. Sure, I doused mine in creamer, but I could still taste the difference between the good stuff and the criminally cheap stuff.
“We need to talk.” There was no point in dancing around the things that needed to be said, even if I didn’t really know what those things were.
He gave me a slow nod and sat forward, resting his elbows on his knees while he stared down into his mug. “We do.”
I waited and when he didn’t say anything else, I had to fight the urge to reach out and pinch him. In my experience, when someone didn’t want to do something, the best way to handle it was to cut right to the heart of it.
No mercy.
“What did Lily mean last night?” I asked. “What don’t I know about you and about the pendant?” I mean, there was a ton of stuff I didn’t know about both things, but the way Lily brought it up made it sound like there was something specific and important that I needed to know.
When he met my searching gaze, those amber eyes of his were showing just a hint of a glow. It might have been from the morning light streaming in through the living room windows, but I wouldn’t bet money on it.
We watched each other for what felt like minutes, neither of us daring to speak. I wasn’t going to beg to get the answers I wanted. I wouldn’t demand or pound my fists on the table, either. Whatever Lily thought I needed to know, I was sure I could get it out of her, but I owed it to Hook to give him the chance to tell me himself.
Disappointment rose up inside me the longer he stayed quiet, to the point where I felt the physical need to move.
“Can you promise me that you won’t be angry with me, even if you don’t like what I’m about to say?” he finally asked.
I laughed at that. Not loud, but it was enough to get my point across. “No.”
12
HOOK
Never rolled her eyes. “It can’t be that bad. What, are you a demon?” An expression flickered across her face like a light bulb had just gone off in her head. “Holy shit, are you?”
That might have been easier, given what I knew about her. From her reaction, the woman clearly didn’t know she carried demon blood. Bringing up that tidbit would help deflect from me for a while. I was tempted to try, but if I wanted her on my side—and if the universe saw fit, by my side—I owed her the full truth.
“I’m not a demon.” She relaxed a little. “But I am a demigod.” A phrase I wasn’t all that fond of. Demi meant part, not wholly of the godly realm, but since I’d had half my power stripped from me before being banished to the Nassa and forgotten about, it was the closest description I could find.
Never’s lips twisted in a disbelieving smile. “Ha ha. I see what you’re doing, Hook.” She took a sip of her coffee. “Trying to disarm me with a little comedy?”
Was it really so foolish to think she would simply believe me? I shook my head. “No comedy. It’s the truth. It is the reason I can’t die.”
She was silent for a long moment, studying me. “I thought the whole immortality thing was one of the perks of your world.”
“It is, after a time, but only for certain beings. Humans and merfolk mostly. But I can’t die in any realm. At least, not without significant godly interference.” It’d been millennia since the gods had dared execute one of their own, as far as I knew. Then again, it had also been millennia since I’d had contact with any of them.
They had all left me to rot in the Nassa with a demon whose crimes would make most mortals sick. Anger curled in my stomach. The punishment for my misdeeds was beyond cruel. A hundred years of exile I could see. Millennia? That seemed exceptionally harsh, even for a council of immortals.
“Are you going to tell me any of what you’re thinking, or are you just going to go on having that private conversation in your head?” Never asked. Her tone was teasing, but the look on her face told me she wasn’t taking the news as lightly as she might have me believe.
