"
"There are no buts, Sunshine." She moved to stand in front of her. "I am the goddess of souls and soulmates. Unlike the other Olympian gods, I know when I see two people who were created for each other. If both you and Talon died tonight and were later reborn at polar ends of the earth, sooner or later the two of you would reunite. That's the schtick with soulmates. Alone you can survive, hell, you can even be with other people, but neither of you will ever be complete without the other." She glanced upstairs where they had left the guys. "You two can fight this all you want. But all you're going to do is make yourselves miserable."
She patted Sunshine's shoulder. "I know you don't believe me. I know it'll take time before you accept it. And that being said, the problem with your relationship isn't whether or not he loves you. It's that he can't afford to even think that thought."
"Why?"
"Because the minute he does, Camulus will kill you. Talon knows that. He will not let himself love you for
fear of your dying again."
Sunshine swallowed at her words. Everything kept coming back to that one irritable and irritating Celtic god. "Is there any way to get around Camulus?"
"Maybe."
"Maybe? That's the best you can do?"
"Hey, it's better than no."
True, but still she wanted more hope than that.
"And what about Artemis?" Sunshine asked. "Even if we get past Camulus, what about her?"
Psyche twisted her cue in her hands as she thought about that never-to-be-forgotten fact. "She's tricky.
Create PDF files without this message by purchasing novaPDF printer (http://www.novapdf.com) With her you have to negotiate very carefully."
"So it's possible I could talk to her?"
"It's possible."
Sunshine's mind whirled at the thought. Could there really be hope for them?
Talon led Eros into the storeroom and shut the door. Quinn Peltier had soundproofed the room a few decades back to ensure that the Peltiers and other select friends could have emergency privacy if they needed it.
Originally, the room had been planned as a holding place in the event one of them accidentally turned into a bear while the club was occupied, but over time it had come to serve as a convenient place for one of the brothers to take a willing woman should they have an itch that wouldn't wait.
But that was another story.
Talon switched on the dim overhead light and faced Eros. "I need a favor."
"Favor, hell. Didn't you know that I'm supposed to vaporize any Dark-Hunter who gets near me?"
Talon looked at him drolly. "I'll remember that the next time you want to borrow poker money from me without Psyche knowing."
Eros smiled good-naturedly. "Good point. Okay, what can I do you to?"
Talon hesitated. Silently, he prayed Eros would give him an answer other than the one he feared.
"Do you know the Celtic god Camulus?"
Eros shrugged. "Not really. He runs with Ares, Kel, Ara, and those other war gods. Being the god of love and lust, I don't tend to associate with them. Why?"
"Because I was cursed by him and I wanted to know if there is any way for me to break the curse."
"Honestly?"
"Yes."
"Most likely not. War gods as a rule aren't real forgiving. It kind of comes with the whole mass-destruction mentality. But it depends on what you did and what he used as a curse."
"I killed his son and he has forbidden me to ever love a human. When I do, he kills them."
"Ooo," Eros breathed. "Sorry, man, but something like that, you can hang up an out clause. Vengeance runs deep in the bones of the war gods. Now, if you had the blood of a god in you, you might have some leverage. Do you?
"
"No. I'm fully human, blood-wise anyway.
"
"Then you're totally screwed.
"
Talon clenched his teeth at the truth, even though he wasn't surprised by it. He hadn't realized until then
Create PDF files without this message by purchasing novaPDF printer (http://www.novapdf.com) that he had started to see a future for him and Sunshine.
That in the back of his mind there really had been hope.
But it was futile.
"There's no way to keep Sunshine.
"
He hadn't realized he'd spoken aloud until Eros said, "If you love her, then I'm sure she'll pay for it.
"
Talon braced himself for what he had to do. Even though it tore his heart out and made him want to cry.
He knew he had to do this.
It was the only way to protect her.
"Fine, then. I have one last request.
"
Eros gave him an understanding look. "You want me to shoot you guys with the lead arrow to kill your love.
"
He nodded.
Eros pulled his bow necklace from around his neck and made it larger.
Talon grabbed his hand as he aimed it at him. "Not yet. Okay? I just want a little more time with her.
Can you wait until midnight?
"
Shrinking the bow back to necklace size, Eros nodded and patted Talon on the shoulder. "Love bites, man. Believe me, I know.