“You’re not even looking.”
He reached up and stroked his fingers over my cheek. “Oh, believe me, I’m looking.”
My belly flip-flopped and I swallowed nervously. It wasn’t that I’d never been intimate with a boy before. I had back in Pecunia. But it wasn’t anything like this. The boy wasn’t anything like Lucian, and I never felt this kind of intensity just standing near him, with just his fingertips caressing my skin.
A shiver rushed down my body, and I trembled a little.
“Are you cold?” He took a step closer.
I shook my head.
He inched even closer, until we were just a breath apart. Slowly, he moved his fingers down and traced a line along my jaw. Then with one finger, he tilted my chin up and softly brushed his lips against mine.
I couldn’t stop the tiny intake of breath, and he kissed me again, this time sweeping his tongue lightly against mine. The intensity of it, of him, took over, and I buried my hands in his golden waves and moved my mouth over his, tasting and teasing.
We kissed on that romantic balcony until the sun went down. It was positively perfect in every way.
Chapter Nineteen
MELANY
For the next few weeks, we were pushed harder in our training than ever before, and also introduced to new classes like swordplay, war strategy, potions and poisons, earth science, healing, and animal handling. The start of the trials was only two months away, and we needed to be ready to endure them.
No one was sure what the trials would entail, but we knew they weren’t going to be easy. I’d heard a rumor we would be pitted against one or two of the demigods in a battle situation, and we’d have to use our training to survive. Hephaistos had let it slip one night, when I’d stayed late in the forge to put the final touches on my shield, that I’d be using the shield during the trials.
Thankfully, I didn’t need to do the twelfth trial—Zeus’s lightning—as I’d already suffered through a form of that one and passed—well, survived, would be a better term for what happened. I had daily reminders of that every time I looked in a mirror. Despite most everyone saying how cool the scars were, they reminded me of that night of the earthquakes and the devastation I’d seen. And my great loss.
During the weeks of training, I ducked outside to the maze every chance I got to see if Hades showed up again. But every time he wasn’t there, more and more I came to the conclusion that Lucian had been right, and I’d imagined it due to overwork and stress. And I was definitely stressed, as we all were. Why my mind would conjure up the God of the underworld was beyond me. Why couldn’t I imagine unicorns and rainbows?
“Oof.” The blunted tip of Jasmine’s sword struck me in the side. Again.
She frowned at me. “That’s the third time I’ve gotten you. You’re really distracted today.”
Today? She was just being kind and not mentioning the day before when she’d knocked me on my ass with an overhead swing of the blunted sword. I’d moved too late and tripped over my own feet. Just about everyone in class had laughed at that. Including Ares. He laughed the loudest, as usual. His laugh was like a donkey’s bray.
“Just thinking about the upcoming trials.”
“Oh, I thought maybe you were thinking about the trips to the maze you make almost every day.”
I pulled a face. “You know about that?”
“Yeah, Georgina and I followed you one time.”
I should’ve known they would have.
“It always appears like you’re looking for someone.”
I shrugged. “No. Just taking some alone time.”
Her eyebrows rose. “You sure you’re not having romantic rendezvous with Lucian?”
She said his name loud enough that he turned and looked over at us.
My cheeks flared red. “I’m sure.”
Except I was lying, and she likely knew I was lying, especially if she had followed me. Lucian and I had met up in the maze a few times and went flying together, always ending up on the balcony of the tallest tower to make out for an hour or so.
“Stop your chattering and do more sparring.” Ares marched up to us, his brow furrowed in anger. “That’s all you two do, talk, talk, talk.” He made a flapping motion with his hand. “Talking isn’t going to save you from a sword in the gut or a spear in the eye.”
From nearby, I heard Revana’s snicker.
“But it could save me from ever going to war in the first place.” The moment I finished the last word, I knew I’d made a mistake.
Ares’s face flushed beet red. He unsheathed the sword, his very real sword, at his waist and swung it toward my side. I drew up my shield just in time before his sword sliced off a nice thick chunk of my right flank. The tempered steel blade clashed against the metal of my shield. The sound reverberated through the gymnasium and vibrated over my skin.
He took a step back and swung quickly at my head. I blocked that blow, as well. Then he pivoted and thrust at me again. I blocked with my shield. The power of his blow traveled down my arm. He wasn’t messing around.
Another thrust, jab, and overhead swing. I blocked them all, but barely. My arms ached from holding up the heavy shield and moving it to protect myself from being sliced in half. He came at me again and again, so hard and quick, that some of my peers were shouting at him to stop.
“Someone do something.”
I heard Lucian’s voice in the mix.
“Stop Ares! You’re going to hurt her.”
But he didn’t stop. I’d obviously pushed him too far.
As he pivoted back on his foot to get another swing in, I dropped the shield to the side, formed a ball of fire in my hand, and threw it at him. He tried to duck out of the way, but the fire singed him across his arm. The sound of his skin crackling made my skin crawl. The stench filled my nose and my stomach roiled.
I stood there, gasping for breath, my heart pounding so hard my chest ached, glaring at him, and defying him to cut me down. I was through being a target of his vindictive anger.
But he didn’t run me through with his sword. He met my gaze straight on and then gave me a curt nod. “Class dismissed.”
I let out the breath I was holding, and nearly collapsed onto my knees, but I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction.
Jasmine and Georgina were instantly at my side. Georgina took my shield.
“Holy crap. Are you okay?” Jasmine put her arm around me.
I nodded but had a feeling when the adrenaline stopped pumping through me, I was going to crash big time.
Mia joined us. “I can’t believe he can do that. He almost killed you.”
“Well, there’s not anyone we can tell.” Georgina shrugged. “It’s not like we can call our parents. We don’t have families anymore.”
I looked at her. “We’re family now. We have to look out for each other.”
She nodded. “Can you be like the father of this family? You’re way more in charge then I ever could be.”
That made all of us laugh, as we made our way out of the gymnasium and back to the dorms. I caught Lucian’s gaze on the way out, and he gave me a soft smile. It made my belly flutter, as his smiles always did.
Before we reached the dorms, Ren caught us. “Hey, I heard Dionysus is putting on a show in the north hall. Should be quite the party.”
“Is this an academy sanctioned party?” Georgina asked.
Ren smirked. “Probably not. Which is why it’s going to be awesome.” He slung an arm around my shoulders. “You of all people could use a good party. I mean, you almost died today. Again.”
I snorted. “That’s true.”