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“I did not want to do it,” he said, but he had not known what else to do. It seemed like the better alternative given the threat Poseidon posed.

“I don’t blame you,” she said, though he wasn’t sure he believed that or if it would remain true. “I’m sorry you had to live like that for so long.”

He said nothing, preferring not to indulge in this line of conversation. It took his mind to places he preferred to keep buried.

They were quiet, and the only sound was the fire crackling as it burned before them, casting shadows on the wall.

“Why did you become a detective?” he asked.

“I wanted to help people,” she said.

“And now?” he glanced at her, but she was staring into the fire.

“I guess I just found out how hard it is.”

It was strange to hear her say that—to acknowledge that it was hard to help people who did not want it, especially given that she felt responsible for her sister and was determined to rescue her from Theseus.

“It isn’t fair,” Dionysus said at length.

“What isn’t fair?”

“That Theseus had you,” he said, and while he spoke honestly, he couldn’t look at her. “He didn’t deserve you. He still doesn’t, and yet he takes up so much space in your head.”

He would give anything to replace him—to fill her mind every minute of every day.

“I’m sorry,” he muttered and hesitated. “You should rest. I will watch over you while you sleep.”

“I do not wish to sleep,” she said, and there was a heat to her voice that drew his attention. They stared at each other, and the air between them felt thick and heavy. It always did, but this was somehow different, sharper. He could taste her desire.

He swallowed hard.

“Then what do you wish to do?”

He knew what he wanted—had wanted since the moment he met her—but that yearning did not prepare him for what she did next.

She leaned in and kissed him once, her lips barely brushing his. It was a chaste kiss, and he knew she was capable of more—he had experienced it before. When she went to pull back, he followed, anchoring his hand behind her head as his mouth collided with hers. She did not pull away, and he kissed her hard, channeling every ounce of frustration she’d built within him since the beginning.

This, he thought,is how badly I want you.

When he broke away from her, it was because he knew he would take this too far, but it was somehow harder to face her now, her eyes dark and her lips gleaming.

“I want you,” she said.

Dionysus started to speak but no words came out. He tried again. “Are you sure you didn’t hit your head when you fell earlier?”

“I’m of sound mind, Dionysus,” she said, her voice taking on a frustrated edge. “I’m asking you to have sex with me. Are you saying you don’t want me?”

“No,” he said quickly. “That is not what I am saying at all. Fuck, Ari. I just want you to be sure.”

She held his gaze. “I asked for it. I want it.”

He swallowed hard. He wasn’t sure why he was having such a hard time with this. It was everything he had dreamed about since he’d met her.

“Why me?”

She seemed to think the answer was obvious because she frowned and shook her head a little.

“Because you’ll take care of me. Because…you have taken care of me.”