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Come to Olympus? Say the word and I’ll come get you.

I didn’t answer him.

Adrian gave me space, or his own version of it. All the lights in my house were off, but as I stood in the dark, staring out of my window, I saw Titus and an unfamiliar face talking.

Probably reporting to Adrian that I was asleep.

I didn’t sleep a wink. I missed him too much.

?

Spacelasted a day.

Because by seven the next night, Emre was standing at my door. I steadied myself before opening it, preparing to act dismissive and cold.

Anything to save Adrian. To save my family.

“Can I help you?” I asked with a pretty, emotionless smile when I opened it.

Emre’s eyes narrowed, observant as always. “Yes. Though I’ve had words with Adrian about tasking me with doing such a thing, I’ve been sent to bring you back to Olympus.” After a moment and a peer over my shoulder into my foyer, like he was looking for something, he added. “If you’d like.”

I wanted to. So badly. I missed Adrian. But still reeling from Sebastian’s intrusion and the realization that spending more time with Adrian was only going to make this harder, I said, “I would not like that. But thank you for making the trek down here.”

Emre’s eyebrows snapped together in confusion. “Pardon me for intruding, but I was told you’d be staying at Olympus for the forseeable future.”

“Well,” I said, my rage, as much as it could cut through the fog, turned the word snippy. “Plans changed.”

Emre rolled his shoulders back, clearly annoyed that he was being dragged into a lover’s spat. Poor guy. He had no idea that this was a storm of my own creation.

Adrian had done nothing wrong.

“Alright,” he said slowly, studying me. I tried to keep my face impassive. It would have been harder on a normal day, but I was feeling numb enough that the emotionless smile was probably selling well. “Enjoy the rest of your night.”

“You as well.” He was a good person. At one point, I’d had a silly thought that I hoped he worked with Adrian for the rest of his working life. I’d enjoy him being with us through it all. How that had changed. “Thank you, Emre.”

His eyes narrowed again, but he just nodded and let me be. When I shut the door, I fought the urge to slide down it.

I breathed in, then went back to my tasks for the day.

Today was another one of those days Damon referred to asmy problems.What had burdened my parents for so many years. And the only way I’d learned to deal with the numbness and the fog was to just let it pass.

To try to go about my day as normal or give myself the space to rest and sit in it if needed.

Today, I needed to move. To distract myself. Because while my mind might have felt tired and numb and depressed, my body was still reeling from the anxiety.

And because if I let myself do what I normally didon these days, to take time for myself, I knew that I’d cave and respond to Adrian’s letter. I wasn’t under any illusions that his presence was a cure of any sort, but yeah, it would have been nice to see him.

But no. No, I had to step away from this.

To protect him. To protect me.

Chapter 25

Adrian

“She said she doesn’t want to see you.”

“Excuse me?”