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I needed to be reminded that I had good friends.

What I didn’t need to be reminded of was the last time I felt this comfortable. And the person who made me feel that way.

Chapter 20

Lukas

“If you are going to keep breathing down my neck, I’m not going to be able to do my job,” Sebastian said, giving me a skeptical look over his shoulder.

I threw my hands up in surrender and took a step away.

Sebastian nodded toward the chair to the right of the couch, next to Daphne’s head. She looked up at me, before averting her eyes.

She’d been avoiding me.

Not that she hadn’t been before, but this was some master craftsmanship. Ever since the day of the explosion, it was like she could barely look at me.

I knew why.

There had been something way too honest about those moments after she realized I was alive, when neither of us remembered that we’d spent a year apart.

And there were too many signs that it was something deeper. Clearly, I still affected her physically. She cared whether I lived or died. So I’d figure out what caused her to run.

After Sebastian made sure she was healthy and happy as a clam. The explosion had caused more strife than I'd hoped.

People were scared. The catches weren't any better.

So, one of the few times I actually managed to get Daphne in a room before she ran off with some lame ass excuse, I finally convinced her to have Sebastian run a check.

We chalked it up to final prep before the wedding and Daphne having an Athena-style inkling that something was wrong, keeping the conspiracy completely hidden.

Daphne stretched out on the couch, her head resting on a pillow. “What exactly are you doing?” she asked Sebastian.

He pulled up a chair, adjusting his sleeves at the wrist. “I’ll run what is essentially a body scan. It will make sure your physical form is fine. Then I’ll look at the core of your power to see if there’s anything there.”

Daphne nodded, but squirmed a little with nerves. Fuck that.

I popped out of the chair, pulling a wooden one like Sebastian’s right up next to the couch, close enough to lay a hand on her shoulder.

Almost on instinct, Daphne reached up and squeezed my hand.

“I’m going to need you to lay with your hands at your sides,” Sebastian said, pulling Daphne’s hand away from me. “And you can’t touch her, Lukas.”

The fuck I can’t, I wanted to say. I opted for grumbling and leaning back in my chair, crossing my arms. “Fine.”

Sebastian chuckled, murmuring some wiseass comment under his breath. “You might feel a tingling sensation on your skin, but it shouldn’t be painful. If it is, I need you to tell me.”

“Okay,” Daphne said. I hated how nervous she sounded. But this was necessary. We needed answers as to why her power was on the fritz.

“Ready?” Sebastian asked. Daphne nodded. “Areyouready?” he asked me pointedly. I jerked my chin down in assent, curling my fists under my arms.

Sebastian rolled his neck and stretched his arms before placing his hands flat in the air above Daphne’s body. It was good that he was doing this. There were minor powerlines that had healing abilities, but there was no one better than the god of medicine to treat a possible sickness.

A low humming sound resounded from the back of his throat while his brows pinched together in concentration. His hands moved over each corner of Daphne’s skin, from her head to her heart down to her legs. Searching for any sign of distress.

I didn’t know if I was terrified of him finding something or wanted him to.

Sebastian finished his assessment and breathed out. “Physically, you’re fine.”