Page 14

Audrey

A few days later, I’m heading home with a little pep in my step.

Sure, I had to spend another long day with Nex not speaking to me more than necessary, but Cassian is coming over tonight. He’s bringing over dinner for just the two of us, and I’m thinking we’ll watch a movie or something after we finish eating.

This is the second time we’ve had a “date,” if that’s what you want to call it. He came over on Sunday for a few hours and we wandered around campus, getting to know one another.

It’s hard having him at the house because he and Wraith snipe at each other like crazy. Which is why I tried to convince Cassian to meet me at the gates and not the house, but he promised he would be on his best behavior.

I’m not sure I believe him, which is part of the reason I’m hurrying.

Yes, I’m excited to see him, but I also don’t want him and Wraith alone for longer than necessary.

I don’t even know if Wraith is home, and it’s unlikely he’s by himself if he is, but I’m not taking any chances. I haven’t figured out how to get the two of them to kiss and make up yet, but that’s still my plan. If I could just get one of them to tell me what caused the breakup in the first place, it might make coming up with a plan easier.

Maybe if I can get Donovan alone, I can make him spill the beans. Not that he’s told me every other time I’ve tried to get him to tell me. But if I keep trying, then eventually, he’ll break, right?

That’s a bad plan.

I run up the stairs to the house and throw open the door. My eyes widen at the sounds of grunts and cursing—and not the good kind.

Damn it.

I rush through the house, stopping in the doorway to the living room.

What the hell?

Cassian launches himself at Wraith, burying his fist into my mate’s stomach just before Wraith swings for Cassian’s head. All the while, Donovan is sitting on the couch, watching with a grin on his face.

Is he eating fucking popcorn?

“What the fuck is going on here?”

Cassian and Wraith continue fighting as if they didn’t hear me while Donovan waves me over.

Not sure what else to do, I avoid the fight and join my mate on the couch—who is definitely eating popcorn. “What are you doing? Why aren’t you stopping them?”

“Because it’s hot?” Donovan gives me an unrepentant smile as his eyes fall back to Wraith and Cassian. “Want some popcorn?”

“No, I don’t want any popcorn. This isn’t a TV show or movie—my mates are fighting.” I shake my head, turning back to them.

Watching the way their muscles bunch beneath their clothing and seeing how they move against one another as if they’re unable to keep themselves away from each other.

Donovan isn’t wrong. It is hot.

Not that I’ll admit that to him. Donovan doesn’t need any encouragement.

“Are you ready to tell me what the deal is with the two of them?” I ask, eyes staying on the fight.

“Nope. It still isn’t my story to tell.”

I grind my teeth, frustrated that no one will tell me what happened, but I also understand where Donovan is coming from.

What I need to do is stop their fight, but I’m not dumb enough to step between them.

“Why don’t you just fuck it out already?” I yell, allowing some of my frustration to bleed through while Donovan laughs.

Luckily, my words have them drawing away from one another and turning to me with confusion clear on their faces.

“When did you get here, trouble?”

“When you were fighting, obviously.” I roll my eyes when I notice the bruising on both of their faces. It’s already healing, but I hate that they’re hurting each other. “Now, are you going to take my advice?”

Cassian tilts his head as he considers me. “What advice?”

“About fucking it out. Clearly, there’s some unresolved shit the two of you need to work out.” I gesture between them. “If you don’t want to talk it out, then I vote for fucking it out.”

“We’re not fucking, trouble,” Wraith says slowly.

Cassian nods. “We’ve been there, done that. I have no desire to fuck him again.”

I snort. “Yeah, okay. You keep telling yourself that, but I’d totally be down to watch.”

“Ohhh, me, too.” Donovan chuckles. “Not that I haven’t watched before, but I’d be down to watch again.”

“Don’t start, pet,” Wraith growls, stepping away from Cassian. “We’ve had this conversation.”

I lift my eyebrows. “Oh, have you? Would you like to share with the class?”

Wraith leans down to kiss me before shaking his head. “It’s not going to happen, trouble. That’s all you need to know.”

I throw my hands in the air, frustration rolling through me. “Then can someone fill me in on why the two of you can’t seem to get along? I thought you were going to be on your best behavior. I hate to tell you, but getting into a fistfight isn’t being on your best behavior.”

I glance between the three of them, shoving to my feet when none of them answers me. “Fine, you stubborn assholes. Can you at least tell me why the fuck you’re fighting?”

“Umm…” Cassian ducks his head as he rushes over to grab some bags off the table. “I brought dinner.”

“That doesn’t answer my question.” I focus on Wraith, hands on my hips.

“He brought you food from the restaurant where the two of them used to go. They never brought me. It was just for the two of them,” Donovan offers up with a smirk. “Wraith didn’t like that, so he swung at Cassian, and you saw what came after.”

I blink at Donovan, trying to understand what he’s telling me. “That’s what caused a fistfight? Are you fucking kidding me right now? How is it I’m the youngest one in the room while all three of you are ancient? You’re acting like children. This is ridiculous. Wraith, Cassian is my mate, just like you. The two of you need to work your shit out because I don’t want to walk in on this bullshit again. I promise that neither of you wants to see what’ll happen if I do.”

Not bothering to wait for a response, I storm toward the stairs. “Are you coming, Cassian?”

“Uh, yeah. I just wasn’t…You know what? It doesn’t matter. Of course I’m coming.” He hurries across the room, his hand going to my lower back as he joins me.

I don’t speak again until I shut the door to my room behind us. “I want to know what the hell happened between the two of you. Don’t bother trying to brush me off because if you are, you can leave. I have enough on my plate without having to worry about the two of you killing one another when you’re alone.”

Cassian sighs as he sets the bags of food on the table, slowly pulling the cartons out and opening them. Finally, he spins around to face me. “Why don’t we sit down?”

“Are you going to tell me what I want to know?”

“Yes.” He sits in one of the chairs, gesturing for me to join him. “First, this happened a long time ago, and I would love to let it go, but Wraith won’t. I didn’t always like my job or living in the underworld. No one wants to be banished from their home, but it was especially hard on me, Ophelia, and Sol. I was born in Mount Olympus, and it’s the only home I’ve ever known—that any of us had known.”

I reach over and take his hand, giving it a squeeze. “Why were the three of you banished?”

“Ugh, it’s stupid,” he admits. “We might have kidnapped Zeus’s current conquest and kept her from him for over a year. It may have caused some wars between gods, as he blamed all of them. It wasn’t pretty. We should’ve given her back sooner, but we just wanted him to stop being such a jackass. I’m sure you’ve heard stories of how he was. He’s always been an arrogant prick, but that’s neither here nor there. When we finally returned her, he’d already moved on, but he was still pissed. He called a vote, and we were banished.”

I shake my head. “That is stupid.”

“I told you it was. It is what it is. We deserved to be punished. Wraith and Donovan were already together when we arrived. I was a complete asshole to them, but they seemed determined to be my friends. They eventually wore me down. They never gave up, even though it took them over a hundred years. One thing led to another, and we ended up together. I was happy for the first time since I was banished. Of course, I had to fuck it up.”

Cassian leans back, staring up at the ceiling. “Ophelia and Sol were giving me a hard time about being with the two of them. Sol, more than Ophelia—part of me thinks he doesn’t believe in homosexual relationships—but their comments were beginning to get to me. What kind of demigod was I to be sleeping with one of the horsemen and a hellhound? How was I ever going to be forgiven and welcomed back to Mount Olympus when I was making myself so at home in the underworld? Didn’t I want to see my mother and my aunts again?”

“Seriously? And these are your friends?” I ask.

He shrugs. “Kind of? Not really. They are now because I don’t really have anyone else. Either way, they got in my head. That’s about when Wraith started up the academy. The amount of people murdered was growing, but it’s nothing like it is now. Back then, a lot of people died because of wars and diseases. The reapers still had to reap all the souls, but there weren’t as many reapers then. One of his reapers mistakenly delivered a soul to us for judgment that was meant to go to the academy.

“I saw the mark on his arm that indicated he was meant to be a reaper, but I didn’t care, and neither did the other two. So we judged his soul. He wasn’t a good man, so he was sent to Tartarus. When Wraith came looking for the soul, I informed him it was too late. The man’s soul had been weighted and judged.” He shakes his head. “He was rightfully pissed, but at the time, I didn’t see that. He had already confided in me that some of his reapers didn’t agree with the academy, and I threw that in his face. I said a lot of things I didn’t mean.”

I blink at him, trying to reconcile what he’s telling me with what I know of these men. “I understand why he would be angry about what you did, but to hold on to it for this long? That doesn’t make sense.”

He winces. “Honestly, I was trying to avoid telling you everything I said to Wraith that day. I was cruel, and I hit him where it hurt. I’m not sure which straw broke the camel’s back. If I had to guess, it was when I told him that he and his horsemen should go back to doing the thing they’re good at—bringing pain to humans. I told him that’s all they were good for. That he was beneath me because I was a demigod. That I was kind where he was evil. That there was no saving his soul. Then I told him I could never love someone like him or Donovan, which was a complete lie. I loved them both.”

“And yet, you still said the words.” No wonder Wraith hasn’t been able to let it go. “I’m assuming you never bothered explaining any of this to him?”

“Oh, I tried for a long time. Donovan listened, which is why we’re friendly now, but Wraith wouldn’t even listen to him. This is one hundred percent on me, but I don’t know how to make it right. It’s like every time I open my mouth, he takes everything I say the wrong way.”

I laugh, shaking my head. “Of course he does. Although, that’s a really long time to hold a grudge. He must have loved you a lot for him to still be holding on to his anger.”

Cassian’s face falls. “He did, and I just…threw it all away for no reason. Now, he purposefully goads me, and I let him. It’s far easier to be angry with him than to be hurt.”

“While I understand that, this can’t keep happening. You need to talk to him. You need to force him to listen. I was serious earlier. If you can’t figure it out on your own, then I’ll be forced to knock your heads together. But considering you’re both so much older than me, I shouldn’t have to get involved.”

“I understand. I’ll keep trying,” he says quietly.

“Good. Now tell me about this place you brought me food from.”