Page 92 of Eryx

I was foolish for humoring the idea that he wanted Agesipolis. Axios cherished me just as I cherished him. The king was part of his past, a mere fling because of our fight. The king meant nothing.

So why did my heart still ache?

That night, I dreamed again of the raven. As it soared above me, I chased it through the meadow, following the same path Axios and I always took. Just when I thought it had flown away from me, its wings flapped above my head as it floated down to rest on my outstretched arm.

“You’ve returned to me,” I whispered as I stroked its soft midnight feathers.

“I never left,”I heard it say, its voice caressing me like a gentle breeze.

I opened my eyes to see Axios asleep in my arms. The dream felt like a sign from the gods. My raven might have strayed, but he had never left. He would always be by my side. And with the revelation, my mind was put to rest and I drifted back to sleep.

***

Haden’s muscled arms covered his face as he slept. He had still been gone when I woke in the middle of the night, so I knew not when he eventually made his way back.

Intrigued, we had all woken and gathered around him. Quill kicked his legs, and Haden jolted awake. His eyes were red and glassy from lack of sleep.

“Why do you all stare?” Haden groaned.

“How was it?” Quill asked. “Do you feel different now that you’re married? Did they shave Leanna’s hair off? When did you return to the barracks?”

I slapped the back of Quill’s head, rolling my eyes. “Let the man answer one question before you ask another. Plus, if memory serves me right, you bedded a woman last night, so why you’re so eager to hear tales of it astounds me.”

Quill scowled at me and rubbed his head where I’d hit him.

“It was…” Haden sat up and rubbed at his eyes. “I do not know how to describe it, and even if I did, I would not tell you fools about it. All you need to know is it was the best night of my existence, and it nearly killed me to have to leave her there and come back to all of your ugly faces.”

“But did they shave her head?” Quill asked impatiently. “I fancied her long, dark hair. Like a raven with its silky, black wings.”

A raven. I smiled and looked at Axios, who had the same silky black hair. I yearned to touch the soft strands but refrained from doing so.

“No, they did not shave it off. I requested for them not to,” Haden answered before yawning. He then looked at Quill. “Wait, did Eryx say you bedded a woman? Is this true?”

I understood his confusion. Quill had never had the best of luck with women, which was why we had teased him so much in the past. Girls usually slapped him or ignored him.

Quill bit his bottom lip, his eyes shining with a smile. “Perhaps.”

Theon scoffed and stormed away.

After frowning at Theon, Quill turned back to us. “I have never felt anything like it. Right as I entered her, it seemed as if the whole world stopped. My cock ached and my body shook. The warmth of her and the wetness between her legs… it was paradise.” He grinned before adding, “And then I pounded her so hard into the hay that I feared the stables would come crashing down around us.”

Axios laughed before glancing at me. I returned his smile, knowing where his thoughts took him. I had pounded him that way, too, in the same stable. Many times. Yet, what we shared was greater than physical pleasure.

Once we dressed for the day and left the barracks, Axios stopped in the square and faced me. “I may visit Leanna to see how she’s feeling.”

“And to see if she’s happy?” I asked.

He nodded and squeezed my hand. “I will return shortly.”

No training occurred that day—for the army or the youths—so I casually strolled toward theagora. I welcomed the spring day and breathed in the scent of flowers from the nearby meadow. As always, I thought of Axios. This was his favorite time of year, when the flowers bloomed and green grass danced in the field as a warm breeze swept through Sparta.

“Eryx!”

Galen waved as he jogged toward me. He had been among the men who’d returned from war, and I was pleased to see he was alive and well. His once wavy brown hair had been cut nearly to the scalp, which I suspected was due to battle. The enemy couldn’t grab you by the hair if it was cut so short.

“Galen,” I greeted, cupping his forearm before letting go. “Welcome home.”

“Gratitude,” he said with a curt nod. “I was on my way home, if you wish to join me. Paris grows anxious if I am away from him for long.”