Page 24 of Guided by the Stars (Creating Destiny #1)

With shame consuming me again, I take my time to get ready, wanting nothing more than to have the earth swallow me whole. I won’t give him that though. Instead, I hold my head high and walk down those stairs.

“How was Zeus today?” Daemyn’s voice travels into the kitchen from the back door, enticing me to creep forward.

“Guess I’ll find out soon. He responded to my request and expects me back later today.” If it’s possible, Alexius’ voice sounds more serious than usual.

I push my head through the small crack, spying for the second time, and Daemyn squeezes Alexius’ shoulder, “Come on, man. You got this. What are you going to tell him?”

Alexius shakes his head, hanging it low. “Whatever I need to.” With a small shrug he questions, “Isn’t it the time of year when Persephone goes to visit her mom?”

Whatever that meant, Daemyn just laughs, only to be cut off as Alexius turns his chair, scraping against the concrete below.

“I’m warning you. Stay hidden. Today, Poseidon came to join the Hall,” he commands, running his fingers through his hair as his back rises and falls with a sigh.

“Man, I know these visions make it hard for you, just don’t get lost in all this.

She needs our protection, but you need to be careful.

The gods are getting angrier every day. I don’t like them all being here. ”

“How bad is it?”

Zeus and Poseidon, gods from stories of the past, and here I sit eavesdropping on two other gods talking with rage about how dangerous they are.

Unease turns my stomach, causing me to lean a little closer as Alexius says, “I’ll handle the Halls.

That girl though, I can’t explain it. I just need her—”

Before he can finish, Daemyn jumps out of his chair, stretching out his long arms. “Well, she will be down here soon. Let’s worry about breakfast first,” he says, pulling an Alexius by winking at me .

Crap!

My cheeks flame and I sit at the table with a lowered head, accepting my guilt over my pathetic attempt to spy as Daemyn comes back in the house.

I’m aware of Daemyn’s presence as I hear him rifle through the cupboards.

“Daemyn, I’m sorry, that was wrong of me,” I fess up, needing to break the silence.

“Baby Girl, this is your home right now as well. Walls are thin, you’ll hear a lot more from time to time.

No reason to be sorry.” His words are soft and the burning in my cheeks dies down, taking in the kindness of his eyes.

He’s the opposite of Alexius in so many ways.

He doesn’t demand or force his way in, his carefree nature draws you to him.

“Enough seriousness. Alexius will be back soon. In the meantime, we need to eat. Want to help make tiganites?”

Why the hell not?

Daemyn pulls out all the ingredients and I stand staring at this half-naked god.

He’s cooking away like a personal chef at a holiday resort.

All those glorious tattoos are on full display, glistening with his golden tan since he insists on only wearing his boxers.

He’s got skulls, along with these creepy looking eyes, patterned all over him.

His biggest design is a huge owl on his back that’s holding on to a compass in its mouth. Yes, he’s all god, whisking away.

“You want to help or just stare, Baby Girl?” he teases, shaking his ass, making me laugh harder than I have in days.

He’s easy to talk to, and we fall into a rhythm as I pass him the ingredients, and enjoy a simple thing like cooking.

He calls what we are making tiganites . They sound similar to pancakes, made from flour, water, honey and olive oil.

“Are you sure this is going to be sweet enough? Adriane adds a lot of sugar.” I ask, staring as he adds in just a bit of honey .

“Trust me. These will be amazing, babe. Don’t worry.” Not taking his word for it, I dip my finger to get a little lick and Daemyn notices, bumping his hip into my side. “Nope. No tasting. Keep your lips off my food and start cooking,” he chuckles.

Oh, sweet Daemyn, you have no idea what monster Adriane created with our pancake mornings.

With him distracted grabbing for more oil, I reach into the batter, scooping as much as I can and my hand flies, swiping it into Daemyn’s face.

His eyes widen with his mouth hanging open as he stands there, shocked, with batter dripping down his face.

“Oops, sorry Big Boy. Just wanted to give you a little taste,” I choke out between my giggles.

With wild eyes he playfully grins and his voice goes husky, “You better run, Baby Girl, payback is always tenfold.”

I squeal, not even able to turn before Daemyn grabs me by the waist, wrapping his body around mine. His fingers wiggle to the side of my head and I watch as he dips them into the bowl, swirling them around before they come down and he rubs the batter straight down my face. “Now how do you like it?”

“Daemyn, I thought we were friends.” I manage to utter, keeping a straight face. His eyes burn into mine and I sneak around gathering more batter. With a flick, I smash it into his face. “You tell me!” I sing with pride, jetting to the other side of the kitchen for safety.

“You can run. There’s nowhere to hide. Not here,” is all he says and he springs forward chasing me around the table. We laugh and giggle, rounding it like little kids before I make a break, getting back into position with the bowl in place. “You get any closer and I’ll pancake your butt. ”

I get in position, lifting my ammo, ready to throw, when the back door swings open and Alexius comes storming through.

He stops in his tracks as he sees his best friend coated in batter, dripping a mess all over the floor.

“What the fuck happened?” Alexius’ voice barks louder than the slamming of the door.

He might not have noticed me, or is too pissed to care. Either way, I can’t help my giggles as Daemyn shrugs in innocence, “We’re just making tiganites for breakfast.”

Alexius whips his head around and my arm swings.

Might as well.

The batter smacks Alexius in the center of his chest, drenching his white shirt, and all movement stops. Silence hits and Alexius doesn’t even blink. He stands like a statue, ignoring the batter trickling down his shirt. His entire focus is centered on me.

“Sorry,” I say, biting my lip.

I glance towards Daemyn, mouthing an apology, deciding it’s best to just walk away. As I pass the statue of Alexius, suppressing the need to cower, hands grab my waist. “Not so fast,” he rumbles, pulling me back from behind, and just like that, the Beast is out to play.

I’m pinned against him, his head buried into my hair.

“Love, now it’s my turn,” he warns, collecting the batter off his shirt.

The cold mixture hits when his fingers brush against my lips before sliding down over my chin.

Then, devilishly slow, he caresses along the increased pulse of my neck.

His fingers wrap around my throat, and he squeezes, pushing his body against mine. “Do you think you can handle that?”

I’m melting, trickling down like the batter. When I wiggle, his hands drop and he steps back, setting me free.

I dart over towards Daemyn, reaching my only ally as he laughs, “Baby Girl, that wasn’t the smartest thing.

We have you now.” They are looking at each other, communicating in silence, preparing to ambush me in the war I started.

And there’s a promise in his voice that is sending tingles all the way to my toes.

Daemyn is first, grabbing onto my wrists, tugging me forward with a boyish smile across his face.

Alexius comes in from behind, ramming his body against my back.

I suck in my breath, biting down on my lip, feeling his hard dick rub against me.

He’s unashamed, pushing me forward, controlling my movements and caging me between the two of them.

Their energy is bouncing off each other and leaping onto my heated skin.

“Well, you kind of deserve this,” Daemyn taunts and I feel Alexius’ arms raise behind me before the cold batter hits the top of my head and trickles down my face and onto my shoulders.

“Looks like we win,” Alexius laughs, throwing the bowl into the sink behind him, and both boys back up.

I turn, facing him head on, wiping off the cool pancake mixture. “See, that’s where you’re wrong. I don’t back down easily,” I counter, flinging the batter off my hands into his face.

Daemyn busts out laughing, cocking his eyebrows at me. “You’re fighting dirty now, babe.”

“Fuck. They’re calling.” Alexius breaks the laughter, paralyzing us in our spots.

Daemyn jumps into, motion moving around the kitchen trying to clean things off. “How much time do you have?” he calls out, throwing some napkins away.

“Boys, what’s happening?” I ask, interrupting them, hoping one of them answers. Alexius is staring off into space, and Daemyn’s eyes haven’t looked my way one bit.

“It’s the eagles,” Daemyn spits out, and my head snaps towards him in confusion. “They are used to summon gods.” His words do little to explain what the hell all this means, and I turn, looking towards Alexius for answers I know I will not get.

His back is towards me, he’s grabbing a towel and wiping down his face. “Zeus’ eagles. I have a direct link to them. I’m requested to meet my ruler and give a debrief from our assignment,” he says, throwing the towel down and gripping the sink with his hands.

I don’t laugh despite how ridiculous this sounds. No one is playful, and the boyish looks they had moments ago transform back into the masks of the serious, hardened warriors they were. Deadly and sincere in chilling ways.

“Alexius, is it safe?” His back is still towards me and I inch forward, wrapping my fingers around his bulging bicep as his grip on the sink tightens.

“Nora, it’s safe for us. Just a hassle,” Daemyn says, his soft voice lacking the reassurance I’ve known him to give.

“He was there last night. He’s perfectly fine,” he adds, placing a quick kiss on my soaked head and then he sighs, placing his hand on Alexius’ shoulder.

He talks in his ear, their voices too low for me to decipher, but Alexius’ bicep flinches under my touch before Daemyn leaves the room.

My grip is still around Alexius’ arm and I try to pull this giant ball of muscle with all my strength.

Of course, he doesn’t budge and keeps focusing out the back window.

“Nora, it’s fine. I’m just trying to figure out what to say that won’t make him suspicious.

It’s all part of the plan to get you out of here,” he states, ripping his arm from my hands.

“Alexius?” I hate that my voice is so quiet and unsure. I knew their hatred existed. What I didn’t realize was that the threat of Zeus also brings fear to these boys. “Can you promise me it’s safe? ”

He rubs his face and then turns. Like a switch has flipped, the tension is gone and his lips curve into that beautiful damn smirk. My heartbeat picks up as he leans forward, his lips nearly touching mine as his minty breath cascades down my face, “Love, trust me.”

He’s close. Way too close. His rough skin brushes against my cheek and reaches behind me, his hand wrapping around the back of my neck. With a tug, he pulls my body into his. My breasts crash against him as he looks down, angling my head up towards his.

His smirk grows. Then his hot tongue darts out, hitting the side of my mouth and paralyzing me. Every nerve in my body erupts as the warmth travels up, his tongue licking the batter off until he reaches my ear.

“I’ll be back later to eat,” he murmurs, stepping away from me and then he walks out the door.

Fuck me.