Page 13

QETESH

There was a part of me that felt like I should be nervous about going on a first date.

But then again, it turned out that there were a lot of things that I felt like I should feel that I actually shouldn't.

And while this might technically be my first date with Jacob, it wasn't like we hadn't had date-like situations, at least when it came to the intimacy between us.

It should have felt strange to wake up in bed with him, but he'd made it so comfortable that I hadn't had time to think about that.

My taxi pulled up outside the restaurant, and I paid the fare, getting out and finding him waiting for me wearing an open-necked shirt with a grey blazer over the top.

His face lit up when he saw me, reminding me of exactly why I'd said yes to this date, and why we were going on it so quickly after we'd first floated the idea.

I leaned in without even thinking about it, and gave him a kiss. It was fleeting, but it was also perfect in that. After saying goodbye yesterday, it would have felt stranger not to kiss him.

"A kiss before the first date is kind of impressive, all things considered," he said with a laugh.

"It doesn't really feel like a first date," I admitted.

"True. Now, I'm going to warn you that I've never been here before," he said as he turned towards the restaurant, placing a hand on the small of my back.

It was a nice touch, reassuring. And even better because I knew his hand wasn't about to stray downwards.

At least, not without asking and planning.

"I'm surprised you chose it if you don't know it." That didn't seem very like him.

"I asked a few people I knew for recommendations about the nicest vegetarian food in town," he said. "Apparently, that's what the chef who runs this place specialises in."

"Oh, I didn't know that." A warm feeling filled me at his thoughtfulness, especially because I wasn't vegetarian, it really was nothing more than a preference for what I ordered at restaurants, and nothing more than that.

"I hope it's good. But if it's not, then we can find something else."

"I'm sure it'll be great."

It was reasonably busy inside, but whoever had designed the layout of the restaurant had clearly thought about the dining experience, and the table is still intimate, without it feeling like we're just at one of our houses.

"You look beautiful," he said once we were alone. "I meant to say outside, but I forgot."

"You look good yourself," I responded. "The grey suits you."

"Thanks, I like to think so." He touched his blazer. "It's been a while since I dressed up for a date."

"But you didn't wear your ring," I said, nodding towards his right hand.

He shrugged. "I didn't need to wear it. You already know, and I have no doubt that you're not going to forget."

My heart constricted at the words, and at the certainty in his voice. This was a safe place for him to be. And that meant that it was a safe place for me to be. I liked that we could create that, even in the short amount of time that we'd known one another.

"I'm glad you feel safe."

"I do."

The waitress appeared to take our order, leaving Jacob smiling when she left.

"What?" I asked.

"I knew you were going to order the fig salad."

I laughed. "What if I'd not been in the mood for figs?"

"Then I wouldn't have said anything and still looked smart."

"It was a good bet. I also really like goat cheese."

"It does make a good salad," he said.

"You don't mind that we're somewhere with mostly vegetarian food, right?"

"Of course not," he assured me. "I do like to eat meat, but I wouldn't want to restrict your choices just so that I could have it. Besides, if I'm honest, it's just good food that I like."

"Getting ideas for the menu for the hotel? You can change that in just over a week."

He chuckled and leaned closer. "I don't think so. I know better than to mess with chefs and their menus."

"Fair enough. Did you know that Poseidon is a chef?" I asked.

"No?"

"You wouldn't want to go to his restaurant, he mostly does seafood. But it's supposed to be good."

"I should tell Ella, she loves seafood."

"I'm sure Nadia has taken her there already, she knows all the best spots in town."

Our waitress set out drinks down on the table between us, and I picked up my glass, glad that I'd gone for a non-alcoholic option.

"Put off by wine?" he joked, nodding towards my glass.

"I had enough of it at the weekend," I joked. "I'm just more of a social drinker. If I'm left to my own devices, I'm more likely to go for something non-alcoholic. I've actually been enjoying Ella being on her no alcohol before the wedding events kick."

"Did she actually manage?"

"When she was around me, she did. I'm not sure about anyone else."

"I'm impressed. I know what Ella is like."

"Chaotic," I responded with affection. "Unless she's talking about plants, and then she knows everything the moment that you mention the name of what you're looking for."

"She does do that. She was always spending time in the nursery as a kid. Our grandparents used to run it, and every free moment she got, she'd be there asking Grandad about the names of all the plants and everything else he could tell her about them."

"Did you not like that?"

"I didn't want to be confined by what I was," he said. "Don't get me wrong, I like plants as much as the next dryad. But I never wanted them to become my personality. So I tried to do other things. I liked playing tennis when I was a teenager."

"Would you believe I've never played it?"

"I don't imagine it was a thing in Ancient Egypt."

"Oh, it was. It didn't look exactly like modern tennis, but it existed. I just never played it. There was a lot going on at the time."

"I can imagine that becoming a goddess took up a lot of time."

I laughed. "Less than you might think. Becoming immortal is easy, all you need is a god."

"That doesn't sound that easy," he responded.

"You're on a date with one," I reminded him. "And I was a priestess at the time, it was almost guaranteed that I would come across gods fairly regularly."

"Ah, fair enough."

The waitress came over and set our starters in front of us. I picked up my fork and twirled it around.

"Once I was immortal, it was just a case of amassing enough people worshipping me in a certain amount of time. And no, I can't tell you exactly what that time is, or how many people, no one actually knows the answer to that. I just know that it was enough. And here I am."

"Okay, so what's the difference between being a god and being immortal?" he asked.

"A little extra magic," I said. "I have a couple of abilities other than those I have from being a dryad, but they're not particularly flashy.

I'm certainly not about to start performing miracles.

" I stabbed one of the figs with my fork, and added some of the cheese to it.

I let out a hum as the burst of flavour hit my tongue.

"Can people still become gods?" he asked.

"Yes. But it's a bit harder now, and they'd need to become immortal first. It'll be people like huge celebrities who would be able to become gods now, rather than people who are worshipped as gods, if that makes sense."

He nodded. "And that's how Santa was at your event."

"He goes by Nick," I said. "But yes. He's technically a god because of how he's been worshipped."

"It's fascinating."

"It is, but I can't really explain much of it to you," I admitted. "I'm not really a philosopher."

"That's fair enough. Neither am I. These are just things I've wondered about since the moment I learned that the gods were real and walked among us."

"I guess it's because we're not gods in the sense that most people think.

I've never been able to control anyone or anything outside the bounds of my own magic.

And it's the same for the others. Zeus can create small lightning bolts, but he can't make storms. Neptune can influence the small patch of sea around him, but he can't control the creatures within it, or the waves to a greater extent than that.

It's like being a slightly more powerful version of what we were before. "

"Except that you said that you were able to do more than just your dryad magic."

"Well, yes. I have the ability to make someone else immortal, and I'm able to control my own fertility.

But that's about it, unless there's an ability I haven't discovered in the past few thousand years.

It's one of the reasons I've always wondered about my position as a sex goddess, other than the obvious. "

"You've lost me."

"Oh, well some of the other pleasure gods have the ability to give magical orgasms. I've never had that ability."

He raised an eyebrow. "I see."

"Sorry, probably not what you wanted to talk about."

"I don't mind," he assured me. "But you said some of them, meaning not all of them do. So it could just be a coincidence that you can't."

"Maybe. Or that not enough people worshipped me for sex, so I never gained the ability." I frowned as I thought about that and leaned back in my seat.

"Everything okay?" Jacob asked, a concerned expression on his face.

"Yes. Sorry. It was just a freeing thought. If not enough people ever worshipped me for it, so I never gained the ability, then it kind of means that no one really cares if I am a sex goddess."

"I guess not."

I considered a moment longer. "I think that just makes me feel a bit more comfortable with myself."

"Which can only be a good thing," he responded.

"It is." I put my fork down. The food was delicious, but in all honesty, I'd barely been paying attention to it, the company was too good for that. And the conversation was making me consider things in a way I never had before.

I wasn't entirely sure what I was going to do with that, but it was helpful to me figuring out who I was. Which sounded like a ridiculous thing for me to say, even to myself, when I was a few thousand years old, but at least I'd gotten here, and that was the main thing.

I looked across the table and smiled at Jacob. He looked relaxed, which wasn't a surprise. It was easy to be around him, and that was why I kept searching him out. And I had every reason to think that he felt the same.