Page 10 of Ra (The Scarab Prophecy #1)

“I am aware,” Azi said, raising her cup to toast him briefly. “And that age thing for the humans… maybe you should have discussed that with her before you went and implemented it.”

“Yes, well… new god, I’ve already mentioned it.”

Azi simply peered at him over the rim of her mug as she prepared for whatever it was he would toss her way next.

“It is a great honor to be charged with the role of bringing forth life, and protecting and keeping order of that life.”

“I can imagine it would be.”

“I did successfully assist her by assuming my place in creation.”

“How kind of you,” she said with a smirk.

He grinned back, having instinctively figured out sarcasm within less than twenty-four hours.

“As you also belong to Neith, perhaps you have more power than you know.”

Azi laughed lightly as she turned her back on him to pour herself a fresh cup of coffee. “I wouldn’t bet on that. I’m just plain ole Azi.”

“Azi?”

She turned to look at him as she finished stirring her coffee. “Yeah?”

“There is nothing plain about you.”

Azi was momentarily unsure of how to respond. There was a whole lot of inference beneath his simple words, but she quickly recovered. “I’m just an everyday average human, who’s very, very hungry. Want breakfast?”

“Yes. Who will give us food?”

“I will have you know I can manage to cook breakfast.”

“Now I’m intrigued. Will we be able to eat it?”

“I cannot believe you said that!” she exclaimed.

“Well, I did. And I’d rather not have to spend too much time waiting. Will I have to wait long for my meal?” he asked, his nose in the air, as he practically glided into the living room.

“Hold on, wait a minute!” she exclaimed, following him into the living room where he had picked up the remote and was already turning on the TV. “I’m pretty sure you had moved beyond being quite so entitled.”

Ra smiled at her, completely ignoring her irritation with his comment. “I found the most interesting program to watch while you slept,” he announced, turning up the volume as he pointed to the screen.

Azi canted her head a bit as she watched, then it hit her. “Hallmark. You watched Hallmark?”

“Is that what this is called? I found it to be quite enjoyable. There was no murder, or mayhem of any type. Simply good people, caring for other good people. So, I watched. The last one I watched taught about a Queen who was very assuming of all everyone else should be doing for her. She wasn’t good in the beginning, but as it turned out, she was nice. She just had to learn how to do it.”

“Hmm. Interesting. Did she remind you of anyone?”

“No. Not so much.”

“She didn’t remind you of you?!” Azi asked.

“No. She was a queen. I am a god.”

“You were a god.”

“It’s practically the same thing. I am who I’ve always been, regardless of what is happening on the outside.

But that is not my point. She was a queen who learned to be kind and appreciative of those around her.

I have decided that no one had considered what life must be like for her. It was difficult.”

“Just one thing, Ra. You said the program taught about a queen. These programs and shows and movies are not for teaching. They are only for entertainment. Please do not take them to heart and think that things like that happen in real life. Most of us do not live lives like you’ll see in the movies. ”

“I think that maybe some of them do have things to be learned hidden beneath the surface.”

“They might. Just don’t expect life to play out like a movie.”

“Understood.”

“Says the woman going to make breakfast for herself and the sun god,” she said aloud as she went back to the kitchen to start breakfast.

No sooner had she cracked the eggs and was preparing to scramble them, then he called out to her.

“I need more coffee!”

“Then come get more coffee!” she shouted back.

“If I must,” he said, forcing exhaustion into his voice. Moments later he was strolling into the kitchen, and over to the coffee pot.

“It’s still hot. Only touch the handle,” she warned.

He nodded as he defiantly reached out and laid his fingertips on the glass portion of the carafe. He hissed and snatched his hand back as he glared accusingly at it.

“I told you it was hot!” she insisted.

“How can such a little thing, a tiny little barely heated thing, burn my skin? I am Ra! I have touched the sun, regularly!”

Now was her turn to exhibit some fatigue, casting a tired glance his way and shaking her head. “You are a human, who used to be Ra. It doesn’t matter what the individual living in that body used to be capable of. It only matters what that body is capable of now.”

“It is such a lowly trick of fate,” he grumbled. “I will forever be Ra.”

“A lowly trick of fate?” she asked, now thoroughly offended.

“Yes! Be patient, it is prophesied. Live again my…” he hesitated, searching for the right expression.

“Ass. Live again my ass…”

He looked quizzically at her, his face scrunching up in confusion. “I do not have an ass.”

Azi smirked as her gaze drifted down to his very nicely curved and muscled ass, took a few seconds to enjoy the view, then slowly went right back to meet his gaze.

His lips pressed together as he stared right back at her. “Is an ass not a beast of burden?”

“Not always, Ra. In this instance, an ass is your backside.”

Ra’s gaze slid down her body to her ass, where he took his own time to enjoy the view.

One corner of his mouth lifted in a smirk as he raised his gaze to hers, much the same way she had to him.

But as he defiantly looked her in the eye, he licked his lips seductively, then turned back to the coffee pot.

This time, the scorch of his fingers was accidental as he simply forgot that he needed to be careful.

A growl bubbled up out of his chest as he slammed his coffee mug down onto the counter-top. “I. Hate. This.”

“Here, let me,” she said.

“No! I am not incapable! I am simply limited, and ostensibly so! I can do it!” He snatched up his cup once more, the little coffee still sloshing around the bottom of the cup splashing over the side, and poured a steady stream of black coffee into it.

He added sugar — four teaspoons, as opposed to her two teaspoons — and looked over his shoulder to dare her to tell him he couldn’t have that much.

Azi was still a little shaken — in a good way — from the lip licking he’d performed, and didn’t quite get that he was looking for the cream.

“I need the cream,” he stated, as though she should have known that was what he was looking for.

“It’s in the fridge. You know, where we keep the cold things!”

“No, I do not know!” He walked over to the fridge and pulled it open, nearly tearing the door off.

“Easy! You don’t have to remove the door!” Azi warned.

“It looked heavy. I thought it was heavy.”

“It’s not heavy. It just seals to keep the food inside cold.”

He nodded and sniffed the carton of cream he held in his hand. “I like this.”

“It is good,” she agreed, as she poured the eggs into the buttered skillet and began moving them back and forth.

Ra poured some of the cream into his coffee, then turned it up to drink the rest of the cream from the container.

“Hey!”

Ra nodded. “Yes, this is good. We need more of this.”

“It’s cream.”

“I like cream.”

“Noted. I’ll see what I can do to get more.”

Ra inclined his head, picked up his coffee and went back to the living room.

“While I finish up in here, can you please get dressed?!” she called after him.

“No,” he called back. He smiled to himself as he turned his head to look toward the kitchen.

Why in the world would he want to get dressed when he could just walk around like this and keep getting the looks she kept sending his way when she thought he wasn’t watching?

Yes, he was out of sorts, trying to acclimate to this new life he’d been thrust into.

Yes, he was from another era, another world, another civilization.

But whether he was a god or human, he was a male at the base of it all, and the looks she was directing his way all said the same thing, regardless of the time period they were in.

She liked his body. And he was very, very happy to make notice of that.

“I am still waiting for food!” he reminded her.

“What the hell was I thinking?” she whispered. “What am I going to do with a human, er god, I mean… never mind.”