Page 19

Dionysus

CHAPTER NINETEEN

“What made you change your mind?” Ares asks beside me, nodding toward Cecily, who holds my son in her arms.

Mrs. Nuttle left about half an hour ago, without even caring that Cecily had never been alone with Joseph before. These are the details that tell me that my current employees don’t really care about my son. They have no affection for my boy; they just see him as an ordinary job.

I feel my three brothers’ eyes on me, and I know they are waiting for an answer. “Isn’t it obvious?”

“What? That she’s beautiful and you can’t look away?” Ares mocks.

“Bastard. I’m talking about Joseph’s immediate fascination with her. When have you ever seen him react like that to a stranger?”

He doesn’t answer because he knows I’m right. “Are you sure she’s a good person?”

“I turned Cecily’s past inside out. Twice,” Odin says from behind us. “Dionysus has just hired a saint.”

“Will she live in your house?” Now Hades is the one asking.

“Did you take the day off to bother me? Cecily will live in my house like the nanny before her did. During the day, she will be free to take care of her own business, and at night, she will take care of Joseph until I arrive, when I will take over.”

“You find her attractive,” Zeus says, laughing.

“It’s unbelievable how the prospect of marrying the woman you love and also becoming a father soon has changed your attitude, big brother,” I say sardonically.

He shrugs, not rising to my provocation. “Before, I never felt like I was living my own life, but rather, what someone had assigned to me. For the first time, I’ve made choices without having to put my family’s wellbeing before my own.”

“Even before Madison showed up, you should have forgotten that promise, Zeus,” Ares says. “Our grandfather had no right to ask you for that, and after all, for what? They’re all dead. Our parents and their tormentors. What good is pride and revenge now?”

“Speak for yourself,” Hades growls. “Revenge, at the very least, gave us the satisfaction that that son of a bitch didn’t get away with it and won’t cause harm to another innocent person.”

“Don’t get me wrong. I’m all for retaliation. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth is my guide,” my second oldest brother continues, “but not when it completely changes our lives.”

I know Ares is saying this directly to Hades, who lives for seeking the destruction of his enemies.

The youngest in our family is unfazed. “Enemies must be destroyed without mercy.”

I shake my head, thinking about how fucked up we are. Unable to deepen a romantic relationship, to forgive... to trust, except in the family.

The only one to escape this cage is Zeus.

“I need to go,” I say. “I have to arrange things so Cecily can move in.”

“Don’t leave her alone with the boy at first.”

“Damn, Hades, you’re becoming more obsessed than me,” Odin says. “Elina has been working with the girl for weeks, and my wife is a good judge of character. I would never have allowed Cecily into our midst if I thought she was no good.”

I shake my head, smiling. Our entire family, on both sides, are a bunch of paranoid bastards. “See you at the wedding,” I say.

“If you need me to watch your new employee, just let me know,” Ares says, smiling, and I know what that means.

“Don’t go near Cecily.”

“Why not? I won’t be employing her directly, and I haven’t dated a natural redhead in a long time.”

“I won’t warn you again.”

His smile widens. “Because she’s yours, right?”

“That has nothing to do with it. Cecily will just be my employee.”

This time, everyone smiles, even Odin, and it’s clear they don’t believe what I said. My irritation increases.

I walk to where my son is—in the arms of the woman who is a temptation for me but also very forbidden.

“Can we go?” I ask Cecily, as if I were addressing any other employee.

What happened earlier today was a mistake. I must keep my distance, even more so now that I have seen how much my son is enchanted by her. Maybe Cecily really is the ideal employee.

She looks at me, seeming confused, but then gets up with him still in her arms.

Only then do I realize that Joseph has fallen asleep.

“You can give him to me. He’s heavy.”

“I can handle it,” she says. “I’ll take him to the car.”

“And I’ll take you home, and tomorrow I’ll ask Anderson to move you in.” Nothing I say has any emotion. I sound purposely indifferent, because it will be better for both of us if it’s that way.

“I’ll accept help with the move,” she answers in the same tone, “but not the ride home. Madison said she would take me.”

We get to my car, and she passes Joseph to me. Our arms brush, and for an instant, we both freeze.

“I’m going to take you,” I repeat, because I want to control even a small part of her life.

“Why? I already said you don’t need to . . . sir.”

“You will be my employee. It’s natural for me to try to make your life easier,” I say nonchalantly, as if I’m commenting on the weather, as I place Joseph in the backseat.

When I stand up again and face her, she seems to understand what I’m doing.

“I will be your employee, yes, but only when I’m at your house and working my shift. Other than that, with all due respect, Mr. Kostanidis, I can take care of my own life.”

She starts to walk away, but I grab her arm, even though I know that Anderson, as well as the other people at the party, can see us. “You’re being stubborn.”

She tries to hide a smile but fails. “No. I’m being practical. From what Elina told me, your house is in the opposite direction to my apartment, while Madison and your brother’s house is not. I’m in a hurry to get to my place today. Someone advised me to have fun before bed, as I recall. It was good advice, and I intend to follow it.”

After dropping that bomb, she turns her back and walks away, leaving me dying to go after her.

For the first time, I realize that perhaps I have misjudged the power of Cecily’s attraction.