Chapter 16 #3
Sawyer snickered. “Do it. It makes it less weird that I’m already following him. I bet five bucks he’ll post about finding his ‘cosmic third’ within three months. The man is nothing if not committed to his spiritual odyssey.”
“And I’ll bet ten that Maylin will unleash a torrent of passive-aggressive comments on every photo with a new soul mate,” Ryker added with surprising enthusiasm.
“Something like, ‘Our souls have danced together across seven hundred and forty-nine lifetimes, but sure, go off with this random stranger while I wallow in my lonely solitude.’”
“The drama would be epic,” Sawyer sighed. “I’d pay good money to see Baxter actually find someone else and witness the cosmic meltdown that ensues. It’d be worthy of the Greek gods.”
Sawyer cleared her throat. “Speaking of gods, I’m about to make Gia see some. Repeatedly. In our room.”
Ryker groaned as I burst into laughter.
Gia stood up to help Sawyer out of the hot tub. “Have a good night, boys. Stay a little longer, unless you want to take a crash course in sex ed.”
“And you say we’re bad,” Ryker grumbled.
Sawyer wrapped a towel around herself. “Try not to drown each other.”
“No promises,” I retorted, earning a middle finger as they headed into the house.
Once we were alone, Ryker turned to face me. “I think Ares and Dionysus might have more in common than mythology gives them credit for.”
“Is that so?” I asked.
“Mm-hmm.” His gaze lingered on my lips. “They’re both passionate, both misunderstood—”
“Both incredibly hot,” I added with a grin.
“There’s that, too.”
I trailed my fingers along his arm beneath the water. “If we’re going to fully embrace our inner deities, we should indulge in some divine revelry.”
His voice dropped to a husky whisper, sending a shiver through me that had nothing to do with the cool night air. “Is that what the kids are calling it these days?”
“It’s what this particular god is calling it.” I pulled him onto my lap until our lips were almost touching. “What do you say, Ares? Ready to make some myths of our own?”
His answer was to close the distance in a kiss that tasted of whiskey and promise. I thanked whatever Greek gods or yak-herding ancestors had conspired to bring us together.
Ryker drew back suddenly, his eyes unfocused and his face flushed beyond what I’d expect from our heated make-out session. He blinked rapidly, swaying in my hold.
Concern replaced my flirtatious mood. “Whoa, are you okay?”
“I’m…” He shook his head, then winced. “Sorry, I feel dizzy.”
I shifted my hands from his hips to his shoulders, steadying him as he swayed again. His skin was too hot, even for someone sitting in a hot tub. The whiskey combined with the steam had done a number on him.
“Come on, you’re overheated.” I helped him off my lap and toward the edge of the tub. “Let’s get you out of here before you pass out.”
Normally, Ryker would insist he was fine, even if he was actively bleeding out. His lack of protest as I guided him told me how shitty he felt. I kept hold of him as we climbed out into the cool night air, the temperature difference making goose bumps rise on our wet skin.
I grabbed the nearest towel and wrapped it around his shoulders with protective attention, ensuring it covered him before getting mine.
“Deep breaths,” I instructed, rubbing his upper arms through the towel. “The fresh air will help.”
He nodded, leaning against me as he closed his eyes and took several measured breaths.
“Better?” I asked, studying his face.
He opened his eyes. “Yeah. Sorry for ruining the moment. One second, I was fine, and the next…” He trailed off with a sheepish expression. Even half-dizzy and wrapped in a towel like a drenched kitten after bath time, he was adorable.
“Don’t worry.” I guided him toward the house with my arm still protectively around his waist. “We’ve got plenty of time for that, preferably somewhere that won’t cook us like lobsters. Hey, maybe in a past life, we were crustaceans. That would explain why you can’t handle the heat.”
“Crustaceans?” he repeated, looking at me like I’d lost my mind.
“Sure. Maybe I was a powerful king crab, and you were my delicate little shrimp.”
That earned me a sharp elbow to the ribs. Ah, there was the grumpy Ryker I knew and loved. It was a good sign he felt better.
“I’m not a shrimp,” he protested.
“True, you’re more of a lobster with that red face.” I grinned as he scowled. “Well, she did say we were merpeople. That must be why you’re so comfortable in water until it gets too hot.”
“I refuse to believe that’s a valid option for reincarnation.”
“Why not?” I asked. “We’ve already confirmed you were a yak herder, a horse diver, and the god of war. A merman seems downright pedestrian by comparison. Plus, I’d look stunning with a tail and all that freedom to flaunt my abs without pesky shirts getting in the way.”
Ryker snickered as we headed inside. “You would focus on that part.”
“Of course. I had to attract my merman mate to bear my quintuplets, after all.” I celebrated my victory at his annoyed huff. “Though I prefer this lifetime where I get to see you in those tight jeans you wore yesterday.”
He blushed again, but it was the good kind that came from my words rather than overheating.
“You’re ridiculous,” he said, but there was no bite in it.
“You love it,” I replied.
The look Ryker gave me was so soft and open that my heart pulled a tray of freshly baked gooey feelings out of the oven. “Yeah, I do.”
Something about the interrupted moment in the hot tub and our seamless transition from passion to tenderness made the night feel even more perfect.
It wasn’t just about the physical chemistry, although that was there in abundance.
It felt natural to care for him, to make him laugh, to be the person he leaned on for strength.
As we reached the top of the stairs, I checked in again. “How are you feeling now?”
“Better.” He smiled up at me. “Thanks for not letting me drown.”
“I’d never let anything happen to you,” I replied, the words coming out more seriously than I’d intended.
Since he felt better, I teased him again. “In our next incarnation, I hope we find each other faster. Though I have to say, I think we’re making excellent use of this lifetime already.”
“You think we’ll have another lifetime after this one?” Ryker asked in a hopeful voice.
“Snookums, if Maylin is right about all our past lives, we’ve got a standing reservation with the cosmos.” I stopped him for a kiss. “Which is good, because I plan to keep requesting you for eternity.”
The happy smile that spread across his face was worth every second of the three years I’d spent waiting for him to fall for me.