Chapter 4
LAILA
I toyed with the stem of my martini glass, trying not to think about what a foolish idea this was. I should have asked Poseidon my questions while we were both safely in the kitchen, and I wasn't in a position that would result in anything close to flirting.
Except that I kind of wanted to. Poseidon was an attractive man, though that was probably never really in doubt.
But it was more than that. He'd had a calmer presence than I expected, and it was always pleasant to find someone who was as passionate about food as I was.
Maybe after a few more questions, I'd discover that wasn't true, but I didn't think it was going to be.
The doors to the kitchen swung open, and the man in question strolled out, looking just as dashing in his navy blue suit as he did in his chef whites. He certainly didn't look as if he'd just spent a lot of time in the kitchen, even if I knew that was true.
He spotted me by the bar and headed over, a confidence in his step that could probably only come from spending thousands of years looking as good as he did with his impressive physique, wavy dark hair and short beard.
"Thanks for waiting," he said, his Greek accent still evident. It made me wonder how recently he'd lived there, or if it was something he'd just never lost. I wasn't complaining, there was something undeniably sexy about it.
"I do still have questions to ask you," I pointed out.
"And I'm happy to answer them," he promised. He flagged down the bartender and ordered himself a drink. An expensive watch peeked out from under the sleeve of his shirt. "So, what do you want to know?" he asked, turning so that his attention was fully on me.
"You don't mind if I take notes, do you?" I asked.
"Sure. Or you can record, whatever is easiest." The bartender set down a glass of wine in front of him, and he said his thanks.
"That might be best," I responded. "Then I don't have to ask you to pause so I can write something down."
He chuckled. "Be my guest."
I pulled out my phone and clicked on the record icon. Thankfully, it wasn't too loud in the bar. Most of the noise of the event was in the other room where people were mixing.
"You were telling me about your reputation for anger," I said.
"You're going in for the hard questions to start with," he joked.
"As I said in the kitchen, that wasn't one of the questions I was planning on asking.
My editor sent me over a set of questions that she normally has people ask when they're interviewing chefs, and I was planning to go off that.
But now I'm curious. And they do say the best interviews are those that come with a side of authenticity. "
"Mmm." He picked up his wine, effortlessly swirling the red liquid around the glass in a way that was kind of captivating. He took a sip, and it was only after he'd done it that I realised I'd been tracking every movement. "That's one of Dionysus' better vintages," he said.
"I didn't realise they were serving Dionysus' wine here."
"Then you're missing out. Would you like a glass?"
I was going to say no, but I paused when I realised that was a mistake. How many times would I have the opportunity to try wine made by a wine god? "All right."
He nodded and gestured for the bartender again, somehow managing to talk the man into leaving the bottle with us.
Poseidon picked it up and poured some into my glass. "Try it."
Curious, I abandoned my martini and picked up the glass of wine. It smelled a little fruity, and certainly like it was going to be flavourful. I took a sip, letting it coat my tongue so I could really savour the flavours. "That's good."
"It is," Poseidon agreed. "Though his best wines are the ones that he doesn't have many bottles of."
"Well, considering that this is the first time I've ever drunk any of Dionysus' wine, I haven't had a chance to try any of those."
"That could be changed." The way he looked at me made it feel like there was more to the promise than just wine.
I pushed the thought to the side. I was here to write an article. "You've done an excellent job at changing the subject." I took another sip of wine.
"It wasn't intentional," he promised. "If you believe me or not will depend on how you feel once we've finished our conversation."
I laughed. "Fair enough."
"You want to know about the anger," he said.
"If you're comfortable telling me. I can have a copy of the article sent to you in advance if that makes you more comfortable."
"My former reputation isn't anything I have to hide.
I certainly had a temper. I was quick to anger, and long to hold a grudge.
I can't say that I'm proud of that time in my life.
It was at the height of the power of Ancient Greece, and people had already linked me to the sea, so they started seeing my temper and the sea's dangerous nature as connected. "
"Are they?"
"I've never had any control over the ocean. That's far beyond the scope of power that the gods have ever had."
"I know," I responded. "You were mortals who became immortals and then gods."
He raised an eyebrow. "I wasn't aware that had become common knowledge."
"I don't believe it is. My best friends are both dating gods."
An intrigued expression crossed his face. "That's interesting."
"I'm at a Jinx event," I pointed out. "It's probably not that much of a stretch to think that I'd come across gods enough to know a bit about them."
"Perhaps not. Which gods are they dating?" he asked.
"I'm not sure that's something I should say." I wasn't entirely sure how public either of their relationships was, even if they had both brought their boyfriends to his restaurant, so maybe it would be fine.
"Understandable," he said. "Anyway, I was known for my temper, and nothing bad happened to me because of it.
If anything, a lot of good came my way. There were offerings, riches, and all kinds of worship from people wanting me to make sure that their journey was a safe one, or that the catch of fish would be safe. "
"I can see how that would be appealing." I finished my glass of wine, surprising myself with how easily it had gone down.
Poseidon lifted the bottle in a silent question and refilled my glass when I nodded.
"And then the influence of the Greek gods faded, and the Roman ones grew.
Neptune took a lot of my followers away.
" For the first time since he'd started speaking, there was a hint of anger in his voice, but he cleared his throat.
"After that, my anger did start having consequences.
Followers turned away from me, people cursed me instead of worshipping me, and others didn't want to be around me at all.
I was lamenting about it one day in The Underworld, and that was when Persephone told me that I was incredibly unlikable. "
Despite myself, I laughed. "I'm sorry."
He chuckled. "Don't be. It surprises me that she didn't tell me earlier. Persephone has always been outspoken. She told me that, and then I was angry and didn't want to talk to her for a couple of decades."
"Sounds a bit like a temper tantrum."
He snorted. "It was one. After a while, I realised I was being childish and started working on my anger.
It was around that time that I really discovered food.
I'd been eating it the whole time, obviously, but discovered exactly what a joy it could be to make it.
" His face lit up as he said it, leaving no doubt as to the truth behind his words.
"Ah, so you are on topic," I joked.
He grinned. "Yes."
"So, the love of food and anger management is what you're claiming helped you?" I leaned forward, curious to hear his answer.
"Yes," he agreed. "And here I am now."
"I'm sure there's more to that story."
"You've probably not got enough years for me to recount all of my journeys to you," he responded.
"I've got a few hundred left."
A surprised expression crossed his face. "You're fae."
"Manjari, yes."
"That explains how beautiful you are."
I rolled my eyes. "My general genetics explain how beautiful I am."
"At least you're accepting the compliment." He took another sip of wine. "So, what other questions do you have for me?"
"What's your favourite comfort food dish to make?"
"Fried olives stuffed with feta," he responded instantly.
"Unexpected."
"I'm Greek," he responded. "And they're delicious. Salty, fatty, just the perfect bite. What's yours?"
"Uttapam. It's..."
"A savoury pancake made with fermented rice and lentil batter," he said. "I spent some time in India."
"Most people don't know what they are."
"I'm not most people." The words should sound arrogant, and yet somehow, they didn't.
"No, apparently not," I murmured. "All right, next question. If you were cooking for someone for the first time, what would you choose to make?"
"For a date?" he checked.
"The question doesn't specify, so yes?"
His lips quirked up into a smile. "If you agree to a date with me, you can find out."
I didn't think he was fully serious, and yet there was a part of me that was responding as if he was.
Poseidon cleared his throat and straightened his jacket.
"It would depend on the person. I love seafood, but if my date didn't, then it wouldn't be a good idea to cook it for them.
So I'd tailor the menu to both the person I was cooking for, and the experiences we'd had together.
If I were cooking for you, I might make uttapam and fried stuffed olives because we've talked about them. "
I laughed. "That's an interesting combination."
"I'd finish it off with a bottle of Dionysus' wine. One of the excellent vintages, he owes me a favour or three hundred."
"I'm sure you're not exaggerating," I said, but mostly to distract from the response within me that I'm having to his suggestion of cooking for me on a date. It shouldn't sound as good as it does.
"I am a little," he responded.
I cleared my throat, mostly to regain my composure. "I'm sure I know what you're going to answer to this one, but what's your favourite restaurant?"
"Oh, that's a hard one," he said. "Surprised I didn't just say Il Cavalluccio Marino?"
"Absolutely." I drank some more of my wine while I waited for him to elaborate.
"My restaurant is never going to be my favourite," he said. "We do good work, use good ingredients, have talented staff, and an inspired menu. But it's my restaurant. I know all of the faults, and I'm always improving."
It was such a genuine answer that I struggled to think of what to say in response.
"So my favourite is something entirely different," he continued, unaware of my response. "It's this gyro place in Cape Sounion. It's a local spot, but it has some of the best gyros I've ever tasted."
"Unexpected."
"A gourmet can enjoy fast food."
"I know. I love cheap chips from fast food chains," I admitted. "Especially after I've been drinking."
"That's because you haven't tried my version of their chips. All of the thin, crispy, salty goodness, but with thyme and oregano. Perhaps some feta if I'm in the mood for something cheesy."
"That does sound delicious," I admitted. "But you might have to stop talking about food so much, or I'm going to get hungry. Your food was delightful tonight, but the portions were small."
He chuckled. "That was all Aine. I think she was hoping people would have a lot more space for wine so that they were a little tipsy and signed up for more of her dating services."
"I'm sure she isn't that devious."
"She's a love goddess, she almost certainly is that devious," he responded. "But I'm afraid there's nothing I can do about stopping us talking about food, that is what you're trying to interview me about."
"I could move on to some slightly less food-related topics," I responded. "Why did you call your restaurant Il Cavalluccio Marino?" I ask.
"It means seahorse in Italian."
"I know, I looked it up. I guess I was just a little confused about why it was an Italian name?"
"I lost a bet."
That was not the answer I expected.
"I lost a bet against Zeus, and my options were to spend a month in an aquarium as one of the attractions, or name my new restaurant in Italian."
"A month in an aquarium is an interesting choice. Surely that wouldn't have been so bad?" What was a month to an immortal being?
He sighed. "I should have chosen it, but my pride got in the way."
"All right, so why call it after a seahorse?"
He laughed surprisingly loudly in response. "It's a joke."
"I'm not sure I follow."
"I'm a seahorse shifter."
I blinked a few times as his response registered. "You're a seahorse shifter?"
"Not what you expected?"
"No, not really," I admitted. "I think I was expecting something more like a shark, or a dolphin."
"Neptune's a dolphin shifter," he responded. "He used to remind me of that every time the two of us ran into one another. Thankfully, he stopped a while ago."
"Yes, I heard about the animosity between the two pantheons from Cupid," I said without thinking.
He raised an eyebrow. "So one of your friends is dating Cupid? I heard he found someone."
"Yes." There was no point denying it now.
"Interesting. And I guess that gives me a way to contact you again."
"Or you could just ask for my phone number like a normal person, rather than trying to use a Roman god as a messenger."
"He'd probably do it," Poseidon said.
I laughed, thinking about the man my friend was dating. He probably would. If not for the chance to meddle in the love affairs of a Greek god, then for his love of Eloise.
"Perhaps asking for your number might be quicker."
"It would be." I grabbed my clutch bag from the bar beside me and pulled out my case of business cards. I popped it open and handed one to him. "And now you have it."
"That feels very official."
"It cuts down on unnecessary steps," I said. "If we run into one another at another event in another six months and you've never contacted me, then I'll know it's because you're not interested and not because you mistook a three for an eight."
"I have no intention of waiting six months to message you, Ms Mandal."
"Laila," I responded.
"Laila," he repeated, his lips quirking upwards into a smile as he said my name.
A funny feeling spread through me. I knew I was here for work, but I'd already forgotten that more than once during our conversation. Poseidon was surprisingly likeable, and clearly didn't take himself too seriously.
I picked up my glass of wine to finish it, using the motion to study the god over the top of it.
Could I get involved with a god? My friends were doing it, and neither of them seemed particularly worried either way.
Eloise even had a normal mortal lifespan rather than the longer lives Ivy and I had as types of fae, and she didn't seem to have a single problem dating a god.
It just seemed like it would be so messy on paper, but the practice might be so much sweeter.