Page 26 of Taken By the Blood God

It was taking every bit of my control to stay exactly where I was instead of walking back into the bedroom and throwing Minerva back on the bed to see how many times I could make her come for me again. By the goddess, the look on her face when she came. I would never forget it, not if I lived another two thousand years. I wanted to see it again. And again.

I wanted her from the moment I saw her, but now, after seeing her—hearing her—come, Icravedher. I needed her presence, her voice, every part of her. I wanted her with me every second of the day. Even the door between us was too much distance.

My arms trembled from the strain of holding myself back. I had to master this hunger. Master myself. Because I didn’t wantto take what I needed from Minerva. I wanted her to give it to me. To submit to me.

Davian said I should use blood to bind her and force her to do my bidding, but everything within me rebelled against that thought. Now that I had taken her blood, I could do it. But I couldn’t bring myself to do so because I refused to harm her.

And that sort of violation would be something she would never forgive.

I speared my fingers through my hair, pulling it back from my face as I dragged air into my lungs—deep, ragged breaths that still didn’t seem to fill my tight chest.

I imagined what would happen when I told her about Cassia. About the origin of her power. The way she would look at me and what she might say. That was enough to inject ice into my veins. I would have to tell her. And soon.

But not yet.

I needed Minerva to trust me before I told her everything. Before I explained all the mistakes I’d made and the people I’d hurt. She had to see that I was a different man now before she learned who I’d been before.

Feeling calmer, I used the toilet and washed my hands and face before I walked back into the bedroom.

Minerva was no longer sitting on the bed. She had moved to the small round table in front of the window, and she was sitting in one of the chairs facing the view. The curtains were drawn back to reveal the beach beyond. The water was calm, glittering under the sunlight. There were people dotting the surface of the sand, some reclined as they read or just soaked up the sun. There were also children and young adults running and playing. It was beautiful to see. And it reminded me of what I’d once overlooked, before I locked myself beneath a mountain.

Life was finite and thus precious. Moments like this one were the ones that mattered.

For those people on the beach, today would be a golden memory. A time spent with family or friends to be cherished. For me, being alone in this room with Minerva was another. In Devil Springs, we were never truly alone. While Minerva might not have visitors very often, she received calls and texts all day long. She had friends. Family.

Here, we wouldn’t be interrupted. Maybe it made me a bastard, but I liked the idea of having her all to myself.

Minerva must have found the mini fridge because there were two packaged sandwiches on the table next to her as well as a bowl of cut fruit, a couple bags of potato chips, and two small bottles of water.

“If you’re done lurking,” she said, her back still to me. “We should eat and discuss our next moves.”

I walked to the empty chair and sat down, also facing the window. “As much as I would like to walk into the place where this coven is leeching the magic out of my brother and blow it up, that would draw too much attention.”

Her head turned toward me, and she arched a brow. “Not to mention the danger to any humans nearby and the fact that you would waste all that magic and end up crashing on me and your brother just when we needed you the most.”

I nearly bit my tongue to keep from telling her that wouldn’t happen again. Being restored as I was…I wouldn’t overexert myself again unless I was battling another god. I doubted very much this coven had access to one. Otherwise, why would they be using my brother as they were?

But that wouldn’t help me gain her trust. I had to be honest. About everything. Just not all at once.

“That won’t happen again,” I admitted.

She cocked her head and waited. I knew from experience it was an invitation to continue my explanation, so I did.

“As I said, you’ve restored me to full power. I have a sort of…equilibrium now. Unless I’m dealing with another god, it is highly unlikely that even a coven of witches could drain me to dangerously low levels.”

“You’re not joking, are you?” she asked.

I shook my head.

“Must be nice to have that sort of power.” It was little more than a murmur and held a sarcastic edge.

My lips twitched in amusement because she obviously didn’t know what she was capable of or she wouldn’t have smarted off.

“You should know. You have access to the same sort of power.”

Minerva had already turned her head to look out the window when I spoke, but it whipped around again at my words.

“I think I would know if I had that kind of magic,” she snapped, her eyes narrowed. “And that’s the second time you’ve insinuated that I’m just as powerful as you, yetyou haven’t explained a damned thing to me.”

---