Page 90 of Shift of Morals
He shrugged. “Not a favor. A gift.”
“How kind of you. I’m sure there are no strings attached. At all.”
Neit’s eyes danced with amusement. “Not all gods are cruel, Evie.”
I inclined my head. “Maybe.” Cernunnos wasn’t cruel. Not yet anyway.
“This place,” Neit said with a sweeping hand gesture, “is a house made of dry wood. And you, my dear, are a spark. Eventually, you will burn too hot and turn this town to ash.”
Goosebumps rose over my flesh. “You know nothing about me.”
“I know your mother, and I know you are nothing like her.”
Thank the gods for that.
“Cliona is aware of her power, and she squirrels it away, living in fear. You are a bright light in a dark world, and you have no idea how brightly you can burn.”
Neit held out his hand. “Come, little wren. Allow me to transport you and this lovely vintage Scotch home.”
I eyed his hand but made no move to take it.
Neit smiled again. “Smart girl. I promise you, nor this bottle, will come to any harm on our way.”
I still didn’t move. “And when we get there?”
He laughed. “You are safe from me this night.”
It was the best I could get from him, and we both knew it. “And the bottle, too?”
His laughter, rich and warm, rang through the night. “I will protect the bottle with my life.”
I slid my hand into his, power snaking up my arm—ancient, staggering power. He wrapped an arm around my waist, pulled me tight against his body, and shot straight into the air.
My stomach leapt to my throat, and a scream ripped from me. Neit’s deep laughter in my ear made my body stiffen. I slapped his arm. “Warn a girl next time.”
“Why? It’s so much more fun this way.” He took me high into the clouds, up and up and up until I shivered in his arms.
Neit pressed me tighter against his body, a spark of magic on his palms rising and flowing over us, warmth flowing from my head to my feet. I sighed at the languid heat soaking into my bones.
“So,” I said after a beat of silence. “You and my mom, eh?”
Neit snorted. “Not quite like that, little wren. Courtship with the fae is quite different from humans’. We were not lovers, not in the carnal sense.”
“I don’t understand. Mom says you’re her ex-boyfriend.”
The god’s arm tightened around my waist. “A simple explanation from your mother, and not quite true. We were betrothed for a time.”
“Holy shit! You were going to be my stepdaddy?”
“Impertinent child,” Neit growled, though he sounded more amused than angry.
“Daddy, can I have a car?” I snickered to myself.
“Definitely not like your mother.”
I opened the wards to allow Neit passage. We touched down in the middle of the yard, and the god released me immediately. His eyes swept over the property until they landed on me once again, a thoughtful look on his face. “You keep your land wild but well-maintained.”
“I’m a Floromancer. That’s kind of our job.”
