Page 10 of The Seducer
How could I have forgotten how beautiful she was? It threw me off that her eyes were full of curiosity rather than resentment. Had she forgotten what an ass I had been to her?
“May peace surround you.” Hans smiled and stepped forward to take her hands.
The ten seconds their formal greeting took gave me time to take in the vibrant color of her red hair, the glow of her skin, and the youthful freckles that still made it impossible for me to accept that she was really thirty years old as she had told me.
“May peace surround you, Finn.” Athena stepped in front of me and reached out both hands.
I hesitated, but took her hands and locked eyes with the woman who stood between me and sexual gratification. Her curse resounded in my mind like it had about a thousand times already.It’s done. I made sure that you’ll never find satisfaction with a woman. Ever!
“Welcome to my home,” Athena said and gestured a hand to the door. “Won’t you come inside?”
I looked toward Hans. “Would you mind giving us a minute of privacy?”
He nodded. After thanking him I stepped inside the round building. “Wow, it’s really nice.”
“Why is there surprise in your voice?” Athena asked as she moved to a round table where she took a seat.
Without answering her question, I asked: “Why didn’t you tell me you lived in a windmill?”
“There are a lot of things I didn’t tell you.”
“Yeah, but why a windmill?”
“The Windmill symbolizes the energy that connects us all. I’m not sure who started the tradition that priestesses live in windmills, but it goes back to right after the Toxic War. The survivors of that fatal war agreed that it was the division that had caused countries to fight each other and the only way forward would be to work together. There could be nothem and usanymore. As a result, all countries became one big unity named the Motherlands and all religions were banned.
“I know, but that doesn’t explain the windmill.”
Athena gave me a patient smile. “With all religions banned, the few churches that had survived the war were torn down. I understand the reasoning behind the decision, but the banning of religion left a huge hole in many people’s lives and the effects were devastating.
“Eventually, the Council reintroduced us theologians, this time without the preaching and the doctrines of religion. Our job isn’t to tell people how to live their lives and we don’t talk about heaven and hell.
“Then what do you talk about?”
“We talk about the core of every religion.”
“What would that be?”
“That would be love, of course,” she said with a smile. “First, we were called spiritual counselors, but the word priestess won in the end. We modern priests talk about connection, unity, acceptance, forgiveness, and love. We seek to empower people and give them a sense of purpose in life.”
“Sounds like you created your own religion.”
Athena smiled and shook her head. “I see your point, but we do not preach or press with any sort of doctrine on how to live, think, or feel.”
“No, I’ll bet you don’t. But your Council does that for you with all their rules and laws.” I sauntered over to take a seat at the table.
She didn’t answer.
“No one is going to believe me at home when I tell them you Motlanders replaced churches with windmills.”
“There was worshiping in a church. To us a windmill is just the home of a priestess.”
“Right.”
I looked around the room. I liked all the warm colors of her furniture, rugs, and paintings. Some of the pictures on the wall looked like they had been drawn by children, and she had stacks of books piled on the floor. Living at the Gray Mansion, I was used to extravagance, but Athena’s furniture looked used and none of it matched. The four chairs at the dining table were different in style and there was a dark burn mark on the table between us. Still, her house was cozy with her eclectic collection of silly things that probably held sentimental value to her.
“It’s funny,” I said without looking at her. “Before my first trip to the Motherlands, I imagined it all as white, boring, and sterile.”
“Why?”
