Page 35 of Wild Hunt
“What Hades does really doesn’t interest me.”
He gave me a knowing look. “If you tell yourself that for long enough, maybe you’ll start to believe it.”
I rolled my eyes. “What does any of this have to do with me?”
“You’re the reason they’re fighting,” he accused.
I raised an eyebrow. “Excuse me?”
“Come, you’re not that naïve,” he scoffed. “We all know you and Hades got to third base.”
My cheeks flared with heat, but I wasn’t sure if I was more embarrassed or angry. “I don’t see how that’s any of your business. I can’t believe he told you.”
“He didn’t need to,” Loki shrugged. “We share a bond.” His eyes narrowed. “A bond that includes you now, apparently.”
“If this is about that thing I can’t talk about, you’re barking up the wrong tree. And the one has nothing to do with the other.”
“Doesn’t it?” he challenged.
“A point, Loki. Get to one.”
I released him from the hedges and he smirked, walking forward to stand in front of me. “We both know you can come between them. I’m here to ask you not to.”
I couldn’t believe I was hearing him right at first. “You’re seriously asking me not to fuck Hades?”
“Or Fenrir,” he said, as if that made it any better.
I couldn’t help but laugh. “You have a lot of nerve, you know that?”
He smirked. “So I’ve been told.”
“If it makes you feel any better, that was a momentary lapse in judgment,” I said icily. “It’s not going to happen again, but if it did, frankly, that’s none of your fucking business.”
Loki chuckled. “Perhaps not.”
He turned to walk away and my curiosity got the better of me. “Wait,” I called.
He turned and watched me boredly. “Yes?”
“Were they really fighting over me?”
He shrugged. “Like you said, it’s none of my business. You’ll have to ask one of them.”
Chapter 19
Kore
“Thanks for helping me with this,” I said as Daphne laced up the back of my dress. It was the night of the opening ceremony, and all the female participants had to wear some variation of the same toga-inspired dress. At least I’d gotten the chance to opt for one cut above the knee. “I’m not used to all the frilly stuff.”
Daphne just laughed. “It’s no problem. There, you’re all set,” she said, stepping back to admire her handiwork. She was wearing a similar dress, only hers was a more practical wrap style. “Truth be told, I’m a little surprised you didn’t ask Dionysus.”
I froze at the mention of his name. In the weeks that had elapsed, I hadn’t managed to come to terms with my feelings for him. We were roommates, but sometimes it felt like we were strangers.
The Games spanned a full week, and with their culmination, the semester would be at its end. I didn’t have much time left to fix things before we both went home on break.
Not that I was likely to get an invitation back to the Academy if my plan of winning worked out.
Which brought me to another unresolved matter. Daphne was already heading to the door when I called after her. She looked back expectantly. “What is it?”
