A Shadow in the Ember (Flesh and Fire 1)

His head tilted slightly, and a lock of dark hair slipped over the hard line of his jaw. “And why would I not be allowed to?”

“Because it’s private property.” Why did I feel like we’d already established this?

“Is it?” Amusement crept into his tone. “I was unaware of any land prohibited to a god.”

“I imagine that there are many areas that would be off-limits to anyone, including a god.”

“What if I told you there aren’t?”

My stomach dipped. “I would be thoroughly irritated to learn that.”

A low chuckle rumbled from him. “So fearless.”

Common sense indicated that I should be experiencing some level of fear, but all I felt was anger. “None of that answers what you’re doing here.”

“I suppose it doesn’t.” He lifted an arm again, the one with the silver band, to brush back another strand of hair that had slipped against his jaw. “I was around, and since it was extremely warm, I thought I’d take a swim and cool off.”

Anger crowded out any tendrils of fear and potential wisdom. “And prey upon young women?”

“Prey upon young women?” There was a hint of incredulity in his tone. “What young women have I preyed upon this eve?”

“The one who is standing before you.”

“The one who is naked, standing before me?”

“Thank you for the unnecessary reminder. But, yes, the one you followed to the lake.”

“Followed?”

“Is there an echo here?” I demanded.

“I’m sorry—”

“You don’t sound sorry,” I snapped.

There was a soft, barely audible chuckle. “Let me rephrase. I don’t know how I followed you to this lake to prey upon you when I was here first. Trust me—”

“Not going to happen.”

A cloud slipped over the moon as his chin dropped again, casting his face in shadows. “Trust me when I say I was not expecting you to be here.”

In the back of my mind, where reason still existed, I knew he spoke the truth. I hadn’t been under the water long enough for even a god to undress, then enter the lake and the waterfall without me noticing. He must have been here first. But, frankly, I didn’t care.

This was my lake.

“I was minding my own business,” he said. “Taking a few moments to enjoy this beautiful night.”

“In a lake you do not belong in,” I muttered, not caring if no place was truly off-limits to a god.

“I swam underwater and ended up beyond the waterfall. It’s quite beautiful there, by the way,” he continued unrepentantly. “Can you, for one moment, imagine my surprise when a few seconds later, a young, very demanding mortal appeared out of the darkness and started removing her clothing? What was I supposed to do?”

Fire swept across my face. “Not watch me?”

“I wasn’t.” A pause. “At least, not intentionally.”

“Not intentionally?” I repeated in disbelief. “As if that makes it less inappropriate.”

That half-grin appeared again. “You do have a point there, but as it was unintentional, I would wager to say it is far less inappropriate than it would have been if it had been intentional.”

“No.” I shook my head. “No, it is not.”

“Anyway,” he stressed the word with such a highbrow air, my mother would’ve been impressed. “I was quite shocked, as this was not what I had been expecting.”

“Shocked or not, you could’ve announced yourself.” I couldn’t believe I had to explain this. “I don’t know what would be expected in Iliseeum, but here, that would’ve been the polite, less inappropriate thing to do.”

“True, but it all happened very fast. From the point of your arrival and, sadly, brief reveal of many, many unmentionable places, to when you decided to enjoy the lake. It was only a matter of seconds,” he said. “But I’m glad we’re now in agreement over my actions being less inappropriate. I will sleep better tonight.”

“What? We are not in agreement. I—” Wait. Sadly brief reveal of unmentionable places? My eyes narrowed. “You still could’ve said something so I wasn’t just standing there—”

“Like a goddess made of silver and moonbeams, rising from the depths of the darkest lake?” he finished.

I snapped my mouth shut. Like a…a goddess? Made of silver and moonbeams? That sounded incredibly… I didn’t even know what that sounded like or why my stomach was whooshing again. What he said was ridiculous because he knew actual goddesses.

“I considered announcing my presence just so you knew, especially after last night. The Fates know I don’t want to be stabbed again.”

I so wanted to stab him again.

“But then I thought it would only lead to unnecessary embarrassment for all involved,” he went on, snapping me out of my momentary stupor. “I figured you would be on your way, none the wiser, and this awkward—albeit very interesting—meeting never had to occur. I didn’t think you would realize I was here.”

“No matter what your intentions were, you should’ve said something.” I started to stand straight and then remembered that wasn’t the wisest idea. “I mean no offense in what I’m about to say—”