Page 43 of A Veil of Gods and Kings

He shook his head. “As much as I wish I could, I’m afraid my boss would string me up if I did. He expects me to actually work. Isn’t that horrendous of him?”

I chuckled. Valerian’s gaze stayed locked on mine for several heartbeats. And for just a moment we stood alone, tucked in the golden rays of sunset in the rafters, the sweet scent of hay whirling around, hidden from the world. Then he cleared his throat. “See you later, Pip.”

“Yeah, later.”

He turned and took both leads, guiding the horses until they faded into the shadows of the stables. Temi and I ambled farther out into the meadow, dropping below the shade of a tree, and pulling out our lunches. When we finished eating, Temi stretched her legs out, resting her hands over her stomach. “Valerian is pleasant to be around.”

I swallowed another drink of water. “Yeah, he is.”

She darted her eyes towards me. “He’s pleasant to look at too.”

Heat flooded my cheeks, and I tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “Are you interested in him?”

She snorted. “Not a chance.”

“Why not?”

“That isn’t my thing.”

“Oh, men?”

She shook her head. “Romantic relationships.”

She plucked a piece of clover and dropped it and then selected several more, her fingers rummaging through the emeralds of them. I packed up the leftovers while I chewed the inside of my cheek. “Do you not want to get married?”

“No, I don’t.”

I tied the napkin up, knotting it. “Don’t you worry about being lonely?”

She brushed her braids behind her shoulder. “Are you lonely right this minute?”

“Well, no. I’m with you.”

“Exactly. I have friends and my community and my brother. Why would I ever be lonely?”

“I guess that makes sense.” I dropped the bundles into our basket. Temi leaned her head back against the tree, and I smoothed my skirt down. “Speaking of your brother, Hyacinth hasn’t seen him much since you all have arrived.”

Temi’s features tensed, and she blew out a breath. “Apollo is going through some things.” Her voice took on an edge. “And handling it like an idiot.”

I leaned against the trunk beside her. “Hyacinth is worried.”

“About what?”

“He’s supposed to send reports to Zeus about what they’re doing. Right now he has nothing to say, and he fears”—I stretched my fingers out in the cool grass—“Zeus’ wrath being brought onto our country for it.”

A shadow passed over Temi’s eyes, her shoulders curling down. Her throat bobbed, and she nodded. “I’ll speak with my brother.” She fiddled with the clover for another moment and then gave it a twirl before handing it to me. “Look, a four-leaf. Keep it, for luck in love.”

I blew out a breath and dropped it. “That’s the last thing I need right now.”

Temi grinned and stood, brushing her hands together, and we gathered the leftover picnic supplies and ambled back towards the palace.

15

Apollo

The palace guards' eyes darkened as they gazed over me striding through the gate. The moon had already begun to descend for the night, the stars like crystalized ice frozen against the dark expanse of the heavens.

I had spent the evening alone, tucked in some obscure corner of the kingdom. That was the nice thing about cities, you could stand surrounded by thousands and remain utterly alone. No one demanding things of you or pushing expectations or hopes or fears onto you.