I took a deep breath and nodded. Magical people weren’t known for being reasonable, but at least this was a nod to law and order. Still, the fact that people routinely got away with murder so long as they walked away made it pretty clear the no-murder rule was upheld by the honor system.

“How hard do you think they’re going to go at us?” Donovan asked, his smile dripping off his face.

“Treat the halls and grounds like the Colosseum of Rome. With the Demigods away, their people will play. And we’ll be the biggest prize around town.”

7

Alexis

I fluttered my eyes open when I felt the kiss on my forehead. The morning sun filtered through the windows and dappled the hard wooden floor. Kieran leaned over me, wearing a fresh suit and smelling scrumptious.

“Come back to bed,” I said, letting my magic flower around him, knowing he loved the feel of it.

He sucked in a breath and closed his eyes for a moment, letting one of his hands wander across my chest and clutch my naked breast. “I wish I could.” He ran his thumb over my taut nipple. “But I have to go to work. And so do you.” His eyes opened again, sparkling with desire but serious enough that I knew he wouldn’t get back into bed. “Be careful today, okay? Don’t look for fashion in your clothes, look for ease of movement. As everyone keeps reminding me, you’re still viewed as a normal Joe, so you don’t need to look the part of a Demigod’s wife today.”

My belly fluttered and a smile pulled at my lips. I would probably never get used to hearing that.

He bent and kissed me. “Remember what Amber said. People will want to try their might against you, and some of them will go harder than they should. Try not to kill anyone, but if you do, get out of there quickly.”

I sat up. “I know, Kieran. We’ve talked about this. I know what I have to do.”

“I will be stuck in meetings all day, so I won’t be able to help. None of the leaders will.” He paused, then said, “I know everyone has been talking about status and the pecking order, but I don’t care about that right now, okay? Once we’re married or the mark is validated, you’ll be out of this. Then we can leave the others to show what they’re made of. Until then, keep yourself safe, whatever you do, okay?”

“I will.” The covers dropped away as I stood.

His gaze burned down my body, lingering on my chest before catching at the strip of hair leading to the fun zone. A muscle worked in his jaw and his hands found my hips. “Heavens help me, Alexis, you are so damn beautiful.”

“Five minutes,” I whispered, running my palm over his pounding hardness.

With what was obviously great regret, he pulled his hands from my hips, applied them to my shoulders, and gently held me while he stepped back. “I’m already late. Tonight I’ll massage you and pamper you and then make you scream my name, I promise. Just come back to me in one piece, okay?” Seriousness stole through him again. He shook me just a little to jog me out of my haze of lust. “Okay?”

Reality wrapped its bone-cold fingers around my spine.

I’d seen the way those people had watched me last night. The rest of the crew, too. They’d been sizing us up, in the way people did when they were planning to take someone on.

A lot of people planned to take us on.

“It’s going to be okay.” Kieran pulled me into a tight hug, forcing the air out of my lungs. He could feel the trepidation burning inside me. “It’s going to be fine. You aren’t as green as they think you are. You’ve been in some hairy battles already. You’ve taken on Demigods and won. You can do this.” He looked down into my eyes. “Fight your way. You have better instincts than most people, and you have my crew. You’ve shown time and again that you don’t need me there to claim your victory. This will be a walk in the park.”

I felt the lie in his words. I knew he was just trying to build me up—to bolster my confidence. Logic wasn’t letting it happen.

After a deep breath, I hugged him again, gave him a bruising kiss, and stepped away. “Last chance for a quickie.”

His smile was short-lived. “I’ll see you tonight.”

It sounded like a command.

We disembarked from our golf carts in the parking lot of the Summit building. Bria stood in front of a large flatbed hand trailer piled high with bodies. I couldn’t help but wonder if the bodies had been provided to us or if they’d been on our private plane yesterday. No one had told me.

“Time to split into groups,” Amber said, stepping in front of the group and turning to face us.

“No,” I blurted. “You should go with Kieran.”

I hadn’t planned on saying that, but amazingly, the only person who seemed confused was Amber. “Kieran is safe. You’re the one who needs backup.”

Do it your way. Fight your way.

“All due respect, Amber, and it is monstrous respect, but I’ve never fought with you. I don’t have experience with you. You were really stressed by the unpredictability of our walk last night. Well, this will be ten times crazier, trust me. I think it is best if you direct Kieran’s guys. They’re new and untested. You’d best watch their backs. They’ll get beat on, too.”