It was a suite with two separate bedrooms and a bar stocked with candy, sodas, and chips.
There was a hotline to room service built into the wall.
Fluffy towels and water beds with feather pillows peeked out of the rooms, and, in the living room, the east wall was dominated by a flatscreen screen television with satellite and highspeed Internet.
Beyond the rooms, the balcony had its own hot tub, and there was a note pinned to the entrance.
'Sup, Perce? Hope you got to Santa Monica alright. Order whatever you want for dinner—it's on me. Might show up with your old man later, I'll keep you posted. Try to get some sleep tonight.'
I crumpled the note in my hand and smiled. Even if I was going to die, at least my last night would be nice. "This place is legit," Piper commented from behind me as she peered over my shoulder. She brushed by me and walked further into the room. "Looks like there's a message for you."
I followed her gaze to the television, where a goofy photo of a wideeyed cat clinging to a telephone pole took up the entire screen. Over the cat's head, a glittery caption sparkled in red: Hey Percy! We're hanging out downstairs! Come say hi right meow! "Huh."
"Huh is right," Piper snorted. She undid her braid, and ran a few fingers through her tousled hair, wincing as she found knots.
"You're telling me an Olympian—one that could explode both of us like a pair of Fruit Gushers—took the time out of his day to do that?"
I defended, "He's a chill guy."
"Clearly," Piper said as she flopped onto the couch. A low groan escaped her lips, "Damn, this is comfortable. I might take a nap and eat something. Do you want me to order you some food or something while you're down there?"
"Eh, maybe. What were you thinking?"
"Something greasy," Piper fumbled around for the remote. The cat flickered away as a football game took its place. Piper rested her head on the edge of the couch and curled into a fetal position. "Like a pizza. With double cheese."
My stomach grumbled. "You're talking my language, now. Save me a slice and we'll call it even."
"Deal." I grasped the door handle. "See you later, Pipes."
"Bye!"
I stepped back into the hallway, and my stomach did a series of somersaults as a voice said, "Hello again." Aphrodite. She looked different, somehow, though. Rather than changing her appearance constantly, she was set on one. Aphrodite's features were delicately heart-shaped, and she looked like if someone had blended the best of Adria Arjona and Jessica Alba into one stunning face and slapped blonde hair on top—a combination I never realized I needed in my life until I saw it.
Her makeup was flawless, enhancing every curve and angle without looking overdone. When she smiled at me, warmth flooded through my chest, and for a moment, it felt like the entire hallway was glowing just for her.
She didn't look modern, though, if that makes any sense. Her hair was adorned with gold circlets and flowers. She was dressed in one of those Greek-style dresses that flowed down from her shoulders. Gold bands covered her wrists, too. All in all, she looked exactly like what I would've imagined a Greek princess would've looked like.
A barely visible pink aura shined around her skin. Was that there the last time? If I'd been a little smarter and a little less out of it, I could've confirmed my thoughts with an active version of [Mana Detection].
Did the Game make puberty come sooner, too? I wasn't this devastated by her very presence last time. Maybe it was because I was in a dream, and there was some sort of little jelly layer protecting my mortal brain from her presence. Every step she took was absolutely mesmerizing, and a part of me began to wonder if she was actively trying to embarrass me.
"Do you like what you see?" Aphrodite said softly, walking over to me.
The gold made a light chiming noise with every step she took. She softly placed a finger under my chin, forcing me to look into her eyes. You know, I'm really not going to lie to you. I think I wanted to go for a witty comeback, but it ended up sounding something like, "Um uh gah."
"How sweet," She said tantalizingly, smiling at me warmly. Her eyes glinted. "I missed you too."
"Aphrodite," I managed to say eventually, though my thoughts were spinning like a pinwheel in a hurricane. Through the chaos, I recalled the pink energy I'd seen when the Chimera went down. I was pretty sure it was the only reason I survived. "Back on the, uh, arch. Um. Thanks for the save."
"Of course," Aphrodite said, patting my cheek. A bit of her teasing tone from the dream was back, "It'd be a shame to let someone this cute die." My insides felt like they were coated in ice. "Was I actually going to die?"
"Mm," The folds of Aphrodite's dress got stuck as she stepped forward and hit the elevator button, and I instantly averted my eyes. The woman was a goddamn tease! "It's hard to say. The poison was burning through your bloodstream fast enough, but you were also headed for the water. I think it likely would've been close. A matter of seconds either going one way or another."
"Damn," I imagined my lifeless body smashing into the water, splashing into the junk of the riverbed. "Just like that, huh?"
"Just like that." Ding! The elevator doors opened, and we stepped through. Aphrodite waved her hand, and the button panel changed. The light bent and twisted in the elevator. I blinked, and below the emergency button, a solid black one emerged. She clicked it. "This will probably take a while," Aphrodite said, with an absolutely unnecessary stretching motion.
I tried to look away, but the inside of the elevator was covered in mirrors, so I saw every angle—every graceful, unfairly perfect angle. It was like the universe had designed this moment specifically to make me stare, and, yeah... mission accomplished.
"Oh, stop it. You're adorable. Getting all flustered."
"I'm not flustered."
"'Are you sure?" Aphrodite whispered, stepping closer to me. "Okay, I'm flustered."
"Honest, too. You're seeming like quite the catch," Aphrodite teased me again, and I felt like hitting my head against the elevator wall and shattering the glass. "You look rather dashing yourself."
"Thank you," I spoke up, not believing a word of what she'd just said. I hadn't showered in a real shower since last week, I was still wearing the same dirty clothes I'd worn in my battle against Medusa and the Chimera, and to top it all off, my eye was covered in a Subway napkin since I'd lost the linen wrap from Medusa. "That's quite the compliment, coming from you."
"Well, I suppose it is," Aphrodite said, humming softly. Her eyes met mine, and pink electricity crackled in her irises. For a second, the black faded, and I saw my mom, sleeping peacefully. "Before I forget to mention, your mother is now under my protection."
"I haven't even completed my part of the deal yet, though," I pointed out. "Mm. You will," Aphrodite shrugged. She twirled a lock of hair around her finger. "You see, the reason I wanted to tell you is that there was a slight...complication...with our bond..."
"What kind of complication?" Those words were almost at the bottom of the list of things I wanted to hear from Aphrodite at the moment. Complications almost always meant a bad thing. "Well, you see, because I recognized your mother as my family, our bond immediately changed, as well," Aphrodite cleared her throat. "This wasn't entirely my doing, of course, but in the Olympian Council's marriage registry, you and I are listed as husband and wife."
"Huh?" "It's an old, traditional thing," Aphrodite waved her hand. She toyed with the hem of her dress, glancing at me with an expression hovering somewhere between amused and apologetic. "Whenever a deity formally claims a mortal—or their kin—in front of the Council, certain…clauses come into effect. I believe the term is conjugal something-or-other."
I felt my jaw unhinge. "Conjugal?" I echoed. "That sounds important. And scary."
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