Eros (19 page)

‘I shouldn’t say anything.’

‘But you will,’ Skye said.
She knew Emma too well to expect her to stay quiet when she had something to say.

Emma cut straight to the chase.
‘You told me he was handsome.’

Skye’s tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth and she nodded mutely.

‘You’ve never set eyes on him, have you?’
Her friend eyed her unhappily.

Skye started.
‘How the hell do you know that?’

‘It’s true then.’ Emma’s shoulders sank.
‘I had hoped it wasn’t.
Skye, how can you be in love with someone when you don’t even know what they look like?’

‘You don’t fall in love with someone because of their looks.
It’s personality and what’s inside that counts.
You can’t tell me you think otherwise.’

‘Not entirely, no, but…’

‘But what?’

‘Think of a painting.
You buy a painting because you like the way it looks.
Most people don’t understand the craftsmanship or skills or thought that goes into it.
You need to have a baseline attraction from the start.’

‘I’m not in love with a painting.’

‘No,’ Emma agreed.
‘You’re in love with someone who could walk past us right this very moment and you wouldn’t know if it was him or not.
That’s crazy, Skye.’
She pointed to a dreadlocked man strolling past.
‘It could be him.’

‘It’s not him.’ Skye said flatly.

‘How do you know?
It’s creepy, hon, not knowing who he really is.’

‘I do know who he really is,’ Skye burst out.
‘How do
you
know I can’t see him?’ she repeated.

Emma shifted uncomfortably.
‘I promised I wouldn’t say.’

Skye stared at her.
‘That’s not fair.
You’re meant to be my friend.’

‘And what kind of friend would I be if I broke my word to someone else?
What kind of friend would I be if I didn’t speak up when I’m worried you’re making a big mistake?’

‘I can’t believe you’re trying to tell me that appearance is more important than personality.’

‘I’m not.
But you can’t deny that appearance counts.
What if you finally see him for what he is and realise you’re not attracted to him?’

‘That’s ridiculous.’

‘No, it’s not.
You can bluster and pretend all you like, Skye, but physical attraction is important.’

‘Not that important,’ Skye said stubbornly.

‘Okay, then, what about trust?’

‘What do you mean?’

‘How can you trust someone when they won’t show you their face?’

Skye looked down.
‘I trust him.’

‘Do you?
It doesn’t sound like you do.’

‘Emma…’

Her friend put her hands up in mock surrender.
‘Okay, fine.
I won’t say any more.
Just think about it.
For me?
If you get the opportunity to see him in person you should take it.
What’s the worst thing that can happen?’

A ripple of unease ran through Skye.
‘I don’t know.’

Emma sat back.
‘See?
At least you’ll know then who he really is.
It’s not about being shallow, Skye.’
She dropped her voice to a whisper.
‘It was a guy called Hermes who told me.’

Skye blinked.
Hermes?
But he was Coop’s friend.
Why would he be running around talking to Emma behind Coop’s back?

‘He made me promise not to tell you who he was,’ Emma confided.
‘I think he likes you and doesn’t want to see you get hurt.’

‘Did he tell you what Coop is?’ she asked cautiously.

‘The god part?
Yeah.
That’s freaking weird, hon.
But I’d always had a few suspicions regarding Helios, you know.
Once I went into his office and the place was bathed in light.
It was so freaking bright, I thought my eyeballs were going to be seared off.
But it wasn’t the electric light that was causing it.
And then this one time I thought I saw…’ Emma’s voice trailed off.
‘It doesn’t matter.’

‘You’re taking that part remarkably in your stride.’

She shrugged.
‘Hey, I’m an open-minded kind of gal.
But not so open-minded as to think you can have a genuine relationship with someone when you don’t know what they look like.’

‘It’s not his fault he’s invisible.’

‘So he says,’ said Emma.
‘Hermes suggested there was more to it.
That he’d deliberately made himself invisible.’

Skye’s brow furrowed.
That just didn’t make sense.
Why would he do that?

‘Look, let’s forget it.
Your room is all ready for you and I’ve got the night off.
Let’s have fun tonight and you can decide what to do tomorrow when you get back to Greece.’

Skye clenched her teeth.
No.
This was ridiculous.
First her mother thought her relationship with Coop was doomed, now her best friend seemed to think they couldn’t possibly have a real relationship together. Neither of them understood.
 
And what on earth Hermes had been doing, she had no idea.
Despite having only been away from him for two days, she missed Coop desperately.
She needed her friends and family to see how wonderful he was.
But
they’d not even met him yet and already they were against him.
Skye was going to prove otherwise. Lion, not mouse, she told herself.
Instead of waiting for things to happen to her, she was damned well going to make them happen herself. She stood up and pushed her chair back.

‘Actually, Emma, I’m not staying after all.
I’m going back home.’

‘To your parents?’

‘No,’ she said firmly, dropping some money on the table.
‘To Greece.’

***

There was no driver to pick her up from the airport this time.
Coop wasn’t expecting her back for another day.
She’d been lucky to get on the last flight to Athens as it was; by the time she reached the mansion, he’d probably be fast asleep.
But that was okay.
She’d wake up his visible self and they could look into each other’s eyes properly.
He’d understand.
If it meant the other people she cared about were more inclined to love and trust him, it was worth it.
Digging into her bag, she had just enough cash to pay for a taxi through the winding hills.

Unable to relax, she fobbed off the taxi driver’s attempts at conversation and stared out of the window.
The moon was covered by clouds and even the lights of the city seemed dull.
Trepidation and excitement bubbled in the pit of her stomach.
Occasionally she felt a flicker of doubt and worried whether she was doing the wrong thing, but then she put those thoughts aside.
Coop had asked her to promise not to try to see him while he was visible but she’d not said the words, so there was no promise to break.
Besides, if he’d missed her as much as she’d missed him, this was going to be a hell of a hello.

The truth was that Coop
had
missed her desperately.
He’d spent the previous two days moping around the mansion, listlessly wandering from room to room.
Skye’s scent was still lingering in the air and everywhere he went there were traces of her presence.
The only thing he’d found to take his mind off her had been his job; somehow going out and helping others to find love made him feel better.
He made a mental note to tell that to his mother.
She’d been on at him for years to appreciate his job more;
now he had Skye, he did.

After tossing and turning for two nights, barely able to sleep, today he’d gone for a long swim so he felt tired when he clambered in between the cool sheets of his bed.
Unfortunately that meant he fell asleep almost instantly, failing to hear the sound of the taxi – and Skye – pulling up outside.

After paying the driver, and with her heart in her mouth, Skye walked up to the front door of the mansion and carefully opened it.
The house was dark and quiet.
Skye grinned to herself.
He’d be surprised to see her but – she hoped –happy too.
She kicked off her shoes and padded through the house to the wing where his bedroom was.

At the door, Skye put her hand on the knob and began to twist it, then paused suddenly and pulled back.
Doubt filled her:
was this the right thing to do?
Coop had seemed adamant she mustn’t see him while the invisibility spell was off.
She thought of Apollo’s caustic comments about how handsome Coop was.
Was that because he wasn’t good looking at all?
Was he actually some kind of monster with horns and scaly skin?

But she’d felt his skin.
It was smooth.
And there certainly weren’t any horns on his head.
She’d run her hands all the way through his soft hair.
Even if he wasn’t as good looking as she’d been led to expect, it hardly mattered.
Appearance wasn’t important, no matter what Emma said.
In fact part of her hoped he didn’t look like a love god should –then she wouldn’t feel inferior next to him.

She stood there, staring at the barrier of the door.
This might be her only chance to know what he looked like.
His mother might decide to keep the invisibility spell on indefinitely.
Skye straightened her shoulders.
She spent far too much time doing what she was supposed to, instead of what she wanted to.
Seeing him would put the naysayers in their place.
Even if Coop was angry, he’d get over it.
She smiled to herself.
She’d make sure of that.

This time she placed her hand on the doorknob and didn’t hesitate, turning it and stepping decisively into his bedroom.
The lump in the centre of the bed indicated he was there sleeping.
Skye’s heart was pounding.
She took a step towards him.
Then another.
At that moment, the wind shifted and the clouds covering the shining brilliance of the moon shifted.
A shaft of light hit the bed through the open window and Skye gasped.

He was unlike anyone she’d ever seen.
She’d thought Apollo, for all his faults, had been handsome but nothing prepared her for the sight of Coop.
He was naked, with half a sheet twisted round his body, revealing sculpted muscles.
Muscles she’d only felt with her fingers and now could see with her eyes.
His arms were covered in sweeping dark tattoos, similar to traditional Maori or Celtic ones she’d seen in pictures, but those hadn’t been so elegant or intricate. In repose his face was angelic and somehow hard at the same time. The golden curls on top of his head would appear feminine on anyone else but on Coop they somehow added to his masculinity.
She reached out to brush one away from his cheek and, as she did so, his eyes opened.

For a moment the sleepy violet of his irises took her in, warm delight filling them to their depths, then suddenly they clouded over and he sprang up and stared at her in dismay.

‘Skye,’ he whispered.

She smiled at him.
‘Coop.
I’m sorry.
I know you said to stay away but I had to see you.
I had to know what you look like.
You understand that, right?’

A muscle clenched in his cheek and it appeared as if a great rage was filling him.
His body shook and he clenched his fists at his sides.
Then he sprang forward without warning and pulled her to him, his mouth curving down towards hers.

Skye opened herself up to him, locking her arms round his neck and leaning into his hard body.
As erotic as it had been making love to him without being able to see him, this was far, far better.
He deepened the kiss until her senses were drowning and then, abruptly, pulled away.
Skye moved towards him and he held up his hands as if to ward her off.
He shook his head sadly, an angry fire still within him, although it didn’t seem to be directed at her.

‘Doubting Skye,’ he said softly, reaching one hand out to cup her cheek.
Then he blinked and two enormous white wings appeared at his back as if from nowhere.

Skye stared open-mouthed.
Before she could react, he turned and leapt into the air.
He flew out of the window, silhouetted for a heartbeat against the orb of the moon as he turned to look at her one last time.
Then he was gone.