“Goddess, meet Burke. Burke, meet goddess and friends.” His lips curl into a smile that’s both mischievous and wicked, amused and evil. “Burke is the one who paid us to kill you.”
CHAPTER 14
Burke is an insignificant man in every way. You would never believe he hired four men to kill me.
His face is pudgy with an abnormally large nose and too thin lips. Wispy black hair, interwoven with gray streaks, flops in front of his closed eyes. Currently, he’s dressed in a pair of tan khaki pants and a blue striped shirt, almost as if Desmond abducted him straight from a business meeting.
But I can only give Burke a passing glance, my entire attention consumed by Desmond.
He looks exactly as I remember him, down to the laugh lines around his piercing brown eyes and the jovial grin on his face. His brown hair is long, nearly to his shoulders, and is extremely full and luscious. He has thick black brows and light facial hair that only emphasizes his sexy features.
“Des,” I whisper as he drops Burke’s body unceremoniously to the ground. I race forward, arms extended, and he returns my stare with wide-eyed wonderment. But the second we would’ve collided, he stealthily sidesteps me, face uncharacteristically taut.
“You…remember?” Avery asks uneasily, moving to stand behind me. He places his hands on my shoulders and gives them a reassuring squeeze. Normally, his touch is calming, but I can’t help but cringe away, focused intently on Desmond.
And his rejection.
It feels as if he shoved his hand through my skin and ribs and grabbed my beating heart. Slowly, he begins to crush it in an iron vise, restricting all blood flow.
Desmond’s signature sly grin returns, but it’s forced. He refuses to meet my probing eyes.
“My memories returned to me last night,” he admits, shrugging once. “After…” He clears his throat and shifts uncomfortably, favoring the leg I stepped on when the man attacked me.
It suddenly occurs to me that Desmond was the man outside of my work. It makes sense, considering he’s the God of Combat.
“Anyway…” Desmond scrubs his hand through his shaggy brown hair. “I went through my contacts and discovered Burke was the one who paid us to kill Emily.”
“Did he only hire us four?” Helio asks, muscles rippling as he flexes. He lifts his gaze to stare over Desmond’s shoulder at the still open apartment door. No doubt, he’s trying to figure out if there are any more threats he needs to eradicate. Any more people he needs to kill in order to enact vengeance.
“Isn’t that twisted fate?” Sin drawls lazily, moving to jump up on the kitchen counter. He has a cigarette dangling from his lips as he offers me a crooked smile. “The men who swore to love and protect you are the ones who tried to murder you.” Desmond winces at Sin’s words, Avery frowns, but Helio remains impassive.
“Sin…” I warn, but he ignores me, removing his cigarette and putting it out on his bare arm. Immediately, a hideous red welt appears on his tan skin. In the Realm of the Gods, that wound would’ve healed in seconds. And Tate’s face? Those bruises would’ve diminished in only an hour or two.
Tate’s right.
The human world is depleting us of our powers.
Will we continue to lose bits and pieces of ourselves until we’re nothing but mere mortals? Is that this person’s master plan?
Or is he or she attempting to kill me completely?
“I wonder which one of us got the closest to killing you,” Sin continues. “My guess is Tate.”
All three men hurl metaphorical daggers at my oblivious God of Flames.
“Who is this man?” I ask, redirecting the conversation to the topic at hand. Using the toe of his boot, Desmond turns Burke over until I’m able to see his face clearly.
“Don’t know.” He shrugs his broad shoulders, his black shirt pulled tight over his muscles. “Have you ever met him before?”
My brows furrow in consideration. “Not that I know of.”
“Could he have been a customer at Georgie’s?” Avery asks, and Sin releases a low, guttural growl.
“Georgie?” He jumps from the counter and stalks forward, every inch the dangerous, unhinged predator. “That better be a fucking girl.”
“Nah.” Avery flashes the other man a shit-eating smirk. “He’s a guy.”
With almost bruising intensity, Sin grabs my arm and drags me towards him. I stumble over my feet, catapulting forward until my hands are on his well-defined chest.
“Did you sleep with him?” he growls. Before I can answer, he continues, “Have you slept with any men since you’ve been here?”
The silence that follows is more pronounced than ever before, and I know that I have all of the men’s undivided attention. Even Tate, slowly waking up from his Helio-induced slumber, pauses at Sin’s question.
“Err…”
“I’ll kill them all,” Sin warns. And I don’t doubt him for a second. He’s fine with sharing me with the others, but that’s only because he knows and trusts them—in a way only a man like him can. But anyone else? He’ll light them on fire and watch them burn with a giddy smile.
I have no doubt that the others will help, even Helio, my more level-headed mate.
Tate pushes himself onto his elbows and scowls at me, but I ignore him.
“Okay, let’s clear the fucking air. Have any of you been with another woman when you had your memories wiped?” I ask, my nails digging into my palms. “I won’t be mad as long as you’re honest. You didn’t remember me.” I take a deep, calming breath. I’m afraid a part of myself will die with their response, but I work hard to keep my face blank.
The men exchange glances, but not one of them speaks.
“Be honest with me,” I warn. “Raise your hand if you’ve been with another woman.”
Squeezing my eyelids shut, I brace myself. Fuck, this is hard. So hard. I’m afraid I might physically
