Page 37 of Eris

Eris swallowed hard. "If you keep doing nice things like making me Spritz, I'm going to have no choice but to fall in lovewith you." She said it as a joke, but her tone was too quiet for that.

Enzo only picked up the bags and shot her a wink. "That's my plan." He moved below deck before Eris could come up with a reply. She had none. She wanted to fall in love and know what it felt like to belong to someone. She drank some of her Spritz and smiled so she didn't start crying. It was exactly the way she liked it. She wanted to keep him so badly, her chest ached.

Enzo came back on deck and poured out another shaker for himself before sitting down. "You okay? You're looking a little bit like you want to kill me."

"It's just my face," Eris replied and sipped her Spritz. "I just don't know how to handle it when you're so nice to me."

"I know, but you'll get used to it," Enzo said, utterly unperturbed by her frowns as usual.

Eris cleared her throat and turned her attention to the setting sun so she didn't pounce on him. "You seem a lot steadier. Did you talk to Bianca?"

"I did. She sounds like she's having fun with Claudius and the others. I'm glad. I've probably smothered her too much in the last year," Enzo said.

"How so?"

Enzo ran a hand through his curls. "After my ex attacked, I became kind of paranoid for Bianca's well-being. I realized she could have died, and that messed with me more than Katarina trying to cut my heart out. Bianca has been tolerant of all the safety precautions and my fussing, but she's someone who needs to be free."

"She is. It's not a bad thing to have someone care about you that much. Bianca understands that." Eris ate an olive and muttered, "I would have handled things a lot differently if I had been around then."

Enzo's mouth twitched. "How so?"

"If some stalker tried to hurt you, I would have annihilated them before they even got close to you," Eris replied honestly. Even though his ex was dead, it didn't stop the feelings of fury that raced through her every time she thought about him almost dying because of her.

"I don't know if I will ever practice psychology again in order to get a stalker, so hopefully, it won't be a problem," Enzo said, and his eyes went sad.

"You miss it?"

"Sometimes. I like helping people."

"I've noticed." Eris smiled and gestured to her Spritz.

"I can't help it. I like the look on your face when I do something for you that you didn't expect," Enzo replied.

Eris started to feel hot, so she changed the subject. "Have you figured out where the palladium wants you to go next?"

"Crete. I'm sure of it. In my vision, I saw a minotaur and a labyrinth. Aeneas did stop there at Pergamea, but there's no evidence that the town ever existed. I figure we aim for Heraklion and see where the palladium takes us," Enzo replied and ate a handful of grapes. "I talked to Bianca about my visions growing stronger too."

Eris tried not to stare at the strong column of his throat every time he swallowed. "And what was her theory?"

"Because our family was of the royal bloodline and was the palladium's protectors back in Troy, my connection to it is strong. It's…speaking to me, and yes, I know how crazy it sounds." Enzo shrugged. "But then I also got to make out with the goddess of chaos and discord, so a statue talking to me with visions doesn't seem so crazy compared to that."

"Not as crazy as me wanting to make out with a mortal." Eris smiled. "There are good kinds of crazy. What else did Bianca say?"

Enzo gave her a long, steady look that made her heart trip up. "She said if I fall in love with a goddess, I accept whatever the Fates have installed for me."

"And are you in danger of that?" Eris asked, her mouth going dry.

"Extremely."

Eris's fingers crushed her napkin. "Why?"

"Lots of reasons."

Old anger flared through her, triggered by the feelings welling up inside of her. "Is it because I'm beautiful? Because being awed by that wears off."

"Is that what happened with the others?" Enzo asked softly.

Eris's laugh was full of bitterness. "It's the only thing anyone ever sees. Do you know what Zeus said to me when we first met? He said, 'What a waste of beauty you are, daughter of Nyx.' That's all I've been to the gods and everyone else, a monster clothed in beauty."

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