Page 3 of Waiting For Psamathe

"But you are now. I'm sure he wouldn't want you to be alone."

"I'm not alone." One of the seals slipped off a rock and disappeared into the sea, oblivious to my watching.

"If you insist." Something in her tone said she didn't believe me, but I knew there was no arguing with her. Aphrodite's stubborn streak was almost as strong as her jealous one. "Well, I should get started on the plans. If you wouldn't mind getting me the contact details for the charity, I'd appreciate it. And if it's for animals, I might even be able to get Horus to leave his sanctuary in order to come, I heard he has a new girlfriend who might like a romantic getaway."

"That would be something." I didn't know the Egyptian god very well, but that was mostly because he kept to himself.

"I'll see you soon, Sama." She waved and headed back into the hotel, presumably so she could make her way over to the god realm portal on the other side of the island.

I sighed and looked out at the calming waves of the ocean. I hoped I wasn't about to regret agreeing to her proposition.

Chapter 2

PSAMATHE

My feet sank into the sand as I made my way to the precise section where the sea met the beach. The setting sun reflected off the waves and the sky was an unbelievable shade of pinky-orange. No wonder Aphrodite wanted to have a Jinx event here, it truly was the epitome of a romantic setting.

Without meaning to, I found my thoughts wandering and turning over some of what she'd said. She was right, it had been a long time since Proteus died, and even since I'd managed to forgive myself for not having graduated from immortal to goddess in time to keep him with me. Not that I thought he'd agree to that. He'd loved life, but he'd also been the kind of man who saw it as something to be enjoyed until it ended.

Would he truly be okay with me moving on?

I looked out over the waves, jumping slightly as they parted and the head of a seal emerged. I let out a small laugh. It wasn't the first time I'd been spooked by one of them, I thought they enjoyed the mischief.

The seal disappeared in a moment, replaced by a familiar figure. I tried not to stare at Zale's toned chest where it rose from the water, but it was hard not to.

"I didn't expect you here, Sama," he said.

"I came out for a walk," I said needlessly. "I needed to think."

"Same, that's why I came for a swim." He pointed to a towel a few feet over.

I nodded and turned my back so he could get out of the water without me staring at him more, even if that was kind of what I wanted to do. It wasn't appropriate though. We were friends.

The water sloshed as he made his way onto the sand, and I strained to hear what was going on so I knew when it was safe to turn around.

"How are things at the sanctuary?" I asked.

"Pretty much the same as normal," he responded. "We have a new seal."

"What's their name?"

"Persi," he said. "It's safe to turn around."

I laughed and faced him. "Haven't you run out of Greek gods to name seals after?" I asked, more amused than anything else.

"Well, remind me how many sisters you have?" He rubbed a towel over his face and hair, but it was still damp from the sea.

"Fifty," I murmured, conceding his point. "All either fathered or turned immortal by Poseidon."

"Which are you?" he asked curiously.

"No idea. He's not exactly the fatherly type, so I never asked. I'm not sure he'd be able to tell me even if I did."

"I'd have thought he'd have calmed down by now," Zale said.

"Oh, he has. But that doesn't mean he can remember what he was doing nearly three thousand years ago. Fifty daughters, remember. And that's just the nereids, there are others too." It was best not to dwell on any of that. Anyway, Persephone wouldlove that you named a seal after her. She adores animals of all kinds."

"I'll remember that if I ever meet her," Zale responded.

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