Page 6 of Waiting For Psamathe

She nodded, looking as if she wanted to say something, but not knowing how. "So I need to talk to your director today."

I raised an eyebrow. "For the fundraising opportunity?"

"Yes."

"I'm sure they'll appreciate it," I said. "But you know you don't have to do this sort of thing for us, right?"

"I want to. An opportunity has come up that meant I needed to nominate a charity, it's only right that I pick the one outside my front door."

"What kind of event?" I had to admit to being intrigued, she'd been a little cagey about it last night, but that was to be expected when she couldn't promise anything.

"It's for Jinx."

My heart constricted. "Jinx? The dating app?"

"Well, the agency that runs it," she responded. "They do more than just the app, there are also a lot of parties from what I can gather. I've never been to one."

"I didn't even realise they did those." I tried not to be too relieved about the fact she hadn't been to one before.

"I was asked, and it'll be good for the hotel. Though I think it's also Aphrodite plotting."

"Aphrodite as in..."

"That's the one," she responded as if she hadn't just name-dropped the infamous love goddess. "She's seeing someone at the moment. If you're still around in another five hundred years, she might be single and ready to date again."

"That might be a bit beyond the life expectancy of a seal shifter," I murmured.

Sama gave me a small smile. "Probably. Five hundred years doesn't seem that long to get over someone though." A haunted expression came over her that I wanted to chase away, no matter what it took.

But I didn't know how she'd respond to that.

Thankfully, Po-lo decided to take it upon himself to make a big splash, bringing a smile to her face and chasing away whatever thoughts were plaguing her.

"You should come," she said.

"To the Jinx event?"

She nodded. "I don't imagine there'll be any problem getting some tickets set aside for the sanctuary staff."

"I'll have to talk to the director to make sure she's okay with me taking the night off."

"I'm sure if you tell her you'll be able to schmooze a load of very rich gods and paranormals, she'll be all over it. Just avoid telling any of the Greek deities that you've named seals after them.

"Not even Persephone?" I checked.

She laughed. "She's not likely to be there, but if she is then yes, you can tell her. But trust me, Apollo won't be pleased to hear you named Po-lo after him."

I laughed. "It's a compliment."

"It's your funeral," she responded, a teasing note in her voice.

"So what would happen if I named the next one Sama?"

"You've already done that," she pointed out. "It was how you learned who I was."

I gave an awkward chuckle, remembering the conversation and how much my colleagues had been laughing at me. "I didn't realise who I was talking to."

Something about her smile made me feel as if she was thinking of a fond memory. "It was just after you came to the island, you had no way of knowing I was an actual goddess."

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