Page 27 of Artemis

“I’ve been thinking about hiring some extra security,” Artemis said hesitantly.

The sisters exchanged glances. “I heard about the attempts to kidnap Alexander from Augustine,” Hera said comfortingly. “I don’t blame you in the slightest.”

“But?” Artemis prompted.

Hera hesitated. “Will it be necessary for this party? There will be a lot of adults there to keep an eye on the kids, and everyone is someone you know or Maddie knows very well.”

Artemis stayed silent, rubbing her fingertips over a ridge in the table. “I was actually thinking about hiring them for the daycare on a regular basis. If I do nothing and something happens, I’ll never be able to forgive myself. And while I trust Maddie and Hestia implicitly, neither of them are really the fighting sort. I was just lucky that Lee was there both times.”

“Then you should hire some people.” Hera shrugged. “Peace of mind is better than regretting it later.”

Some tension left Artemis’s body. “Thanks. I think I needed to hear that I wasn’t overreacting.”

“This is your child. You aren’t overreacting,” Demi said firmly. “I’ll make you a list of people that would be good for that.”

“Oh, would you? Thank you so much!” It really was a weight off her mind.

“We’ll contact you if we have any further questions,” Hera said, getting to her feet with a smile.

“That’s it?” To be fair, Artemis didn’t really know what went into planning a party. That’s why she hired people to do it for her.

“That’s it for now. We’ve got a pretty good idea of what you want,” Demi said. “Why don’t you take the rest of the day to relax?”

Artemis glanced at the clock. There were over two hours before she had to pick Alexander up from daycare. “I might do just that,” she said with a chuckle. “I need some ‘me’ time.”

“Damn right you do,” Hera said vehemently. “We are Goddesses and we need pampering!”

Feeling giddy, like she was skipping school, Artemis left the bakery. She called Luna to tell her where she was going and that she wouldn’t be back in today while she walked to her car.

Luna, of course, approved of the plan. “You’ve been working too hard lately. Relax. You deserve it.”

“I don’t pay you enough,” Artemis said.

“You pay me just fine, but I wouldn’t say no to a raise,” Luna replied cheekily.

“I’ll look into it.”

“Tomorrow.”

Artemis turned her car toward Psyche’s Spa. Her Goddess energy might have been replenished thanks to her moonlit dip, but her physical energy was drained. A trip to the spa was definitely in order.

“How can I help you?” greeted the girl at the counter when Artemis walked in.

“This is super last minute. I don’t have an appointment,” Artemis began.

“Not to worry. We take walk-ins,” the girl replied, her voice chipper.

“I have to leave in just under two hours. Other than a massage, what can I get done in that time?”

“We can fit in a mani-pedi without a problem. A mud bath might take a little too long. A facial, if you want. Hair conditioning. What interests you?”

“I think I’ll go with the nails after the massage, if that’s possible.” It had been way too long since she’d had time or energy to do anything fancier than trim her nails.

“And how long do you want the massage?” the girl asked, typing on her computer.

“Is an hour too long?”

“Not at all.”

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