Page 125 of Poseidon's Island Flower

“I just wanted to show you that Naia and her restaurant family would be okay, despite Cory. And pork, I wanted to eat more of that, too.” Poseidon angled his head toward the inside of the restaurant.

A man was wearing a hard hat, his clothes torn and an angry look on his face. The construction workers around him were yelling, telling him what an imbecile he was for not knowing how to hammer a nail.

When the man turned, I got a glimpse of a face smeared in dirt, and I could hardly believe it was him.

“Cory?” I asked incredulously. The cheerful chatter ceased, and our joyful group glared in annoyance.

Cory glared back, but when his eyes fell on Poseidon, his eyes widened, and his tanned face paled. He backed away, staring at Poseidon like he was Hades himself, and fell over the railing and into a pile of mud on the other side.

The construction workers laughed, along with the chefs, and he scurried away, falling again as he raced toward the company trucks.

“What was that about?” Fay asked, who already had a pile of meat on her plate. She picked off a piece, feeding it to Koma who licked her fingers sensually.

Oh god, did not need to see that with my little brother.

“I might have paid him a visit the night he dared to touch you,” Poseidon’s fury built inside him. His eyes glowed gold, and I covered his eyes as the group still laughed at a fleeing Cory. “No one touches my mate.” Poseidon pulled me to his lap. “Now, can we have some cake, too?” He stuck his finger in it.

“Is he here!?” A man bellowed from the beach. He held a satchel and a stick.

Uh oh.

The native ran up to the picnic table, and Naia beamed at the middle-aged man with greying hair. “You are just in time. He is here, and he is ready to accept a kakau,” Naia said.

Double uh oh.

“Is that the liquor you put in milk to make a White Russian? Athena said she thought I might like that.” Poseidon beamed, and I patted his human brown hair.

My sweet little sea god.

“Cy, they want to, um, tattoo you.”

One man dropped the satchel on the table, containers of black ink and needles spilling out. He held two sticks in his hand tapping them together excitedly.

Poseidon watched as they set up, the ink sitting on the table and Naia bringing in the pork. “Eat. It is best to have a full stomach.”

Cy gulped. “I think I have lost my appetite.”

We managed to calm the group of elders that demanded that Poseidon be given a tribal tattoo. Poseidon told them it was against his religion to mark his skin. Naia didn’t look convinced, but there was no way that Poseidon was letting anyone with needles get near him.

I had not taken the plunge myself to get one, not that I hadn’t thought about it, but today wasn’t the day I would partake in such an event. Today was all about saying goodbye to Koma and, most importantly, the island.

I wasn’t sure if I would see Naia again. We told her I was moving away with Cy, and I didn’t know when I would be back. But the deed to the land was in her name, and it was hers to do with what she will. Her grandchildren would most likely get the restaurant, they were the ones that showed the most interest in maintaining the place. And now, with a new facelift, the restaurant could very well bring in more locals ready for some authentically cooked food.

Koma and Fay quickly wandered off into the trees. Their hands were wandering too much at dinner, and Naia had to give Koma a good scolding with a spoon she used to stir rice. They bolted after that, Fay snickering that she was going to chase him all over the island and mount him.

Ew.

Meanwhile, Poseidon ate too much cake and pork. I swear he ate a whole pig by himself and also made sure Naia put enough leftovers in take away containers. I wasn’t sure how we would get back to his palace without it getting ruined.

Salty pork was bad pork.

Then again, there were a lot of things I still didn’t know. He might have his own damned under water carriage that was sitting down below the lava rock.

The sun was already long gone, we laid in the large hammock outside the seemingly small shack behind us. The stars twinkled and shimmered, and the beauty of the world around me had deepened since I became a goddess.

I still couldn’t believe it. I couldn't wrap my head around the perfect, luminous skin that glimmered in the sun. It was almost daunting because I didn’t feel much different. The sheer magnetism I had for Poseidon was immense and unlike anything I had ever felt before.

I needed him near me, or I felt like I would die.

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