Page 34 of Achille's Earth Angel
Delia shook her head. “No, we never did. I’m not sure why because I wanted one. It’s good that we didn’t though, it would have caused as big an uproar in Olympus as you and Achilles have caused.”
Epaphras blames you for that.”
Delia shrugged indifferently, her sorrow obviously weighing heavy on her. “My brother is cunning, Angelina, don’t ever trust him.”
“He was here earlier tonight to ask Hercules to intervene for him so he doesn’t have to marry Zephyr. Are you saying he is lying?”
Delia tossed her long mane. “If I were Hercules, I wouldn’t waste my time. Even if Zeus changes his mind, he will still be married off. And that won’t stop his mischief either. Epaphras is a law unto himself and always will be. My father despairs of ever making him follow the rules completely.”
“So, he did lie?” Ange pressed a bit harder.
“What do you mean? What did he say?” she asked, her eyebrow rising at Ange’s insistence.
“He said he never intended me any harm and that you and Poseidon were the ones that had the Olympians all stirred up. Which is why Achilles will lose his immortality today and be banned from Olympus forever.”
“I don’t believe Achilles cares about his immortality,” she replied. “And yes, my brother is lying. I had nothing to do with stirring up the people, why would I? I was in love with your father, a mortal, myself.” Her eyes narrowed. “Don’t fool yourself into thinking you are completely safe, Angelina. Epaphras has a taste for mortal women. He may not kill you, but he will certainly take what he can get if you aren’t very careful.”
Ange was stunned. So, she wasn’t really safe after all. She shivered in apprehension. He was just biding his time until he got what he wanted from Hercules. Another thought occurred to her.
“Did you lead your father to Epaphras that day you appeared here on the beach?”
Delia nodded, yawning. “Yes, I did. This is my private beach and I don’t want him near it. I come here often. I even went into the house from time to time after Leon died until you got here. I won’t now, of course, but I still visit when I feel sad.”
Impulsively, Ange touched her arm. “You are welcome here anytime you like. After Achilles and I move out, you can visit as much as you want. I might sell the place later, but for now, I’m keeping the house and property and selling the goat herd.”
Her face brightened. “So, you are not going to live here?”
“No, we want to travel around the world, I think. Maybe live in Athens.”
“Just be careful when you are in the Aegean Sea, no matter where you go.” She reached out and touched Ange’s cheek again. “I know it seems strange to you, but I feel connected to you, which is why I came out of the water tonight. Anytime you come back or want to visit, just call for me. I’ll hear you.” She smiled softly. “Now I must go before someone misses me.” She turned and headed back into the sea.
“Goodbye,” Ange called to her, waving as Delia lifted an arm above the water and then slid down beneath the waves. She would have loved to talk longer. What had it been like all those years, loving someone from a different world? How had she coped? Ange didn’t feel like she was doing a very good job of it. Their worlds were so different, and yet the differences were exciting at the same time.
Turning, she headed back towards the cottage, Trolley on her heels. Did she seem wishy washy to Achilles? She felt that way. First, she didn’t want him to make love to her, that was her insecurities kicking in, then she did. Then he didn’t want to if he had to wait a year. Now they both wanted to—and had. Not your average relationship by any means.
One thing she had come to know though, she was in love with her proud warrior. Somehow, everything would work out—she hoped.
She was glad she’d spoken to Delia about Epaphras, otherwise she might have let her guard down. It was obvious to her that the two definitely had some sibling rivalry going on.
Ange knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep so she made herself some hot cocoa and went back to her dad’s journals. Avidly she searched them for references to her mother and Delia, especially the earlier ones where he talked about his days with her mother. Tears spurted into her eyes when she read about the days of Alissa’s pregnancy, before she was born. She’d always thought Alissa was such a pretty name, and she was glad her mother had given it to her for a middle name. It did her sore heart good to read the words of her father and feel the love he’d had for Alissa. She was also glad he’d found someone else to love.
How selfish we are as children, she reflected. Life is all about us. We don’t consider what life was like for our parents, only that they are there for us, she thought. She was on her tummy on the rug reading her dad’s view on life with a two-year-old when she felt someone shaking her.
“Angel? Angel, wake up,” Achilles said softly, rubbing her back to ease her into the world of the wide awake. “What are you doing in here? Why aren’t you in bed? I told you to get some rest before I left,” he scolded gently.
Ange rolled to her side and sat up, squinting at the bright sunlight coming in through the window. “What time is it?” she asked, yawning. Her face felt kind of stiff where the trails of salty tears had dried on her cheeks, and her body was stiff from sleeping on the floor.
“It’s 10:00 a.m.,” he replied gently as he noticed the puffs under her eyes and the tear trails. He reached out a big hand and palmed her cheek. “You’ve been crying. Why?” He picked her up easily and sat down in the leather chair behind them.
Ange looked up at him and smiled. “I have so much to tell you. You aren’t going to believe half of it. You first though. Are you now mortal? How did things go with Zeus?”
“I am mortal now,” he responded to her first question.
“Does it feel any different? Like you’ve lost something? Is your skin still impenetrable?” She reached out and scratched his arm with her nail. It didn’t do anything.
He chuckled at her chagrined expression. “No, it doesn’t feel any different, so no, I don’t feel like I’ve lost anything. Yes, my skin is still impenetrable, so that’s in my favor.” His eyes twinkled down at her.
“And what did Zeus decide about Epaphras?”
