Aphrodite Unbound by Kate Healey

Author:Kate Healey [Kate Healey]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Karen Healey
Published: 2023-08-05T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

Heph woke up, and regretted it immediately.

His hip was alternately stabbing and shocking him, unpleasant tingles running up and down his right side. Tentative exploration revealed his bad knee had joined the party, going red and puffy with inflammation and even his better leg was aching, protesting the extra work he’d put it to last night in an effort to spare the worse side.

He wasn’t going to be working today. He’d be damn lucky to be up to hosting this party tonight from his chair, if he could host it at all. He lay quietly for a moment, running over the moves he’d need to make in his head. His bed remote control would raise him up so that he could reach the water and painkillers on his bedside table without much difficulty. He’d had the foresight to put an energy bar there last night, so he wouldn’t be taking them on an empty stomach, and once the anti-inflammatories and painkillers had kicked in, he could see about getting into his chair.

He’d have to rest as much as possible, to have both the energy and the fortitude to make the party work. And he’d need help to get everything organized beforehand.

For a moment, he contemplated calling Maria and canceling now.

She’d accept it, of course. But she’d be disappointed, and so would their other friends. He would have done it anyway—he’d disappointed people before—except for Aphrodite. She had really wanted to come, to play The Binding with regular people in a normal setting, instead of alone in her apartment or the hotel room du jour.

And he wanted that for her.

The worst part was what he was going to have to do to make it happen.

He took the pills, an effort which made him pant and swear. While he waited for them to be effective, he texted Cleon, letting him know he wouldn’t be in. Almost everything Heph did for Olympus required him to be on-site, at his secure workstation, so working from home wasn’t an option. He’d have to find time later next week to get through the dwindling list of tasks to finish before Olympus officially kicked him out.

No. Shit. He was going to Los Angeles next week. From Wednesday to Friday, he was going to be in a hotel with Aphrodite. Thea had assured him it was a two-bedroom suite with an accessible bathroom, so at least they wouldn’t be sharing a bed. But how was he going to spend three days in close proximity to her—breathing her perfume, watching her move, listening to the delighted cackle of her real laugh—without completely losing his mind?

He put it aside to worry about later and made the call he wasn’t looking forward to.

“Hey!” Narnie said cheerfully. “Is it finally my turn?”

“What?”

“You asked Aoide for help thinking of dates, and you asked Mellie for help getting dressed.”

“For picking a tuxedo,” Heph said. “Not ‘getting dressed.’”

“Whatever. They were both like, guess what, Heph asked me for help! That never happens.”

“You three help me all the time.

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