Night of the Tiger(64)

Yet he could make her coffee and offer her a joke, even knowing his very existence could end in a heartbeat, that he could fail his goddess and his fellow warriors and end up in Hades’ clutches forever. She admired him and was determined to act as he did. The moment was all they had.

She walked toward him. At first she didn’t think he would move and let her pass. At the last possible second, he turned sideways, still blocking most of the doorway. Aimee had to angle her body to get by him. Her breasts brushed against his chest and her nipples stood at attention.

Ignoring the jolt of heat that flashed through her, she hurried toward the coffeepot. A cup of the strong brew was just what she needed. Grabbing a mug, she poured. It looked more black than brown in color. She added two teaspoons of sugar and stirred. She studied it and added one more. It looked strong. She eyed the brew before shrugging and taking a sip.

Bitterness coated her tongue. She wanted to spit it out, but she swallowed instead, not wanting to hurt Roric’s feelings.

“Not quite right?” He leaned against the doorjamb and cocked his head to one side, sending thick white and black waves over his shoulder.

Aimee tried to speak, but was afraid the coffee he’d made might have made that permanently impossible. She cleared her throat and coughed. “Not quite,” she managed.

Eyeing the pot, she decided good manners could be damned. She needed coffee. Whisking it off the warming burner, she dumped the coffee down the sink, rinsed the pot and started another pot brewing.

“Sorry about that.” Roric pushed away from the wall, moving closer to watch her.

“No problem. You have to measure the coffee grounds or you’ll make it too strong.”

In a matter of seconds, Aimee had another pot of coffee perking happily. She could feel the heat radiating from Roric as he stood behind her, looking over her shoulder. It made her feel uncomfortable, sexy and downright hot. And that wasn’t appropriate given the life-and-death situation they found themselves in. Then again, no one ever said hormones were smart.

“We need a plan.” It was what she’d been thinking about all the time she’d showered and dressed.

Roric sighed and stepped away. Even though she couldn’t see him, she knew the moment he moved away from her. She grew colder instantly, both inside and out. Yet she understood that separation was necessary if one or both of them was to have a chance of coming out of this situation alive.

She turned away from the counter. Roric was standing in front of the window, looking out over the yard, his eyes scanning the woods beyond. “The scroll is quite clear. Hades wants me, and the others, to lead his armies to attack the other Olympians. He wants to destroy them all and have total dominion over the world.”

“He doesn’t want much, does he?”

The corner of Roric’s mouth turned up slightly. The sight of that partial smile made Aimee’s toes curl.

He strolled back to the table and sat. “Hades wants it all. Always has. He’s not evil, not really. He’s more manipulative, letting others tangle themselves in his very sticky web. And once he has you, it’s almost impossible to escape.”

She asked the question that had been on her mind since she’d learned about the curse and Hades’ plans. “Why the elaborate setup? Why doesn’t Hades just send a bunch of his demons to kill the Olympians and take over the world?” It seemed to her that the Lord of the Underworld was making this much harder than it needed to be.

“It doesn’t work that way.” Roric’s blue eyes glittered like ice. “Hades can’t upset the balance of energy by sending too many of his minions to the earth. That would alert his fellow Olympians that he’s up to something. They might not be as powerful as he is, but they sure as hell aren’t weak. They’d band together to save themselves and nail his ass to the wall.”

He paused and took a deep breath. “They wouldn’t take much note of us. We’ve been in this realm for several thousand years and haven’t caused any problems. We could make a few hard, fast strikes, and the war would almost be won by the time the Olympians figured out there was anything going on.”

“Scary.” Aimee shivered. “Okay, I get the power thing, but Hades already has demons here. I’ve seen them.”

He smiled grimly. “That’s true, but their power here is limited. They have to return to Hell to recharge after a short period of time. Even the gods are bound by certain laws, and there is a limit to how much Hades can interfere in this realm. Humans have to do the actual deeds themselves. Hades encourages them, tempts them. Granted, the evil of mankind has made it much easier for him to extend his reach and powers, which is part of the problem.