Page 126 of Fallen Stars

“That good?” he asked roughly, pulling at his britches.

He could hear the smile in her voice. “One of the best meals I’ve had in a long time.”

“Well, come with a pearl every night, and you can have a banquet.”

There was a chuckle. “Does that include cake?”

“Cake?”

“It’s my favourite food,” Oceanne sighed.

“Hm. I suppose you’ll have to come back to the ship tomorrow to find out.”

“It’s a date then.”

Adrian smiled. “I suppose it is.”

Chapter Forty-Five

The tang of brine onthe air and the clash of steel revitalised Enzo as he paced the deck of the ship with Leo. The sun above him burned bright, and he could feel its very essence falling over him, giving him strength. The revelations of the past week and the fact that he had finally been able to taste Elara after over a month without her had left him feeling powerful for the first time since he’d been cast into Elara’s dreams. He raised his sword, turning it in the rays before striking.

Leo parried it easily. “You’ve lost your touch, brother.”

Enzo rolled his eyes. “Well, being trapped in someone’s dreams will do that to a man.”

He lunged and Leo knocked the sword away as though he was swatting a fly. Sweat poured down Enzo’s back as he went through drills with Leo, committed to keeping up with his form during the long days at sea.

His power flooded through him anew as he focused on breathing sunlight in and out. Life-giving powers. Now that was something. He thought on it as his body moved through muscle memory, beginning to remember how to defend and attack. What could hedo? Could he bring anything to life? Statues? His sculptures?People?

He grunted as Leo tried to trip him, but the Lion was regaining his grace and sidestepped him with ease.

“Better,” Leo said.

And Elara, his deathly goddess. Gods, that moonlight of hers. He hadn’t thought himself able to be more in awe of her, but the other night had proved him wrong. Life and death, perfect counterparts Isra had said. And seeing her finally accept her powers, well…he thought he’d made it very clear on the gangplank how beautiful he found that.

He bent down to take a swig from his flask of water when he felt an irritating prickle at the back of his neck and knew who had just stepped foot in his vicinity.

“If your lovemaking skills are as bad as your sword-wielding skills, then I feel for Elara,” Adrian crooned, swaggering onto the deck.

Leo chuckled, earning a wrathful look from Enzo as his general raised his hands. “Sorry.”

“I don’t think Elara has anything to complain about,” Enzo replied. “And hell will freeze before I take sword-wielding advice from a pirate.”

“Why, as your cousin can attest,” Adrian drawled, “my sword-wielding skills areveryadequate.”

Enzo clicked his neck. “While you may like to delude yourself with such notions, one thing that I can guarantee is that my sword is bigger than yours,” he replied, passing it between his two hands.

He heard a delicate snort and saw Elara walk out onto the deck. She looked beautiful, her hair salt-curled and wild, wearing a black dress with billowing sleeves, cinched with a wide leather belt that made her cleavage look magnificent. He bit back a groan as her eyes danced, holding his gaze. Enzo turned back to the whelk in front of him.

Adrian was already drawing a cutlass. “Let me show you how a real man wields one. Elara, you should take notes.”

“I’m not getting involved,” Elara said. “Although Enzo needs no help in that department.”

Enzo grinned, pulling his sweat drenched shirt off. “Come on then, pirate. Let’s see if you can really fight or if you’re all talk.”

Leo took his own shirt off, mopping it over his brow. “I’m going to bow out of this one.”

“No, stay,” Adrian drawled as he lifted his own shirt. “You can be the referee.”