Chapter 7

Hazel had fallen asleep a little over an hour ago, the oversized book placed on her lap, Reyna hadn't had the heart to wake her, she had done so much already and deserved the rest. The Praetor's shoulders had begun to ache as she hunched over a dusty old book about the titans, the muses had been mentioned a couple of times but nothing of importance. She glanced out of the window to see the half-moon high in the night sky, her eyes moved down to see Damien, he had sat on the floor and was still reading through a manuscript of Apollo's time in ancient Rome, he glanced up to see her watching him, Reyna dropped her gaze back to her book immediately.

She heard him move and heard the footsteps as he walked over to her, he placed a hand on the back of her chair and another on the desk beside her, so his face was close to her ear

"If you wanna get some rest I will keep looking" he offered quietly so he did not disturb Hazel

Reyna tried to ignore the soft breath on her skin and the warmth radiating off him, he smelled better now as well, unfortunately it was from her own soap

"I'm okay thanks" she said but a yawn contradicted her and her eyes felt heavy

Damien gave her a knowing look "C'mon Reyna get some sleep, we've got a long road ahead of us" he gave her a small smile, he stared for a long moment, admiring her

"What?" she asked shyly, looking up into his almost glowing Golden brown gaze, her heart beating a little harder.

He tucked a stray lock of her hair behind her ear "I've missed you" he said earnestly

Reyna swallowed awkwardly, she was finding it hard to breathe as she gazed into those eyes

"I… I uh" she began as she watched his eyes flicker to her lips and back to her eyes, he slowly began to lean forward

"I uh" she continued to stutter, she could almost feel his lips "I think I'm going to get some rest" she said pulling away and standing quickly, backing towards the bathroom

Damien stood awkward and wide eyed "Reyna… I'm sorry" he looked down at his feet "I… I just, I'm an idiot"

Reyna shook her head "It's okay… no need to apologize, I just… I need to get some rest, it's been a long day" she tried to explain as she stepped into the bathroom, hand on the door ready to close it

Damien nodded and watched as she closed the door, he sat himself back down on the floor and tried to focus on the manuscript, feeling like a fool, he had obviously misinterpreted, why would she be interested in someone as damaged as him, the guy who kept jeopardising her position as Praetor.

Reyna however was leant against the other side of the door with her head in her hands, she was trying to slow her breathing, she had been so close to giving into the kiss. She couldn't do this, there was too much at stake, she didn't know if he would leave again and she feared that if he didn't then there were consequences for them both ahead, she couldn't get in any deeper then she already was.

She moved to the sink and ran a bowl of water, she looked into her mirror, she looked terrible, dark rings shadowed his eyes and her hair was falling out of place, she reached down and scooped up some of the cold water, splashing it over her features and taking a deep breath as it ran down her heated skin.

She removed her cape and folded it neatly, placing it onto the shelves just to the side of the shower, she removed the rest of her clothing and entered the shower allowing the hot water to run over her body, she stayed in there for a while trying to clear her mind, it didn't work and she gave up. She dried her hair and redressed, she tried to find another reason not to go back into her bedroom, she wasn't ready to face Damien just yet, her cheeks still felt a little flushed.

But she found nothing and inhaled steadying her nerve, she was Praetor and she would not fear her own feelings. She unlocked the door and gently pushed it open, her eyes finding Hazel still soundly asleep on her bed, she scanned the rest of the room finding Damien in her chair, he was making notes on a piece of paper, he didn't look up at her as she entered and moved to the other side of the room. She settled herself down on the other side of the bed next to hazel, still Damien didn't say or do anything but keep his eyes on the paper, it was clear to Reyna that she had upset him and it tore at her heart but everything was bigger than what they may or may not feel for one another.

She closed her eyes, but found it hard to find sleep, she could hear Damien breathing slowly, every now and again he would scribble something down on the paper. She tried to clear her mind and relax but her mind was still running with the events of the day, everything had happened so quickly, she was visited by a titaness who gave her a quest and dumped Damien back into her life, he had been tortured for months and was still a little hung-over and then to top it all off he had tried to kiss her.

Eventually she found slumber, but her dreams were anything but peaceful, the titaness Moneta appeared to her, asking if they had found anything yet, her voice echoing around Reyna's mind.

What have you found young Praetor?

"Nothing yet Lady Moneta, but we are still researching… is there anything you can think of to aid us, any enemies Euterpe or any of the other Muses may have?" she asked

The dream swirled and showed what Reyna assumed were the nine muses

My daughters keep the laws of the arts, they are the judges of everything, they have made many enemies as have we all in the name of art

Reyna's dream darkened and Moneta released her back to sleep