In the mundane world. He would still be without her, but Asterius could live with that. He would miss her for

all of eternity, but he could bear that. What he could not bear was knowing that it was by his hand she would

die. If she left, he would lose his love. If he sacrificed her, he would lose his soul.

He wouldn’t sacrifice his love, nor would he lose his soul. He had his answer, and he had the powers of the

son of a Titan. He would turn that vast store of magick to achieving his end. But not now. Not tonight.

Tonight he would revel in the miracle of Mikado’s love, and he would not think about the endless empty

dawns to come.

MIKKI leaned against the smooth entrance to the cave and gazed out at the misty morning while she chewed

a piece of bread. Asterius came up behind her, and she leaned comfortably into him.

“Rain,” he said, sounding surprised. “It does not often rain here.”

“I did it. It’s what I commanded Water to do when I cast the health and protection spell yesterday. Every

fourth morning it’s going to rain for a little while. It’s good for the roses, and it’s good for the realm, too.

Rainy mornings are restful—a perfect time to sleep in and rejuvenate the soul.” She turned in his arms.

“Unfortunately, I didn’t think to tell the handmaidens yesterday that rainy mornings equate to taking the

morning off. I imagine the four Elementals are wondering impatiently why I haven’t called them to work. And

because last night was the first time men could be invited into the realm in a long time, I would bet that at

least a couple of them are tired and grumpy while they wait. I should go see to them. What are you going to

do?”

“I will do the same thing I do every morning. I will follow the rose wall acбЂ† around the realm to be certain

all is secure. Then I will collect more threads for the Dream Weavers.” He caressed the side of her face.

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“Only this morning I go about my duties with your scent on my skin and the memory of your smile, touch,

taste, in my heart.” He smiled. “Some say rain is dark and dreary, but to me this morning is bright and filled

with promise.”

“An incurable romantic. Who knew?” Mikki tugged at his cuirasse. “Kiss me so we can be on our way.” She

wondered if he would ever lose that look of startled happiness that was reflected on his face when she

surprised him with a touch, or, like now, with a kiss. She sincerely hoped not. “Can you take time to eat the

midday meal with me?”

He kissed her again before he answered. “Of course. All you need do is to call me to you.”

“And tonight?”

“Command me, Empousa, and I shall obey,” he said, dark eyes shining.

“You say that now, but let’s see what you think of obeying my every command in a year or so,” she teased,

raising an eyebrow at him cockily, and was surprised to see his look tighten and his eyes lose all their

sparkling humor.

“I would never tire of you, or of your commands, Mikado, not if we had an eternity to share together.”

His words pressed heavily on her heart. How had she forgotten that he was an immortal? She would age; he

would not. She would die; he would not. No! She wouldn’t think about that now, not at the beginning of their

love. They deserved time to savor the sweet, heady feeling of new love—in that way they were no different

from any other couple. She wouldn’t ruin the honeymoon of their love with dire thoughts of a future with her,

shrunken and tottering around the gardens, leaning on his perpetually virile arm. Would he let her? Would he

still want her then? Stop it! I’m doing exactly what I just promised I wouldn’t. Mikki made her lips smile.

“I wasn’t being serious; I was just kidding you, Asterius. But since you mentioned the whole command thing,

I’ll be happy to command you to come to me tonight.” She glanced over his shoulder at the cozy cave, as

filled with his presence as it was with the exquisite art he created. “Actually, I think I’d rather come to you.”

“I do not believe you received the tour you requested earlier.”

“Well, that’s one of the things you’ll be doing tonight, but only one . . .”

The light rain changed the appearance of the gardens, washing them with a watercolor brush, turning reality

impressionistic. Mikki decided she liked it. It went with the theme of the place—dreamy.

She meant to go straight to the palace and call the Elementals—the poor girls were probably going to be

thoroughly pissed at her, especially if any of them had kicked someone scrumptious out of her bed—but she

wandered, letting herself get lost in the misty magick of the roses. They felt better this morning. Even as she

made her way slowly in a southerly direction, the sickness that had been pulling at her stomach whenever she

immersed herself in the gardens didn’t come. She even saw several hearty Floribunda lavenders she riv

бЂ†ecognized as Angel Face in full bloom, where yesterday they had just been weak buds. Mikki smiled.

Inordinately proud, she dubbed herself Goddess of the Rose.

And she daydreamed about him. Her body felt deliciously sore in places she’d forgotten she had. It had been

almost a year since the last time she’d had sex, but she’d never experienced anything like making love with

Asterius. His body . . . the man/beast mixture had been intriguing . . . alluring, but what she’d found most

seductive was the freedom she felt with him. She could let her own beast loose when they were together and

trust him not to turn away from her. He matched her, passion for passion. And he knew her—he saw into her

soul. Asterius, Minotaur, Guardian—he knew what it was to be an outlander. Well, they had finally found

their home—together.

“The rain was a clever idea, Empousa.”

Mikki thought she’d stroke out at the sound of Hecate’s voice. “Good grief, you scared the bejeezus out of

me!” Then she remembered to whom she was speaking, cleared her throat and turned around to face the

goddess with a heart that pounded painfully in her chest. “I’m sorry, Hecate.” Mikki curtseyed as she had

seen the handmaidens do so often. The goddess was sitting on a marble bench just a few feet behind her.

“You surprised me. I shouldn’t have spoken to you like that.”

Hecate waved her hand dismissively. “My Empousa is allowed liberties few others will ever know.” She

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gestured beside her. “Come, sit with me.”

Swallowing down her nerves, she approached the goddess. The enormous dogs were at their position by her

side, and they ignored Mikki completely. Hecate was clothed in the colors of night—black, the deepest blue

and gray. She had manifested as the striking middle-aged woman again, and the light misting of rain looked

like jewels in her dark hair.

“The spell of protection and health you cast yesterday was well thought out. I agree with your instincts. The

rain refreshes the roses and the realm. Also, the little insects you commanded Earth to provide were a lovely

surprise, and Wind was delighted to carry them here”—the goddess paused and then surprised Mikki with a

musical laugh—“although you cannot see their red-and-black bodies through this mist.”

“Ladybugs feed on aphids, and roses hate aphids,” Mikki said, a little overwhelmed by Hecate’s effusive

praise.

“The roses thrive again. I am pleased.”

“Thank you, Hecate.”

“It was also good that you instructed Flame to illuminate the rose wall, most especially at the gate. Now that

men will be coming and going again, you must take special care with the gate.”

Mikki rubbed a hand across her brow. “I didn’t even think about that. Uh! I’m a fool. How did I expect them

to get in and out of the realm?”

“It is not a bad thing that you have allowed men here again. You’ve made many of the women very happy.

All night I heard the names of lovers whispered in invitation and carried to the ancient world where they were

eagerly accepted.” Hecate’s expression became sultry. “Still this morning lovers are being called and enjoyed

by my women, who have long been reveAlsбЂ†red as some of the most beautiful and intelligent in the ancient

world. Having males about means we will have new life in the realm. Girl children are a blessing, and I look

forward to the births.”

“But Dream Stealers are in the forest. We have to be careful if that gate is opening and closing at all hours.”

“You are the Empousa, Mikado. You may place limits on when the men are allowed to come and go.” Hecate

gave her a kind look. “It is good that you understand the dangers that lurk on the other side of the rose

barrier, but you need not worry yourself. The Guardian’s strength will protect the realm. Couple his vigilance

with your nurturing of the roses, and all will be well in the Realm of the Rose.”

Mikki tried not to think or react at all. She kept her mind blank and nodded respectfully.

“Excellent. Now, what I came to tell you is that I have matters to attend to which will take me far from my

realm. You are not to be concerned if I do not visit here for”—she moved a round, white shoulder—“some

time. Within this realm my powers are always here if you have need of them. I sense that you are relying

more confidently upon your instincts, and for that I applaud your wisdom. Let your intuition guide you. If

your blood and heart and spirit tell you something, then you may always believe it. And remember, Empousa,

I applaud what you have done for the roses, but it is not so much your actions that have begun their recovery.

It is your presence, and the blood tie you have with them that assures they will thrive. Be wise, Empousa. The

dreams of mankind depend upon you . . .” Hecate raised her hand and disappeared in a glittering of mist.

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CHAPTER THIRTY

MIKKI couldn’t say she wasn’t relieved that Hecate would be gone for a while. Of course she’d have to tell

the goddess about her relationship with Asterius. Telling her would be ever so much better than Hecate

reading her mind or finding out on her own some other way. Mikki wanted to run and hide just thinking about

it. So she’d tell her, but she sure as hell didn’t want to do it soon. It wasn’t that she was ashamed that she

loved Asterius, and it wasn’t that she was afraid of Hecate, though the goddess was definitely intimidating. It

was just that Mikki wanted to keep Asterius to herself. Why couldn’t they have privacy to discover the

shared secrets of new love? Even had she fallen in love with a man back in Tulsa, Mikki would have wanted

time for the two of them to get over the newness of love before she hauled him around and opened their lives

up for everyone to poke and prod. She was private, and the more important something was to her, the more

private she was about it. Asterius was very important to her.

When Hecate returned from wherever, she would have a conversation with her about Asterius. Then she’d

deal with the goddess’s response, whatever it may be. Until then she would cherish this honeymoon period

they had been granted and thoroughly enjoy the fact that she had finally fallen in love.

Satisfied with her plan of attack, Mikki left the bench and checked the surrounding beds and fountains to

make sure she was heading in the right direction. Hecate’s comments about the men coming and going

through the rose gate had worried her, and, no matter what the goddess said, she was going to keep that worry

fresh. Right now her instincts were telling her to check the gate for herself—then announce aer d‡ curfew,

even though she loathed the thought of acting like a den mother at a naughty sorority. She’d like to talk with

Asterius about it, but it only made sense to place some limits on when the gate could be open. And also, she

needed to find out who exactly could open it. Asterius could, of course, and he’d said she could, too. The

Dream Weavers had mentioned that the Elementals had collected the threads of reality while he had been

bespelled, so they had to be able to open the gate. But who else? It would be a massive headache if every

woman in the realm could wave her fingers and have the damn thing part like the Red Sea. Clearly, there was

a lot of work for her to do.

Checking her mental watch, Mikki picked up her pace. She really did need to get a move on and call her

handmaidens. She could, of course, call them right now and have them meet her out here in the gardens, but it

seemed too Nurse Ratchet-like. She’d much rather get the gate checked, hurry back to her room, change out

of her wet (and torn, then pieced back together this morning) chiton, have Daphne bring some lovely tea and

eventually have a comfortable meeting with the girls over a late brunch. And anyway, it was still early. The

handmaidens weren’t stupid. They could certainly look at the weather and realize that there was little work in

the gardens they could do in the rain. Maybe they would even climb back in bed. Mikki smiled to herself,

hoping they weren’t climbing back into lonely beds—tonight she certainly wouldn’t be.

The rain had moved lazily from drizzle to mist to a moon-colored fog that drifted over the roses as if they

were in the Lake District of England. The fog thickened the farther south she walked, and Mikki was

preoccupied with thoughts of the evening to come, trying to decide if she could sneak Asterius up to the hot

springs for a whole new meaning to “scrubbed clean,” when multiflora roses reared in front of her nose and

she almost smacked into the wall.

“Remember, next spell tell Wind to blow away the fog after the rain,” she mumbled to herself while she

scanned the gate for signs of wear and tear. “You look good,” she pronounced, patting part of the foliage.

“Priestess! Can you help us?”

Mikki looked around, trying to see where the deep voice was coming from. It was unmistakably male, which

seemed out of place in the gardens.

“Here, Priestess! We’re out here!”

Mikki realized that the voice was coming from the other side of the rose wall. She bent a little so she could

look through a less-dense part of the climbing branches, and her eyes widened in surprise. Four men stood just

outside the gate, surrounded by thick gray fog. Three of them were dressed as she imagined ancient Greek

men should dress. In toga-looking outfits, with one arm bare, and regal purple embroidered cloaks tossed over

their broad backs. They were all tall, well built and youthfully handsome.

The fourth man was clearly their leader and the one who had spoken. He stood in front of the others and was

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dressed in much the same style she was used to seeing Asterius wear, with a cuirasse over a short, pleated

tunic. But there is where his similarity to her lover ended. This man was beautiful, tall and golden. Even in the

foggy morning he shined. His skin was tanned to that singular color only a few true blondes get naturally—a

healthy, burnished brown that looked like the purest of honey. It covered a body that was perfectiht=сЂ†on.

He was athletically built, without being too heavily muscled and brutish. His hair was thick and wavy, cut

short enough to be masculine, but left long enough to be endearingly boyish. His eyes were so blue that Mikki

could feel them searching through the roses to find her.

She’d never seen a man that handsome in person. Usually such perfection was limited to Hollywood and the

machinations of filmmakers and plastic surgeons.

“There you are, Priestess!” He smiled, and his incredible face lit with warmth. “We’re here. We answered

your call.”

She smiled back (who wouldn’t return a smile like that?). “My call?”

“Well, Priestess, I can only pray to the Great Goddess that I could be lucky enough to be called by a beauty

such as you.”

Ridiculously, Mikki felt her face flush. “I’ve heard that blue eyes are weaker than brown or green. I think

you’ve just proven the rumor true.”

He laughed, and the sound was as catching as it was seductive. “Ah, I see my prayers have been answered!

The goddess has granted me a priestess who has wit as well as beauty.” He took a few steps toward the rose

gate. His friends followed.

Mikki watched him move with a natural confidence that was easy and attractive—and so unlike Asterius’s