Gods & Monsters

2. Jonah Rowe

TWO

JONAH ROWE

Jonah couldn't comprehend what he was hearing. Eva was actually dating another man? No, that couldn't be right. She needed him, not some damn stranger. The image of Eva being with someone else just seemed wrong. He wiped his mouth with a napkin as he tried to wrap his mind around what she was saying.

"What?" She raised an eyebrow at him. "What's wrong with Pierre?"

He's not me.

Jonah didn't know if he wanted to hear anymore, but he had to ask his next question. "Are you going to see him again?"

"I plan on it." She mused aloud. "He's a bit of a charmer. He's trying to sweep me off my feet."

I bet he f*****g is Jonah thought to himself.

Eva continued. "But for me? It was just bleh. There weren't any sparks, you know? Nothing like ..."

She stopped and Jonah knew exactly what she was about to say. She was thinking about that night in the garage. Good. Eva cleared her throat.

"Anyway, we'll see what happens after the gala. Maybe he'll be successful."

Jonah didn't want there to be a next time for Pierre. He wondered briefly if anyone would actually miss the Frenchman if he ended up in the ocean before that happened.

"Want to go see the house?"

"What?" Jonah blinked back the thoughts of drowning the asshole. "Sorry. Thinking."

"Um, I asked if you wanted to see the house." Eva gave him a quizzical look. "You can't tell anyone where it is though. I want to keep it completely private."

"Sure."

Eva threw down some money on the table before they started walking through the streets. She began to tell him about the routes she took when she ran in the mornings, then showed him the path that led down to the beach. That was good. Got his mind off other things.

Eva stopped in front of a slender stone house that butted up against the sands. She pulled out a keyring and Jonah swore he saw her use a skeleton key on the lock.

"This is it." She opened the door and stepped aside so that he could enter. "This is home."

Jonah had been expecting a mansion, not the tiny house that extended up towards the sky. But the decor was bright. The walls were painted a soft gray that made it seem bigger than it was.

"It was built around 1793," Eva explained while she slipped off her jacket to hang it up by the door. "People were smaller back then, but I absolutely adore it."

Jonah turned to see that the shirt she had been wearing was backless. The collar and a thin ribbon were the only thing keeping it closed. The sight of her skin made him realize something else. The Frenchman had seen her naked. He'd touched his Eva in ways that not even Jonah had done. His fists balled up before he realized it.

"The kitchen is in here." She beckoned him to follow her before she headed onto another room. "It's not good to drink the tap water, but I have bottled water and a bottle of merlot in the fridge. What would you like?"

"Um, just water, thanks," Jonah said, really needing to loosen his fists. Damn Frenchman. Getting perks he couldn't possibly know what to do with. Lucky bastard. "What about this house called to you?"

"The view upstairs." She passed him a water and took one for herself. "Come on and I'll show you."

Eva went up the winding staircase and Jonah followed. He took the time to admire her tight little skirt as they ascended.

"How many bedrooms are here, Superstar?" he asked once they reached the top. He had to focus on the house. Not the woman who owned it.

"Two bedrooms, one bath." Eva opened the door right next to the stairwell. "This one is mine."

Jonah stepped into the space decorated in blues and greens. The bed wasn't huge. A queen at best. But just like every one of Eva's houses, it was kept in meticulous order.

"This is what drew me to the house." She opened a door and Jonah whistled as he followed her out to the balcony.

As far as he could see, the Mediterranean and all its glory spread out before him. Boats dotted the horizon, white against blue. "Eva, this is magnificent!"

"I know. This is where I spend most of my time nowadays." She stood next to him and stared outward. "I haven't shared this with anyone else … I won't share this with anyone else. Just you, Jonah."

"Why me?"

"Because you're as sacred to me as this space." She glanced up at him. "It only seems right that you're here."

That touched Jonah's heart. It almost made him forget the French guy. Almost. "I see what you mean. Life makes the most sense when I'm around you."

"It makes the most sense around you, too." Eva pulled out a chair. "Sit down. Stay awhile. I'll go grab an ashtray."

"Why do we need an ashtray?"

"So we can smoke." She laughed. "I know you have your case with you. And the laws here are very lenient on pot."

Jonah lowered onto a chair and watched the ocean. Eva didn't seem all that serious about the French guy, but she had felt comfortable enough around him to get naked.

She returned and placed the ashtray between them, and sat in the second chair to sip her water.

"So did he recognize your mark of the gods?" Jonah asked as he pulled out his case. "That would have told him who you are."

"Who? Pierre?" Eva opened her water with a twist of her wrist. "No. For one, the lights were out, so he couldn't see me. And I learned a glamor spell at Apollo's temple in Normandy so that I could hide it."

"Is it hidden now?"

"Of course, it is. I'm not Eva here. I can't have any of the same identifiers. So, no mark of the gods. No gold. Nothing."

"Huh." Jonah pulled off the joint. "It seems when you're Lea, Eva disappears. Lea's actions don't actually apply to Eva. Would you say that's right?"

"I'm still the same person." She took the joint when he passed it to her. "I still have the same mind. But Lea is the woman that isn't weighed down. If I create a disconnect, it's in the personas themselves."

"So," Jonah watched as she pulled on the joint. She passed it back so he could take a hit. "What would Lea want to do right now?"

Eva raised an eyebrow at him, and he raised both of his as he blew out smoke.

"What are you implying?"

Jonah had a split second to make his decision. It took less than that. He sat the joint in the ashtray, then leaned over it before he caught Eva in a kiss that made her groan in surprise.

The second Jonah made contact with her, he knew that what he had felt in the garage hadn't been because of Ares' possession. When they parted, Eva swallowed. She still had her eyes closed as she tried to catch her breath.

"Are you kissing me? Or Lea?" she whispered as she opened her eyes. "I need to know which one you actually want."

"There is no question." Jonah leaned against the table to hide the fact that she made him weak in the knees. "I want you. It's always been you."

Eva pushed back and Jonah stood as well. She came around the table, then grabbed him by the back of the neck to pull him into another heart-stopping kiss.

Jonah barely registered the fact that they had made it into her bedroom. He was too busy losing himself in the woman he had dreamed about for years—the only woman who had been stubborn enough to stay by his side no matter how many mistakes he made.

Jonah wove his fingers through Eva's hair and pulled her head back. "You're mine, Eva. Say it."

"Always yours." She swallowed. "And you're mine. Say it."

"Always yours," he responded. There was no question. There never was. "Always."

The two of them alternated between s*x and sleep throughout the afternoon. It was during one of those nap periods that Eva's phone rang. She shifted off Jonah's chest and checked the screen before she answered it.

"Hello?"

Jonah watched her through half-open eyes as she slipped on a robe. She tied the belt before she headed towards the balcony.

"Pierre, I can't attend the gala with you."

At that, Jonah sat up. Eva stepped outside, but left the door open. He put his pants back on as he listened to her side of the conversation.

"No, I really can't. I can't see you anymore."

Another round of silence. Jonah headed towards the door. If this guy gave Eva grief, he'd be in the ground as fast as Jonah could manage it.

"No. I'm in a relationship now. That wasn't the case a few days ago. I hope you understand." She was leaning one hip against the balcony as she watched the sunset over the ocean. "Yes. Jonah. The man you met today. Uh-huh. Thank you. Goodbye, Pierre."

She hung up the phone and Jonah crossed the small balcony to stand next to her.

"Sorry, I was hoping that didn't wake you. I take it you heard my side of the conversation?"

"Was he trying to coax you into giving him a chance?"

"He reminded me that he has an extensive portfolio and five vineyards," Eva replied. “He also told me his net worth. I tripled it in a year, but I didn't have the heart to tell him."

"You should have. Would've put him in his damn place." Jonah studied her. "What did you thank him for?"

"He wished us the best." She sat her phone down on the bistro table. "Said he thought something was up when he saw us together."

Jonah sat in one of the metal chairs and pulled Eva onto his lap. He stroked her back before he spoke. "You were really going to sleep with him?"

"I was. Just trying to work up the nerve to do it." Eva trailed her fingers over Jonah's chest. "I'm glad things worked out the way they did."

"Me, too. He would have ended up in the bottom of the ocean."

"What?"

"What?"

"Jonah!" She laughed at his innocent expression. "He was nice."

"Was nice? That means you aren't going to see him again?"

"As friends, maybe. But nothing more than that. It seems wrong after what we just did."

"Maybe he should end up in the ocean."

"Stop it." She shifted against his lap. "You're being silly."

"No, I'm not!" Jonah gave Eva a look of innocence. "It's just the principle now."

"Principle, huh?"

"Yeah." Jonah ran his fingers along Eva's shoulder. "I want us to be together, Eva. Not as friends. Actually together. A couple."

"I want that, too. I've wanted that from the moment I first saw you, to be honest."

Jonah took the opportunity to kiss her. A way to seal the promise they had just made to each other.

When she broke away, she whispered against his mouth. "So, what do I call you? Boyfriend? Partner?"

"Boyfriend works. Partner sounds too much like a business deal."

"Hmm, then I'm going to scream to the world that Jonah Rowe is my boyfriend. Good thing we're on the balcony."

She made a move to get up and laughed when Jonah tightened his arm around her waist. He buried his nose into the side of her neck to breathe her in.

Eva was home. She was his. Every bit of her.

"How long before you have to leave?" She rested her cheek against his head as she ran her fingers through his hair. "Were you supposed to go back to Rome tonight?"

"I'm not expected back till Friday," Jonah replied. "I'm here with you. "

"Really?"

He looked up to see the excitement on her face. He'd expected to stay until the end of the week. But now, he didn't know if he was going to be able to leave her side when the time came. "Yeah. Really."

"I can show you the town and the beaches. And in the mornings, we can go take walks through the fresh market to get you something to eat. And—"

Jonah smiled, truly amused by her excitement. "You really love this place, don't you?"

"I really do. I love it even more now."

"Me, too." Jonah looked at the ocean. The night had darkened the waves. He could hear them, but barely see them. "This is my first time in France."

"When you can stay longer, we'll take the train ride through the country to let you see more of it. Get you all cultured."

Jonah nipped her nose and she laughed again. He allowed the question plaguing his mind to slip out. "You sure you want to turn down someone like Pierre for me?"

Eva pulled back a little with a frown. "What does that mean?"

"You know. Someone who has more money than—"

"Jonah, I don't want money. I want you. I don't want his stupid portfolio. I want to hear you say that I'm yours and when the time's right, that you love me. I don't give a damn about what he has. I do give a damn about how you make me feel."

"Good." Jonah met her eyes. Even though the color had been changed, he could still see the fire behind them. "Because the time is now. I love you, Eva. More than anything."

"I love you, too. More than anything." Eva tightened her grip around his neck when he closed his eyes. "I do. I'd give up my life just to see you smile. You have to know that."

Jonah let her words wash over him. Eva loved him. He knew it was true. He'd known it for a while, but he'd been so damned determined to be free. To show everyone that he had complete control. That Vera hadn't made a fool of him. Then, Persephone happened, and Eva had been taken away. Jonah's prospective had changed after that. A lot.

"I do, baby," Jonah responded after a few minutes. "I am the same. I've known I loved you for a while."

"Have you?" Eva leaned back into him again. "How?"

“Nana used to have this gift, Superstar. She would wake up the second my feet hit the floor. It never failed. I'd try to sneak out of my room, only to find her standing in the hallway. She explained it to me once. Said that anytime someone she truly loved started moving, she did too. I was sure her gift had died with her, even though she swore I would know it someday. She would tell me, ‘You'll see, J.J. One of these days, somebody special is gonna come along. And you'll wake up too.’ Turns out, she was right.”

Jonah traced her spine with his knuckles. She didn’t say a word to interrupt him. He had a feeling she wanted to hear every bit of this story.

“It's how I knew I had fallen for you, Superstar. All the way back to that morning you were going to take Hestia’s Oath. You had woken up before me to go for a run. I didn’t know it until you told me what time you woke up. Scared the hell out of me, but it started happening every time we slept in the same house together. The second you move, I get this overwhelming need to get up and I can’t go back to sleep until I know you’re ok.”

"That’s why you were up so early that morning.” She stroked the back of his neck. “And why you are always awake whenever I am. I thought it was because I disturbed you when I got out of bed.”

“No, nothing like that.” Jonah cleared his throat. “But when you were gone, things got worse for me.”

“Worse? What does that mean?”

"Eva, I was a wreck without you," he admitted. "I was. That's why I had to leave. I swear, the reason the Networkers wouldn't tell us where you were was because they knew I'd break into that damn jail and get you out."

"Jonah." She rested her forehead against his. "That's the sweetest thing I've ever heard."

"I would have."

"No, not just the jail. About your gift. I am just amazed by the sweetness of it."

"It's the truth," Jonah told Eva. "It's been true since almost minute one."

Eva just held him. She buried her head into his shoulder, and he held her against him. Jonah knew then that he had made the right decision. This felt right. It felt real. Not some flash in the pan arrangement that would be here today, gone tomorrow.

Seeing Eva taken away had made him realize how much time he had wasted. Isolating himself in Siberia had given him a clarity he never would have expected. He'd known within the first week at Thor’s training camp that he would come back and tell Eva how he felt.

"You should eat," Eva interrupted his thoughts when she pulled back. "I have bread and cheese in the kitchen. But if you want anything more substantial than that, we have to go back into town."

"No, not at all," Jonah responded. "I'll make toast and have cheese with it."

"Let me fix it. It's not that kind of bread. Or cheese."

Eva got up and led him back downstairs. The one thing Jonah noticed more than anything was how quiet the house was. Aside from the occasional foghorn out at sea or the waves behind them, there was nothing.

"This would be the perfect meditation space," he commented as Eva pulled out a container from the fridge. "It really is quiet."

"That's one reason why I want to be here. There's no noise. No one clamoring at me to do something. No radio, no television to distract me. It's heaven."

"No television?" Jonah looked horrified. Was she serious? "How do you watch Marvel then?"

"I only watch Marvel with you." She began to cut slices of thick bread and sat it next to the cheese on a plate. "That's our thing. And when you weren't here, there was no point in watching it."

"Want to binge tonight?" Jonah suggested. "I got my laptop."

Eva sipped her coffee. "Can't we just go back to bed?"

Jonah grinned. "I like that idea, too."

She pushed the plate towards him.

"So, serious question—"

"You weren't serious about going back to bed?"

"I was," Eva chuckled. "But how should we do this, handsome? Because I want to be with you, but I feel like I need to stay here awhile longer. I'm still trying to get my head on straight and I'm just not up to facing the people I used to know just yet."

"Then you stay here as long as you need," Jonah advised. "I'll keep coming back to you. My job is remote, so it's not an issue."

"You don't mind?"

"Evie, it's not that big of a deal." Jonah sat the plate down and took the napkin she handed him. "Hell, if you let me, I'll stay with you indefinitely."

"I want you to stay." She leaned against the counter. "Do you have a passport?"

"Why would I need a passport?"

"Because I figured we could check out other countries, too. Switzerland. Austria. The possibilities are endless for us."

Jonah nodded, turning the thought over in his head. It was a damn great plan. "I do have a passport, actually," he answered. "Needed it for Puerto Rico and the Bahamas."

"Then I think we need to start planning where we want to go." She wrapped her arms around his waist. "I like this plan best. I'll get to be selfish and have you all to myself for a while."

"I think the both of us have reserved the right to be selfish," Jonah said. "Lord knows we've sacrificed plenty time and again. We've earned some shore leave."

"Hmm, I like the sound of that."

"Shore leave?"

"Uh-huh. But I think I'm going to have to break down and do some shopping tomorrow. Get you a television. Have Wi-Fi installed. I want you to be comfortable here."

"You don't have Wi-Fi?" Jonah's eyebrows shot up. "Evie, you couldn't live without it before!"

"I can now." She shrugged. "There's a cafe in town where I go to check my emails, so I've kept in touch with work a few days a week. But other than that, I don't need it."

Jonah smiled. Eva would go to hell and back for a loved one. She'd pump their blood with her own heart and in so doing, she'd completely deny herself. "Baby, don't do that."

"Don't?"

"Don't." He rubbed her back. "You came here for peace, solitude, and sanctity. I'm not going to disrupt that by letting you buy a television and get Wi-Fi. You have a great setup, and I can tell by looking at you that it's served you well. I can't, in good conscience, alter that. We're good."

"Are you sure?"

"I am." He kissed the top of her head. "And I think we should get those train tickets tomorrow. No plan. No map. Let's just see where we end up."

"That sounds wonderful." She squeezed his fingers. "Want to go back to bed? Or check out the paperback library I've amassed upstairs?"

"I didn't see that in your bedroom."

"To be fair, you didn't really see that much of it." She laughed. "But no. That's what I turned the second bedroom into. A library of sorts."

"You know I adore all things books," Jonah grinned. "Show me!"

Eva led him back upstairs, flipping off the lamps as she went through the room. Once they were upstairs, she opened the second door and reached over to switch on the lamp.

Jonah stared at the small room. Every wall was covered with bookshelves. Against the far wall, a desk faced out against the window with a single pad and pen in the center.

It was by far the most perfect writing spot he could have imagined. He resisted the urge to go to the desk as ideas began to fill his mind.

"I haven't filled the shelves yet," Eva admitted. "Not even a quarter. But someday, this room will be a library of sorts."

Jonah took Eva by the hand. "Can this be my writing haven when I come visit? It's damn perfect!"

"Jonah, this can be your writing haven whenever you want." She tilted her head to the side. "Bring your books from home. Whatever you want to make this your space."

"I don't want to take it away from you."

"You're not. I don't work here, and I always read on the balcony. So, if you love this space, it's yours."

Jonah felt like his body was on fire. Flames of inspiration. Desire. Creativity. The fierce love and joy of being with Eva finally. They were on fire within him. "Thank you so much, baby."

"Don't thank me, just use the space. I told you I wanted you to be happy here."

Jonah wrapped her up in a hug and just held her. There were no words for the emotions he felt. None.