Warriors of Poseidon 02 - Atlantis Awakening

Now."
     
    "Fine." He glared at her but put her back on her feet on the floor, then crowded her until her back hit the wall.
     
    "Second choice," he continued, eyes narrowed and a muscle clenching in his jaw. "I can get you out of here and safe and try to recover the ruby without you."
     
    "Which is crazy, Ven. Marie told me that a gem singer would need to find the Nereid's Heart. Do you think it's just lying around on the ground with signs saying 'This way to the priceless ruby of Atlantis'?" She put her palms on his chest and shoved, but it was like shoving a wall.
     
    "Right. So my other choice is to protect you and forget the ruby, and Riley and the baby will probably die."
     
    The bleak words hung in the air between them for several seconds. Then she put her hands on the sides of his face. "It's a choice no man should have to make, Ven.
    Especially a warrior who lives to protect others. But you must listen to me. This isn't your choice. It's my decision to make, and I've already made it. I hope Jack and Quinn are somehow fine, but we can't worry about them right now. We have to find the ruby, Atlantis Awakening – Warriors of Poseidon 02
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    and if we can destroy Caligula as we do it, so much the better. If not, we can return later for him."
     
    She tilted her head up and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. "It's my choice, Ven. All I can ask you to do is respect it and help me."
     
    He wrapped one hand around the nape of her neck and bent his head to kiss her so fiercely that she was unable to do anything but hang on to his shoulders and kiss him back.
     
    When she was completely out of breath and trembling, he finally stopped and rested his forehead against hers, groaning a little.
     
    "Brainless and forgettable," he muttered. "What a fool."
     
    "Hey! Those words had better not be aimed at me," she threatened him.
     
    He stepped back and swept into a full bow. "Oh, no, my lady. Trust me, no one could ever mistake you for either brainless or forgettable. In fact, you are the most courageous, most beautiful, and most unforgettable woman I have ever known."
     
    She had to wait a moment for her heart to stop stuttering before she could respond.
    "Thank you. I… thank you. I feel the same way about you. Well, without the woman part."
     
    He grinned. "I like your woman parts."
     
    She studied him, suddenly realizing exactly what he was doing. "It's not working, Ven.
    You can't distract me from this. We have to go, and we have to go now."
     
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    All humor vanished from his face, and the hardness in his eyes would have terrified her if she hadn't known him. Hadn't seen inside his soul. Hadn't seen the darkness that he believed defined him—and the courage that truly did.
     
    She watched as he finalized the few preparations they needed to make and carefully doused the remaining embers of the fire with water that he casually channeled from thin air. Anticipation and anxiety warred inside her until her stomach roiled with nausea.
     
    "Tell me we're going to succeed, Ven. Even if you don't believe it, tell me that we're going to succeed."
     
    He stopped what he was doing and met her gaze, his own fiercely determined and utterly sincere. "We will succeed, Erin. Count on it."
     
    He headed for the door and she fell into place behind him, the knots in her stomach loosening somewhat. It didn't make sense—it wasn't logical in any way—but she was somehow reassured. "Well, since you have five hundred years' worth of experience, I'm guessing I should take your word for it," she said, trying for humor. "You know, I think I've said this before, but you realize you're too old for me, right? We should probably talk about the whole May-December romance thing at some point."
     
    He smiled briefly, then his face returned to its grim lines. "Add it to the list."
     
    As they walked out of the cabin and into the cold and sunny morning, Ven with his weapons drawn and at the ready, Erin cast one last glance at the room. "Please, Goddess, may we have time to write that list," she whispered, not knowing even as she spoke the words if she uttered a hopeless wish or a prayer.
     
    Justice felt the first stirring of consciousness and realized he was being carried by his arms and legs, face down, over uneven ground on a descending path. His captors Atlantis Awakening – Warriors of Poseidon 02
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    made no sound except for the harsh