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And he didn’t mean in bed. Although that fuck definitely had been fit for the gods.
    Blinking back the tears, she turned and headed for the door.
    “Then I guess I’ll just say thanks for the sex.” She turned the knob and stepped outside. “It was good.”
    Closing the door, she disappeared.
    ***
    Tessa had wondered if the tears would work. Not that they weren’t real. She really was screwed well and good now. Especially since Caligo didn’t seem to be following her.
    Stepping off the rickety wooden porch, she headed in the direction of her car, her thoughts reeling.
    Now what? Did she return to her little house and wait for Charun to catch her in her sleep when she could no longer keep her eyes open? Return to Salvatorus’s home in the city and risk Charun discovering possibly the only Etruscan safe house in the States?
    Was there anywhere she could go that Charun would not find her?
    Sighing, she headed for her little blue convertible Mini Cooper, parked just beyond the bend in the road. When she arrived, she’d had to park the car and walk because of the deeply rutted path. But that meant she now had to walk back with the soreness between her legs a constant reminder of her failure.
    Damn Caligo.
    Salvatorus had warned her that the Cimmerian might be hard to convince. Sal had mentioned something about Cal having been screwed over by another goddess recently.
    It had never really occurred to Tessa that Cal would refuse to help her because she was a deity. She had enough gold to pay him anything he wanted. And she would have gladly given him her body again. The sex had been… amazing.
    But really, what had she expected from a mercenary?
    Sure, he’d taken the payment but hadn’t rendered a service. Okay, that wasn’t technically true. That wonderful orgasm could be considered a service, but still…
    All she had to show for her day were sore wrists and ankles, a headache, and the remaining tingle of sex in her body.
    Now what?
    She stopped and took a deep breath, inhaling clean, country air. At least it was no longer raining. All around her, the forest soothed. She felt the hum of living energy in the beat of her heart, felt the earth’s power beneath her feet. Just because she was—had been—a sun goddess, that didn’t mean she wasn’t in tune with the earth.
    And this was an old forest, unusual for this part of southeastern Pennsylvania, where the Europeans had harvested most of the trees several centuries earlier.
    No wonder Caligo chose to live here. It was secluded. Peaceful.
    But where did she go now?
    She couldn’t risk contacting any of the other deities she’d been friendly with in times past for fear of leading Charun to them. Besides, Usil, the Sun God, had disappeared many centuries ago, and Nethuns, the Sea God, probably wouldn’t talk to her anyway because of that whole Kev affair.
    Sue her, she had a thing for young men. Neth had known that from the start and—
    She sighed. That wasn’t going to save her ass. Or the world’s.
    Lifting her hand, she rubbed at her burning eyes. That nap at Caligo’s had only made her more tired.
    She didn’t know how much longer she could go without a full night’s sleep. She wouldn’t be able to keep herself awake through sheer force of will much longer. And when she dreamed, Charun would find her.
    Dreams existed in a state other than reality, one that Charun, who lived in the plane of existence where dreams originated, could access with little effort.
    When she fell asleep and her unconscious brain took over, her dreams would stand out like a beacon for the God of Aitás, especially since he was specifically looking for her. Once he’d located her, he’d send his minions to bring her to him for a little dinner party where she would be the main course.
    Opening the door to her car, she slid into the driver’s seat and dropped her head on the steering wheel.
    Think, Tessa, think. Just because you’re blonde and haven’t used more than a tenth