Hope sparked in my chest. “But I know you will get through that. I know you will.” I couldn’t believe anything else. Truth was, being a part of that army was dangerous, but being there against Ares was suicidal.

Aiden eased down on the bed beside me. “I don’t like this.”

“You don’t have to like it. Just like I didn’t like the idea of you giving up your soul to Hades. All you have to do is understand it.”

The moment those words left my mouth, I internally patted myself on the shoulder. There were moments when my maturity surprised me.

He shifted onto his back, resting his hands on his flat stomach. His eyes were closed, and thick lashes brushed the tops of his cheeks. The muscle in his jaw thrummed along like a hummingbird, but as I watched him, it slowed down. Aiden took a deep breath, the ticking stopped, and he finally opened his eyes.

They were the softest shade of gray as they locked with mine. “I don’t agree with this. I hate it, Alex, but I get it. If it were the other way around, I wouldn’t want you near him. Hell, I don’t want you near him, but you have to. So, yeah, I’ll stay with the army.”

Relief eased the tense muscles in my shoulders and neck. I leaned over him, kissing his cheek. “Thank you. I know it wasn’t easy for you, so thank you.”

He rolled into his side, resting his head on his curved elbow. Reaching over, he skimmed his hand up my leg, swerving to miss a nasty bruise. “When are you and Seth going to do the whole transfer of power thing?”

“Good question.” Now that I’d worked this one thing out, it was time to figure out the next problem. “He wants to wait until we’re in the Catskills.”

His dark brows knitted. “Why?”

I shrugged a shoulder. “I really don’t know. He said something earlier about the power being hard to handle, so maybe he thinks I’ll crack and, I don’t know, start zapping everyone in sight.”

Aiden laughed. “That’s ridiculous.”

“Yeah, I don’t know, though. My only other option is to hold him down and do it, and I don’t see that going well.”

He arched a brow. “I have no problem with that idea. I’ll gladly hold him down.”

A grin pulled at my lips. “You’re terrible.”

“Just being helpful.”

I kissed his cheek again and then sat back. “I’m going to try to talk to him again. I think we need to do it soon, before we leave for New York.”

“I agree.” His fingers toyed with the hem of the borrowed shirt.

In the quiet moments that followed, I leaned over again and kissed him for a third time. “For good luck,” I whispered. “We’re going to war.”

His lashes fluttered closed. “We are.”

“Did you ever think you’d be in this position?” I placed my hand on his smooth cheek, and he pressed into it. “I never did. Not in a million years,” I admitted.

“Me, neither.” He pressed his hand over mine, holding it there. “I don’t think any of us would have predicted this.”

I bit down on my lip. In that flash of a second, I felt incredibly… young. I wanted Aiden’s reassurance. “And you think it will get better afterward? Go back to normal?”

“I do.” He kissed my palm again. “Let’s talk about less depressing things. Do you still think there’s something up with Seth?”

I laughed. “Is that really a better conversation for you?”

“Maybe.” He grinned a little, and my heart toppled in my chest. “So?”

I started to respond, but there was a knock on the door. By the time I tugged the quilt over my legs, the door swung open and Deacon popped in, not even waiting for an invite.

The mop of blond curls bounced as he jumped to the foot of the bed. “Hi, guys!”

Aiden sat up slowly. “Hi, Deacon. Are you aware that it’s customary to wait until someone answers the door or says ‘come in?’”

“Not like I was interrupting anything. Both of you still have your clothes on.”

I laughed. “He has a point.”

Aiden shot me a “you’re not being helpful” look. “So, what’s up, Deacon?”

“Marcus is looking for you. He’s in the common room, so I figured it would be better if I was the one who checked in on you two, just in case you were naked.” He winked, and I smothered another giggle. “You’re welcome.”

Groaning, Aiden sat up. “Okay. You do have a point.”

“Thought so.” As his brother stood, Deacon dive-bombed the bed, causing me to bounce. He flicked my hand lightly. “Marcus wants to talk about the Council or some boring shit like that. His ladylove wants to talk plans about re-building. Then again, I sort of zoned out for half of the conversation.”

My brows rose. There was an open seat on the Council that had belonged to Aiden’s father. Since Aiden had never taken the seat, it was left open, something that had ticked away at Aiden. He knew that his father would’ve wanted him to follow in his footsteps rather than become a Sentinel.

Aiden ran a hand through his hair. “All right. Well, this should be interesting.”

His brother snorted. “I’ll stay here and keep Alex company.”

“You do that.” Aiden moved around the edge of the bed, swooped down, and kissed my cheek. “I’ll be back in a few.”

I waved him goodbye and watched him leave. Then I glanced at Deacon. My brows rose as his fingers flew over his cell phone. “Whatcha doing?” I asked.

“Just wait.” No more than a few seconds later, the door opened again and Luke and Olivia poked their hands in. Deacon tipped his head back, grinning up at me. “Slumber party?”

I laughed as I waved them in. “Sounds like a great idea.”

Olivia scooted in next to me, while Luke stretched out across the head of the bed. She reached over, grabbing the remote control. “We may be leaving for a few days to fight in a war, but that doesn’t mean we’re too old for a slumber party.”

“So very true.” I took the pillow Luke handed me and snuggled down.

The four of us watched a bad movie well into the night. It was one of the most relaxing moments I’d had in a long time. When they got up to leave, I sat up, holding the pillow to my chest.

“Let’s make a promise,” I said.

Three sets of eyes settled on me. “What?” Olivia asked.

I felt kind of corny about what I was about to say, but oh, what the hell. “After all of this is done and over with, let’s promise to do this at least once a week. No matter what we’re doing or where we are.”

A wide smile spread across Olivia’s face. “That’s a promise I’ll love to make.”

“Same here,” agreed Luke, dropping his arm over Deacon’s shoulders.

Feeling good about making plans to do something normal, I dozed off and didn’t wake up until I felt Aiden sliding into bed behind me. I tipped my head back toward him as he slipped an arm around my waist. “How was everything with Marcus?”

“Okay.” He kissed my cheek and tugged me back against him. “He wants me to take my Council seat once everything is…settled.”

I’d figured as much. “What do you think?”

Aiden was silent for a long time. “There are things that I could do on the Council, things that I could help make right, especially when the Elixir stops working for the rest of the half-bloods. It’s just…”

He didn’t finish. The Council seat was a lot of things to Aiden—more than just responsibility. I turned so I was facing him and cuddled up close, wiggling so that my head was under his. “You don’t have to make a decision now. You have time.”

“You’re right.” His hand slid up my spine and settled there. “We have time.”

* * *

After another grueling training session on Friday, I found myself limping into the dean’s office. Our AOA was leaving in the late morning on the following day. There was a lot to be discussed, and I had scored an invite. So did Seth. The only other times we’d been called to the dean’s office in the past was because I’d done something I was about to get in trouble for, and those meetings usually ended in insults being slung back and forth.