Fangs and Fennel (The Venom Trilogy #2)(51)

Both frostings and the topping made, I picked up the best-formed cupcake. I put the venom frosting into a piping bag and piped it onto the cupcake for Merlin. I put on a good two inches of the thick white frosting, making a perfect swirl like a soft-serve ice-cream cone.

I tossed the toasted and caramelized pecans into the food processer and then took the sprinkles and dusted the top of the cupcake. I held it up for Ernie’s inspection. “Good enough to eat?”

“If I didn’t know what was in that frosting, I’d steal it from you right now. It smells good too.” He licked his lips.

A thought rumbled around in the back of my head. I had more than one person I’d like to give a venomous cupcake to. Like Zeus . . . I grabbed a second cupcake and frosted it up with the ouzo-and-venom icing. Maybe I could make him wish he’d been more helpful. Dang, I really was turning into a monster. I kept on piping the frosting, a grim smile on my lips.

“Who’s that for?” Ernie bobbed around in front of me, his lips dipping into a tiny frown. I grinned up at him.

“You wait and see.”

A knock on the back door slowly drew me around. I listened and no heartbeat floated back to me. I swallowed hard and checked the clock. It was late enough that it would be dark already. I grabbed a rolling pin in one hand.

“Dahlia?”

“No.” Remo’s voice slid under the door, and my heart rate kicked up more than a few notches.

“What do you want?”

“I came to apologize. May I come in?”

I looked to Ernie, who just shrugged and said, “I’d give him another chance. But I’m also a sucker for a bad boy; they make me tingle in all my lady parts.” He winked.

I rolled my eyes. “Some help you are. Can you go to the front or something? I don’t want an audience for—”

“For making out with your vamp boy toy. I got it, I’m all about the love, you know.” He flew out of the kitchen, laughing the whole way.

I put the rolling pin down and went to the door, wiping my hands on my apron before I grabbed the knob. I paused, though, and tried to gather myself.

“I can hear your heartbeat pounding as well as if I had my ear to your lovely breast, Alena. You might as well open the door,” Remo said.

Cocky jerk. My mouth twitched, and then I remembered everything I’d been through in the last twenty-four hours. That he’d said he’d help me, but when I’d asked him to come via Hermes, he’d not shown up. And I’d had to deal with Santos on my own.

I jerked the door open. “What do you want?”

His dark eyes, so like his brother’s, now that I knew the truth, widened. “I said I came to apologize. Hermes brought me your message, but I wasn’t ready to see you yet.”

I gripped the door hard in preparation to slam it. “And now you are? Fine. Apology accepted. I’m busy. Please go away.”

He strode forward and planted his lips on mine.

I couldn’t help myself, I wrapped my arms around him. We stumbled backward into the counter, the clatter of pots and pans tumbling behind us, as he lifted me up to sit on the edge so I was taller than him. The taste of his mouth, the feel of his body, every part of him called to me, to my senses. He said something in Italian, a soft murmur of apology against my lips. “I should not have left you alone. I don’t know how else to keep you safe.”

“I can take care of myself,” I whispered back, even while I struggled to break free of the spell his kisses wove around me. My hands were all over his shoulders and the back of his head, holding him tight.

It took all my strength to pull away, and even so, my hands lingered on his shoulders, as his lingered on my back and waist. I slid off the counter, though my legs were a bit wobbly.

“Still married,” I said.

His smile was tired, and he stepped back, giving me room. “Did Santos hurt you?”

I ran a hand through my hair and quickly told him about the fennel. How it had been meant for Theseus to use against me, how Dahlia and I had retrieved it, and how it was missing yet again.

“Beth has truly turned on you?”

“It’s like she’s still under a spell,” I said. “No matter what I say, I can’t seem to convince her that he is not Tim, but Theseus. And poor Sandy is just going along with her out of loyalty, I’m sure. I’m afraid he’s going to hurt them and there is nothing I can do.”

Ernie flew back in. “Couldn’t help overhearing that bit. Beth actually is mesmerized by Theseus. Not quite the same as a spell, but close. That’s the kind of arrow he had, the obsession one I told you about. He’s using her own desires against her to keep her under his thumb. He’s good at that.”

“How long will the arrow last?” I asked.

Ernie shrugged. “Until she doesn’t want it to. Kinda like your influence as a siren. It only works on those who already are in line with what you want.”

“Wonderful.” I tipped my head back to stare at the ceiling. Remo made a soft noise that brought my eyes back to him. His dark eyes with the violet edge were completely dilated. “What?”

“You threw your head back. It’s all but an invitation to a vampire.” His voice was carefully neutral and he looked away.

“Oh, sorry.”

“Awkward much,” Ernie muttered. “Look, let’s get these cupcakes and go. You wanted to see Merlin before you go to your parents, right?”