Warrior Rising (Goddess Summoning #6)(39)

“Sweet baby Jesus, you’ve had sex!”

Kat frowned at her BFF. “How can you tell that? And I didn’t really have sex. At last not technically.”

“First, easy. You’re all rumpled and glowy. And you haven’t been this relaxed in”—Jacky paused, obviously mentally counting—“in about three and a half years. Which is how long it’s been since you’ve had sex. Second, what do you mean not technically? And please recall that we decided several years ago that oral sex is definitely sex.”

Kat fidgeted. “It hasn’t been three and a half years. It’s been three years and four months.”

Jacky snorted.

“And I didn’t have oral sex.”

“But…” Jacky prompted.

“But I had sex—kind of.”

“Explain Katrina Marie.”

Kat sucked a deep breath and then said in an enormously fast rush, “I-hypnotized-Achilles-and-while-he-was-under-I-had-a-heavy-make-out-session-with-him-and-we-both-came.”

“Christ on a cracker. You raped Achilles.”

“I did not! He said yes.”

“You want to try sayin’ that again. This time with the truth stuck in there.”

“You’re really crabby now that you’re white,” Kat procrastinated.

“I’ve always been crabby, as you know very well. Stop stalling, Katrina.”

Kat sighed. “Okay, well, he kind of said yes.”

“You know shtuping the TU quarterback on the fifty-yard line is nothing compared to raping an unconscious guy.”

“Jacqueline, I did not rape Achilles.”

“Katrina. Was he in control of all of his faculties?”

Kat’s grin was slow and satisfied. “It certainly felt like he was.”

“Fresh! You are so fresh! And that is not what I meant. I mean was he conscious or under your diabolical influence when you shtuped him?”

Kat chewed her lip, hesitated, and then gave up. She always told Jacky everything—she might as well get it over with. “Look, earlier last night I met him out on the beach after Agamemnon’s bullshit. And, well, we’d been getting along at the king’s tent, even though I did piss off the king. God, he’s as annoying as Hera said. Anyway, what I said was nothing compared to Achilles announcing that he and all his men who had a mind to follow him would be withdrawing from the battle.”

“Bet that went over with Agamemnon like hot turds.”

“Yeah, and Achilles told him off and we almost had to fight our way out of there. And may I take this opportunity to mention that Briseis doesn’t seem like a very nice girl.”

“You met her?”

“Not really. She was lounging against Agamemnon’s royal knee throwing me dirty looks.”

“What kind of looks did she throw at Achilles?” Jacky asked.

“She didn’t. The bitch didn’t glace at him one time. It wasn’t like she wanted him, but more like she just didn’t want me to have him. I ignored her and held on tight to Achilles’ arm. That really freaked her out.”

“Holding onto his arm freaked her out? What is she, some kind of weird virgin?”

“No, my guess is she’s like most of the women from this time. They’re freaked out by anyone touching Achilles on purpose.”

“Why?” Jacky asked. “Is it just that berserker thing? Hell, remember my brief but unfortunate thug phase and Rashod a.k.a. X? He was mean as a snake, but he watched himself and showed some damn sense during the short time I dated him. Yes, I do admit that he is now doing time for accidentally killing his neighbor, LaShawn Johnson, but clearly when we stopped dating he also stopped using good sense.”

“Jacky, Rashod a.k.a. X, pulled out a nine millimeter gun and in broad daylight shot LaShawn and his dog—dead. Five times each, if I remember correctly,” Kat said. “I do not think you can call that an accident.”

“Rashod a.k.a. X, only meant to shoot LaShawn’s pain in the ass yappin’ dog. LaShawn lost his damn mind and got out there all between the bullets and the dog. Which, in my professional medical opinion, is not very bright.”

“Why were we talking about Rashod a.k.a. X?” Kat asked, utterly confused.

“Because I’m just sayin’ if that little Briseis and all the rest of the milquetoast white chippies around here are oh so scared of your boy, I think they could use a little fieldtrip to North Tulsa to chat with some of the brothers to straighten them right up. Truly, Kat, how scary could Achilles be?”

“It’s not Achilles,” Kat said slowly. “He’s not scary. He’s sexy and kind of sad and lonely. It’s the berserker they’re afraid of, and they should be. I got a glimpse of him, Jacky. He hadn’t even fully possessed Achilles, and it was awful.”

“Katrina Marie, did he hurt you?” Jacky moved instantly into the persona Kat liked to think of as Super Nurse.

“No. I, uh, ran.”

Jacky’s blond brows met the hairline of her flowing tresses. “You ran. As in away from him, across the beach, with your bosoms floppin’?”

Kat looked down at her young chest. “I don’t think these bosoms flopped much. They’re almost unnaturally perky. But, yes.”