Free Entwined by Elisabeth Naughton Page B

he couldn’t still make this work. There were Argolean aphrodisiacs he could take that would help with his libido. And if those failed, he could always cross into the human realm, knock over a pharmacy and lift some Levitra or Viagra or Cialis. He’d used human drugs before. He knew they’d work in his system. He could use them again for the sake of his marriage and their people.
    You never had to use them with your soul mate, dipshit.
    “Whatever,” he muttered, picking up his pace again. “It’s just biology, dumbass.”
    “Talking to yourself again, old man?”
    Zander pulled up short at the base of the stairs on the second floor, one hand on the newel post, as he peered into the shadows.
    Near the far wall, Titus stepped out from behind a column he’d obviously been leaning against, waiting. “I always suspected you were a little senile.”
    “Hey,” Zander said. Because, yeah, this was awkward too. “What’s up?”
    Titus crossed his arms over his broad chest. Stood with his legs shoulder width apart. The stance was defensive, but not aggressive, and Zander was glad. He wasn’t in the mood to get his ass handed to him anymore today.
    “Theron told me to wait for you. He got a message from Nick. Daemons hit a village somewhere near the North American colony. Seems there was a mix of half-breeds and humans living there. Nick’s asked for help locating survivors. Theron already sent the others out. He wants you ready to roll.”
    Excitement pricked Zander’s skin. Theron was letting him fight? He’d expected to be sidelined from now untilthe time Isadora produced an heir. But maybe since they weren’t officially bound yet, Theron was giving him one last job. “Yeah. Sure. I just need to grab some weaponry. Then we can go.”
    “One thing first.” Titus stepped in front of Zander, blocking his path to the next set of stairs, and Zander’s back tightened in anticipation of what would come next. Retribution was a bitch, but Zander had it coming.
    “What you did before…in the king’s chamber. That was…” Titus lifted his hand, looked at it. Seemed to debate whether he was going to reach out and touch Zander’s shoulder or plow his fist into Zander’s abdomen. Zander stiffened, but then Titus dropped his arm. “That was heroic, Z. I just want you to know all of us…especially Demetrius…we won’t forget this.”
    That pride returned, swift and consuming, to smack Zander in the chest all over again. And yeah, he may be fighting his own personal demons where Isadora and Callia were concerned, but this was why he was making the sacrifice. For Titus, who couldn’t touch anyone except in anger; for Demetrius, who was so screwed up no one knew what the hell was wrong with him; for Cerek, who kept his distance from all females. He was doing it for all his guardian brothers who couldn’t make the same sacrifice for a thousand different reasons.
    “Demetrius forgets everything. Guarantee by next week he won’t give a shit about the whole thing.”
    A smile cracked Titus’s usually somber expression. Or at least, what could be considered a smile for Titus. One corner of his mouth quirked. “Probably. That, or he’ll come up with a reason you did this to screw the rest of us over somehow.”
    Zander shook his head. Smiled himself and followed Titus as the other guardian turned and headed for the stairs.
    “And just so we’re clear on something else,” Titus said as he walked. “No way in hell I’m gonna start calling you Your Royal Highness just because you’re binding yourself to Isadora. Your Royal Heinie, maybe.”
    Zander’s smile widened as they turned the corner and headed for the Undercroft, the room on the lowest level of the castle where the Argonauts stored weaponry and any other gear they might need. This was more like the Titus he knew.
    “Or Your Majesty,” Titus went on. “More like Your Major Dumbass. Ooh, wait. Better yet. You know how the Council always addresses the