Free Rogue Soul (The Mythean Arcana Series Book 3) by Linsey Hall Page A

many reasons not to.
    Like the fact that she didn’t stand a chance of getting out of Otherworld. Not unless he went back. And there was no way he’d be doing that. The mere idea sent a cold wave over him.
    “You’re right, Ana. I don’t care about you.” The words scraped his throat, leaving scars that would stick. It was a bastard thing to say, but it was the only thing that would break the moment between them. “You were making a fucking scene in that bar, and I didn’t want to leave anything memorable for the gods to track us with if they followed your signal downriver.”
    He pushed away from her, steeled his heart against the sight of her shocked and trembling against the wall of the bunkhouse.  
    He was a bastard. He’d never deserved to be a god, not with his fucked-up wiring, and he certainly didn’t deserve someone like Ana. He’d screwed her by getting her stuck in Otherworld. Then he’d run from his responsibilities there and run from her, abandoning her to a miserable fate.

    From her perch on the boat’s roof, Ana eyed the jaguar lounging on the shore. He blended into the shade of the jungle.
    The sound of Cam starting the engines had woken her a few hours ago, and she’d joined him on deck. She’d climbed onto the rooftop to act as lookout while he piloted them downstream. Now that she’d been gone from Otherworld for two nights—the longest she’d ever stayed away—she was sure the other gods knew she was gone. Getting to Druantia first was the only thing that would save her.
    The sun beat upon her skin as she peered into the jungle, trying to keep her mind on her task and off of last night.  
    After Cam had delivered his parting shot and stormed off, she’d lain on the sparse mattress in the bunkhouse, in sheets that smelled of Cam, with the doors and windows open in an attempt to cool off.  
    The breeze hadn’t been nearly enough to douse the fire within her. Despite their past and the fact that he was a moody bastard, she wanted Cam. What she’d gotten was her own hand.  
    She’d tried to keep quiet, but at a certain point, she just hadn’t cared. Cam had been a jerk. Whether he meant what he said or not, she wasn’t sure. But she’d gotten off to the thought of him anyway. Like hate-fucking. But solo.
    When she’d finally lain exhausted on the bed, with the worst of the damnable tension and arousal gone, she’d decided to pretend that their near-kiss had never happened.
    “Why is your boat named the Clara G. ?” She asked over her shoulder from where she sat on the roof. She couldn’t stand the silence or the tension anymore. Had Clara been a woman he’d once loved? She was just curious. Not jealous. There was a difference.  
    Fates, she was a bad liar, even to herself.
    “It’s named after the original owner’s wife. Clara Goddard. First female pilot on the Yukon River. Bad luck to change a boat’s name. And I like the idea of her.”
    Ana grinned, absentmindedly twirling an arrow in her hand. He liked tough women. No surprise, from such a tough man.  
    She watched the jungle pass by, enjoying the unfamiliar sight. If she longed for life and excitement, this was the place to get it.  
    “So your pharmaceutical company is close to a couple big cures?” she asked.
    “Yeah. Medicines that could cause remission.”
    “That’s really nice.”
    “It’s fun. I like it down here, and looking for new plants for cures gives me something to do.”
    “Sure, Mr. President or CEO or whatever you are.”
    “That’s just a title. In reality, I’m just the muscle.”
    You sure are. But that’s not all.  
    “I’ve got smart people running operations back in Scotland for me,” he said.
    “Back in Scotland? At the Immortal University?”
    The Immortal University, located outside of Edinburgh, was the educational center and informal governing body of Mytheans in Great Britain. It performed a number of functions, the most important of which was overseeing British