Free A Date of Godlike Proportions (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy Book 2.5) by Tellulah Darling Page B

Hope Park Progressive School where I’d been playing the role of Theo Rockman, regular human, to move in with Festos and continue watching over Sophie. He and I were together 24/7 now. “Why do we need to go on a date?”
    “Is that even a question?” Pierce mused, as he slouched over the back of the chair.
    I scowled. “It’s taken us almost twenty-five-hundred years to get to a second date. That’s twenty-five-hundred years of pressure building up.”
    I flinched as I heard Festos croon the old Dean Martin hit “Ain’t That a Kick In The Head,” about lucky guys in love. “Case in point. It’s already too hyped. Too much riding on it for it to work. It doesn’t need to happen.”
    “Yeah, mate. It does.” Pierce gave me a stern look.
    I flapped my hand at him. “Because you’re not biased in matters of love.”
    He grinned. “I’m the ultimate authority on them. Which is why you are going to go get done up right and go out tonight.” He made a shooing motion with his hands. “Move along, before I get nasty. Or call in Aphrodite.”
    Apparently, the path of least resistance meant going on the date. I ignored the feeling of dread in the pit of my stomach, and went to shower.
    Ten minutes later, I stood in Festos’ room wearing brown trousers, my magic chain woven through my belt loops. I rummaged through my suitcase for a suitable shirt to wear. Who was I kidding? What possible outfit could transform me from what I was? A human teen guy. Whereas Festos wore his godness like his second skin.
    Like I had, once upon a time.
    I rubbed a hand over my face. I wasn’t Prometheus anymore. Wasn’t the guy he’d fallen in love with. I pulled out a green sweater, more viciously than necessary, wrinkling it even more in the process.
    This was as good as it was going to get, and if Festos didn’t like it … was disappointed … My chin jutted out. I shoved my arms into the sweater and whipped it over my head.
    I stopped by Sophie’s room before I went. On the off chance she’s going to wake up and bless the outing? My throat tightened and I swallowed hard. I didn’t know what I wanted at this point.
    “She’s asleep. Not much is gonna change there, mate.” Pierce didn’t even look up at my entrance. He had his nose in a hardcover copy of Neil Gaiman’s latest. “Go.”
    I hesitated. Sophie looked so small lying there.
    That pause earned me a book to the head. “Seriously?” I rubbed my temple.
    Pierce calmly got up and retrieved his book where it had fallen. “Next time, I use a laptop.”
    Hannah entered and none-too-gently pushed me from the room.
    She poked at my cheek. “Do try to smile. You can be awfully pretty when you smile.”
    I gave up and snagged my jacket from a chair, heading into the living room.
    Festos gave me a bright grin as he took my hand. He brushed a piece of lint from my jacket collar.  I tried to get into the spirit.
    “What’s first?” I asked. I knew he had this date planned down to the second.
    “We set the stage with romance.” He bobbed on his toes, looking adorably excited.
    There I went with the “A” word again. Damn it. My hand shook with anxiety and I curled it into a fist.
    Festos either ignored it or didn’t notice, because placing a hand on my arm, he blinked us away.
    We landed on a beach. At sunset.
    The sky was streaked with oranges and deep purples. The water shone with a rippled iridescence.
    It was a tropical beach, and so summer in January. Even though it was sunset, and there was a slight breeze, it was still warm enough that I slung my jacket over my shoulder and rolled up the sleeves of my sweater.
    Sweat beaded along the back of my neck.
    Festos waggled his eyebrows at me. “Fancy a walk along these sandy shores?”
    Not really. I felt like I was living a bad personals ad. But this meant a lot to him, so I squeezed his hand. “Sure.”
    We strolled along the shore for a bit while Festos made inane chatter about the weather, the colors of the