Hooked For Good

This Scene Won't Play

Uma's POV

"What the hell are we going to do?"

"If Poseidon finds out, we're dead!"

"Forget Poseidon! What if Mom finds out?"

"Will you two quit your yapping! You're the Gods of Fear and Terror. Get ahold of yourselves!"

I woke up slowly to the sound of quarreling voices, which only added to my headache. I scrunched my nose in annoyance as I open my eyes, and I found myself on the ground with three familiar faces–Eros, Deimos, and Phobos–looking down at me. Oh yeah, and there was an arrow sticking out of my thigh.

I pushed myself onto my elbows, groaning when the arrow sent a dull sting through my pierced leg. I didn't recall any pain when it initially hit me, but now it was just irritating. The three brothers stood up straight and took a step back from me, and I glared daggers at Eros. "You won't have to worry about your mother if I kill you first," I spat through gritted teeth.

"First of all, we can't be killed. We're gods," Eros replied in his smooth, calm voice, as he grabbed the arrow shaft and swiftly plucked it from my thigh. I stifled another pained grunt as the oldest brother continued, "Second of all, you've just been shot by a special true feeling arrow, and I apologize. You were not my intended target. Allow me to explain the–"

"Don't bother, Cupid," I interjected with a snort, examining my leg through the tear in my dress. There was no blood or wound, but a small heart was tattooed into my thigh. "I know the effect of that particular arrow. I overheard you explaining it to your brothers. Who do you think hit tweedle-dee over there with a shoe?"

I flicked my head toward Deimos, and Eros's initially calm expression faded into confusion. Gradually, his brow furrowed in understand, and he cleared his thought before concluding, "So you were covering for your friend then. I knew he had something to hide."

"That's not why I did it," I shot back, sitting up with my hands behind me for support. I had to talk around the truth because my first instinct was to rat Harry and Melody out. Now the meaning of 'true heart' was dawning on me. "But I don't like it when people aim weapons at Harry, no matter how harmless they seem."

"Is that so?" Eros chided, a knowing smile growing on his face. His brothers seemed lost in the conversation, but Eros was rather smug as he cross his arms over his bare chest and asked, "Uma, how do you feel about Harry?"

"I love him."

I smacked my hand over my mouth as soon as those words hit my ears. It sounded like my voice, and yeah, my mouth moved, but my brain didn't permit those words to cross over my lips. I said it so casually too, the phrase rolling off my tongue with such ease. While I was baffled by such a shameless answer, Eros seemed rather satisfied with himself.

"Well, now that you've gotten that off your chest," Eros began, and I growled under my breath. He knelt beside me, mischief gleaming in his brown eyes, as he offered, "How about we help each other cover up this little incident?"

"What do you propose?" I drawled boredly, looking him up and down.

"We'll tell the others you were hit by a regular love arrow on accident," he explained. "When they all find you passed out, we'll make sure Harry is the first person you see. They'll blame your affectionate behavior on the spell, and your feelings will remain a secret. No one will suspect that I possess an arrow that reveals true feelings."

I tilted my head to the side in thought. "For a god, you sure have the scheming skills of a villain," I said.

"Quite the compliment from a former monarch of the Isle," Eros replied, graciously putting a hand on his chest. "Now, do we have an agreement?"