her than a friend or colleague. His short brown hair was always impeccably combed, and he had jolly
brown eyes and a sweet set of kind dimples. "Are you okay?"
"Tired."
He scratched his head as if baffled by her response. "You slept fourteen hours last night."
She patted his arm. "I know, but I'm still tired."
"Maybe you need a physical."
More likely my head examined . She pushed that thought aside to smile at him. "I'll be fine. Really."
At least she would be if she could stop having these bizarre delusions. Even now she felt as if someone
was watching her…
ARIK WANTED TO CURSE IN FRUSTRATION AS HE WATCHED Megeara smiling at another
man. Why wouldn't she succumb to his serum? To his pleas?
How could a mere mortal woman be so strong?
"Arikos?"
As light intruded into his dark chamber once more he let out a tired sigh at the sound of his uncle Wink's
voice. Arik was getting seriously tired of these interruptions when all he wanted was to be with his human
target. "What?"
"I've been told to retrieve my sleeping serum from you. You seem to be abusing it and making your
human ill."
Arik rolled over to face the older sleep god. Wink's long brown hair was braided down his back as his
light gray eyes danced with mischief. Even though Wink was one of the oldest gods, he held the
personality of thirteen-year-old boy. There was nothing he loved more than to play pranks and
tease—two of the very things that had gotten Arik and his brethren cursed.
At one time, they'd been too easily seduced and manipulated by the other gods and had allowed
themselves to be used by Wink, Hades, and the others in private jests and wars.
Until the day Zeus had put a stop to it once and for all. Funny how he'd only punished the tools and not
the ones who'd wielded them.
But then Zeus wasn't known as a god of justice.
"And if I want to keep the serum?"
Wink arched a brow at that, then tsked. "Come now, Arikos, you know the rules." His face sobered.
"You also know what happens to those who don't cooperate."
Of course he did. All of his kind knew. His back bore more scars than the sky held stars. There were
times when he suspected his grandfather Hypnos, who oversaw their physical punishments, was nothing
more than a sadist who could only feel pleasure when he was doling out pain to others.
How cruel was it to send the Skoti in to drain humans of excess or pent-up emotions, then punish them
when they didn't want to leave because they finally experienced something other than pain?
But that was the way of it.
After his "chat" with M'Ordant, Arik had known it would come to this. There was no use in arguing.
Wink had been sent to retrieve the Lotus serum they used on humans, and all the bribery on Olympus
wouldn't sway him. Wink was only a pawn who served the sleep gods.
Arik pulled out the small vial and handed it to Wink, who took it with a stoic smile.
"Cheer up, old boy. There are plenty of other dreamers out there for you to play with. Mankind is
generous to you that way. They live for their dreams and are possessed of them constantly."
Yes, but none of those humans held the type of uninhibited, vivid dreams of Megeara. It made Arik long
to know what she'd be like outside the dream realm. What she would be like as a human…
Arik watched as Wink withdrew, then left him in the dream chamber to face the darkness alone.
Perhaps this was just punishment after all. A son of the god Morpheus, Arik had originally been one of
the Oneroi. As was customary for such, he'd been assigned humans to watch over and protect against
the Skoti who sometimes preyed on them. In those days, he'd spent his life monitoring his subjects,
making sure the ones under his protection had normal dreams that would either help them work through
their problems or inspire them.
Until that one fateful night.
He'd gone to help one of his assignments who was ill. Because of her sickness, her dreams had become
extremely vivid and
brown eyes and a sweet set of kind dimples. "Are you okay?"
"Tired."
He scratched his head as if baffled by her response. "You slept fourteen hours last night."
She patted his arm. "I know, but I'm still tired."
"Maybe you need a physical."
More likely my head examined . She pushed that thought aside to smile at him. "I'll be fine. Really."
At least she would be if she could stop having these bizarre delusions. Even now she felt as if someone
was watching her…
ARIK WANTED TO CURSE IN FRUSTRATION AS HE WATCHED Megeara smiling at another
man. Why wouldn't she succumb to his serum? To his pleas?
How could a mere mortal woman be so strong?
"Arikos?"
As light intruded into his dark chamber once more he let out a tired sigh at the sound of his uncle Wink's
voice. Arik was getting seriously tired of these interruptions when all he wanted was to be with his human
target. "What?"
"I've been told to retrieve my sleeping serum from you. You seem to be abusing it and making your
human ill."
Arik rolled over to face the older sleep god. Wink's long brown hair was braided down his back as his
light gray eyes danced with mischief. Even though Wink was one of the oldest gods, he held the
personality of thirteen-year-old boy. There was nothing he loved more than to play pranks and
tease—two of the very things that had gotten Arik and his brethren cursed.
At one time, they'd been too easily seduced and manipulated by the other gods and had allowed
themselves to be used by Wink, Hades, and the others in private jests and wars.
Until the day Zeus had put a stop to it once and for all. Funny how he'd only punished the tools and not
the ones who'd wielded them.
But then Zeus wasn't known as a god of justice.
"And if I want to keep the serum?"
Wink arched a brow at that, then tsked. "Come now, Arikos, you know the rules." His face sobered.
"You also know what happens to those who don't cooperate."
Of course he did. All of his kind knew. His back bore more scars than the sky held stars. There were
times when he suspected his grandfather Hypnos, who oversaw their physical punishments, was nothing
more than a sadist who could only feel pleasure when he was doling out pain to others.
How cruel was it to send the Skoti in to drain humans of excess or pent-up emotions, then punish them
when they didn't want to leave because they finally experienced something other than pain?
But that was the way of it.
After his "chat" with M'Ordant, Arik had known it would come to this. There was no use in arguing.
Wink had been sent to retrieve the Lotus serum they used on humans, and all the bribery on Olympus
wouldn't sway him. Wink was only a pawn who served the sleep gods.
Arik pulled out the small vial and handed it to Wink, who took it with a stoic smile.
"Cheer up, old boy. There are plenty of other dreamers out there for you to play with. Mankind is
generous to you that way. They live for their dreams and are possessed of them constantly."
Yes, but none of those humans held the type of uninhibited, vivid dreams of Megeara. It made Arik long
to know what she'd be like outside the dream realm. What she would be like as a human…
Arik watched as Wink withdrew, then left him in the dream chamber to face the darkness alone.
Perhaps this was just punishment after all. A son of the god Morpheus, Arik had originally been one of
the Oneroi. As was customary for such, he'd been assigned humans to watch over and protect against
the Skoti who sometimes preyed on them. In those days, he'd spent his life monitoring his subjects,
making sure the ones under his protection had normal dreams that would either help them work through
their problems or inspire them.
Until that one fateful night.
He'd gone to help one of his assignments who was ill. Because of her sickness, her dreams had become
extremely vivid and
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