Cas growled. aIall not leave you alone again. I did not know your magic places would be dangerous for you.a Dionysus lay on his back, one leg bent, arms behind his head, watching the clouds drift by. aIad kill Selena,a he mused. aBut Poseidon would not let me. He hates her, but she is his. Heas strange like that.a aWeall have to castrate her somehow,a Pol said. aBut if she touches you again, Fiona, Iall risk Poseidonas wrath and strangle her. It will be an ugly fight, but Iall do it.a aBe careful,a Fiona said. aI donat think sheas quite sane.a Dionysus snorted. aAn understatement. Sheas been crazy as a loon since the day she was hatched. A more interesting problem is the spell on the jar.a He lifted the terracotta jug and examined it closely. aYou say you donat know what will happen if it breaks?a He lifted it in his sinewy hands as though prepared to hurl it toward some rocks in the middle of the meadow.
aNo!a Fiona leapt for him and closed her hands around the vessel.
She met his black-gold gaze and for a moment felt as though he sucked her right into him. She was falling into velvet darkness that caressed her body like a lover. It was the height of sensuality and at the same time absolutely terrifying.
aLeave her be,a Cas rumbled behind her.
The G.o.d grinned and the darkness receded, leaving her looking at a handsome man who held out the jar to her.
She took it carefully and set it on the pillows. aThey might die or might be sent back to oblivion.a aThat would be a shame,a Dionysus said.
aIad say so,a Pol put in.
Cas said nothing. His eyes darkened as he watched Fiona, and suddenly she wanted that erotic darkness Dionysus had made her see, but she wanted it with Cas. They could be pressed body to body, lounging on soft velvet with his c.o.c.k buried high inside her, his tongue in her mouth.
She looked at him and knew he wanted it too. He wanted her, Fiona, not because of her expertise on pottery or the fact that she was available to crawl around digs with scorpions and rats, he wanted Fiona the woman. No other person in her life had wanted Fiona the woman.
Fiona touched his hand. He covered hers in his, his finger tracing her palm.
She saw Pol standing behind him, his eyes as intense on her. She remembered taking him far into her mouth and the smooth taste of his come. Pol wanted her too.
aSelena is a danger as long as you are alive,a Dionysus was saying.
Fiona felt a surge of power from him, one her mind tried to dampen. The power flared and built until it crawled under her skin like strange electricity.
aBut Iam going to give you a gift,a the G.o.d went on. aA reprieve before you have to find her and face her, because face her you must.a He stepped beside the twins and put one hand on each manas shoulder. aI will give you the gifta"of time.a The mountain swirled away with incredible speed, but before Fiona could cry out they were standing in soft darkness, inside the two rooms shead rented at the tiny inn.
Chapter Nine.
Cas heard music coming from somewhere down the street, a lone man singing about his beloved and the beautiful countryside. In his arms, Fiona started. She looked tired, her white face lined with exhaustion and worry.
He fumed that Selena had confronted her and tried to hurt her. Fiona was innocenta"she had no idea what vindictive wrath a demiG.o.ddess could have for no reason at all. Selena would be punished for frightening her.
He ran his hand through her warm hair. His brave Fiona, standing up to a demiG.o.ddess and stealing the jar to keep it safe.
She was looking around in confusion, her pretty eyes shining in the dark. aThis is where I spent the night last night. And I remember that man singing down the street. It soothed me to sleep. What happened?a aA gift of time,a Pol said. He leaned against the door, his t-shirt a pale smudge in the dark. aDionysus is letting us have the night again, free from danger.a aHe can do that? Do we have to be careful not to see our other selves or disrupt the time stream or something?a Pol chuckled. aIt isnat time travel. We live the night over again. As though we didnat do it the first time. Weare safe here, and heas letting us enjoy it.a aOh.a Cas smiled at Fionaas bafflement. Dionysus being who he was, Cas had a pretty good idea how the G.o.d expected them to enjoy themselves. He ran his fingers lightly down Fionaas arm.
aFiona will need to rest. In bed.a Pol laughed out loud. Cas could see Fionaas blush even in the darkness, but her hand tightened around his.
aI leave you to your delights,a Pol said, pushing himself from the doorframe. aI go in search of wine and song.a He did a slow dance step, one hand on his abdomen as he swiveled his hips. Then he laughed softly and sauntered out the door, closing it behind him.
Fiona turned to Cas, eyes wide and questioning. It took effort to not throw her down and ravish her on the spot.
aYou are surprised Pol left us?a he asked.
She laid her head on his chest, a warm armful of woman. aA little.a aHe knows what I want. He too is giving me a gift.a Fiona smiled suddenly and raised on tiptoe to kiss the side of his mouth. aWe should not waste it then.a aNo, we should not.a He kissed her deeply, then he took both her hands and led her into the bedroom.
Pol walked down the street smiling, imagining steam rolling from the inn he left behind. Head never seen Cas so far gone on a woman before.
But then, what a woman. Red hair like fire-colored silk, eyes swimming with sensuality, even her grubby fingers were cute. A lady who liked to play in the dirt.
He stopped, enjoying a sudden vision of dirt all over her nude body as she rolled in the dust, laughing. He was surprised the other archaeologists werenat all over her. But the shortsighted people were, like Hans, so enamored of digging up the past that they couldnat see what was right in front of them in the present.
If anything, Pol should be obsessed by the past, wanting to know what head missed while trapped in the painting. But head lived for thousands of years before Selena and her sorcery, and head learned that the present was always the most important time to be in. Never forget the past, was his motto, but live for the here and now.
Pol walked on toward the lights and noise of the taverna. They were safe from Selena tonight, thanks to Dionysus, and he could enjoy drink and dance and a woman if he wanted her.
No, he knew which woman he wanted. Wanted to touch every part of her with every part of himself.
Fiona.
The very woman his brother was about to f.u.c.k in a frenzy of pa.s.sion while Pol sat in a corner in a taverna and drank wine.
Hmm. Well, head give them some time. How much time? An hour? No, longer. Cas would want to savor it.
Pol would give his brother long enough to sate himself then head would return and see what he could convince them both to do.
The twins had shared everything in their entire existence, and Pol saw no reason to stop now.
aDo you like that?a Cas stroked his hands down Fionaas naked abdomen, his palms calloused and warm. She moved her hips, both wanting him to hurry and finish stripping her and wanting him to take his time.
aDo you like it?a he asked again.
aI do. Canat you tell?a aYour eyes give nothing away.a Cas leaned over her, still dressed, until his face was an inch from hers. His breath heated her skin, then he soothed her eyelids closed with his lips.
After Pol had departed, Cas had said not a word. No crude, aHey, baby, want to do it?a or more romantic offers of lovemaking. Head simply lifted her into his arms, carried her into the bedroom and laid her on the bed.
The whitewashed room contained a simple bedstead of white wood and a night table and dresser to match. Two Byzantine icons were framed over the dresser, and that was it for decoration.
Fiona loved the roomas simplicity, which soothed and relaxed her. She had the feeling shead love it even more after tonight.
Cas had proceeded to unb.u.t.ton her shirt and pull it open then head began ma.s.saging her stomach and b.r.e.a.s.t.s, his touch arousing and comforting at the same time.
aI havenat beena"witha"anyone for a long time,a she said.
aI havenat been with anyone for twenty-five hundred years. I believe I have, as you Americans say, broken your record.a She touched his face, loving the sandpaper feel of his dark whiskers. aHope you havenat forgotten anything.a aI believe it comes naturally and time between does not matter.a aLike riding a bicycle,a she suggested.
Cas frowned. aBicycle?a aLike the motorcycle. Only without a motor.a aAh, I saw those. How foolish to force yourself to pedal when your magic motors can propel you very fast.a Fiona remembered the descriptions villagers had given her of Cas driving the motorcycle through small villages. Theyad not said head driven fast. The term maniac had cropped up most often.
She thought she probably should explain a few traffic rules to him, but at that moment he unhooked her bra and slid it gently from her body, and she lost her train of thought.
Cas ran his thumbs across her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, stroking her nipples into tight peaks before leaning down and taking one in his mouth.
aYou donat have to ask whether I like that,a she gasped. aI do.a aI know.a He kissed her skin then drew the tip of his tongue slowly between her b.r.e.a.s.t.s.
aMy body tells you more than my eyes, then.a Cas focused flatteringly on her torso, letting his gaze drift to her throat. aIt tells me much. It tells me you want me to touch it.a aPlease.a The only light in the room came from a lone candle on the dresser and the moonlight without. Beyond the window, over the rooftops of the tiny village, the dark bulk of Mount Olympus hovered.
The domain of the G.o.ds. She believed that now.
She had many questions about Dionysus and what he really looked like and how head gotten her from the lower slopes to nearly the top without her noticing. But questions could wait, she decided, drifting into hazy pleasure as Cas unzipped her very practical cotton shorts.
He eased the shorts over her legs and feet, then he unlaced her sneakers and stripped off her socks. He stroked his hands down her thighs and behind her calves before warming the soles of her feet.
Then he leaned down and nibbled her toes. Fiona rolled her hips, digging into the bed. His mouth was warm and wet and very erotic.
He pressed a long kiss to the instep of her right foot, then skimmed his hands back up her legs to her underwear, which he proceeded to strip from her.
aSo now you have me naked,a Fiona said, her skin p.r.i.c.kling under his appreciative gaze. aWhy are you still dressed?a aI am enjoying watching you and making you want me. I want you to want me so much you scream for me.a Warmth pooled in her belly and she felt the slide of cream on her thighs. aIam thinking it wonat take much before Iam screaming.a He smiled and stroked his palm across her quim. She jumped, biting back a sharp cry.
aI like this idea.a He stroked her again, and again her hips rose, needing his hand to press there.
Fionaas legs opened of their own accord, her quim wet and wanting him. She put her hand to it, like head dared her to last night, and stirred the folds with her fingers.
aI will f.u.c.k you, my Fiona. But when I am ready.a She pressed her hand to the rigid bulge in his jeans. aYou mean youare not ready now?a He laughed softly. aYes, but it is amusing to tease you.a Fiona hooked her finger over his belt buckle. aGet those pants off and get down here, mister.a aWhat is this mister? Is it a name for a lover?a aThe name of my lover is Cas.a He gave her a slow smile as though head been waiting all day for her to say so.
Where this s.e.xy, bantering woman had come from, Fiona had no idea. She certainly didnat recognize her. Maybe Dionysus had given her a gift of boldness along with the gift of time.
Or maybe Cas was just too d.a.m.n s.e.xy to resist. He kept slanting her glances of pure sin as he slipped his belt through the buckle and slid it from his jeans.
He stripped off his t-shirt and let it fall, giving her a fantastic view of his tight abdomen encased in bronze skin. She liked his navel, a smooth indentation above his pelvis.
He shouldnat have a navel, it suddenly struck her, because Castor and Pollux had been hatched from eggs, after Zeusa"in the form of a swana"had seduced Leda. But then, mythology didnat have to make sense.
The point was that Zeus and Leda had created this beautiful man called Cas and his brother Pol. Helen of Troy had been their sister. If Cas and Pol were anything to go by, no wonder the womanas beauty had caused the destruction of a nation.
Cas unb.u.t.toned and unzipped his jeans and let them drop. Like Pol the night before, Cas wore nothing underneath.
aWhy does the no-underwear thing turn me on so much?a she wondered.
aDoes it?a He looked pleased. aI did not know I was supposed to wear it.a aOh.a That made sensea"Cas and Pol had lifted things from Hansa wardrobe to cover their legs and torsos. Why would they think to go rooting in Hansa underwear drawer?
She was glad Cas was a demiG.o.d and didnat have a clue what underwear was. All the faster to get him naked. She rolled onto her side and did what shead been longing to do since she met hima"she closed her mouth over his c.o.c.k.
aMmm.a Cas laced his fingers through her hair, but gently, unlike Pol, whoad dragged her against him.
He tasted different from Pol. Pol had been spicy, a little like pepper. Cas was smooth and mellow, a strong, heady delight. She ran her tongue around his f.l.a.n.g.e, tasting every inch of him while he threaded his fingers through her hair.
She drew back slowly, holding the weight of him on her tongue until the very last minute.
aCan we?a she whispered. aPlease?a His eyes were pools of midnight. aYes.a He pressed her back to the bed and climbed over her, knees on either side of her. aI need you.a Fiona lifted her hips, fire running to every fingertip. His warm weight was so satisfying, his limbs strong and fine, fitting against her in perfect accord. He nudged her thighs apart and rested his firm tip against her opening.
She cupped his b.u.t.tocks, wanting him in, but he hovered there, letting her quim grow more and more open and wet and needy. She dug her fingers into his skin. aPlease, Cas.a He braced himself, holding back. aHave you ever been with a demiG.o.d, Fiona?a She gasped, trying not to laugh. aI can safely say I havenat.a aIt isnat the same as being with a human. You will have all of me, and I all of you.a aSounds good to me.a aYou do not understand.a aNo, but I want to.a He gave her a look that said I warned you and slid his c.o.c.k halfway into her.
Fionaas eyes widened. Cas was right, she didnat understand, and myriad sensations. .h.i.t her at once. First was the feel of his enormous c.o.c.k stretching her wide to admit him, her walls closing around him and squeezing him.
Next was the feel of his satin-warm skin on hers, his weight pressing her into the yielding mattress, his heat covering her entire body. She felt his legs stretched the length of hers, his wiry black hair rough against her thighs.
She also felt her around him. His body seemed to blur, like Dionysusa had, the G.o.d half of Cas shimmering into focus and out of it. Tendrils of feeling laced her mind, hot excitement, the sensation of squeezing.
She realized that the feelings were not hers, but his. His mind and hers were locked, and she saw what he saw, felt what he felt. She could see herself beneath him, her face twisting in pa.s.sion, and experience the sensation of her quim pulsing around his c.o.c.k.
She also felt him inside her, sliding and rubbing and driving her crazy. She couldnat shake him out of her, and she realized that he felt everything she did. You will have all of me, and I all of you.
After her first panicked moment, an ecstasy unlike anything shead felt in her life poured over her. She screamed and he kissed her, smothering her cries. She dug her fingers into his backside and tried to pull him farther into her.
He hesitated for a maddening moment then he slid all the way in. He groaned against her lips and she experienced his sudden elation at feeling her surrounding every inch of him.
Every inch of him was right. Cas was huge, and he was in all the way to his b.a.l.l.s.
aFiona,a he whispered, voice hoa.r.s.e. aYou are so tight, you feel so good.a She experienced the tightness with him. She felt both the pressure of herself on him and the pressure of him stretching her wide, impossibly wide.
Double ecstasy, double pleasure, oh G.o.ds, she couldnat stand it.
He moved out again, almost to his tip and slid back in, hard, his eyes widening in the dark.
Moonlight played on his muscles as he held himself in her, not moving, giving her a chance to get used to him. Her legs were stretched open, knees on either side of the narrow bed, her hips lifted to let him fill her.
She felt their hearts racing while they waited. His eyes held something raw and dark, a need beyond s.e.x.
He was a man out of time and he needed to belong somewhere. He thought that maybe, just maybe, he belonged with her.
Yes, Fiona thought, wondering if she were reading his mind. Stay here with me.
He growled deep in his throat, his control vanishing. His brows drawing into a fearsome scowl, he thrust hard into her, quickly and remorselessly. He began to pump her, widening her legs with each thrust.
Fiona realized what he meant when head said she needed to be ready for him. He was big and he was strong and he was not going to be gentle.
He couldnat, not now. Later, maybe, head show her good, slow loving, but right now he was desperate and lonelya"twenty-five hundred years worth of lonely.
She felt that loneliness pour through him, his muscles tight beneath her fingers, his blood thrumming. She felt the intense pressure of herself squeezing him and his need to drive farther and farther into her. He needed her, needed to be home, and home was in her arms.
At least, thatas what his body told her. She felt everything he did, and felt him sliding inside her, his c.o.c.k huge and hard and unmerciful.
She forgot all about containing her cries and worrying about who might hear. She lolled her head back on the pillow and groaned, raising her hips to take more of him.
His thrusts crushed her b.u.t.tocks into the thin mattress, her thighs aching where they spread. He hurt her and he made her feel fiery hot and so d.a.m.n good she had to scream.
Shead never had a f.u.c.king like this. Whatever shead done before hadnat really been f.u.c.king, not in this raw, aching, beautiful sense. A few thrusts in and out before she could really feel them, that had been it.