by Tina Folsom
She took a few steps toward the dining area. “Did you do all this? For me?”
His footsteps echoed on the wooden floor as he moved behind her and snaked his arms around her waist. “I wanted to surprise you.”
Was she imagining it, or was his voice deeper and even sexier than before? It made her want to lean into him and let herself fall. “That’s sweet of you.”
“I hope you’re hungry.”
She nodded, and he finally released her. Another moment of his warm hands on her and she would have moaned. Why was she suddenly feeling so needy of his touch?
Ari watched him as he slipped behind the bar that divided the kitchen from the living and dining area and opened the wine fridge. He took out a bottle and was already uncorking it when she realized what he was doing.
“I thought you agreed not to drink anymore.” The words were out before she could stop herself. She noticed how his shoulders stiffened, and regretted that she’d come up with the stupid pretense of him having a drinking problem. Couldn’t she have come up with another excuse of why they’d decided not to have sex?
“The wine is for you, not for me.” He turned to her and smiled. “I hope you like Zin.”
It was her favorite varietal. But that wasn’t the reason why she felt like choking up. Dio was being selfless by offering her wine when he wouldn’t have any himself. He was really starting to listen to her and respect her wishes.
He poured a glass and handed it to her, his fingers grazing hers and sending an electrical shock through her body. “Th-thanks,” she stammered.
Something was different about Dio tonight. He seemed more self-confident, more sure of himself. She wondered if he’d accepted the fact that he had amnesia and decided to just deal with it. It seemed that he had no care in the world. At the same time, his gaze was more intense, and his body seemed to hum with energy. He was more like the Dio she’d dated, the one she’d fallen in love with.
She’d been attracted to his confident manner and his intensity. Some of that confidence seemed to be back, and even though she was worried that he might turn back into the uncaring man he’d proven himself to be when he’d dumped her, she felt drawn to him.
During dinner, Dio was the perfect host. And another thing was astonishing. “You’re an amazing cook.”
He raised a surprised eyebrow. “Do you mean to say that I’ve never cooked for you before?”
She shook her head and chewed on the filet, letting the different flavors mingle in her mouth.
“In all the months we’ve been together? I find that hard to believe.”
Ari avoided his scrutinizing look and feigned interest in the rose petals on the table cloth. “You’ve been working so much,” she lied. “You don’t get many evenings off.” A knot started forming in her stomach, and the delicious food had nothing to do with it. It was the guilt that gnawed on her. She was getting more and more entangled in her own lies. Before long, she would trip herself up and get caught in her own web.
“I guess that must be it.” He put his fork down on his plate and reached for her hand, sliding his index finger gently over her knuckles. “I promise to make more of an effort in the future. Besides, I really enjoy cooking, and if you like my concoctions, even better.”
His broad smile reached all the way to his eyes. Ari swallowed the last of her meat and forced a smile onto her lips. Dio was the nicest man, and she felt like a royal bitch. Surely, Dio had learned his lesson by now. Did she really need to continue with this? And who was it really hurting? Dio had no memory of what he’d done to her. She was only hurting herself by being with him.
Don’t stop now, the voice in her head commanded. You’ve almost got him where you want him.
Where did she want him?
“Something wrong, baby?” Dio’s concerned voice pulled her out of her thoughts.
She gave him a quick smile. “Just enjoying the food so much it makes me dream.”
“And you haven’t even had the best yet.” He rose and went to the fridge, pulling out two plates. As he approached, she recognized the contents.
“You’ve gone through the trouble of making chocolate mousse?” Her mouth gaped open as she looked at the beautiful creation of chocolate.
“From scratch.”
Her eyes filled with water. How could she be so mean to him when he was so sweet?
Dio set the plates on the table then pulled her up into his arms. “Shh, baby, what’s there to cry about?”
Ari sniffled. “You’re so nice.”
He chuckled. “Of course, why wouldn’t I be nice to my fiancée?” Then he tipped her face up and brushed his lips against hers. “How about we have dessert later?”
He didn’t wait for her answer but lifted her feet off the ground and moved to the couch where he dropped down, pulling her into his lap. “Does the chef get a little kiss for his efforts?”
Ari nodded slowly. A kiss couldn’t hurt, could it? And he did deserve it. He’d probably spent the entire afternoon preparing for this dinner. The least she could do was kiss him. And besides, they were engaged, well, fake-engaged.
She laced her hands behind his neck and raised her lips to his. “Thank you for dinner.” If she’d thought that this kiss would be sweet and short, she was mistaken. The moment her lips touched his, she felt drugged by his scent and wanted more.
Dio pressed against her, his lips firm and soft at the same time. When he angled his head and parted his lips, she lost all her good senses and allowed him to deepen the kiss. His tongue licked over her lips, making them part without her doing. As he dove into her and explored her, she remembered only one thing: how he’d made love to her that night.
He tasted of pure male, of spice and strength. His breath was hot and his tongue relentless as he danced with hers, giving her no reprieve. But she welcomed the assault on her senses and allowed his essence to engulf her.
Dio’s hands roamed her back. One of them slid higher and dug into her hair, cupping the back of her head to hold her closer to him while the other pulled at her blouse, releasing it from where she’d tucked it into her skirt. When his hand slid underneath it and touched the naked skin of her back, Ari gasped into his mouth.
For an instant, he released her lips and only hovered above them, never truly severing the contact. “By the gods, you feel good.” Then his mouth was crushing hers fiercer than before as if he’d only just realized how much he liked kissing her.
His fingers went under her bra strap and slid along it to her side, then continued to the front until his thumb hooked underneath it to caress the underside of her breast. Heat flared inside her as if somebody had turned on a furnace. Her heartbeat doubled, and her breath deserted her. She ripped her mouth from his to seek air.
“I love you, Ari,” Dio professed and grazed his thumb over her nipple. It hardened instantly.
She gulped down air as if she was drowning. She’d wanted to hear those words from him, and she wanted to believe them. Did he really believe himself to be in love with her? Was he in love with her now that he didn’t remember his previous life? “Oh, Dio!”
Dio worked the buttons of her blouse and pulled it away from her bra. Then he dipped his head and kissed her nipple through the gauzy fabric. His tongue licked over the hardened little nub, eliciting a strangled moan from her dry throat.
His fingers pushed the fabric aside, allowing his lips to connect with her naked skin. He nibbled, sucked, and licked, exploring, tasting, and mapping her breast. His hand captured her boob and squeezed it gently as he sucked more of it into his mouth, lapping against the nipple as if greedily devouring a cone of ice cream. His other hand wasn’t idle. She suddenly felt a release of pressure around her ribcage and realized that he’d opened the clasp on her bra. With ease, he pushed the fabric further down, giving himself more access.
Ari should have protested, but she couldn’t utter a single word. The way his lips and hands worshipped her required her undivided attention. While he sucked
one nipple deep into his mouth, his fingers played with the other one, turning it as rock hard as a diamond stud.
Her entire body burned from the pleasure he showed her. Flames seemed to lick along her skin, scorching her, yet instead of pain there was pleasure. Electrical charges raced through her core, but instead of hurting her, they caused her body to grow dizzy with ecstasy.
Shaking with need, she felt the wetness between her legs and knew what she really needed, knew what Dio was able to give her. She had never felt such sexual satisfaction as with him, and she knew he could do it again. He could again make her feel amazing and drive her over the edge.
When she took hold of his hand and pried it off her breast, he protested with a loud rumble against her other breast but didn’t stop sucking her nipple. Ari ignored his protest and led his hand down her body and onto her thigh. He seemed to understand what she needed and moved down her leg until he reached the seam of her skirt. There, he reversed his travels and slid underneath it.
Ari let out a relieved sigh. “Yes,” she whispered and pressed herself closer to him. She felt a hardness against her outer thigh and knew what it was. Dio was getting as turned on as she was. His erection now pressed hard and heavy against her. Her mouth watered with the knowledge of what he could do to her with his cock. How he could fill her, how he would ride her and drive her wild.
A moment later, Dio’s fingers brushed against her panties—her very wet panties. A moan dislodged from his throat and bounced against her breast. Then his fingers rubbed against the fabric barrier, shooting a wave of urgent desire through her. She needed him now. She didn’t want to wait. And couldn’t.
When his fingers slid upwards where fabric met skin, she knew she would get what she wanted. One finger dipped between skin and panties, diving through her moist curls. Then a second finger joined the first and both slid lower. Her breath hitched, and her body stiffened in anticipation.
Dio released her nipple and lifted his head from her breast. At the same time, he withdrew his hand from her panties. “We’d better eat our dessert before it spoils.”
Disappointment spread like wildfire. “No, don’t stop.”
He put his finger on her lips. “You were right, Ari. It’s better if we wait until we’re married. Imagine how amazing our wedding night will be.” Then he gave her a chaste peck on the cheek. “I can’t wait.”
Disbelief joined disappointment as misery spread. Dio had rejected her when she’d offered herself to him. Why had she ever told him that they’d agreed to wait? It was the most stupid idea she’d ever had.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Dionysus had spent a near sleepless night tossing and turning after he’d escorted Ariadne home. Not taking her to his bed when she’d been practically begging him had been the hardest thing he’d ever done in his entire life. But this was part of his plan. He would reduce her to a puddle of need and make her fall in love with him, and then, only then, he’d reveal to her that he knew about her deception. He would humiliate her like she had humiliated him. Then they’d be even.
The only problem with his brilliant plan was that not only was he having a hard time stopping himself from making love to her, he felt like a total sack of shit for treating her that way, for leading her on. As if he’d developed scruples. Or maybe it was simply the fact that he couldn’t contain his desire for her, because no matter her deception and the games she’d played with him, it did nothing to quell the need to have her in his arms, to kiss her, touch her, and make love to her. Now that he remembered the one night they’d spent together in each other’s arms, he knew how good it would be with her. And he wanted it again.
He wanted to feel her writhing against him. He wanted to sense her heartbeat and feel her breath bounce against his lips. And tasting her again, by the gods, he needed that too. No wonder he’d thought himself in love with her during his amnesia. His body must have remembered what it was like with her and had yearned for more of it. Or was it more than just sense memory? Was he truly feeling things he’d previously thought himself incapable of? What if everything she’d made him believe in had turned into reality?
Dio took a deep breath. Her scent still permeated throughout his apartment. He doubted that it would ever completely vanish no matter how much time passed. His own hands still retained her scent. It drove him insane, making it impossible to ban her from his mind. Not even after he’d masturbated in the shower, imagining she was with him, had he been able to let go of her image.
He could only hope that once he’d executed his plan, he would finally be over his infatuation with Ari. Because that was what it had to be: an infatuation, nothing more serious.
It was almost sunrise when he finally fell asleep. The door bell ringing in the downstairs apartment jolted him from his sleep. When he turned his head and glanced at his watch, he reared up. Shit! He would be late for work.
He bolted from his bed, took the quickest shower in his life and resorted to his godly powers for the rest: one flick of his fingers dried him without a towel, another combed his hair, and a last one put a set of clothes on his naked body. Knowing his delay was already bad enough, he teleported to the alley behind the restaurant and used the entrance through the kitchen to get into the restaurant.
Luis, the Latino chef who was as wide as he was tall, tossed him an annoyed look. “Where the fuck have you been?”
“Hey, you’re not the boss of me!” Dio snarled back. If the idiot pissed him off any further, he’d turn him into a toad.
“No, but I am!” The curt tone in Natalie’s voice didn’t leave any doubt as to her mood.
He turned slowly and pasted an apologetic smile on his face. “So sorry, Natalie, but I walked Ariadne home after our dinner, and then I still had to clean up the kitchen.” Not entirely true since his servants had taken care of that by the time he’d returned home. But he figured the more he made it sound like it was all because he wanted to please Ari, the less grief Natalie would give him.
Warring emotions skidded over Natalie’s face until she finally nodded. “Fine, fine. It’s just bad timing. The dining room is full. I have no idea where all these people suddenly came from. They’re not even our regulars. There must be a convention of cover models in town, or something.”
Dionysus walked past her. “Don’t worry. I’ve got it covered.” Through the round glass in the door, he peered out into the restaurant. “Ah, shit!” he cursed.
Natalie pressed an apron into his hand, and he absentmindedly tied it around his waist. “See, what did I tell you? And they’re all ready to order.”
As if that was the problem! He would have happily served the entire population of Charleston, but the guests that occupied the tables right now were an entirely different cup of tea.
“What are you waiting for? Go.”
A shove from Natalie catapulted him into the lion’s den. Like wolves, they would devour him, and like hyenas they’d laugh at his expense. Because if the gods knew about one thing it was this: how to delight in another god’s humiliation.
Every table in the small dining room was occupied by a face he knew. Three nymphs sat in a corner, Orion shared a table with Aphrodite while Helius, Apollo and Ares had banded together at another. The goddesses Eos and Selene had taken seats at the bar, and his friends Eros and Hermes sat by a table at the door. At least he had two allies in the pack of wolves who had come to gloat.
Dio figured he should be grateful that neither Zeus nor Hera had shown up, even though he was sure that his evil stepmother knew full well that he was relegated to being a waiter. Sure, he could ditch the job right now, but that would also mean giving up his plan of getting his revenge with Ariadne, and he wasn’t prepared to trade for that.
“Waiter, we’re still waiting.” An impatient voice made him snap his head toward Orion, the god of hunters and Triton’s half-brother. But just because Dio was best friends with Triton didn’t mean he got on with Orion. Hell, not even Triton did.
Dio’s lip
s pressed into a thin line as he forced a snide remark back. He pulled in a deep breath and walked to Orion’s table. “Yes?”
Both Aphrodite and Orion chuckled, even though at least the goddess of beauty had the good graces to look somewhat embarrassed.
Orion met Dio’s stern stare. “Two glasses of your house Merlot, and I’ll have the steak, medium rare.”
Aphrodite pointed at the spot on the menu. “I’ll take the seafood salad.”
Dio shook his head. If they wanted to annoy him at his restaurant and make things difficult for him, he’d make the rules. “The steak’s tough. And the seafood salad is bland. I’ll bring you both seafood over grits.”
Orion opened his mouth and raised his hand in protest, but Dio cut him off. “It’s either that or you get out. Now.”
The standoff took a few seconds until Aphrodite put her hand on Orion’s arm and graced Dio with a warm smile. “Seafood over grits sounds perfectly delicious.”
Then Dio walked over to his friends and let himself fall onto the empty chair. Eros grinned. “Fancy seeing you work. Imagine my surprise when I heard—”
“Shut it, Eros, or I’ll deck you right here.”
“He means it,” Hermes added.
Eros crossed his arms over his broad chest. “Nobody is any fun anymore these days.”
Dio ignored him and instead glared at Hermes. “Can nobody keep a secret anymore? Not even my best friends?”
Hermes’ mock-innocent look would have gotten any actor fired. “You should have specified that you didn’t want this to be made known.”
Dio grabbed hold of the front of Hermes’ t-shirt and pulled him close. “I thought that went without saying. Maybe I should find other friends,” he hissed.
Hermes shook off his hold and straightened. “Eros is right, you’re no fun anymore. And besides, why do you always suspect me? If I remember correctly, our dear stepmother had a hand in this. She could have spread the news around.”
