“I’m as sure now as I was when you made love to me on the dark side of the moon. It’s right. Kiernan--” She stopped. Gods, she was messing this up. “What I feel for him doesn’t mean I don’t love you. Like I said, it’s different. Don’t you care for him?”
Kiernan’s face tightened. “It’s complicated.”
At the flippant remark, she whirled toward him. “No, it’s not. Either you have feelings for him or you don’t. I’ve admitted I do. He makes me laugh, he gives me hope, both of which were sadly lacking in my life. Does that mean I want to leave you for him?” She cupped his tense jaw. “Never. I love you. What we have is something no one else can match.”
He crossed his arms. “Then why do we need him? Weren’t things just fine before he arrived?” When she opened her mouth to negate his assumption, he cut her off. “Well, they would have been fine after I found you again.”
“Think about the possibilities this opens up for us.” She stepped toward him. “It hurts nothing we have, but gives us a new dynamic to work within, and personally, I think it’s worth exploring further. I’ve seen you with him, how you joke with him. It’s something I hadn’t seen before. Honestly? I like how you are with him. It’s sexy, but more than that, you need him on some level I can’t reach.”
“He is charming, I’ll give you that.” A small smile lifted his lips.
“Yes, very. It’s disarming, isn’t it?” She brushed his hair back and leaned closer. “Promise me you’ll think about it. I think the three of us create something really special.”
“I love watching him with you. Makes me hard just thinking about it.” His hips thrust toward hers to prove his point.
She pressed against him. “It’s not nearly as hot as watching the two of you together. Let’s go get him.” Unwilling to wait a moment longer, she grasped his hand and turned toward the cave entrance.
He didn’t move. “Wait. Does this mean we don’t ever get any alone time?” His black brows drew together.
“Of course not. Just like right now, we’re alone. We’ll work it all out. But first we need to find him, tell him what we’ve decided.” She tugged again on his hand.
“And what is that, exactly?” With a finger, he lifted her chin so she looked into his dark eyes.
“That we want him to be part of us, to make a family.” Her heart sped up as she waited for his response.
“Family? Now that’s an idea. I’ve always wanted to be a part of a real family. Not just relatives, but people who are there for you no matter what. You’re sure about this?” The torchlight flickered in his dark eyes and she sensed the idea appealed to him.
“Very. Aren’t you?”
“Yeah, I guess I am.” His face held such surprise that she giggled.
“Come on, my dark lord. We need to tell him.”
They returned to the mesa, but found nothing.
“Maybe he is exploring the valley.” She didn’t wait for a response, but ran down the path she’d worn on her treks across the mesa.
In the valley, they found footprints and followed them back to the cave.
“He must have returned after we left.” Her chest eased at the thought of seeing him again. Almost tripping over her gown in her haste, she entered the cave. “Reve, we’ve been searching all over for you.”
The walls echoed her words back, but he didn’t answer. The cave was empty.
Kiernan called out his name, but the silence continued.
Finally, Nyx used her extra senses to reach out to him. She’d be able to find him if he was on Nocterra. If it worked with Kiernan, it should work with the other part of her heart as well. But the planet was empty of anyone save her and her husband. Reve had disappeared.
“He’s gone.” Her words found their way around the lump in her throat. “Why? He never even said goodbye.” In her misery, she sank to the ground.
Kiernan gathered her in his arms and rocked her. “We’ll find him. There’s not that many places he could have gone. Maybe Zeus called him back.”
“He would have told us. No, he left in a hurry. Something happened.” She fingered the fur wrapped around her husband’s shoulders. “Maybe we should just go back to earth and resume our lives. The dreams we had here on Nocterra will stay here.”
“Don’t say that. We’ll find him and we will make a family for the three of us.” His arms tightened around her. “We’ve got to find him.”
She drew back to look at him. Her god of darkness had changed. Though he’d always been intense, the fire in his words spoke of a passion, a new resolve to look at the brighter side rather than the darkness. “Yes, I believe you will find him. But promise me, it has to be his choice. We can’t force him.”
“Of course.” He grimaced. “I’m not the brute you seem to think I am. Let’s go ask Zeus if he’s been seen.”
A moment later, they stood at the steps of Zeus’s palace surrounded by sunlight and clear skies which they rarely saw. She shaded her eyes. “I’ll go talk to Zeus. Maybe you can talk with some of the others just to see if they might know anything.”
After a swift kiss, he departed.
Taking a deep breath, Nyx climbed the stairs. Though she had seniority over Zeus, since the Olympians won the battle with the Titans, she’d been careful not to usurp any authority. In turn, he’d always treated her fairly.
Hermes announced her arrival in the throne room.
The grey bearded god of the heavens put his lightning bolt aside and stood to receive her. “So, are you and Erebus ready to return to work?” His shaggy eyebrows furrowed.
The reference to her husband’s Greek name caught her a little off guard. For the last millennia or more, she’d grown accustomed to the more contemporary name he’d taken when the old Greek names went out of style.
“Soon, Zeus, lord of all the heavens. First, we need to find Reve, um, Morpheus.” She stumbled over the ancient name, thinking how it didn’t seem to fit the rather impetuous god she’d fallen in love with so quickly.
“Morpheus?” His voice boomed through the chamber. “I sent him after you two. He reported back a little while ago and told me he wasn’t sure when you would be returning. Then he left.” Zeus’s matter of fact answer didn’t tell her anything.
“Was he all right?” she asked.
“Seemed fine to me.” Zeus tapped his chin. “Come to think of it, he didn’t sport his usual cheeky irreverence. The boy always drives me a little crazy with his attitude, but his smile always cheers me up somehow.”
Impatient with the great god’s reverie, she hurried forward. “My lord, did he say where he was going?”
“Not to me, but I’d guess he’d probably look in on his father. Hypnos had asked to see him when he got back.”
“Thank you.”
His eyes narrowed. “You and Erebus really need to get back to work.”
“I promise we’ll be back to our duties—” Before she could finish, there was a disturbance at the door.
Chapter Nine
Kiernan called out. “Is Nyx in here?” When he spotted her, he rushed forward. “Hypnos says he’s gone to see the Oneiroi for a meeting. Makes sense. Seems like he’d find all the dream spirits and get back to his duties.”
“I should have thought of that.” After she thanked Zeus, Kiernan led her out of the palace.
“We’ve got to find him, nothing is right without the three of us together.” More and more that certainty rang true. “We need him.”
“I’m glad you finally realize it.” She squeezed his hand.
The Oneiroi had a chamber in the Halls of Night at the edge of the underworld, so he headed toward home. Rather convenient, to be able to find Reve at their home, or at least in the vicinity.
“It’s sort of strange to be home again, but nice.” Nyx ran her hand along the rough cavern walls that led to the Halls of the Night.
“Here it is.” Without knocking, he pushed through the doors to the Oneiroi’s chamber. Reve stood at the head of a great
conference table, while gathered around him were all his agents of the dream world, those responsible for bringing dreams to the mortals around the globe.
Kiernan took in the angry, yet desperate expression on Reve’s face. Far from the lighthearted god he was accustomed to seeing, whiskers roughened his normally smooth face, while deep shadows surrounded his eyes. What had happened to change him?
“We need to talk.”
“I’m sort of busy here.” Reve jerked his chin toward the gathered crowd of dream spirits whose gazes ricocheted from their superior to Kiernan.
“Please, Reve. It’s important, sweetheart.” Nyx’s voice softened on the endearment.
The Oneiroi gasped and started whispering among themselves, but Kiernan kept his attention on Reve.
“I heard all I needed to back on Nocterra. I refuse to come between the two of you.”
At that, Kiernan stepped forward. They didn’t need to air their personal business in front of an audience. “Could we have this discussion in privacy?”
Reve waved a hand to dismiss his followers. “Give us the room. We’ll reconvene in a few minutes. Take a break everyone.”
For someone who always seemed to be ruled by his emotions and to go with the flow, Reve displayed an unusual air of authority when at work in his natural environment. Kiernan smiled. There was more to him than a pretty face.
While exiting, the dream spirits chattered. He overheard snippets here and there as they passed. “Wonder what that’s about?”
“Seems like our dream god has some interesting secrets.”
“Maybe that’s why he’s been away for the last few nights?”
“Nyx and Kiernan?”
The great door closed behind the last one and the room was quiet. The three of them stood in awkward silence. Suddenly he didn’t know how to begin. Everything depended upon this moment, he knew, but the words didn’t come easily.
“Well?” Reve stood straight and crossed his arms. “What’s so important?”
“You. Us.” Nyx reached toward him but the blond god of dreams didn’t budge. She dropped her hand.
“Us? There is no us. There is you and Kiernan, a couple. I should never have intruded.” Reve’s shoulders slumped. “For that I apologize. It should never have happened.”
“What?” Nyx looked over her shoulder at him before returning her attention to Reve. “We have something special. I’m not sure any of us planned for it, but it’s there and I think it’s worth fighting for.”
“You have feelings for me. So?” Reve shrugged. “It doesn’t mean you have to act on them. You’re happy with Kiernan. You two belong together.”
Once more she glanced back at Kiernan, her lips pressed together as if urging him to say something.
What was there to say? They’d come for him hadn’t they? Was Reve so dense as to not realize the truth? If he didn’t get it, there was nothing to say.
Nyx stretched a hand toward him. “Tell him what you told me.”
“I want to know why he has the idea that he was going to split us up.” Something needed to be set straight here.
“I overheard the two of you when I was coming back to the cave.” Reve met his gaze straight on. “Nyx said she loved me, that the feelings overwhelmed her. As I’ve told you before, it’s not my desire to come between you. What you two have is too special to risk it.”
“You left after you heard that then?” Kiernan shook his head at the guy’s impulsiveness. “They say you never hear anything good if you eavesdrop.”
“That’s right, but I heard enough and I knew it was true.”
“As far as it went. You should have come inside. Next time, you will.” He stopped to let the words sink in. When Reve’s eyes widened Kiernan knew he understood. “Yes, I said next time. I’m sure this will be bumpy, especially for a while, but families talk things through.”
“Families?” Reve inclined his head.
“One family. You, Nyx and me. What do you say?” He put his arm around Nyx and they approached Reve. “You keep saying we have something special. You’re right about that—I love her with all my heart. But it’s even more special since you joined us. It’s like we’ve come into the light.”
“You’re both sure?” Reve ran a hand over his spikey hair. “I never dreamed—”
Nyx’s laughter shot through him, the exact thing he needed to propel him forward. “Maybe the god of dreams deserves his own dream come true.” Nyx kissed Reve, a long sizzling kiss that lit sparks within Kiernan. Far from being jealous, he just wanted to be part of it. “Hey, you two, save some for me.”
Reve lifted his head and smirked. “There’s plenty for all of us.” Then he kissed Kiernan with the same passion, and Nyx snuggled between them, kissing his neck and then Reve’s.
When he came up for air, he laughed. “I think we’d better get back to Nocterra and back to our bed. This deserves a celebration.”
Chapter Ten
“It seems appropriate that we consummate our new relationship on Nocterra.” For the first time since Reve came to them, Kiernan took the lead. Nyx’s chest lightened. He must really want this. Granted, he hadn’t said the actual words to Reve yet, but perhaps that step would come soon.
First, she had an idea. From the night table she retrieved a brush. “Come, love.”
Kiernan took his familiar position at her feet, and she brushed his hair. Reve sat beside her, and lifted a comb. He took one side of Kiernan’s hair while she concentrated on the other. They slid the comb and brush through his long strands until they shone in the torchlight. Each stroke they made became a caress.
Her husband’s breath came faster, and he turned to them. “I need more.”
“Just a moment.” With a grin, she attended to Reve’s short locks, combing them into his spikey style.
He almost purred under her touch, but when she finished and moved, he stilled her. “I think your hair needs some attention too.”
She switched positions with Kiernan and let her male gods perform the same service on her. Gently, they tugged at her tresses. Before long, her breath came heavy. What was so alluring about having them run their fingers through her hair? She wasn’t sure, but she burned for them and the fire made her squirm.
With a final stroke, they finished and lay their styling implements aside.
Reve embraced her, nuzzling her neck at the exact spot that sent shivers through her. Heat followed every caress.
“Yes, that’s it, Reve. She loves that, don’t you, sweetheart?” Kiernan’s voice rumbled from behind her where he kissed the other side of her neck.
Her only answer was the moan that escaped her lips. At the center of their attentions, she let her senses soar, enjoying every touch, every sensation. Then Kiernan stood and pulled her to her feet.
Four hands slid down her body. Someone undid the fastenings of her gown and it slipped to her feet. No undergarments impeded them. They cupped her breasts, each kneading one. Their touches were so different, but together so right, and they had the same effect, driving her need higher. Her legs wouldn’t hold her and she wrapped an arm around each god’s neck to prevent her collapse into a puddle of desire. Enflamed with their combined passion, the cravings surged and her breath came faster.
A low keening moan filled the cave, and it took a moment before she recognized it as her own..
“Yes, let us make love to you.” Kiernan sat on the bed, bringing his face at the level of her breast. He patted the bed beside him. “There’s a reason she has two.”
The lightness apparent on his face made her smile, before another moan overtook her when they both suckled at a nipple. The combined assault turned the rest of her leg muscles to jelly, and again she drew support from them. With both hands, she held onto their heads, pressing them closer. They suckled harder and the sweet pain-pleasure stole the rest of her breath.
Reve gently drew away with her nipple still in his mouth, pulling it taut before releasing it with a pop. “Gods, you taste
good.”
She leaned down and captured his mouth in another kiss. When the kiss ended, they watched Kiernan suckling at her breast. More, she wanted more.
Before she could voice the thought, Kiernan lifted his head. “She needs more. Reve, undress and lie on the bed. Let me prepare her for you.”
Out of the corner of her eye she watched Reve unzip his pants and kick them away. Like her, he hadn’t bothered with underwear. The bed creaked as Reve followed the instructions. His erection protruded large and she couldn’t wait to have it inside her, but Kiernan distracted her when he kissed his way down her belly and urged her legs apart.
His fingers caressed her bud in little circles before dipping one inside her. She clutched his shoulders to remain upright.
“You’re already so wet.” Kiernan caught her gaze, but spoke to their new lover. “Reve, just wait till you feel her. You will love being inside this goddess.” For all their sex play to this point, something had shifted. Her husband no longer held back.
“Kiernan, I want to watch you pleasure your wife.” Reve propped himself up on his elbows. “She needs it.”
Her god of darkness guided her to the bed and pushed her onto the pillows. “Spread your legs. See how wet she is for us?”
Both of their gazes focused on her core, and she’d never felt quite so sexy. It was as if she were on display for their pleasure only, and the thought only heightened her yearnings.
Kiernan knelt between her legs and ran his hands over her thighs. When he took his time lowering his face to her and just blew on her lower lips, she wiggled her hips.
She growled in frustration.
Reve laughed and she glared at him.
“I love how you’re not in control. I want to drive you crazy.” Reve kissed her, lingering over her lips and tweaking her nipple.
At that exact moment, Kiernan’s mouth clamped onto the center of her longing. His tongue worked its familiar magic, flicking over her in a quick rhythm. He never stopped, driving her closer to her climax.
She clung to Reve and tossed her head, unable to voice anything but moans and little screeches, until one final lick of Kiernan’s tongue sent her over the summit. The tremors shook her, but Kiernan and Reve continued their attentions, never letting up.
Three Times Lucky: Five Sizzling Tales of Three-Way Love Page 10
