by Marie Medina
He looked doubtful, and she only knew one way to convince him she was telling the truth. She took a few steps forward and looked into his eyes. She moved her hand up to touch his face but stopped before she made contact. She leaned forward and kissed him on the lips. The heat from his lips moved over her whole body, and she leaned into him as he responded very passionately. He took her face in his hands and kissed her deeply, his tongue working into her mouth and dancing with hers. She sighed as she melted into his arms. She felt dizzy when he finally pulled away, and both of them were shaking.
“I think all of Olympus felt that,” he whispered. His voice shook noticeably.
She didn’t know what to say, so she stood looking at him.
“Say something, Iris.” He stroked her face gently. “Please.”
To stop herself from saying “I love you,” she put her hands on his shoulders and said, “I want you.”
He put his hands on hers and stroked them. “I want you too. Are you sure?”
“This is what I want, what I need.” She pulled him to her for another kiss.
He gazed tenderly down at her as she led him to the bedroom. “I won’t be the one to deny you, then. It’s my first time, after all.”
She stopped and turned to him. “What do you mean?”
He actually blushed. “You’re a goddess. I’ve never slept with a goddess before.”
“That can’t be true.”
“Do you want to ask someone else, or would you like to read my mind?”
The offer made her believe him, but she also knew she would have felt wrong taking him up on it. If she did and found he was lying, he knew he’d find himself out on his ass in no time. He wouldn’t give up everything he’d worked for now, especially not when he was looking at her so heatedly.
“I believe you, although it’s a bit hard to. Does that make sense?”
“Psyche was not born a goddess, so it’s different. You know that.”
She nodded and they both stood looking at their clasped hands.
“So I’m special?” she asked.
Instead of flattering her or saying something cute, he raised her chin and made her look at him. “Yes.” He searched her eyes for a moment and looked confused. “And because of that you don’t have to do this to prove anything to me.”
She guessed he was mistaking her excitement and nervousness for reluctance. She shook her head vigorously. “I want this. I do. I’m just not used to seeing this side of you.”
He hesitated, but then quickly brought her closer to him for a long, sweet kiss. She sighed in his arms and ran her fingers through his hair. He held her gently, but she wanted more. She bit down on his lip, just a little, and he deepened the kiss as he pressed her against him. She could feel his cock pressing into her leg, and she couldn’t help shivering with desire.
He pulled away and led her to the bed. He sat down in front of her and began unbuttoning her dress. He spoke softly. “Just tell me what you want, Iris. I won’t do anything you don’t want.”
She stroked his face. He still seemed unsure this was what she really wanted. “I want you to make love to me.”
He held her gaze as her dress slid to the floor. He ran his hands up her stomach and over her breasts. “You’re beautiful, Iris.” He unclasped her bra and dropped it beside her dress. He ran one finger around her right nipple, and then brushed his hand over her breast.
Iris felt heat spreading all over her body. She’d only thought she’d wanted him before. Now she knew she wouldn’t survive if she couldn’t have at least this one night with him. She reached down and pulled his shirt off. She ran one hand down his chest, and he stood up. His sweet smile made her legs weak. She knew what he wanted her to do next.
She ran one finger over the zipper of his jeans and hesitated. Her hand trembled, and she couldn’t make it stop. He took her hand and brought it to his lips. He kissed her palm, and then her wrist before reaching down to unzip his jeans. He kicked them to the floor and stood naked in front of her.
She worked up the courage to look down. He was big, but nothing extraordinary. She still drew in a breath, as she thought about what it was going to be like.
He kissed her cheek. “See? Nothing to be afraid of.”
She kissed him to stop her own thoughts. If this night was all they had, she was going to enjoy every moment.
He swept her into his arms and put her down in the middle of the bed, their lips never parting. He ran his hands through her hair and moved to kiss her neck.
Her body tingled everywhere he touched. The charm Ares had used on her was nothing compared to this feeling. She arched her body up toward him, and his erection rubbed against her leg. She gasped when he pulled her closer and rubbed his cock over her pussy.
His tongue roamed over her breasts, tasting and exploring her. He teased her expertly. He knew how to drive a woman mad with desire. He ran his teeth over her nipple, and she cried out his name. His fingers caressed her stomach.
“May I taste you?”
The heat in his eyes made her pussy tighten. She nodded, knowing he’d make her come in no time.
He grinned up at her as he moved lower. His tongue lightly touched her core, and her heart soared. He delved deeper to taste her sweetness before focusing his attention on her clit. She bucked under him. His tongue worked around the swollen bud in a circle, stoking her desire. He pushed her legs farther apart as he settled between them. He cradled and fondled her ass as his tongue worked into her. He sucked her clit and teased it with his tongue. She moaned under him and he stopped for a moment.
“I can’t believe how good you taste.” He watched her heaving breasts and added, “How good you look.”
He lowered his head again, and she moaned as he pushed her closer and closer. She could feel the pleasure ready to break over her. Everything inside her was ready.
“You’re so perfect, my love,” he whispered against her heated flesh.
When he spoke, she let go and a powerful orgasm washed over her. She trembled beneath him as he sucked her clit, pushing her on and on. She gripped the bed and cried out as she was engulfed in pleasure. She’d never experienced such an intense release before. Her entire body was heated and trembling, and all she wanted was his kiss.
“Kiss me, Eros.”
He crawled up to lie by her side, then cupped her trembling pussy in his hand and rubbed his palm slowly over her clit.
She bucked off the bed as another wave of pleasure coursed through her. He rubbed her slowly and every sensation heightened as he brought his lips to hers. He kissed her slowly, and then with more fire.
“I’ve never seen anything so beautiful,” he said as he looked into her eyes. “You’re glowing.”
She knew he meant that literally. Her entire body gave off a golden light. “Yeah. I’m a goddess of air and light, like Apollo. Shows how well you’ve pleased me.”
He looked down at her lovingly, and her heart jumped. “You amaze me.” He kissed her forehead. “I can’t describe what I’m feeling.”
She stroked his cheek. “You don’t have to.” She reached down and put her hand over his and then pressed his fingers into her. “What I want right now is to feel you inside me.”
He sighed contentedly. “Whatever my goddess commands.” He reached up and touched the wall behind the bed. The entire wall became a mirror. “Turn and face the wall.”
She got up and leaned over the headboard, spreading her legs for him. She met his gaze in the mirror. “Like this?”
His breathing became more rapid. He looked down at her ass and ran his finger over her wet pussy. “Oh yes. I was enchanted by this ass even when I thought you hated me.”
“I never hated you. I knew you were better than your actions.”
He moved into position. “Do you still think so?” He moved his cock to her entrance and pushed into her.
She moaned. “Well, these are going to be hard to outdo. I’m going to have to set a new standard for you.”
He moved in and out of her slowly, never fully immersing himself. “I’ll do my best to live up to them.” He closed his eyes as he moved inside her, the pleasure on his face blatant. “You feel so good, Iris.” He opened his eyes and looked at her in the mirror as he pushed his cock all the way inside her.
She gasped and met his gaze. “Mmmm. A perfect fit.”
He rubbed her ass. “No doubt about that. I can’t wait to feel you come.”
She moved against him, and it was his turn to gasp. “Then make me come.”
He held her hips firmly as he pumped into her. He moved in and out quickly, bringing her so close, and then he’d go slowly, drawing the pleasure out by not letting her come.
“Eros, please!”
He pulled his cock out until just the head was inside her. He moved teasingly for a moment, watching how she reacted.
“Please,” she said. “I need to come.”
“Say you’ll be mine,” he whispered.
She wasn’t sure she’d heard him right. Her body ached with her need for him. “I am yours.”
He plunged his cock into her and began pumping quickly. Within moments she began falling apart again. He threw his head back and moaned, saying her name over and over again as she came. She was still trembling with pleasure when he came, pounding into her one final time. He turned her over and fell on top of her, kissing her passionately and making it hard for her to catch her breath.
After they’d settled into each other’s arms, she felt shy. She wasn’t sure what he’d meant about being his. Had he just meant here and now, making her come? Or had he meant something more? He’d said before he couldn’t describe what he was feeling. She didn’t want to give in to hope, but his implication couldn’t be denied.
“I meant it, Iris. I want you to be my lover, my only lover.”
She ran a hand over his cheek. He hadn’t said he loved her or wanted to marry her, but she probably wouldn’t have taken him seriously if he had. He wanted her, not just for this one night. He wanted to make love to her again. Her body shivered at the thought.
“Am I giving you the creeps? You keep shivering.”
It seemed to her the god of love ought to be able to read women better. “Still enjoying the pleasure, actually. No, you don’t give me the creeps. Why?”
“Well, I thought maybe you thought I was using moves on you. Or you might be thinking about all the other women. Obviously there have been many other women, even if no goddesses. You seemed reluctant and nervous.” He looked down and seemed unsure. “I’m rambling. I wanted you to enjoy it. I’m just paranoid.”
She laughed, suddenly feeling they were more alike than she’d ever thought. “I think it’s safe to say I enjoyed it. How could you think I didn’t?”
He closed his eyes. “I’m thinking too much and spoiling this. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. Nothing has been spoiled. I enjoyed it very much and am definitely looking forward to doing it again. Nothing else to think about.”
He kissed her and pulled her close. “Let’s get some sleep, then. You wore me out, my lady.”
She snuggled against him and pushed her own thoughts away. Within a few moments, she drifted off to sleep.
Nothing else to think about, huh? I wish.
Eros lay perfectly still with Iris in his arms. He didn’t want to wake her because she’d wonder why he was wide awake. His body and mind still reeled from how amazing she had been. She’d seemed so cold, despite how desirable and fiery she was, so he’d expected their first coupling to be more subdued. He’d also been planning for it to happen at a later date, but then she’d kissed him. He hadn’t been able to tell his desire and need for her that they had to wait. Her kiss had sent his longing for her into overdrive, making all logic and planning fly right out the window.
He’d been surprised by how readily she’d gone into his arms, how passionately she’d responded. With each passing day, he learned something new about her, and he was surprised more often than not. He’d never had a relationship with anyone so complex, and he suddenly felt inadequate. The woman in his arms had power, beauty, intelligence, and wit in abundance. He was no longer surprised she’d had a low opinion of him. He had to appear so superficial and boring to her. She needed a man who could not only make her come but also keep up with her intellectually. As he held her close, he wasn’t quite sure he was the right man.
He also found himself wondering once again what other gods she might have been with. It was stupid and possessive, but he couldn’t help it. Jealousy was a new emotion for him, and he was finding it easier to understand how it made mortals and gods alike act foolishly. His main guesses were Poseidon and Ares; Poseidon because he’d been around her so much, and Ares because he got around so much. At the same time, it seemed Poseidon’s constant presence in her life might have been a turn-off, plus she was really close to his present wife and her aunt had been his previous wife. Maybe Eros could count him out. Ares’ promiscuous behavior might have been a turn-off for a woman like Iris; plus most goddesses were wary of him, as he was Hera’s son and Aphrodite’s favorite playmate. Ares typically went for mortal women. Eros told himself all that mattered was that she was in his arms right now.
He wondered, however, if he’d be able to keep her there.
Chapter Five
Eros rolled over and found himself alone in Iris’ bed. He sat up and looked for his pants, but froze when he heard giggling.
If my mother is out there, I am going to kill her! Knowing his luck, she’d have Hera with her. Neither of them would let his first night with a goddess as special as Iris go unnoted.
He put his pants on and pulled his shirt over his head quickly. He went out to face whatever was waiting for him. Instead of Aphrodite or Hera, Eros found himself face-to-face with Tisiphone, Megaera, and Alecto, better known as Tish, Meg, and Alex. The Furies.
“Hi,” he said. Well, better than the Harpies, at least. He wasn’t ready to face them just yet, especially since Iris was their little sister.
All three women turned their black eyes on him and smiled, waving at him in perfect unison. Their features were exactly the same, pale and perfect, and the only way anyone could tell them apart was by their hair color. Tish had black hair, Meg had brown, and Alex had red. They always had the same hairstyle and the same clothes, just in different colors.
“Time to meet the girls,” Tish said, pushing out a chair at the table between her and Meg.
Iris returned from the kitchen. “Just sit down. They aren’t going to bite you.”
He sat down and pulled up his chair. “We’ve all met before. It’s been a while.” He looked at Tish tentatively. The last time he’d seen her, she’d had black snakes in her hair and blood dripping from her eyes as she yelled some curse down upon a man who had murdered his wife.
Tish smirked. “It has. We couldn’t resist coming by.”
“Really? Why?” He looked up at Iris, who was glaring at Tish.
Tish cleared her throat. “Iris hasn’t seen anyone since her divorce. It’s been over a hundred years.”
“You were married?”
Iris nodded. “Zephyrus. Five hundred years.” She shrugged. “We just grew apart. He’s obnoxious, but not too hard to live with.”
God of the west wind, huh? An air deity does make sense. At least it wasn’t Apollo. That didn’t bother Eros much. What did bother him was he felt sure that Iris hadn’t made light of the subject because she wanted to hide having been married. Did her friends bringing up marriage bother her? He wanted to know, but he also didn’t want to risk making any of them angry, so he just smiled.
“I can understand that. My marriage to a mortal-turned-goddess was supposed to be a fairy tale. Didn’t work out like that.”
Meg smiled teasingly. “You were too much for her. She’s back with mortals now.”
Eros leaned forward. “Really? Well, I might have guessed. She hated living with us.”
“But she loved y
ou,” Alex said.
“For a few hundred years.” He sighed. “Okay, we’ve talked about exes. Let’s move on.”
Iris sat down and pushed a cup of coffee over to him. “You’re getting off easy, and you know it. At least your mother isn’t here.”
He shook his head. “She’ll show up.”
“Does it matter?” Iris asked.
He still couldn’t tell what she was feeling and that bugged him. “No. I just know she’s going to have an opinion.”
Iris looked down. “She wants you to be happy.”
“I know. I’ve never been very good at that.”
Tish refilled her coffee cup. “You are a little pathetic. You make great matches for others.”
He groaned. “I’m just going to take the compliment and leave it at that. There’s no point in arguing because everyone seems to think that lately.”
“We’re teasing you, sweetie,” Meg said. “We think you’re great. We more than give our blessing, and that’s something.”
He dropped a lump of sugar in his cooling coffee and stirred slowly. “Care to come to my defense, then? You’d be quite formidable and everyone might leave me alone for a day or two.”
Alex crossed her arms. “Hmmmm. Not a bad idea. Your own band of cheerleaders.”
“I think everyone’s going to leave him alone for a while. Except for the occasional drop-in tease or two,” Iris said.
“Oh yeah, those are the best,” he said. “You better watch out for yourself, though. Zeus might get some ideas when he finds out you’re my girl.”
“Am I?”
He froze. Why did I say that? “Um. I guess we can discuss that, if you want. I didn’t mean to assume or anything.” He tried to think of something clever to say, but she held up her hand.
“I was asking you. I was certainly assuming the same thing. I was teasing you, by the way. No need to panic.”
He couldn’t hold back the grin that spread over his face. “Good. See? Told you I’m bad at this.”
“No, you’re just not used to it. And I think Zeus is otherwise occupied for now.”
Not used to what? To having a real girlfriend? To caring about a relationship? He really wished he had more of his mother’s insight into emotions.
