by Mila Young
“Fuck!” Apollo shouted, his voice like thunder.
“He’s in the Underworld,” I declared.
Apollo stared at me, his eyes narrowing as if putting two and two together. “He can’t be. Catina can’t survive down there. She’s human.”
“I don’t know how he’s doing it, but that’s the only place we haven’t looked. He can’t be on Mount Olympus. I think he just went back home.”
“No,” Apollo refused. “No way.”
“Why don’t you just fucking trust me for once?” I snapped. “He said he was right under our noses.”
Apollo raised an eyebrow.
“I realize you don’t think much of me, but I’m right, and I’m a fucking god just like you. So, swallow your pride and take my side. If I’m wrong, I’ll grovel and eat shit.”
“Zeus almighty, fine.” Apollo shook his head, holding up his hands. “We’ll go to the Underworld. You don’t have to get your panties in a twist.”
“Fuck you and your Earthly sayings.” I stalked off, well aware I’d used so many of those stupid sayings when I’d first arrived in Chicago as well, so getting mad at Apollo had nothing to do with him but everything to do with X.
Apollo followed me, his laughter a rumble in the air around us. I tried to ignore him. Because I was a breath away from belting him, but he wasn’t the guy I needed to fight.
Chapter 13
Elyse
When someone knocked on my door on Saturday evening, I groaned. I suspected Oliver, as he’d always popped over at this time before my life had morphed into a mess, but I didn’t need company. I yearned to be alone, to deal with Catina’s disappearance in peace without talking about it with anyone.
After I visited Hades the other night, a sense of calm had come over me because I’d started to understand him better, to see he held on to so much anger because he was afraid. And nothing I said could change him, but I’d be there for him, understand him, let him know he wasn’t alone. For that reason, I spent the next few hours drinking coffee with him and chatting about the galaxy, the constellations, anything that didn’t deal with either of our problems. But after coming home, the reality of Catina’s predicament had crashed through me, and I’d moped in my apartment ever since.
I wiped my wet eyes and tightened my hold on my knees in the corner of the couch.
Oliver knew about the missing persons case I’d opened. He found out about it when he’d went to visit Catina at work. I wasn’t sure why he’d been looking for her. Maybe, under different circumstances, I’d have been happy about the progression of whatever was happening between them. But her kidnapping was my fault, and it seemed everything I touched I fucked up. Like poor Oliver finding me dead in my apartment and Heracles needing to wipe his mind clean. Now because of me, my best friend was at the mercy of a psychotic monster, and Oliver worried for her. They were all better off without me in their lives.
If Catina liked Oliver, I wanted her to be with him. I wished for them to be happy and for them to have a long future together.
Right now, I just prayed she was still alive.
A second knock sounded at the door, and I ignored it. The gods just appeared in my living room, so it wasn’t one of them.
I yearned to be alone, because I felt lost and pathetic that I hadn’t been able to help Catina.
A moment later, the air in front of me rippled and Ares appeared in my living room, larger than life in front of me where I sat on the couch. He wore jeans and a red tee that pulled taut across his strong chest.
“Don’t you answer your door?” he asked, gripping his hips.
“Since when do you knock?” I grinned, glad it was him. Of all the gods, he was the one I needed to see. Not because I favored him above the others or anything, but because his goofy attitude, the way nothing was ever super serious with him, was exactly what I needed. Plus, he didn’t sit around and grieve with me but rather tried to remind me all wasn’t lost, so I thanked the stars it wasn’t Oliver at the door.
“Is there a reason you’re ignoring the world?” He flopped down next to me then stretched his arm up and put it around my back as if it’d landed there after the stretch. It was a classic jock move and endearing.
I giggled, leaning into him, pressing myself up against him. His body was hot, the heat thawing me where I’d felt cold and forgotten.
“I can’t find her,” I admitted. “And I feel horrible about it.”
Ares hesitated. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but he kept silent. His breathing picked up and he was definitely keeping something from me.
“What is it?” I asked.
The muscles in his neck corded. “I just wish I could do more,” he finally said.
I sighed. “You’re doing so much already. We’ll figure this out, I guess. Or we won’t.” I scrubbed my face with my hands. “God, I don’t know anymore. Before, my mission was simple. Eradicate the monsters, get rid of X. Now I feel as if I’m swimming through a black hole, unsure which direction to go.”
Ares put his hand on my cheek. He turned my face toward him so I looked him in the eyes. They were seafoam green, lighter than usual, but no less intense, and I couldn’t ignore his handsome features, the strong jawline, the parted lips I wanted against mine.
For a moment, he looked at me with adoration. But it very quickly changed into something deeper. Something hotter. And I responded to the heat that flowed from his body to mine, the way his eyes dragged down to my lips and his fingers curled in my hair, telling me what he wanted without saying a word.
I desired it, too. To escape, to experience of a release—and Ares would give me exactly that. I knew he would.
He kissed me, closing the distance between us, pressing his lips against mine. His mouth and cheeks were as hot as the rest of him. It was as if he burned up, but it wasn’t anything like that. Rather, it was the fever of his lust.
Or maybe it wasn’t just lust. It seemed more than that. This was different than the first time we’d slept together. When he studied me, I saw his affection for me in his eyes. How had we moved from something that was a giant question mark to something so solid in only a matter of days? He’d been my rock in a time of devastation, turning out to be a different man from whom I’d first met.
But I imagined Ares was like this in every sense. With him, it was all or nothing.
His tongue slid over my lips, and I moaned softly as he tasted me, explored my mouth. His hand slid down my neck, over my collarbone and onto my chest. I expected him to touch my breasts, but he didn’t. He stayed just above them, making me ache for his touch without going any farther.
I put my hands on his chest. His pectoral muscles were chiseled, every inch of him was ready for war, and his body was solid under my palms.
Slowly, he drove me down, gently, until I was on my back on the couch. His body hovered above mine. He leaned over me, but he didn’t put his weight on me. Even though I could handle it now.
While he kissed me—slowly, sensually, making out—he pressed his hand under my tank top. He ran his hand over my stomach, his rough palm brushing across my skin, and I shivered. But he didn’t move to my breast. He didn’t touch the skin on fire for him, he didn’t tweak my already hard nipples. He caressed me as if merely touching me was enough for him.
The desperation within me climbed, yet I lay victim to his teases, unable to get enough. Ready to soar through the heavens from his touch and pleasure.
Slowly, he pushed up my shirt, and I lifted my arms. We broke the kiss so he could work the shirt over my head. I wasn’t wearing a bra, and his eyes slid over my breasts, my tight nipples. He didn’t say anything, and I was glad.
It would have ruined the moment. The rawness of him staring at me with such hunger had me clenching my thighs together, heightening the growing ache for him.
Ares traced my body with his fingertips, following the curve of my ribs to my narrow waist and out to the flare of my hips. He tugged my sweatpants down.
&
nbsp; I wasn’t wearing panties, either.
“I’m the only one who’s naked now,” I whispered when he pulled my pants off my ankles.
“Yeah,” he breathed, as he grabbed the back of his collar and pulled his tee over his head. He dragged his jeans and jocks down and kicked them off, too. Everything about him was about restraint tonight. He touched me as if he intended to worship my body, not just fuck it.
But he was horny for me. His dick was rock-hard and standing at attention. The tip was wet with precum, and I resisted the urge to lean over and take him into my mouth. Part of me welcomed being the one getting the affection, letting myself drown in something other than my thoughts.
Ares held out his hand, and I put mine in his. He helped me up, and we walked to the bedroom together, naked.
He kissed me when we reached my room, and while he kissed me gently, taking my tongue into his mouth, he guided me to the bed. I climbed onto it, moving away from his touch and his body for only a moment before he followed me.
I lay on my back and Ares covered my body with his, holding himself up with his arms, his cock pressing against my lower abdomen. I shivered when he kissed me again, a chaste passion on the lips before he started moving down my body.
He left a trail of fire down my neck, his fingers tracing my jaw on the other side before moving to my chest. This time, he didn’t avoid my breasts. He moved onto the soft skin, kissing and nibbling until I squirmed, desperate for more.
“Please,” I moaned. He was driving me crazy, making me wait.
I felt him smile as he kissed me on the mouth again before he moved back down and drew one of my nipples into his mouth. I gasped when he sucked hard. His hands on my breasts, he scraped the nipple with his teeth, flicking it with his tongue, before he moved to the other side.
It made me impossibly wet, and I bucked my hips in a gentle rhythm, eager to take him. To fall completely under his spell.
“You’re a work of art,” he murmured when he finally moved away from my breasts and down my stomach. My hands were on his shoulders, feeling the muscles under his skin as he moved, leaving a trail of pecks on his way to the V between my legs.
When I opened my legs wide for him, he chuckled. It was a deep sound, delicious. He glanced at me, his eyes almost all pupil and outlined in almost impossible green.
Ares dove between my legs and licked a line from my entrance to my nub. I called out with pleasure when he flicked his tongue over my clit, making me squirm.
“You taste so good,” he said, glancing up from between my thighs, his gaze almost hazed over as if he were high.
I didn’t have time to answer. He pressed two fingers into me and closed his mouth around my clit. I cried out again, the sensation almost as good as when he pushed into me.
He started moving his fingers in and out while he licked and sucked on my clit and the attention brought me closer and closer to the edge. I hadn’t known it could be this intense without actually having sex.
I loved it. The world around us faded away. I writhed under his attention as he spread my legs wider with his free hand. Only Ares and I existed. All I focused on were his fingers as his mouth did deliciously wicked things to my pussy.
A moment later, an explosion ripped through so fast and powerful, I screamed from the orgasm owning me. I toppled over the edge, curling on the bed, crying out as euphoria gripped me. My muscles spasmed, my eyes closed, and I gasped and moaned, losing track of where I was, of everything that haunted me. All that existed right now was Ares and the way he made me feel.
After the orgasm subsided, I lay on the bed in a puddle of sweat, breathing hard, smiling so damn wide my cheeks hurt. Ares crawled up to me, his lips glistening. With his hands on either side of my head, he kissed me. I could taste myself on his mouth, and I loved it.
He lay down next to me and pulled me against him, facing each other.
“I haven’t even returned the favor,” I noted, though a heavy wave of fatigue pulled through me suddenly. I tucked my head under his chin.
“Tonight isn’t about me,” he said in a soft voice. “It’s all about you.”
I was so tired I couldn’t keep my eyes open. “What did you do to me?”
He didn’t answer. He didn’t have to. I knew exactly what he’d done. He’d taken the time to make me feel like I was worth it. Not asking for an orgasm, or even sex, seemed like something so small. But it was selfless, and I couldn’t explain to him how much it meant that he’d focused on me tonight.
I was lost, alone, and inconsequential. And he’d arrived at just the right time and somehow helped me forget about how awful I felt.
Catina was still missing, but we’d find her somehow. There was nothing that could be done. And worrying about it only robbed me of sleep and made me weak.
But it was okay to be weak. Ares was with me, and I knew he’d stand over me, guard me.
I closed my eyes, my hand pressed against his chest. He wiggled his arm under my head, and I curled close to him. Ares held on to me, and I let it all go. The panic, the anger, the helplessness. For now, it was just Ares and I, and I’d let him take care of me for once.
Like he already had.
What had I done to deserve such beautiful people in my life? I didn’t know, but I did know that I was grateful for Ares. When I met him, I thought he’d be a waste of my time. I judged him too quickly, remained too preoccupied with doing what I believed was right, when all this time, I had these gods who were ready to pledge themselves to me. Sure, it hadn’t been completely clear initially, but I’d also never given them the benefit of the doubt. It took losing my best friend for me to reassess my priorities and see who made a difference in my life. Who was worth keeping at my side.
I’d been wrong about Ares, and I should have let him show me otherwise from the beginning.
Now, he had, time and time again. I didn’t know how it was possible to fall so deeply for four different men, but there it was. It wasn’t just Apollo and Poseidon and the strange game I played with Hades.
Ares was crawling into my heart, too.
Chapter 14
Hades
What I hated most about being a god was not being able to forget. Sure, I could drink until I was wasted mess who didn’t know his own name. But the next day I’d just be sober again, and all this bullshit would still haunt me.
I’d come to Earth to get away from Persephone. The Underworld had become my home, no matter how much I hated it, but I let her have it so we didn’t stare at each other for half the year.
There was nothing worse than having to face the woman you knew didn’t love you for the centuries you’d been together.
On Earth, forgetting about her had been easy enough. Out of sight, out of mind, that was how the saying went, right? Humans and their damn expressions.
But now she was here. Persephone had decided to come to Earth and taunt me, merely by being around. And no matter how large this place was, it just wasn’t big enough for the two of us. I couldn’t stop remembering every shitty little detail about our pretend-relationship that had led us both to realize we’d never been cut out for each other.
I grasped Hera had fucked with me, and Persephone had finally decided to stop playing along.
What a joyous fucking day that had been. Not.
I’d been up all night. I hadn’t been able to sleep Saturday. At all. I sat on my patio, the shit-ugly outside of my house all around me, and I watched the sunrise as it colored the world after an inky black night.
Thank Zeus, Apollo had decided to find love again. Without his sunlight piercing the overcast clouds, the world had been a pretty dull place. Not that my brother knew Apollo was dating Elyse. It was sure to get him screwed somehow—Zeus was all about pointing fingers and making rules.
But I’d be happy for Apollo while it lasted. It was going to come to an end at some point, for sure.
I wished I could love as easily as Apollo did. If only it was that simple for me. But when your hea
rt got broken the way mine had, you just didn’t close your eyes and jump anymore. Because chances were, no one would catch your sorry ass, and you were going to plant yourself face-first in the dirt.
Ask someone who knew from experience.
But I sure desired a bit of company. Even if just to share this glorious sunrise with in the mornings.
I never saw anything like this in the Underworld. The place was drab, dark, beautifully decorated in every fucking shade of gray you could imagine. It was enough to make your mood dull, too.
Up here, I could think, I could breathe, I could feel.
Which wasn’t always a good thing.
I shivered when a slice of darkness awoke inside me. I closed my eyes and tried to will the darkness away.
It was X. The fucker was linked to me—he was supposed to be a part of me, almost like my shadow—and I could feel him. I hated that I could. He’d gotten away from me, so he was free to kill, but he hadn’t escaped enough that I couldn’t feel him anymore. Not where the bastard hid, I just sensed him.
Last time I tried to follow the sensation, it sent me in circles for hours, because the bastard had no intention of letting me know where he hid with Catina. But every now and then, I sensed him stir, as if our link hadn’t completely severed.
Talk about straddling both worlds.
I hated knowing when he consumed souls, when he did something unforgivable. All I wanted was to do the job I had been tricked into and live through another damn day.
But I was stuck with this asshole, this murderer, and I had no idea what to do with it.
Elyse had finally come around to seeing I wasn’t a villain, but it took her long enough. And of course, why wouldn’t she believe the bad stuff? Even if I hadn’t been associated with X’s misdeeds at all, I wasn’t exactly a fun guy to be around. I was moody and messy, and all I wanted from her was sex.
