by Lazu, Sotia
Pherusa rolled her eyes. “I know. And would you believe it? Before Prometheus came to accept I’d never hand him to Zeus, he was determined to go through with the unraveling. If it weren’t for Eros’ persistence, I wouldn’t have found out, either, until it was too late.”
Nerites’ posture went as stiff as if a stingray had grazed him. “What did you say?”
Pherusa studied his furrowed brow. It didn’t take away from the beauty of his face, though it aged him. “That I wouldn’t know—”
He gestured impatiently. “No, before that.”
“That Eros was the one who kept urging him to bond with me?”
“Yes.” Nerites seemed confused. “Who is that?”
“Who’s Eros?” Galene asked. “He’s...” She shot Pherusa a panicked glance. They didn’t mention Aphrodite’s name in Nerite’s presence when it could be avoided.
“The god of love,” Pherusa supplied for her. No reason to remind her brother that Aphrodite had had a life after him, while he’d condemned himself to solitude.
Frowning, Nerites rubbed his temples. “How come I’ve never heard of him?”
Impossible. Nerites might have spent his entire life in Vythos, but you couldn’t not have heard of Eros. “Perhaps you know him as Cupid?” Pherusa suggested.
He waved his hand in front of his face, as if to shoo away an annoying school of sardines. “Know whom as Cupid?”
For the second time, it was like Eros slipped her brother’s mind. Or this was his way of letting them know he didn’t want to hear about the god.
“Anyway, with some nudging, we performed the bonding.” Pherusa let a naughty smile play on her lips. “A few times.”
Halie laughed. “To make sure it took, of course.” She was always quick to laugh since she and Delphinos bonded, and the sparkle of happiness suited her.
Pherusa knew the feeling of being so ecstatically blissful nothing could bring her down.
Except for her brother’s lost expression.
“Are you done gossiping about me, ladies?” Prometheus’ voice made her lift her gaze.
He leaned against the door frame, arms crossed over his wide chest, the seaweed struggling to contain his muscles. Imposing and regal in a dark-green robe wasn’t an easy look to pull off, but he managed it impeccably.
Pherusa was on her feet and hurrying to him before she realized she moved.
“Hey! We didn’t hear the juicy parts.” Seemingly unperturbed by Prometheus’ dirty look, Thalia added, “Whatever. Pherusa can fill us in later.”
“How did the meeting go?” Pherusa asked when Prometheus whisked her out of the room. It was surreal, walking around her father’s palace with her arm looped around her Titan’s. So normal, and yet it had been out of her grasp even yesterday.
He nuzzled her hair. “As expected. We know Hyperion is awake, and according to Circe, he’ll be on our side once he’s bonded. Not that I’d ever expect him to join Kronos. Kronos has been quiet since you and I bonded”—he snorted—“for which your father congratulated me, though he wouldn’t look me in the eye. We don’t know how long this will last, so Nereus has patrols in all the seas, listening for signs of unusual activity.”
Since the world was safe for now, Pherusa braved asking about matters closer to home. “And did everyone behave?” Through their mental link, she sent him, “Did you?”
His lips twitched. “There was some hero-worshiping, now that I didn’t want to kill them. I got to know your daimon friend a little better too. He has a crush on you.”
“You must be mistaken.” Palaemon had been her escort to the surface since he was a young boy. She’d never seen him as more than a friend, and his behavior toward her betrayed no romantic feelings.
Prometheus shrugged. “Not like he told me he’ll crush every bone in my body if I mistreat you. Twice.”
“He didn’t.” She searched his thoughts. No hint of a lie. “You weren’t uncivil to him, were you? I care about him deeply.”
“And platonically, luckily for him and me both.” Under the watchful gaze of two palace servants carrying linens, Prometheus brought her to a stop, folded an arm around her waist, and smashed his lips to hers in a kiss clearly meant to stake his claim. “Don’t worry. I like the little guppy. He’s loyal.” He hummed and twirled her, before gathering her back in his embrace. “Was properly introduced to your sister’s boy too. He’s funny.”
Pherusa laughed. If anyone would call hundreds-years-old sea daimons guppy and boy, it’d be Prometheus.
“What now?” she asked. “Can I have you to myself, or will you run off to play with your new friends?”
His gaze burned through her, the desire in his eyes making her feel as naked as ever. “I thought we’d stop by my cave first. Then, in a couple hours”—he waggled his eyebrows—“we could get dressed and go house shopping.”
She licked her lips. “I hear house-shopping is best done in the afternoon, so we don’t need to hurry.”
“Then let’s go to my cave and rut like beasts in heat.”
Chapter Eighteen
“One last signature here, and the place is yours.” The realtor, Magda, tapped one red-lacquered nail on the dotted lines at the bottom of the contract, her red lips stretched in a shark-like grin.
Prometheus took the fountain pen she handed him, careful not to break it. P. Titanas, he scrawled. The deeds would be in his name only, because Pherusa didn’t yet have any identification papers. He’d have to talk to Eros about those too. He’d seen the god’s name in the contacts list of the cell phone Eros had given him.
Magda took the signed documents with a smile, sat back, and crossed her legs. She looked very pleased with herself, which made sense, since she’d no doubt be getting a hefty commission on the six-bedroom villa Prometheus and Pherusa bought.
Magda had shown them several houses in Santorini that were almost what they wanted, but the moment they set foot in that one, he and Pherusa both knew they had to have it. They fell in love with the ample space, the white walls carved into the stone, and the magnificent view of the Caldera. And it came furnished. It was the perfect home, and Prometheus looked forward to filling it with memories—and making love to his soulmate on every available surface.
Magda snapped her fingers, and her assistant, whose name Prometheus didn’t remember, appeared at the door separating her office from the waiting room. “Yes, ma’am?”
His searing glower would put a Titan to shame, but Magda was unfazed. “Boy, get us a bottle of champagne. Mr. and Mrs. Titanas have gotten themselves the most gorgeous villa in all of Santorini, and we must celebrate it.”
Pherusa glanced at Prometheus, a question in her eyes. “Champagne?” she asked.
He flipped through his new memories. Alcohol. Fizzy. Nice. “You'll like it.” He patted her hand and looked at Magda. “Now what?” When he called to say they were serious about buying and would like everything done as soon as possible, she’d let him know Greek bureaucracy didn’t do as soon as possible. “How long do we have to wait?”
She waved her hand dismissively. “Waiting is for those who can’t afford to oil the wheels. Once the wire transfer comes through tomorrow, you may come get the keys. Spyros will make sure all the paperwork goes through by the end of the day.”
Spyros. Right. Prometheus hadn’t seen young the man on their two previous meetings with Magda, but he probably held the fort while boss-lady took clients on-site.
Spyros glared at her as he half-filled the flutes with the bubbly golden liquid. His eyes reminded Prometheus of someone, but he couldn’t put his finger to it. Then again, Magda’s eyes seemed familiar too. Maybe all blue eyes looked the same.
Magda tutted. “Only three glasses, boy. This is above your paygrade.”
Prometheus brought his glass to his lips, to hide his amusement. There was something going on with these two.
“Not before we toast,” Magda raised her glass, and he and Pherusa mimicked her. “To the newlyweds and
their great taste. May you be happy together, always.” She stressed the last word.
“Do you think he’s... fucking her?” Pherusa stumbled over the f-word even in her thoughts.
Prometheus squinted against the fizz that threatened to come out of his nostrils. “If he is, he mustn’t be doing a very good job of it,” he replied through their link. He stood and held out his hand to Magda. “Thank you so much for your help.”
“You’ve made a wonderful choice,” Spyros said. The way his gaze strayed to Pherusa, Prometheus wasn’t sure he meant the villa, but he wouldn’t go primitive on the boy’s ass. Only a blind man wouldn’t be awed by her.
Magda shook hands with him and Pherusa, and then said, “Spyros will show you out. Drop by tomorrow around noon for the keys.”
“We have a house.” Pherusa clapped and planted a noisy kiss on Prometheus’ mouth when the realtor’s door closed behind them. “I can’t believe we can move in tomorrow.”
He brushed a lock of hair back from her face and winked. “We’ll have the keys tomorrow. No reason to wait till then to move in.” He closed his arms around her, cast a wide mental net over onlookers, so their gazes would glide off him and his Siren, and blinked with her to their new bedroom.
Epilogue
“Are they gone, boy?” Circe shouldn’t be enjoying this charade so much, but Eros’ discomfort at his role as assistant to her bitch-realtor persona was hilarious.
“You’d better be waiting for me naked,” he hollered from the next room. He strode in her—well, Magda’s, if she were to be technical about it—office and slammed the door behind him, his true facial features taking over the magic disguise. “Boy? You’ll be lucky to only get away with a spanking.”
“Oh, did I upset you, baby?” She batted her eyelashes, letting the realtor’s pale skin deepen to her own golden tan, and the blond pixie cut give way to her chestnut locks. She might be kinky, but Eros’ having sex with Magda’s lookalike would be the wrong kind of bad.
“How long do we have?” he asked.
Circe looked at the clock hanging beside the door. “It’s an hour and a half by car. Two, if they hit traffic. And that’s after she decides he’s a no-show.” She’d intercepted Prometheus’ last call and had sent the actual realtor, who had no assistant, to meet a nonexistent client in Nafplio, so she and Eros could make sure Prometheus and Pherusa got the perfect place with no legal hassle. Magda might not remember closing the deal, but she wouldn’t mind getting the commission.
“Why couldn’t we tell the big guy we were doing him a favor, intercepting for the realtor?” Eros grasped her skirt with both hands and pulled it higher, to expose her bare ass.
“Because this is more fun.” And because Circe’s visions told her to do so. If she hadn’t reached into Magda’s mind, to view her previous meetings with Prometheus and Pherusa, she wouldn’t have recognized the latent—
Eros popped open the buttons of her pressed white shirt and dug his teeth in her flesh. “Where are you?” he asked.
She moaned and pulled at his hair, but they both knew she enjoyed a little pain.
“Right here, with you, my...” Instead of finishing that sentence, she flicked her tongue along the seam of his mouth, and bit his bottom lip when he pulled away.
“You and your secrets and your games...” With a wild laugh, Eros turned her and bent her over Magda’s desk. “Now you’ve done it.” His palm landed on her bare bottom with a loud smack.
Circe pushed all thoughts of Magda’s reborn soul out of her mind. It wasn’t her time yet, anyway.
The End
But keep reading for a sneak peek into Titans #2, A Maid for the Titan
WHEN ZEUS ABANDONED Olympus, Hyperion was sure he’d be left behind, but that wouldn’t be punishment enough. From one conscious moment to the next, he no longer stood on green grass, but was surrounded by dark, still waters. He gave up. Stopped trying to see or hear. No light reached the depths of the sea that was to be his grave.
Then one day he awoke, and he was in this room, surrounded by noise and humans and lights. Voices spoke in tongues that made no sense, and a large opening on the wall across from him showed him images of war and famine and celebration. Of love and hate. After ages of feeling only cold, now warmth caressed his bare back for a while every few... hours? He chose to believe it was Helios, heralding the morning and shining down on him. Reminding him he wasn’t alone.
But wasn’t he? His brothers were lost to him, and the females of his generation were long gone. Hyperion couldn’t begrudge his nephew the safety precautions. He’d warned Kronos not to eat his children, lest he share Uranus’ fate, but did the giant pain in the glutes listen? No. And all Titans paid for it.
Hyperion didn’t care whether the mortals that came and went were friends or foes; he could best any human. He yelled inside his head and raged against the unseen shackles holding him immobile. But Zeus’ spell had enough of a hold over him that the void never failed to suck him back in.
Something brushed along his manhood and pulled him out of his spiraling thoughts. That he could feel it wasn’t surprising. He hadn’t lost sensation when he was turned into stone.
What was surprising was that he physically responded to the stimulus. The touch was feather light, but his body rose to the occasion.
Huh? His body had been locked in position for eons, and the one part that decided to move after all this time was what hung between his legs?
He looked down—he looked down?—and saw a dark-haired woman staring up, under his loincloth, her brown eyes wide and her lips parted. It had been a very long while since a woman looked at him with such open interest, let alone evoked a response.
The woman licked her lips, and his manhood grew to its fully erect position, which couldn’t possibly fit inside a mortal female. Was this a new kind of torture—getting him ready to enter a female’s body and leaving him incapable of sating his hunger? Another of Zeus’ tricks? Hyperion groaned, and the woman gave a little jump and spun around.
No. She’d leave, and he’d be stuck here like a satyr, with desire burning in his loins.
He ached for her to finish what she started. He didn’t realize when his hand moved, but he was no longer holding the ceiling. Delighted, he cupped himself. Yes. He could feel his palm on his shaft. Could feel the fabric between his grip and his erection. Was he turning into flesh again? Was his unjust punishment finally over?
Need more? Hyperion and Olivia’s story will be out March 1, 2019.
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WANT MORE TITANS? Get the FREE prequel, Under, HERE. Don’t forget to preorder Book 2, A Maid for the Titan.
Into Vampire Urban Fantasy? Read the Vampire Cherry series!
#0 Cherry Pop – FREEBIE, #1 Cherry Stem, #2 Cherry Blossom, #3 Cherry Pie, #3.5 Cherry Christmas - FREEBIE (a Vampire Cherry/Paranormal Vampire Investigator crossover)
And continue with Paranormal Vampire Investigator #1 Cherry Stem and the Pissed-off Ghost
In the mood for Contemporary Ménage? Threefold is what you need!
#1 Colin – FREEBIE, #2 Brad, #3 Becca
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sotia shares her life and living quarters with her husband, their son, and two rescue dogs, one of which may be part-pony. Sappy movies make her cry, and she wishes she could take in all the stray dogs in the world.
Sotia spent her formative years reading anything she could get her hands on, including steamy romances her grandma would frown upon—nah, Grandma would totally approve.
Hailing from the land of Olympians and Titans, Sotia could only resist writing about mythical immortals for so long. Her mythology romance boasts hot, powerful Alphas, who can handle sassy ladies and will stop at nothing to make them happy.
True love exists, and Sotia is determined to give her fated couples a happy ending!
To know more about Sotia, get your hands on freebies, and be the first to hear about new releases, click HERE.
www.sotialazu.com
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