by LJ Vickery
Her attention went back to Absu as he explained that all of the bedrooms upstairs enjoyed attached sitting rooms and extra-large baths. He promised to show her his room, so she’d get an idea of the suite layouts, after they took a tour of the underground floors. Underground floors? The whole place smacked of something out of a spy movie.
With her mouth surely hanging open, Absu led her to an elevator and took her down one level. The doors opened to reveal a vast space that rivaled the best garage Charlie had ever seen, amateur or professional. Shiny tools crowded the workbenches, and pristine, painted concrete floors with recessed, maintenance pits led her eyes to a few interesting cars and to an impressive stable of motorcycles.
“Wow.” Charlie stepped forward. Before she bore Maity, she and her ex-husband had enjoyed riding bikes. They’d earned modest incomes and rode ancient Japanese models, but that hadn’t stopped them from attending motorcycle meets and shows, lusting after things beyond their budget.
“These are magnificent.” Charlie knew her voice nearly purred as she wafted around the room, running her hand over bike after bike. “As much as I like the Japanese crotch rockets and Italian stable, I have to say I’m in love with your vintage American models.” She couldn’t suppress a squeal. “Is that a Henderson Four? Oh my God.”
Absu didn’t try to hide his astonishment. “Yes, it’s the 1925 DeLuxe. You have a deep knowledge of motorcycles?”
“I have my license,” she whispered reverently. “But I’ve never ridden anything this fine.”
Absu grinned at her, and shit, her mind conjured herself riding him rather than the bike. She shook that off fast, and listened to what else Absu imparted.
“These are Ishkur’s specialty. When the snow clears from the ground, you may have your choice of them to ride. With me at your side, of course.”
Charlie’s face fell. Damn. A kick-in-the-gut reminder of where she wouldn’t be in the spring. “Oh. I’ll be back in California long before that.” She sighed. “I’m only here for a couple of weeks. I have a job to go back to.”
“You have a job?” Absu questioned with a frown. “Outside of being a mother?”
She reminded herself that Absu knew very little about her life. And with his old-fashioned speech, perhaps his take on multitasking females was lacking. “Yes. Like a lot of women. A job in addition to caring for Maity.” She gently but firmly reminded him that many mothers worked outside the home. “My position’s not much, but I’m a line cook at a diner.” She softened her admonition with a smile. “And you should have known. You’ve cooked with me twice now.”
Absu gave her a sheepish grin. “You are correct, my lady. I’ve not forgotten your skills. You showed amazing abilities at Candy’s weddings in California and the one here.”
Charlie preened at his acknowledgment. “Thanks, Absu. I’ve gathered, from our time at the stove, that you’re a foodie too.”
“If years of experience concocting delicacies for the palette make me a foodie, then yes, I enjoy cooking.” Absu raised an eyebrow.
“And eating, if I noticed correctly.” Charlie giggled. He’d savored and consumed enormous amounts of food at the wedding celebrations. She slapped a hand to her ass. “Although you don’t show it like I do.”
Absu’s face instantly turned to a scowl. “Your posterior does not suffer from any malady I can perceive,” he growled. And holy shit. His hands twitched at his sides like he almost wanted to touch her backside.
Oh please, yes. “Well thanks,” she said out loud and felt herself blush. “An ass man, eh?” She quivered at what he could do to her ass.
His eyes were now glued to her bottom. “It is a fine posterior,” he murmured, then must have felt he was being too forward for he began to splutter. “In actuality,” he gulped. “I find every part of you a delight to behold.” He turned and strode quickly back into the elevator.
How sweet. Maybe her weird attraction to him wasn’t one sided after all. He seemed sincere with the compliment he’d let slip. Could he sense her interest? And if so, how could she capitalize on it? Charlie followed Absu into the elevator.
“Where are we going next?” she queried, a new awareness thrumming through her blood.
“I have several levels to show you.” A thickness coated his voice, and he coughed before pushing a lower level button. “I thought you might enjoy the archives. It’s where we keep our outdated equipment. We have many years’ worth of obsolete kitchen appliances, gym equipment, furniture, and computers stored away. The godde…women of the house seem to love clambering through it.”
It sounded good, but after the motorcycles a bit tame. “What other floors do you have?”
“We have some ceremonial rooms, but those are, eh-hem, under renovation.”
That sounded like a fib. More like they were off limits. Charlie knew all about secrets, having an agent for a brother. She wouldn’t push. She raised an eyebrow encouraging Absu to continue.
“Then there are the dungeons,” he let slip.
Charlie sucked in a breath and grew rigid. “Dungeons?” Her throat dried up. “Real dungeons with…chains and…restraints?” A tendril of excitement unfurled, causing the hairs to stand up on her arms and a swell of moisture to flood her pussy.
“Yes, but don’t be concerned,” he assured her, obviously mistaking her sudden breathlessness for fear. “We rarely keep prisoners there, and the, uh, persuasive equipment is mostly for show.”
“Can I see?” Yeah. She had trouble keeping her voice steady. And when the doors opened on a 1950’s Norge Icebox, she wanted nothing more than for Absu to punch the dungeon button as fast as possible. The old refrigerator couldn’t compete with the images now dancing in her brain.
“If you would like.” He shrugged and the elevator doors once again slid closed as Absu chose a lower number. Silence reigned on the way down. Charlie struggled with the effort to control her elevated pulse.
The door pinged open and Absu indicated that Charlie should precede him. He hit a switch and a string of lights flickered to life down a long hall lined with doorways and barred cells. A delicious shiver swept up her spine.
“We have twelve individual cells, a few closed off for complete isolation.” He informed her. “I apologize if it seems a little damp down here, but the heat isn’t turned on unless the rooms are being used.”
Used for what? Charlie wondered, fantasies of spanking benches and blindfolds taking flight.
Absu swung open the first door they came to. “All have a built-in bunk, a small sink, and wrist and ankle restraints on the floor, ceiling, and walls.”
Nerve endings tingled throughout Charlie’s extremities, and her pussy grew wetter by the minute imagining what Absu could do to her in a place like this. Shit. Crazy to even contemplate, but who owned their own dungeon?
Charlie suddenly felt very small next to her large escort. And far from being a bad thing, the picture of him, eyes glistening while looming over her, fastening her helplessly with chains and readying a small crop, stoked her fires. Without thinking, she grabbed for the nearest restraint and threaded her hand through the cuff.
“Big,” she intoned softly.
“Certainly,” he laughed. “Our enemies can be large,” he agreed.
Her gaze dropped and fell upon a smaller set of cuffs hidden partially under the bunk. Absu spotted them at the same time, and he bent to pick them up.
“Huh?” His forehead wrinkled in thought. “These are not familiar.” Charlie slipped her hand free of the large restraint and came to stand next to Absu. He looked at her arm. “They look small enough for you.”
Lifting her hand, he slipped one around her wrist and partially closed it. Tendrils of excitement sped through Charlie’s body, imagining the possibilities. But before she could process her feelings, Absu removed the cuff and threw it on the bunk.
She bit back a sigh and cleared her throat. “You don’t know who they belong to?” Charlie made some mental guesses, recalling a few thin
gs Lenore had let slip.
“I don’t.” Absu shook his head. He bent and looked once again, peering deeper under the cot. Charlie followed suit and clapped a hand over her mouth at the sight. Well, hello. A pair of nipple clamps lay on top of a hot-pink satin case just within reach.
“Uh,” Absu grunted and stood, quickly booting the telling toys farther under the bunk with his toe.
He blinked at Charlie, who regarded him with bated breath. Oh yes, she wasn’t going to let him off the hook. She’d seen them. No takes-ies, backs-ies.
A rush of blood swept up her face at his dilated pupils. What would he say now?
“I’ll have to speak to Anshar and Lenore. They should be admonished for leaving their belongings strewn about.” He turned his back and strode away.
Charlie huffed, but in a good way. She loved a challenge.
Chapter Three
Silence reigned. Gods. How mortifying. Absu bit his tongue and looked everywhere but at Charlie, as they rode in the elevator on the way back up to the main level of the compound. As soon as he’d seen the nipple clamps, he kicked them away to rid himself of visions where he fastened them on Charlie. He imagined her ripe nipples, pink and pert, begging for attention. Damn. Even now, he fantasized about how their delicate texture would feel on his tongue, the metal cold and the flesh warm.
How would she feel, hands fastened high above her head, as he licked and nipped. Would she relish the small pain to be had while he administered such pleasure? His mouth watered and his cock grew hard…again. It had done so at least a dozen times since he’d begun the damned tour. And what about positioning her across his knees, her lush, white globes ripe for spanking. His hand would appear so dark against her pale skin. And then when her flesh glowed red under his punishment…Argh! What was wrong with him? He’d always been very controlled, and known for his gentlemanly restraint, even when enjoying a willing, female partner.
Ohh, he groaned. Restraint. Bad visual. Do not head down that rabbit hole again. Mental restraint back in Merrymount―three hundred and eighty-four years ago―meant he’d been able to behave himself among the ladies. He’d had to hide his true, highly charged, sexual nature.
The leader of their colony, Thomas Morton, had always lauded him for his way with innocent females. He’d counted on Absu to accompany groups of women―or even individual ladies―on trips to other colonies or into the city of Boston, because Absu could be trusted for his courtliness and aplomb. Women would come back with their innocence intact―a feat that could not be said of all the gods, the knicker-charming devils.
Not that Absu had refrained from carnal activity. Hell, no. Not in the least. If a widow or experienced lady showed signs of wanting him, he would romp in her bedding, wielding a strong hand…with ne’er a complaint. But he had always maintained control while never taking advantage of the unsophisticated. And he’d always managed to suppress his own lust while pleasuring a woman.
Certainly, he’d assuaged his predilection for dominance, but there’d been no succumbing to unleashed desire. Of a necessity. Like the other gods, he held secret attributes that showed themselves when he became uncontrollably aroused, and they needed to be kept in check for the good of all. And right now, what he felt for Charlie threatened those safeguards. Dangerous. But would it have to be snuffed out completely?
The lapse in his normally cautious demeanor might come from not bedding a woman since colonial times, but more likely it was from knowing Charlie was his Chosen. And with that, the possibly that she might one day be the perfect submissive to his dominance titillated him. He’d seen his fellow gods go nearly berserk over their Chosen. He just hadn’t thought it would happen to him. And dammit, until Charlie was made into his goddess/wife, he would not allow that to happen. He’d practice patience. There would be eons to ease her into his lifestyle. He would not take the chance of harming her while she was still mortal.
Before the door to the elevator opened, Absu had schooled his brain and commanded his cock back under control. If he got lucky, innocent little Charlie would never suspect that his mind rode off the rails in such a lascivious direction.
“So, are you going to show me your bedroom now?” she asked innocently enough.
Absu’s dick twitched again, and he nearly groaned. Gods. Now he must give Charlie a tour of his rooms. They’d be close to his bed, and he’d be forced to behave himself. A simple tour, he reminded himself. Nothing more.
He stepped from the elevator, trying to distance himself from Charlie’s intoxicating smell. He’d begun to equate the scent of his lovely mate-to-be with the duskiness of a late summer grape arbor. She tickled his palate, the closest thing to a fine wine he’d ever encountered. Sweet, yet heady. He breathed deeply. Shit.
“Certainly. My bedroom,” he croaked, before pointing toward the spiral staircase which led up to the private wing, indicating that she should go first. He walked several paces behind her, catching every twitch of her luscious ass as she climbed. His hands clenched so as not to touch. “Ahead on the right,” he eventually voiced when they came to his hallway.
Entering his room, Charlie clapped her hands in what looked to be appreciation. She had probably expected something crisp and masculine, maybe blue or gray, with tight corners and neat piles, since he gave off such a precise air. But he’d decorated instead in a tantalizing blend of mustard and browns, with dramatic splashes of bright orange scattered throughout. His thick comforter displayed a riotous Indian print, reminiscent of the tree of life design, and it shimmered with bits of silver thread woven into the colorful fabric. Stray books and papers littered surfaces and, dammit, he’d forgotten to throw away the half-empty box he’d been munching from now that his taste buds were corporeal.
“A closet snack-food junkie?” Charlie laughed, but didn’t wait for his answer. Instead, she whirled about with her arms extended, an enormous smile on her face as she caught sight of the deep, papasan chair nestled seductively in a privately lit alcove.
“Absu, this is stunning,” she exclaimed. “The colors, the lighting. It makes me want to kick off my shoes, curl up, and never leave.”
She walked to the window and tugged back long golden draperies. Beyond the glass lay his private balcony with a panoramic view of the snow-covered woods. Absu had hung bird feeders from wrought iron arches that attached to the outer railing. Blue jays and cardinals squawked and fought over the abundant seeds spilling forth.
“What a sweet thing to do,” she marveled. “You feed the birds.”
Absu shrugged. “Of course. In winter, they depend on a helping hand. But wouldn’t you like to see more inside? I have another area of my own that’s quite exquisite.” He cleared his throat self-consciously and pointed to a door, attempting to draw her away from his deck. Away from his guilt over the past. There was a time when, unable to control his freshwater versus saltwater powers, he’d deprived wildlife of nourishment. To assuage his remorse, he cared for and fed the forest’s creatures whenever possible.
Thankfully, Charlie took his cue to move on and skipped through the doorway he indicated to enter a large closeted and mirrored dressing room. She gasped.
“How could you possibly use so much space?” Charlie chortled.
Little did she know. Behind each closed door hung empty hangers since he’d only just regained his corporeality with her presence. He hadn’t needed proper clothing. In their invisible state, the gods were all comfortable in loincloths.
Charlie probably pictured row upon row of black slacks and white button-down shirts. But to give her credit, she didn’t open one door.
She walked around a huge, circular leather settee in the middle of the space, before stepping into his very large bathroom.
“Oh my God, Absu.” She ran her hand over the chocolate-brown marble, and used a fingertip to trace the silvery substance that ran through it.
“Nickel ore embedded into the marble,” he answered her unasked question. “I enjoy the way the light plays off of it.”
“It’s marvelous.” She seemed barely able to draw her eyes away, but when she did… “Look at this tub,” she squealed, and ran exuberantly up the two steps of the pedestal to gaze into the sunken orifice. “One could drown in something this big.” She laughed.
“I have never used it,” Absu admitted sheepishly. He couldn’t tell Charlie the reason. That he’d only regained his body recently, because of her. When the tub had been put in several years back―at the insistence of their divine architect Kulla―Absu had only been able to look at it with longing. Right now, he needed to bite his tongue to keep an enthusiastic invitation from popping out of his mouth. Even if they wore swimming attire, his body’s blatant needs would be clear.
“Can we use it?”
What? He’d obviously imagined the words coming out of her mouth.
Charlie regarded him in that round-eyed, doe-like way he already loved, and then slapped a hand over her mouth. “I mean…if you…”
No. Not his overworked imagination. She’d actually made the request.
Charlie trailed off and dropped her eyes. “I’m sorry. That was very forward of me,” she whispered.
Damn. If she looked up, she’d catch the excited flush Absu felt running up the back of his neck, or perhaps see the thickness that instantly strained against the front of his slacks.
“Nothing to be concerned about.” Shit. Hell, yeah. “A normal request, certainly, with proper attire.” Absu wanted to pump a fist in triumph, but schooled his enthusiasm. “I’d very much like to utilize the bath with you,” he answered in a gruff voice. “I have business to attend to this afternoon with my colleagues, but we could do so after dinner. Uh…a soak, if you wish?”
“Thank you, Absu. That would be wonderful.” Charlie breathed out, still regarding her feet in a way that had him recalling some of the palace women back in ancient Mesopotamia who had welcomed his commanding ways. “Perhaps I’ll ask the ladies if they have any massage oils handy,” she told him. “I’m very good at massage. I can rub the tension out of anyone from shoulders to toes.” Her eyes travelled from her feet to his. “I promise it will be very relaxing.”