What a Goddess Wants

by Stephanie Julian

  “No, Tessa. None of this is your fault. Just… be safe.”

  Then Frentani’s gaze slid to his, and Cal saw a warning there. He nodded once before opening the door and leading Tessa out into the twilight.

  ***

  “Cal, are you sure I’ll be welcome in Cimmeria?”

  Tessa couldn’t contain her question any longer. They had only started making their way through the forest surrounding the doctor’s home. Cal seemed to be following a path only he could see.

  He didn’t falter. “I’ll make sure of it. Don’t worry, Tessa.”

  Ah, if it were only that simple.

  “What about your father? I know you and he are… estranged. I don’t want to be the cause of any further problems between you.”

  Cal snorted. “Sweetheart, my dad and I don’t need any help from anyone to find something to argue about. We do just fine on our own. My mom will be thrilled to see you. And so will the other aguane.”

  Her foot caught on the edge of a tree root and she tripped, just a little stumble. Cal caught her arm and pulled her close. He’d never let her fall, but she knew she should shut her mouth and concentrate.

  But nerves and fear made her chatty.

  “You never did explain to me how the aguane came to be living in Cimmeria.”

  She wasn’t sure he’d answer at first but then he slid a glance over his shoulder at her. Even in the dark, she could tell he was assessing her state of mind. And yes, she really did need to hear his voice.

  “They’ve been there for little more than a century now,” he said. “Cimmerian females are born so rarely that when our father was growing up, there were none of mating age available. So my father and five other men led a raiding party into Italy. I heard my dad say once that they chose Tuscany because they figured the women would be able to cook.”

  His snort of laughter surprised her, and she wished she could see his smile more clearly in the fast-falling dark. “They got their wish there. They just didn’t expect the Italian temper that came with the cooking ability. Anyway, about two days into their scouting trip, the men were on their way to Florence when they came upon a hunting party. Only the hunters were Malandante and they were kidnapping the aguane.”

  Tessa caught her breath. The Mal were Etruscans who’d been born with a gene to be bad. Evil, deadly, magically bad.

  “They’d already killed one of the women because she put up a fight,” Cal continued. “My dad and the other men killed the Mal, and according to who you ask, the women either threw themselves at the men in gratitude or the men made them an offer they couldn’t refuse and brought them back to Cimmeria.

  “My guess is the truth lies somewhere in the middle. Whatever really happened, the outcome was the same. There are now six aguane living in Cimmeria.”

  “And they’re happy?”

  Cal’s hesitation was slight but noticeable. “I’ve never heard my mom complain. And even I have to admit our father is different around her. Almost… gentle. But,” he sighed, “I gotta warn you. I figure as soon as my dad opens the door, we’re gonna start in on each other. And it could get bad.”

  Then something else occurred to her. “Do you… I mean, do the Cimmerians have a pantheon? I’ve never heard you mention any gods or goddesses.”

  “My people have never been much for deities. About a millennia ago, we had a complex polytheistic system like the Etruscans, Romans, and Greeks. But our gods were vicious, just like we’d been, and they massacred themselves centuries ago. In a weird way, their destruction saved our culture. Without gods to cause division among the rank and file, we learned to live together, if not always in harmony. You won’t have to worry about any—”

  He stopped, going so silent and still that she swore he wasn’t breathing. She froze as well, though she couldn’t quite contain her gasp of surprise.

  Cal’s hand closed over her mouth, and she barely had time to panic before he put his lips right against her ear.

  “We’re gonna have to run.” A pause. “Now.”

  As if her body knew what he wanted her to do even before her brain did, Tessa was ready when Cal took off.

  She leaped forward and poured every bit of her energy into making sure she didn’t slow him down too much. She knew he had to shorten his stride for her, but he kept their hands locked together and pulled her along.

  Brush cracked and popped beneath her feet, so loudly she swore it could be heard in the next state. Whoever or whatever Cal had sensed was sure to hear them.

  And Tessa was no sprinter.

  At first she heard nothing but the beat of her heart in her ears and the harsh inhale and exhale of her breathing.

  Cal ran silently.

  It was dark enough that she could barely see where they were going, but Cal had no problem maneuvering and she stayed as close to his path as she could. Still, she was running blind in a forest. At night. And fear made for a lousy run partner.

  When Cal came to a stop, she didn’t stop in time, slamming into his back and nearly making him fall. He kept to his feet only through sheer force of will and caught her around the waist to stop her forward momentum.

  He didn’t bother with an explanation, and in the very dim light of the rising moon, she saw him dig into his jeans pocket and then withdraw something small and white.

  When he turned to the huge old pine in front of him and started to draw something, she had to bite her tongue to keep from asking questions. She didn’t have a clue what he was doing, and now that they’d stopped, she heard—or thought she heard—whatever it was that’d spooked Cal.

  The soft shush of air moving was her only warning. Then a dark mass hit her and took her to the ground.

  She hit hard and couldn’t help her short scream. The demon had its arms wrapped tightly enough around her upper arms and chest to make it hard for her to breathe. But Tessa wasn’t about to play helpless victim this time.

  “Tessa! Hang on!”

  “Finish it, Cal!” He obviously needed more time to do whatever he was doing, and she’d give it to him.

  “Hello again, Lady of the Golden Light.” The demon who’d tried to take her two days ago breathed in her ear. “How—Ugh.”

  Tessa swung her head back hard and heard a satisfying crunch when her skull connected with the demon’s face. Of course, pain burst through her own head, making it difficult for her to think clearly.

  Luckily, her flight response worked just fine. She scrambled away on her hands and knees, back to Cal. She knew he wasn’t far. She just—

  “Tessa, over here!”

  She course-corrected without thought, forcing herself onto her feet. She couldn’t see, fear making her blind. Her outstretched hands groped in front of her but she couldn’t find Cal.

  Behind her, she heard the demon moving. They had to get out of here. Now.

  Cal grabbed her hand and yanked. And then they were falling.

  Chapter 12

  Tessa fell, this time from a great height.

  At least, she thought she did. The sensation of falling seemed to last forever. But when she hit the ground, she didn’t hit as hard as she’d thought she would. Part of the reason for that might have been because she fell on Cal.

  He was ready for her, but she must have landed on a sensitive body part because the noise he made sounded… painful.

  She tried to roll off him, but his arms came around her and held her tight. “Don’t move, Tess. Just… give me a minute.”

  He sounded winded, which was exactly how she felt. Winded and tired. No, not tired. Drained.

  Shit.

  Looking around, she only saw mist. A blanket of it so thick that she could barely make out the hand she held in front of her face.

  “Cal, I…”

  Damn, what the hell could she say?

  “What? What’s wrong? Are you hurt? Tessa, what’s wrong?”

  She felt him shift beneath her, felt him reposition her, and then his hands began to slide all over her body. Checki
ng for injuries.

  This was no blind fumbling. He could see her just fine. She couldn’t see anything but the mist. Was it because of her weakening powers or just the fact that Cimmeria lay between the planes of existence?

  “Cal, I can’t…”

  “Can’t what?” His hands had reached her legs, and when he got to her feet, she heard him breathe a sigh of relief at not finding any broken bones or gaping wounds.

  “I can’t see anything.”

  “Nothing at all?”

  “Well, no. It’s just all gray mist.”

  Another sigh. “That’s okay, babe. You’re all right. You’ll get your vision back in a few minutes. Sometimes it takes a little while to adjust when you first come through. Especially the way I do it.”

  “And that’s different from how others do it?”

  “Yeah. Turns out the Etruscan blood gives me a unique way to travel between the planes. I can make shortcuts though a tree but it has to be at least a hundred years old. Not too many of those left in this area. We got lucky. The demon couldn’t follow us through, and if we’re really lucky, the thing will need a little while to figure out where we went and how to follow us. All of the gates into Cimmeria are well guarded. If it tries to come through another gate, the Sentinels will know.”

  Good. All good. Except for that pesky energy drain.

  Cal moved again, this time away from her. Her heart stopped for a brief second before he laid his hands on her shoulders and helped her to her feet. “We gotta get moving. I know you can’t see it yet but we’re on a path. We can follow this all the way to my parents’ house. It’ll take a little while but the mist will clear.”

  She heard the confidence in his voice and forced a smile, hoping he wouldn’t see the strain behind it. “Then I guess we should be moving.”

  He paused. “Do me a favor and close your eyes for a minute.”

  Her lids fell closed immediately, and she had a brief second to wonder at how willingly she did anything he asked before his mouth closed over hers.

  Heat flared, immediate and overwhelming. Maybe it was the fact that she couldn’t see him. Or maybe it was the fact that she’d fallen in love with him.

  His lips touched hers, and she lost herself in his taste. Hot male. Dark, spicy, and all Cal.

  Her arms wrapped around his shoulders and she clung, uncaring if it made her seem weak. He had strength enough for both of them. When he pressed open her lips and let his tongue slip inside her mouth, licking and teasing, she felt that strength seep inside her.

  She sighed into his mouth, pressing closer. Her nipples hardened and peaked, rubbing against his muscled chest. She arched her back, needing more of him, and his hands swept from her shoulders down her back and to her ass as he lifted her to himself and against his bulging erection.

  Her hips moved, her clit needing that pressure. If he rubbed just enough, at just the right angle, she’d come.

  And, just that fast, she needed to come. She was panting for it, begging him for it with each gyration. He seemed to want the same thing, thrusting his cock against her, mimicking the sex act until both of them were panting.

  When his hand fell to the button on the slim black pants he’d given her to wear, she leaned back just enough so he could open it and pull down the zipper.

  Quick and dirty. She wanted to come with him buried deep inside her. Didn’t want to screw around with foreplay. She wanted him to fuck her.

  Cal appeared to be on the same page.

  He shoved down her pants and her underwear as his mouth ravaged hers. Then his hand left her and brushed against her thighs as he ripped at his pants. She could barely breathe but refused to give up his mouth. She had one hand cupped around his jaw, though he didn’t seem to be going anywhere. He kissed her with the same frantic passion she felt vibrating through her.

  Tearing his mouth away, he spun her, guiding her hands forward until she braced herself against a smooth tree trunk.

  “Bend forward, baby.” Cal’s hands gripped her waist. “Damn, you’re gonna be tight this way.”

  With her pants around her ankles, she couldn’t spread her legs too far. Just far enough to let him in. He didn’t waste time with preliminaries, and she didn’t want him to.

  She was wet and he was ready—

  He thrust inside, sinking so deeply that she swore he couldn’t go any further. He proved her wrong by pulling out and doing it again. He set a hard pace, the sound of his thigh slapping against her ass erotically charged. His fingers dug into her hips, the sharp bite making her gasp. She loved it. Met him thrust for thrust. Wanted more.

  He gave it to her. Every hard, wonderful inch.

  Her breath sawed from her lungs, and she let her head hang down as she took him. Sensation popped and crackled through her nerves, muscles tightening as she drew closer to orgasm.

  And drew more power from their joining.

  “God, Tessa. Tell me you’re close.” Cal’s rough, deep rasp made her sheath clamp down on him, eliciting his groan. “I can’t last much longer.”

  “Just don’t stop.” She heard the plea in her voice… and the breathless anticipation. “Please.”

  He thrust harder. “Never. Gods damn, you feel so damn—”

  With a gasp, she came, her body spasming with the strength of it. Pure bliss. Nothing had ever felt so right or so wonderful.

  Until Cal groaned out her name and poured his seed into her.

  She didn’t know how long it took for him to empty into her. For her orgasm to wind down to occasional spasms.

  She only knew that when her arms wavered, Cal wrapped his arms around her waist and held her against him. Cal’s chest labored against her back, the fast-paced thudding of his heart arousing and comforting at the same time.

  Her fingertips stroked along his arms as she felt her power returning.

  A double-edged sword.

  Opening her eyes, she now saw shades of gray instead of a solid blanket of it. After a few more minutes, she could actually make out forms.

  Around them, trees towered up from the forest floor, the trunks dark brown, limbs reaching for a dusk-gray sky. Beneath them, grass grew, soft but not green. More like a pale brown.

  With her head pillowed on Cal’s hard shoulder, she had no desire to move. But she knew this was only a temporary respite.

  “Tessa. You okay?”

  Cal capped his question with a bite to her earlobe. Just hard enough to bring up a quick lash of pain. She shivered and his arms tightened around her.

  “I’m fine. I’m better than fine.”

  “The trip through the gate took a lot out of you, didn’t you?’

  She nodded, unwilling to tell him that the first rush of fuel from their sex was already starting to wane.

  He didn’t ask any more questions, but he did hold her a little tighter for several more minutes. Making her heart ache just a little more with each breath.

  Then, with a sigh, he turned her around so they could adjust their clothes. She felt his gaze follow her, sensed his worry in the heaviness of his breathing and the tenseness of his muscles.

  Which merely heightened her own sense of impending doom.

  “Tessa…”

  When he didn’t finish his thought, she forced a smile, knowing he could see it, and lifted her hand to caress his cheek. “We should go. I’m anxious to meet your parents.”

  He nodded, but she could tell he was still chewing over something in his head. “The village is about an hour’s walk from here. Sorry I couldn’t get us closer.”

  “Cal.” She rested her fingers over his lips, cutting off anything else he might say. “You got us away from the demon and you got us here. That, in itself, is amazing.”

  With a short nod, he grabbed her hand, pressed a kiss to her palm, and started walking.

  ***

  The village, when it finally came into view through the trees, reminded Tessa of home. Of Tuscany.

  Set into a slight hillside, the single-sto
ry homes sprawled away from their original footprints in haphazard directions, as if whoever had built them hadn’t cared one bit for aesthetics. Which they probably hadn’t.

  Made of stone, the buildings had doorways but no doors and no glass in their many windows. Everything was open.

  What light fell from the sky shone brighter here, and the mist that had settled over the forest dissipated until it could almost be considered bright.

  They hadn’t spoken much on their walk, but Tessa couldn’t help asking, “How does the light get here?”

  Cal stopped before they left the cover of the trees, holding onto her hand so she didn’t walk ahead. “It seeps in from the other planes. We have night and day, just like above. It’s just… diffused down here. Filtered.”

  Which was why her strength was draining. Not a huge drain, only barely noticeable. But it was noticeable. She couldn’t help but wonder what she’d feel like in a week. A month.

  And if she stayed here, safe and untouchable, would Charun move on to one of her sister goddesses?

  Yes, they’d been warned, but what if Charun caught one of them? What if, instead of running and hiding like a coward, she should have stayed with them? Would they have had better luck banding together and trying to find some way to get Charun off their backs? To convince him his plan was destructive and possibly world ending?

  “Tessa?”

  Cal’s urgent tone had her lifting her head to smile at him, but the dark look on his face wiped her smile right off.

  “Let me do the talking,” he said. “Everything’s going to be okay.”

  She wanted to believe that. She really did. But she knew it wouldn’t be.

  “Caligo. What the hell are you doing skulking around the perimeter of the village? Good way to get yourself killed. I taught you better.”

  Cal didn’t turn from her right away. He stiffened and took a deep breath, his gaze locked to hers. Only when she gave him another smile did he finally turn to face the speaker.

  Tessa couldn’t see around Cal and would have been content to wait until he introduced her, but when Cal said, “Nice to see you, too, Father,” she leaned to the right.