Love and War

by Tricia Andersen

  He growled then stormed to the kitchen. This unexplained urge was forcing him to do something he’d sworn he would never do. He picked up the phone book and shuffled through the brittle pages until he reached the listings for the United States government. He picked up the handset of the rotary phone and dialed. It was time to get this woman out of his house and as far away from him as possible.

  His gaze flickered from the woman on his couch to the clock as time ticked away. One automated system kicked him to another. His finger couldn’t spin the dial fast enough before he was sent somewhere else. Not once did a human answer the phone.

  If a live, breathing being did finally answer the phone he was going to have a bone to pick with them.

  A low moan tore Mack’s attention from his phone call. The blonde tossed and turned on his couch as she rubbed her face. She opened her eyes and glanced around his cabin. They were a beautiful sapphire blue and did nothing to calm the urges burning in Mack. If anything they made it worse.

  She glared at him. “Where am I? And who are you?”

  Mack set the handset back on the receiver and strode from the kitchen until he was hovering over her. He expected her to shrink away from him. He was an overbearing presence. Instead her gaze narrowed as she snarled.

  “My name is Mack Bradshaw. You’re in my cabin. You crashed your plane in my swamp. Trust me. I didn’t invite you,” he told her. “And who might you be?”

  His eyes fixated on the little spitfire’s mouth. Her tongue skimmed her lower lip. Her pale cheeks flushed pink as she scanned him from foot to head. He fought his instincts to kiss her until she was breathless.

  “My name is Anna Lynch and I work for the Pentagon,” she answered. “What happened to my jet?”

  Mack’s brow creased in anger. The name Lynch pissed him off and it would until his fight. He huffed then sucked in a deep breath. He needed to keep his cool. Just because they had the same last name didn’t mean she was related to that son of a bitch Romeo Lynch even though she had to be from around DC. “Your plane is a flaming piece of shit. The fire trucks don’t get this far out into the swamp. Don’t know what to tell you, sweetheart.”

  Anna sighed as she searched the cabin around her again. She seemed to be formulating some sort of plan. “I need to reach my supervisor. I just need to find my…”

  She patted her flight suit then rolled her eyes. “I left it in my purse at the hanger. That’s right. Fuck.”

  Mack gaped at her, then chuckled to himself. An attitude and a foul mouth? This might be his kind of woman after all. Even a better reason to get her out of here before he threw her over his shoulder and hauled her to his bedroom to get rid of the lust about to erupt inside him. “You’re welcome to use my phone.”

  She rubbed at the bridge of her nose. “I’m a slave to modern technology. I don’t have his number memorized.”

  “There’s a phone book beside it,” Mack offered.

  “The number I need wouldn’t be in the phone book. Where am I, anyway?”

  Mack grinned. “Well, Miss, you are in the great state of Georgia, somewhere in the godforsaken part of the Okefenokee Swamp.”

  “It’s not godforsaken anymore,” she muttered as her face grew paler than it already was.

  “Excuse me?”

  “Nothing.” She shook her head. “I just, I have no one to call. The only person I know to call I wouldn’t right now.”

  “And who might that be? I don’t want you to wilt here in the muck without your technology.”

  He could hear this woman named Anna growl. “Trust me. I’m far from fragile. The only person I know with a connection to the state of Georgia is my father. He’s from Athens.”

  Mack’s eyes grew to slits. “That’s where I recognize you from. You’re Senator Alastair Lynch’s kid. I’ve seen you in the newspaper ads posing with your ridiculous family.”

  “Excuse me?” Her voice pitched three octaves higher as her fists flew to her hips. She was even sexier when she was downright pissed. Mack bit back a guttural moan. He needed to get rid of this woman.

  “Don’t you have a boyfriend, or fiancé, or something to call? Probably a stockbroker or something?”

  “Nope, sorry. Kind of married to my job.”

  “Then call your dad.”

  “My dad is going to be very pissed that I took off with a billion-dollar prototype and crashed it in the swamp, okay?”

  The words slipped out before Mack could stop them, his voice catching a bit from the lust building in him. “Daddy’s girl.”

  Her face screwed up with a scowl as she stumbled to her feet. “You know what? I’ll walk to the nearest town. Thanks for saving my life but I don’t need to take any more of your shit.”

  She stalked to the door. This was the answer to all of Mack’s prayers. The little spitfire was about to be out of his life. Except some unknown force took control of his legs and sprinted him to the door, slamming him against it before she could reach the knob. She looked up and glared at him, her lips less than an inch from his. Her warm breath on his mouth nearly snapped his already weak resolve.

  “You’ll be dead by the time you reach the end of the lane. If the swamp doesn’t get you, the gators will,” he told her, his voice a low rumble. “Why don’t you be a good girl and go take a shower. The bathroom is off my bedroom. I’ll find you some clothes.”

  “Stop being condescending to me,” she warned. She leveled him one more furious look before she lifted herself on her toes enough to touch her lips to his. It wasn’t a kiss. It was a tease. She let go of the knob and sauntered into his bedroom, nudging the door closed a little behind her.

  Mack blew out a huge sigh. What was he thinking? If a gator ate this woman, would he care? He didn’t give a shit before. But deep in his soul he knew he’d hate himself for the rest of his cursed existence if anything happened to her.

  He glanced back and noticed something in the reflection of the cracked full-length mirror that hung on the wall of his bedroom. He should have pried the piece of junk off the wall and thrown it out a long time ago.

  He stepped closer as he studied it. Anna was in the doorway between the bedroom and bathroom. Her long blonde hair flowed past her shoulders. She unzipped the flight suit and shouldered it off leaving her in only her baby pink bra. She shimmied it past her hips to reveal a matching pair of lace panties.

  He knew he should tear himself away from the vision in the mirror. He at least grounded himself to the floor. Every fiber of his being wanted to shove the door and throw her on his bed. Instead he undid his jeans and slipped his hand in his briefs. Yup, he was hard as a rock. He felt his erection twitch with a subtle brush of his finger.

  He pulled his hand free long enough to spit into it then plunged it back into his briefs again and stroked himself.

  Anna reached behind herself and undid her bra. She let it slide down her arms until it landed on the floor.

  Mack picked up his pace as he imagined feasting on the tight, pink nubs standing erect against her breasts. His balls clenched as he teetered on the edge.

  She hooked her thumbs into her panties at her hipbones and nudged them down her legs leaving her completely naked. He groaned as his eyes raked over her. He needed her to turn the shower water on now. He wouldn’t last much longer and the roar he had harbored in his throat would betray what he was doing.

  He could have sworn he saw her blue-eyed gaze before she stepped into the bathroom and closed the door. The sound of water rushing through the pipes was a relief. He muttered a string of curses as his release left him quaking where he stood.

  He wiped his hand on his jeans as he sighed. He needed to drive her to town. That was final. If he didn’t, he was going to lose what scant amount of control he had left. Next time he wouldn’t be jacking off into his hand. Next time he’d be buried balls deep inside her. He pushed the bedroom door open and headed for his closet to find anything that might fit the poor girl.

  Chapter Two

&nbs
p; Athena knew she should have slapped the condescending bastard. She nudged the bedroom door behind her as she growled. Treating her like she was a child? That was way out of line. It made her so fucking mad. She was a goddess. She’d lived thousands of lifetimes more than he had.

  She glanced at the sparse decorations that lined the walls. There was a broken mirror hanging from one wall and a cheap poster of an autumn garden complete with a wood rail fence and orange fallen leaves on the other. The poster was kept in a smoked plastic frame probably from the same discount store and was too peaceful to belong in this place.

  She stepped around the large unmade bed and the random piece of discarded clothing as she made her way to the bathroom. She sighed as she glanced at the photo once more then took in the room. She could just ghost from the place, as Ares always called it. Hell, she could reassemble the burning jet sinking in the swamp, including repairing the overheating wire so no other pilot crashed when they flew it. With a snap of her fingers she could disappear from this hellhole and reappear in a hot bath with a glass of her favorite wine in her hand.

  Her gaze landed on the bed, the pillows dented where Mack’s head must have laid. Something deep in her soul tremored. She could ghost out of the swamp. But a part of her wanted to find out what it would feel like to be beneath him in that bed. She wanted it so much it made her ache to her core. It was a feeling she’d never experienced this strong before. She was one of the three maiden goddesses. After thousands of years she was still a virgin.

  The one child she did have wasn’t conceived by conventional means.

  She stopped in the threshold of the door to the bathroom and tugged on the zipper of her flight suit. With the carnal thoughts going through her head, getting undressed in this room might be a bad idea. She pulled the zipper down and shrugged the suit off her shoulders then shoved it down past her hips as she looked around the room again.

  Her gaze stopped at the broken mirror. In its reflection, despite the cracks in the surface, she could see Mack watching her in the other room. His hand undid the fly of his dirty jeans. She watched as he reached inside. By the concentrated crease of his brow there was no doubt in her mind what he was doing. She should just ghost out to get away from the creep.

  Except the thought that he was aroused by her deepened the ache in her core. Turning him on like this made her feel like Aphrodite. She didn’t know why she wanted this man so bad, but she did. And rarely did she not get what she pursued. This man would be no different.

  She reached behind her and undid the clasps one by one. Once she was free of it, she let the straps slide down her arms and onto the floor at her feet. She glanced up at the mirror to watch him. His hand pumped furiously inside his jeans, she could see the beads of sweat dotting his forehead.

  Athena smiled to herself as she hooked her thumbs in the waistband of her panties and tugged them down her legs. She took her time to give him a show. She hoped he enjoyed what he saw.

  She took a final gander at Mack in the mirror. His skin was flushed, and his eyes looked out of focus. His chest heaved as he panted. His knees buckled a bit.

  She loved the fact she turned this mortal man into a puddle of goo by just watching her. She was tempted to wait until he reached his peak. She quivered at the thought of what he must look like when he released. She huffed then stepped into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. When she saw that expression on his face, she wanted to be beneath him. And that was if they ever got that far.

  Athena heard the roar from the other room over the spray of water. She palmed her breasts, pinching the tight buds in response. Heat pooled in her groin begging for a release of its own.

  Yes, she needed to ghost as far out of this place as she could. If she didn’t, she might end up regretting it the rest of her life.

  * * * *

  Athena stepped through the cloud of steam and swiped the first towel she found. She patted dry her flesh then wrapped it around tucking it within itself to keep it in place. She tried to stare at her image in the fogged over mirror. She needed to go. She needed to get out of there.

  But every nerve in her body was on fire with a lust she couldn’t describe. She closed her eyes as she thought of her panties and bra lying on the floor in the other room. A moment later she opened them again.

  If she was staying, she might as well have clean undies. She suddenly understood why Ares was so obsessed with this. It was very convenient. If her father found out she was picking up her brother’s bad habits he wouldn’t be happy.

  She pulled open the bathroom door, gasping as the cool air from the bedroom filled her lungs. She nudged some stray drops of water from her forehead then strode to the bed. The sheets and comforter had been pulled into place. On top of the midnight blue blanket lay a large ash gray t-shirt and a pair of navy sweatpants. Next to them now sat a matching pair of lace baby blue panties and bra beneath a hairbrush.

  She glanced at the closed bedroom door before she tugged the panties on. She slipped the bra on then the shirt over her head. She watched as the hem dropped to mid-thigh. Mack was seriously a big guy.

  Athena studied the sweatpants for a long minute before she scooped them up and stepped into them. No matter how tight she tried to cinch them around her waist they wouldn’t stay. With a huff she kicked them off and folded them, laying them back on the bed when she was done. She ran the brush through her hair as quickly as she could. At the end of the last stroke it disappeared.

  When she stepped out of the bedroom, she found herself alone. She wandered through the small shack, taking in the bookshelves, the warm couch she’d woken up on, the small excuse for a kitchen. She stopped for a moment to read the titles on one shelf. For being an asshole, Mack seemed to like great literature. She smiled as she grazed her fingers across three volumes of Greek mythology. She couldn’t help herself from wondering who his favorite goddess might be.

  A pile of papers on the end table nestled against the couch caught her eye. It was Mack’s private life. She shouldn’t snoop but curiosity got the better of her. Besides, it might give her some insight to the man she was so attracted to.

  She bit back a gasp as she saw a familiar name on the contract. Romeo Lynch. She scanned it further and sighed. She knew Ares had another fight coming up but she rarely paid attention to his fight career. She condoned whatever kept him out of trouble and prevented any messes for Olympus to clean up. It didn’t mean she had to follow what he did in a cage.

  Except his next opponent was Mack Bradshaw and even if she’d only known the man for less than a day, she didn’t want to see him get torn apart by a legit god.

  She stepped away from the form when she heard the creak of the hinges on the front door. She met Mack’s gaze before his raked over her body.

  She noticed his throat bob before he spoke. “I got a pair of sweats out for you.”

  “I tried. They were too big,” Athena informed him. “Is what I’m wearing a problem?”

  Mack chuckled low. She shivered at the sound. “No, not a problem at all, baby.”

  Athena felt her cheeks burn at the word baby. “I can put my flight suit on if I need to in case someone stops by like a friend or your girlfriend.”

  “I have no friends and I sure as fuck have no girlfriend.”

  She smirked at him. “I can’t imagine why with your sweet personality.”

  He glared at her before he stormed off to the kitchen. He tore open a drawer and rummaged inside.

  “What are you doing?” she questioned.

  He picked out a long tined fork and slammed the drawer shut. He held it up for her to see. “I’m roasting duck in the fire outside for supper. The rabbit I planned on eating was charcoal by the time I was done dealing with your shit. Any objections?”

  “Is there anything I can do to help?”

  He looked taken aback at her offer. “No, I have potatoes and vegetables roasting outside as well. But it’s all going to burn if I keep bullshitting in here with you.”
<
br />   “By all means, don’t let me stop you.”

  He growled as he stomped across the cabin and threw open the door. Athena followed him outside into the hot, thick, damp swamp.

  Mack crouched next to the fire ring as he poked at the duck mounted over the fire on a spit. He watched it carefully then unwrapped the tin foil on the grate below it. He nodded with a satisfied smile before he straightened up.

  His countenance darkened when he saw her. “Go inside. Now.”

  Athena cocked her head at his as she crossed her arms over her chest, very aware that the simple gesture raised the hem of the shirt to her upper thigh. “You know, if you were a little nicer, you might have a friend or two.”

  “Fuck it, Anna. Stop trying my patience.”

  “Or what are you going to do, Mack?”

  He snarled moments before he rushed across the gravel yard and took the porch steps in one leap. Her heart caught in her throat as he bore down on her. Before she could let out a squeak, he’d pinned her against the wall. His mouth covered hers as he feasted on her lips then her chin and throat. She moaned as his hands dipped under the shirt to touch her flesh.

  Mack dropped his hands to her thighs. She clung to his shoulders as he lifted her then and guided her legs around his waist. She returned his kisses with vicious ones of her own, biting at his lower lip before she soothed it with her tongue.

  She felt the tip of his cock nudge hard against her panties. Her eyes flew open wide as his fingers brushed her, then tugged down the zipper of his jeans.

  “Stop,” she demanded.

  He broke away from her as his gaze narrowed. His chest heaved as he panted. “What do you mean stop?”

  “I mean,” she stammered.

  “You don’t want this?”

  “I do but…”

  “Want to share it with the class?