Ian let out a scoffing laugh. “Sorry, man. Anything associated with immortals is never easy.”
“I suppose not.” Ben squeezed the excess water from the bag. He laid it on his precisely folded napkin before taking a gulp from the paper cup. “Do you mind answering some questions for me?”
Ian opened his hand, palm up, inviting whatever Ben wanted to ask.
“Before Polly’s challenge, you were just a normal guy, right. Plain old, run-of-the-mill mortal?”
A nod.
“Were you picked by Pierus?” Ben needed to know the history of the other mortal men who were now mates to the Muses.
“No. I’ve known Polly for a couple of years. We’d been friends, and hung out together in big groups. A year ago, I started looking at her differently. I wanted more of an, um…adult relationship with her. We started dating right before her challenge began.”
“What about the other guys?” Ian’s story was so different than Ben’s.
“Jax had just moved to town as Clio’s challenge started. But he was definitely interested in her. They work together at Delphi City University.” Ian tapped a finger against his cup. “Thomas, well, he was different. He was attracted to Nia, but he didn’t want anything to do with the challenge.”
“Why not?”
“He’s Doubting Thomas.” At Ben’s blank look, Ian explained. “He’s the host of a television program called Doubting Thomas. It’s his job to debunk myths.”
“That’s why he looked so familiar.”
“Yeah. Imagine being confronted with a living, breathing myth he couldn’t disprove. Plus, his niece, Hailey, had been specifically mentioned at the outset of the challenge. In a very threatening manner. Thomas wanted no part of it. So Zeus called in Mnemosyne to wipe his memory of Nia and of the existence of immortals.”
That had to suck for Nia. Probably felt a lot like Lia’s insistence on an end to his physical role in defeating the demented deity. “But he ended up helping?”
“I guess love can conquer all. It certainly countermanded Mnemosyne’s memory wipe. The goddess is still pissed about that fail.”
Ben absorbed Ian’s statement as he studied the whorls and eddies of the foggy scenery. A thought niggled at the edge of his consciousness. Just out of reach. Probably due to the little pity party he was holding internally. “Lia doesn’t want my help any longer. She wants to keep me safe.” His snort came from deep within his chest, rumbling up his throat and bursting through his nose.
“They are a protective gaggle of women.” Ian sympathized.
Releasing his pent-up breath, Ben shoved to his feet. “We aren’t going to solve this sitting here. Can we head back to the lab?”
“Yeah. Normally I stay in the lab all day. It’s rare for me to venture outside during the workday. It’s nice to take a break, but this is more pressing.” Ian escorted him down the corridor.
Ben replaced his clean suit and traipsed behind Ian into the sanitizing chamber. As the cleansing mist jetted from the ceiling, he lifted his face, letting the thin layer of moisture do its magic, cleaning germs and contaminates from his flesh.
The simple thought gripped his brain and lungs. Ben held his breath, attempting to make the idea solidify. The mists finished and the door before him swept open. But he didn’t follow Ian into the clean room. His feet remained planted on the grated floor as his mind raced.
“You coming?” Ian asked.
The man’s question barely penetrated Ben’s consciousness as he cycled through his thoughts in rapid order. He reached overhead and dipped a fingertip into the tiny recession that provided the cleaning vapor. In his chest, his heart thudded. Excitement simmered under his skin and he felt the corners of his mouth curve up.
Ian thrust his arm forward, stopping the door’s closure. “Ben?”
“We can’t use water,” he muttered. “But… Is Poseidon one of the good guys?”
“Yeah. What you got?”
Ben rushed past Ian, heading toward the computer monitor where they’d worked the afternoon away. “We’ll have to clean the oceans first,” he muttered. A jiggle of the mouse disrupted the screen saver of falling rain. “I want to look at the actual composition of the formula. The schematic. Can you find it?”
Ian jostled him to one side, and clicked on a file along the bottom toolbar. A visual map of the complex chemical string filled the monitor.
Ben squinted and flattened his palms on the smooth table surface. “Shit, it’s too small.”
Ian tapped the track pad adjacent to the keyboard, and the image moved to a humungous screen on the wall in front of them.
Ben raced around the table. Eager to prove his theory, he put his finger on the screen to trace the string. His chest pumped up in triumph as he spun to face Ian. “Vapor.”
“Vapor?”
“We can’t use water because of Enki’s control of it. But what if we seed the antidote in vapor. In fog?”
Ian pursed his lips and lowered his brow, his gaze darting over the displayed formula. “Dude, you just said what if! That’s the keyword on the challenge. The Muses are supposed to lead their partner to questioning what if. I think it’s a good bet, you’ve just won this round.”
Startled, Ben jumped toward the table. “It’s over then?”
“Hell if I know. This is Pierus and one of his skanky brats we’re dealing with. Who knows what comes next for Lia. But we’re one step closer to the end. And, more importantly, to solving the world’s food crisis.”
Ian’s words put a damper on Ben’s jubilation. They’d determined how to fix the world. Now, he had to figure out how to help Lia finally defeat Hunger.
Chapter 18
The next afternoon, Lia trudged down the posh hallway of the Olympus residence quarters. This wing of the corporate headquarters had been remodeled in the past year to look like a luxury hotel. Strategically placed sconces created vibrant splashes of light along her way. Plush carpeting deadened her footsteps. Fabulous works of art adorned the walls. An original Picasso hung right outside her apartment. Zeus had thought the artist was the shit when he was in his cubism phase. Personally, she considered that his most boring cycle.
Letting herself into her home away from home, she barely glanced at the picture that was supposed to be a bunch of chicks at Avignon. At least the interior was decorated the way she wanted. Pictures of The Three Stooges and The Marx Brothers were spaced evenly in the entry corridor. An autographed poster of Lucille Ball hung over the down-filled sofa. The comedienne had been her idol during Lia’s previous lifetime. Lucy had inspired Lia more than the other way around. One of her proudest moments came when Lia had scored a gig as an extra on the episode where Lucy thought Ricky was trying to murder her.
“Ben?” From where she stood, she had a view into all four rooms of the tiny residence. He hadn’t made it home yet. Ugh. Home. She was at Olympus under duress. She had to make the best of this situation while she had Ben. No telling what came next for them.
She threw herself into the chair across from Lucy’s picture and reviewed the last two days. Beat down of Hunger, putting her in a temporary time out: check. Ensured safety for Ben and Emma for the duration of the challenge: check. Sat through the most tedious strategy meeting in all her lifetimes: double check. Fallen in love with a mortal thrown into her life in a devious ploy by the baddest bad guy in the history of the universe: triple check with sprinkles on top.
That last item tickled her heart. Not the bad guy, but falling in love with Ben.
During the meeting, Lia had argued for being allowed to return to her home. Being secured behind the golden gates of Olympus served no purpose except to stall the challenge. No way in Hades was Pierus or his offspring getting back onto the grounds. Everything until now sped by lightning fast. Since moving to the secured site, time had dragged to sludge-like speed.
Letting her head drop to the back of the chair, Lia closed her eyes and attempted to calm her churning thoughts. Ben and Ian had determin
ed a way to deliver a cure for Enki’s toxic rain. During the endless strategy session, Nia had scrawled a note on a piece of paper and slipped it to Lia; the dynamic duo had finalized distribution plans. It had been one of the high points of her afternoon.
The other high point came when Gaia stopped her just before lunch to report that Asclepius had examined Emma and determined he’d be able to restore her hearing. If she wanted it back. Some days, being a god or goddess ruled.
Twisting her head to the right, Lia noted the clock confirming what her stomach was telling her. Time to eat. She shoved out of the chair and stumbled toward the kitchen. A quick exploration of the fridge yielded nothing but healthy options. No sugar, no fat…no fun.
She opened the cabinet above the standard-issue two-burner stove in the tiny kitchen. Rising on her toes, she reached inside for her secret stash of candy bars. Not finding them immediately, she levitated upward, until her head grazed the ceiling and she could see into the high cupboard.
She had the wrapper off the bar almost before she lowered all the way to the floor. Leaning on the counter, she chomped down on the treat. She almost groaned as chocolate and peanuts hit her taste buds. The only bliss better than chocolate was the feeling she experienced each time Ben slid home within her. A shiver ran over her with just the thought of how solid his body felt on hers.
The front door swung open. “Lia?” Ben stepped into the apartment, a broad grin stretched across his face, lighting up his eyes. He practically bounced across the room toward her. Goddess, she adored that smile. She’d work hard to make sure it stayed there.
Every ounce of tiredness left her body as Ben crowded against her, hands braced on the counter on either side of her hips. Electricity barreled through her torso as he pressed close.
“How was your day, Lucy?”
His mimicking of Ricky Ricardo’s accent made her heart stutter. She stroked the pads of her fingers over the scruff on his jaw. “Long and boring.” She followed the path of her hand with her lips. “But things are looking up.” She pressed a kiss to the corner of his lips, the one still lifted in a sexy smile. Goddess, she loved that smile. “I heard your day was pretty awesome.”
“Yeah, I’m feeling like a winner today.” His gaze smoldered as he moved one hand to lift the hem of her long-sleeved T-shirt. “Hoping to continue the streak.” On her midriff he caressed tight, fiery circles.
Lia bit hard on her lower lip, commanding her mind to focus on his words, not his actions. “You asked what if and found the answer. Ben, that’s huge.”
With a low chuckle, he ground something else huge against her belly. His knee nudged her legs apart, and he bent to nibble the side of her neck. “Can I tell you about it later? I think we have more important things to do.”
Yes indeed. She gripped two handfuls of his shirt and jerked him forward. The press of his chest to her breasts kicked the tingling between her legs up into needy jangling.
He slanted his mouth over hers in a kiss that went from sweet to spicy in the space of a heartbeat. One second tender, the next frenzied. Victorious. He traced the rim of her mouth with his tongue. When her lips quirked up in a smile, he dipped past them. The way he probed and explored sped her heart toward light speed.
Shocking tingles erupted as he cupped her breast. Ah, goddess, that will never get old. The massage of his fingers accompanied the stroke of his thumb over the already stiff peak of her nipple. Each squeeze and thrum drew her body tighter, connecting to her brain, which begged for more.
She wrapped her arms around him, sweeping her hands down to his lower back, poking her fingers into the firm muscles at the top of his butt. She jerked his shirt free of his jeans, and pressed eager fingers into the warm skin she’d bared. Spearing her hands up his ribs, her fingertips dipped into each indentation of his spine.
The nip of his teeth on her neck ignited a flame within, and pure lust consumed her. Damp desire rushed between her thighs, and she lifted one leg around the back of his, hooking her foot around his knee.
Ben released his hold on her breast to tuck his hands under her butt. He lifted and she locked her ankles behind his waist, her arms around his shoulders. Burying her face in the crook of his neck, she swept her tongue along the base of his throat. He tasted fresh and clean, like he’d showered before he left the lab. His skin smelled like nectar and smoke, a heady combination.
In the bedroom, he released his grip from under her thighs, and let her body slide down his frame. His fingers snarled in the hem of her shirt and he whipped it up and over her head almost before she got stable on her feet. Of course, it could be his rather large erection rubbing on her belly that made her knees unsteady.
Ben chugged in a breath, licked his lips, and stared at the expanse of skin he’d uncovered. The slide of his fingers down the slope of her breast was pure eroticism. He licked his lips. “Pretty. Going to be my new favorite coming off.”
Air stalled in her lungs when he unclasped her bra. His fingers skated down her arms as he lowered the straps to remove the lacy red confection. Lia had taken a page from Persephone’s book and indulged in sexy lingerie when she’d dressed this morning.
“What about you?” She pointed to his crotch, and tipped her head. “I love those jeans, but they’ll look better on the floor.” She undid his buckle then popped the button. His hands tightened on her upper arms when she dipped her hand down the front of his jeans, whispering her fingers over the crown of his dick.
His breath sizzled in, then rasped out. He gripped her wrist. “That’s it. Get those clothes off. Now.”
“Don’t you want to see my super sexy panties?” She pouted, but a smile stretched the corners of her mouth.
“You can show them to me, but I’ll just get impatient and rip them off.” He hopped to one foot and unlaced his boot. It thudded to the ground as he hopped to the other foot.
And lost his balance. He crashed to the floor at her feet, his teeth clacking together audibly.
Lia went to her knees next to him, her bobbing breasts drawing his gaze. “You okay?”
“Don’t worry about me,” he said, tugging the laces of his other boot. “Worry about getting out of those jeans.” He tossed the boot under the bed. Leaning back, he unzipped his pants, lifted his hips, and a moment later had dragged the denim and boxer-briefs over his feet.
Eyeing his state of arousal, Lia pushed back to her feet. Stepping between his legs, she nudged them wider with her toe. Ben grasped her ankle. Her espadrille joined his boot under the bed before he slipped off the other shoe. His hands gripped her calves as she swung her hips and worked open the button and zipper of her pants. Bending to shove them down, she brushed her boobs near his lips, darting away when he would have mouthed her.
She kicked the fabric clear and stood before him naked and proud. Heat from his palms actually raised shivers of desire as he smoothed his hands up her thighs. Bending his knees, he scooted closer until his nose was in her crotch. Her heart stuttered as his lips tugged on the knot of nerves hidden in her folds. His fingers dug into the fleshy part of her hips, holding her steady under the drugging onslaught of his lips, tongue and teeth on her sex.
The thick, short hair bristled under her fingertips when she wrapped them around his head to help steady herself. Her legs trembled and weakened when he slipped a finger along her cleft, easing inside her.
“Ben?” His name was a needy, pleading breath.
His response came muffled against her flesh.
She tugged his hair, trying to pull him up. She wasn’t above begging for him. “Please.”
He edged back, until his shoulders rested against the bed. Guided her legs to the outside of his hips, then pulled her down onto his lap. Or more correctly, onto the cock aimed so perfectly at her center. Stretching her, filling her. Fanning the flame into a bonfire of need and lust. Stronger emotion thrummed deep within her, flaring brighter than desire.
Ben wrapped his arms around her back and bucked his hips hard between
her legs. On her knees, straddling his lap, she rocked with him. Sensation tickled against her heart with each thrust and roll. His muscular thighs slapped her ass, a thick, powerful sound. He quickened his pace, pressing her hips nearer his, until she couldn’t tell where he ended and she began. He bit down gently on her nipple, groaning when she arched to grant him better access.
The plush carpeting scraped her knees, but she was beyond caring. She tightened her legs around his hips and rode him, whimpering, sighing…moaning with lust. Filled to completion, stretched beyond comfort to flat out primal need.
Pressing his hand between her shoulder blades, he urged her closer. Ben buried his face against her chest, swirling his tongue from one peak to the other. He dropped his hand back to her bottom, cupped her ass and tapped her perineum in time with the slide of his cock in and out. Each tiny pressure there magnified the pleasure bounding through her until everything in her centered on the point of their joining.
“Oh, Lord, Ben. Ah,” she moaned as a climax roared through her. Her head spun and breath hissed from her lungs as whorls and eddies of color crashed behind her eyes. She arched her back, her insides clamping down on Ben’s shaft. Grinding on him, her orgasm lasted until he threw his head back and strained hard up into her. The muscles in his neck corded and he let out a hoarse shout as he came.
Aftershocks rocked through Lia, pulsing and electric. She tightened the ribbed inner muscles around his cock and pulled him deeper within, the fullness there swelling her heart and soul as well as her body.
Tears gathered in the corners of her eyes. She told him she’d let him go when this challenge ended. But how was she going to walk away from this taciturn man who’d captivated her imagination and captured her heart?
She slumped against him, squeezing her eyes shut and hiding her tears in the crook of his neck. Controlling her breath turned into a struggle. Goddess, she was behaving like her freaking twin. Drama queen much?
Hunger: Goddesses of Delphi Page 17