by JoAnna Grace
“It’s me. Don’t worry, my love.” She talked softly to him, kissing his cheek and forehead.
Ryse wasn’t the only one who turned their eyes away from the intimate moment.
“He still has traces of the dark magic in his mind.” Apollo rose to his full height. “Only time will tell what becomes of it. Hades alone can remove it, although it is best that he not be involved in this realm. He is one of the gods who wishes your race extinct. He will find any excuse. He surely will not care about the life of one soldier.” The god looked down at the couple on the ground. “His physical form shall heal in the next few hours. Take care of him, Oracle.”
Lysandra shifted to grip his robe. She kissed his hands and feet, thanking him over and over again in Greek.
A strange expression crossed his face before he concealed it. He looked surprised by her worship. Apollo smiled a warm and loving smile down at his follower. “You are welcome, my child. Your prayers unto me shall always be heard.” He tipped his head to Ryse, then went back through the portal. The soldier of Zeus took up his position and paid them no more attention.
“Let’s get him inside,” Brenden said, helping Dante to his feet.
“I don’t know who summoned a god for me,” Dante said, his voice tight. “But thanks.”
Hammon reached out and touched his shoulder. “It is the least we can do. What you did was very brave.”
“Stupid,” Yankee said, “but brave.”
Dante locked eyes with Yankee. “You and I have some unfinished business.”
“Look,” Yankee put his hands in his pockets, appearing to be bored, “get to the point of supporting your own weight, and then you can threaten me all you want. Until then, shut it.”
“Gentleman,” Ryse said, his patience gone for one day, “enough of the bickering. Lysandra, accompany Dante to his suite. Stay with him and tend to his needs. The rest of you, get some sleep. We will all need to be at our best tomorrow.”
He kissed his mother goodnight and made his way back to his room. Avery had just taken her hair down and was standing in front of the mirror naked, save a tiny triangle of cloth over her plump ass. His footsteps faltered and he watched her bend to open a few drawers in the dresser, mumbling as she searched for something.
“Damn selective amnesia. I can light a friggin’ candle with my mind, but I can’t find my clothes.” She saw him in the mirror. “Oh, hey.”
He moved until he was right behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.
“Ryse?”
“Shh. You’re supposed to be naked.” He met her eyes in the mirror as his hand slid upward to cup the weight of one breast. She shuddered, fire sparking in her green eyes. Ryse slipped his other hand between her legs. “I think I should worship you now.”
Avery’s eyes closed and her body relaxed against him. “Perfectly fine with me, darlin’.”
Throughout the night, Ryse reacquainted himself with every inch of her body. He memorized every fleck of green in her eyes and every curve of her lips. Once he learned what made her moan and gasp in pleasure, he repeated it often. They drowned each other in desire. When she thought she couldn’t take any more, he pushed her even further until they flew to the edges of the universe and back.
Somewhere in the middle of their exploration, he found a ticklish spot. Ryse took full advantage and had his sexy Princess laughing and giggling in between her sighs. Even with all the turmoil facing him tomorrow, he’d never been happier in his life than while laughing and making love with her. She collapsed on top of him, huffing and puffing after their last orgasm.
“Holy cow.” She chuckled against this chest. “You really are the product of gods.”
Ryse grinned, his body finally sated and lax. “You are welcome.” They both laughed and tried to catch their breath.
When they finally fell asleep, it was soundly in each other’s arms.
***
HAYDEN SIGHED WITH relief when his dream took shape. He was once again in the gardens of the palace. White roses, with blooms so pure they could only exist in dreams scented the air. A fountain trickled behind him as he sat and waited. Please, please let her come.
Minutes ticked by and there was no sign of her. His heart sank. Had she given up? Was two months without him so long that this mysterious night angel couldn’t believe in him any longer?
He leaned over and put his elbows on his knees. Please, Zeus. If you’re listening, please bring her back.
A feminine gasp brought up his head. There she was. His angel, with her long, flowing black hair and deep black eyes, stood in a white gown that flowed around her body. A tear rolled down her cheek as a shaking hand covered her mouth.
“You’re here.” Hayden stood, but she never moved, never came to him. “What’s wrong?”
“I didn’t think you would come back,” she whispered, her voice full of despair.
Hayden took one step forward. “I promised I would.”
“I know. But I—” She closed her eyes and more tears fell. “I was so afraid. I feared you were gone forever. That you were some figment of my imagination.”
Hayden held out his hand. “Will you not come to me?”
“You have to find me.” She didn’t move from her position.
Hayden’s heart filled with dread and he took another step forward. “What’s wrong?” he demanded, his voice rougher than he intended.
His angel wrapped her arms around her stomach. “You’re not real. I’m going crazy. They all think I’m crazy.”
“Sweetheart, please, let me hold you.” Hayden took one more step. “Take my hand.”
She looked up at him and he could see a pure but tormented soul in the depths of her eyes. “I can’t do this anymore. If you’re real, find me. But I can’t keep living in a dream.”
Unable to control himself any longer, Hayden closed the distance between them and brought her body into the shelter of his arms. “I will find you. I swear my life on it. I will use every means necessary. I won’t give up.” He tilted her chin up so she could see his eyes. “Don’t lose faith. I’ll find you and, when I do, nothing will keep us apart.”
His angel gripped the collar of his shirt and pulled his lips slowly to hers. Heat and longing flooded his bloodstream as he felt the silk of her kiss. Dearest gods, if this was what it felt like to kiss her in a dream, what bliss would the reality be?
“I need you,” she whispered.
“I promise, my love. Soon. I have a tracker, the best in the world. Can you tell me anything about where you are?”
“We’ve moved in with—Damn it.” She let out a heavy breath. “My sister is dating this man. We moved in with him. I didn’t want to leave that awful place in case it was somehow linked to you.”
“Do you know him?” Hayden worried about his angel being in danger.
“He’s one of us. Powerful.”
Hayden felt his face bunch up. His voice came out rough. “Is he good to you?”
“Oh, yes.” She touched his face, nodding. “Yes, don’t misunderstand me. He’s a good man. Honorable. My sister is crazy about him, and that makes me very happy. I’m only worried about being somewhere you can’t find me.”
“Don’t. I’ll find you. If you’re with a powerful Olympian, I have something to go on. Can you tell me what his power is?”
She said the word, but no sound came from her lips. She sighed in frustration; her head fell to his chest. “Why can’t the gods ignore us for one minute?”
Determination filled him. Hayden took his angel by the shoulders. He knew she was in the human realm. She’d implied as much. He had to find out more. “Does he live in a major city?”
“Yes. He has guards.”
“Thracians?” Hayden asked, excited that he got at least a breadcrumb.
“Yes. They are massive and well trained.”
Hayden sighed. That alone was enough to give him a direction. It didn’t narrow it down, by any stretch of the imagination. Powerful Olympians
with Thracian guards lived throughout the world.
“Is it near an ocean?”
“No. Lakes.” Those two words took great effort for her to speak. Wide, fear-filled eyes met his. “I’m leaving. I’m waking up.”
“I’ll find you.” Hayden kissed her with passion, promising over and over to search.
His angel faded, her last words ringing in his head when the sun woke him up the next morning.
I need you.
Lysandra helped Dante into the bed in his room. She couldn’t take her eyes off him. Blessed be the gods, he was alive. Pale, but alive. He sat up against the headboard and she stood beside him, fussing with his blankets.
“Can I get you anything?”
He leaned his head back and closed his eyes. “No, sit with me for a moment, please.”
She wasn’t accustomed to this closeness with a man. Yes, this was Dante, whom she loved. It still made her nervous to be alone with him. “Can you remember anything about that night?”
He scrubbed a hand over his face and took a deep breath, causing his barrel chest to expand. “I remember making you go for help. I remember seeing a demon and knowing I had to stop it. Everything else is blurred in my mind.”
She took his hand in both of hers and he smiled up at her. “Do you remember the man who was with the demon?” He frowned. “You said you knew who he was, but you never said his name. Can you recall it?”
Dante’s forehead wrinkled up as he thought back. “No. All I remember is the demon.”
That was not a good thing. She nodded and gave him a reassuring smile. If Dante didn’t remember, then how were they ever going to catch the person who summoned the beast?
“Can you do something for me?” he said, his throat scratchy.
Lysandra reached for a glass of water and handed it to him. “Anything.”
Dante’s eyes captured hers. “Will you kiss me? I need to feel your life and passion again.”
Air left her lungs in a rush. She took off her overcoat and sat on the edge of his bed. Her long, black braid landed near his hands. He slid off the band and unraveled it. When she finished the job for him and shook out her hair, his eyes widened.
“Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?”
“I am if you think I am.” Her stomach twisted and every nerve ending sizzled at his compliment.
Dante cupped her cheeks with his hands. “Inside and out, you are lovelier than all the roses in all the gardens in the world.” He pressed his lips to hers and sparks flew. She loved the way his kiss started out soft and gentle, the most intimate brushing of satin lips.
This wasn’t close enough for her. Dante must have felt the same because he pulled her up into his lap. Two strong arms encased her and his hands rested on her back. Her pulse raced and her head spun by the time she pulled away.
An adorable smile spread over his face. “Did I hear you tell Apollo that I’m your chosen mate? Or was it merely a pain-induced fantasy?”
Heat rose up her neck and into her cheeks. “You heard correctly. If you’ll have me. I have nothing to offer you. I have no home, no family, no dowry of any kind.” She didn’t know if women these days still came with a dowry, not that it mattered. It was no secret she had not a penny to her name.
“Oh, Lysa.” He ran his hands up her neck and into her hair. “I’ll have you every way I can get you. Your love is all I require.”
This time when he kissed her, it held desire and passion, lust and love, and hints of desperation. Her body came alive with sparks of fireworks and electricity. Suddenly, kissing him wasn’t enough, touching his clothed body didn’t suffice.
Then the truth of the situation became very clear. She might want Dante, but she didn’t have the first clue about seduction or the art of sex. What if she didn’t make him happy? What if she couldn’t please him in bed? Would he still want her? Perhaps she needed to slow things down.
“I had a vision of you,” she whispered against his kiss. “Of us, to be more specific. It was the reason I came to you that night.”
“Tell me about it.” He made his way to her neck and lavished his attentions there.
She could barely concentrate under his touch. “I had a vision of us together…intimately.”
Dante’s head jerked back, his eyebrows went up. “Having sex?”
“Yes.” The temperature in the room skyrocketed.
“Oh. Were you okay with that?”
Lysandra smirked. “I was on my way to your room to make it a reality.”
“Oh.” Dante exhaled heavily. The pink that colored his face warmed her heart.
“Looking back, I think it was a good thing that you weren’t alone.”
Dante shook his head, refueling his aggravation. “I’m still kicking Yankee’s ass.”
“It saved us—me—from rushing into a situation I couldn’t handle, Dante. I love you. But I’m not like other women. It’s not in my nature to rush into a physical relationship, especially since you will be my first, well, everything. I don’t want you to feel chained to someone who will weigh you down with my inexperience.”
“Lysa,” he said and smiled, melting her insides. “I’m going to let you in on a little secret. When I was nearly thirty years old, my father paid a woman to seduce me. I lost my virginity to a prostitute and I didn’t even know it.” Lysa gasped, appalled. “He justified it by saying that if he didn’t pay someone to have sex with me, I’d be a virgin forever because no self-respecting Olympian woman would want to risk being with me.”
“How dare he say such a thing? You’re a much more honorable warrior than he will ever be. I’d like to give him a large piece of my mind.” How could a man do that to his son? Xavier was less than scum. Gods forbid he ever say anything to Dante in her presence. She might forget her training and curse at him.
Dante chuckled. “I love your fierce heart.” He kissed her and, for a moment, they got lost. “Such a distraction, those lips of yours.” He sighed happily and returned to his story. “I only told you because that prostitute is the only woman I’ve ever been with. So while I’m not a virgin, I’m just as inexperienced in the sexual aspect as you are.”
Lysa put her hands on his chest. “I want to do this right, Dante. I want to have a future with you that is blessed by the gods. You are a warrior, an Elite. I know your devotion is to Lady Avery and I respect that. Do you think you can make room for me in there?”
“Yes, my beautiful fantasy, I can.”
“One day, when we are prepared, I will willingly give myself to you, completely, in every way.”
“Until then, will you rest with me? Your presence eases me like no other.”
She saw the weariness on his face. “Yes, mighty warrior. Rest and conserve your strength.”
When she moved off the bed, Dante took her hands. “I love you so much.”
“As I do you. Now get comfortable and I will sleep beside you. I fear tomorrow is going to be a rough day.”
***
PEOPLE FILLED THE arena. Thracian students stood shoulder to shoulder around the perimeter as Olympians filed in. The crowd was fairly quiet. They looked expectantly to the stage that had been constructed on the north side.
Dynasty saw them from her place behind the wall. The royals would not take their seats until the arena was full. She’d not seen Ryse nor Avery this morning. Hayden had joined her at the palace and had ridden with her to the training center. He was quiet; none of his usual chipper attitude came through. Her son’s eyes looked haunted, but when she asked about it, he shook his head and told her not to worry.
Of course she was going to worry. A mother always worried over her children. Since Troy’s death, they were the only reason her heart kept beating. Ryse had Avery, and after today, they wouldn’t have to hide her any longer. The couple could take on the world together. Hayden, well, Hayden was used to being a loner. Charm and charisma dripped from him, but not many people knew how he studied and wrote. He would stay in solitude for hours
at a time. He had no mate, no friends that he could relax with. Hayden had even turned down having a Thracian guardian. Her guardians, Titus and Gabrele often looked after him as well. But Hayden preferred his privacy.
“Are you okay, milady?” Hammon stood next to her, his ebony skin nearly disappearing in the shadows where they waited. All the Elites, Lysandra, the Avondales, their security, and the temple priests were waiting to be introduced.
Dynasty took a deep breath and turned her eyes to the tall man beside her. “I wish this day would be over.” There was no reason to pretend otherwise.
“I concur, my queen. If I could save you from it, I would.”
Dynasty smiled. “I know you would, Hammon. I am grateful for the sentiment.”
He turned his lean body to face her full on. “If I can be so bold, I would like you to know that the Elites look to you as our counselor. You are held in the highest respects. We will not abandon you.”
For some reason, his words brought tears to her eyes. She blinked rapidly. “Thank you, Master Hammon. I feel as though I am mother to you all. You make me very proud.”
A hush fell over the crowd and General Falcon took center stage. “Olympians! Thracians! We welcome first the hosts of our temple.” The four temple workers, two men and two women wearing white robes that covered their heads, came forward and sat in the front row.
“We welcome honored guest sent by the gods, the Oracle Lysandra, from the Holy City of Delphi.” The crowd murmured. Dante escorted Lysandra to her seat. The people in the Haven were surprised by her appearance. Guessing by the way Charles gasped and Filene clutched her chest, they were surprised as well.
Lysandra was ravishing in her off-white gown. She’d picked the gown because of how it mimicked the one-shouldered drapes of the ancient Greeks, but still held the allure of modern-day fashion. Her long, black hair spilled out of an intricate bun on the top of her head. Gold jewelry adorned her ears and neck, a gold cuff on her upper arm. With Dante at her side in his Elite uniform, she radiated elegance and power, a goddess of old.