Apollo

by Madison Stevens

  She sighed.

  “They are really good boys,” she said.

  Apollo swallowed as her hair was ruffled by a small breeze. The sky around them was getting darker and made their time together far more intimate.

  “You understand them,” he said gruffly.

  She was quiet for a bit, and he wondered if maybe she had fallen asleep.

  “I can relate,” she said finally.

  He turned to look at her. He doubted she really could. Their lives had all been so different.

  “I never really had a family,” she said quietly. The way she said it was so full of sorrow he knew how much the chance of having one meant to her. “The foster system isn’t exactly kind to kids who are strange.”

  “I thought you didn’t have any hybrid features,” he said.

  Val turned to him and gave a small smile. “Didn’t mean I wasn’t weird.” She sighed. “I just didn’t fit in. Something always seemed missing. Turns out it was my twin.”

  It seemed weird to hear her say it.

  “And when you don’t stay in one place for long, it’s hard to have that love,” she said. “But they have all of you.”

  Apollo swallowed. It wasn’t really like that with them. Hell, before the last few days, he hadn’t really thought much about the younger hybrids. The thought of it made him swallow. It was good that Titus had hired a woman to come in soon. What they needed would be more than any of the men would be able to give. That sort of love was special, needed.

  He glanced at Val. Well, sometimes it was special.

  “What?” she asked.

  He licked his lips, not really sure where to go with this. If he took the step, that would mean something. If not to her, then to him.

  A growl cut through the air, and he turned to find Sol standing near them.

  “Back up,” Sol said quietly.

  Val was on her feet before Apollo could even think to be. The anger was thick in the air, and although she was glad to have someone who cared, it was odd to have to deal with this issue.

  “It’s fine,” she said quietly and held up her hands.

  Sol stalked forward toward her as Apollo stayed on the ground. “You are my sister,” he growled. “And he’s not good enough for you.”

  She sighed. This situation was what she was afraid of. Two walking hormones having a pissing match.

  Apollo stood up behind her and pressed into her back.

  “I’m not good enough?” he rumbled, and despite herself, she felt her nipples perk up. His voice was defensive, but she could feel his uncertainty.

  “No,” Sol said. “You’ll put her at risk, just like you did Erica. Are you going to leave her on her own to fend off attackers as well? I can’t trust you with those that are important to me.”

  Apollo went stiff behind her, and she was desperate to end this. There had to be a way.

  Suddenly, her back was cold from his absence, and she turned to watch him disappear into the woods behind them. Val turned to glare at Sol.

  “Oh, I don’t think so,” she said and stepped forward. “I’m really glad to have found you, but if you think that,” she pointed to the empty space behind her, “is going to fly, you got another thing coming.”

  Sol shook his head, still glaring at where Apollo had been, his anger clear.

  “You don’t understand,” he said. “He already put Erica at risk, and now he walks around angry. He’s a loose cannon.”

  Val sighed. “Well, I can take care of myself. I have for a long time.”

  Sol shook his head. Pity laced the air. “Not against men like us.”

  He stared down at her like she was some delicate flower, and for some reason, it only pissed her off more.

  “You know,” she said through gritted teeth and stared him in the eye, “I’m so sick of people thinking that I can’t take care of myself.”

  She stomped hard on his foot and kneed him hard in the stomach when he bent over.

  Sol grunted in pain.

  “Look here, bro.” She leaned into him. “Let’s not forget that you all aren’t the only ones that can take out people. Humans have been doing it for some time. And I’d really suggest you don’t fuck with the woman who’s got years of martial arts under her belt.”

  She breathed out a large sigh.

  “And let me be clear with you,” she said. “I pick who I’m with. Not you.”

  She walked away, leaving him with his sore stomach and bruised ego, but feeling much better about her position there.

  Chapter Twelve

  Val sighed loudly, and the noise only echoed in the empty room. Jenna was gone tonight, and it looked like she was planning on being gone for a bit. There was no explaining what was going on between she and Rem, but it was clear that it skirted somewhere on that line of love and hate. Maybe more hate than love.

  Despite all her years alone, Val hated the hollow sound. It only fed into her thoughts that she was meant to be alone for all her days.

  Her thoughts drifted to Apollo. He could be something more. Her mind fed her the line, and she silently scoffed at the idea.

  He might kiss like he meant it, but she knew him, could feel him. She knew his heart in this, and there was no way she’d go in part way with someone like that. Half-hearted was not the sort of romance she wanted to invest in. And despite how she had acted with her brother, he was right somewhat. She deserved more than someone who couldn’t make up his mind.

  She breathed in and let it out slowly. His sort of half-hearted love wasn’t what she wanted. But then, she wasn’t sure that if she got what she wanted, she would be able to return those feelings. After all the years of never feeling that sort of love, it didn’t seem like she would just be able to flip the switch and move forward. They’d let her go, but in the end, even she had been tainted by the Horatius Group.

  Not able to sit still much longer, Val grabbed her jacket off the hook. Maybe a good run and some katas would help. It always cleared her head before, and if anything, she’d wear herself out, so she just didn’t have to think about this bullshit.

  The night was cold, but she welcomed the chill as she stepped outside. It helped her to keep all the thoughts she didn’t want out of her mind.

  Val closed the door to the cabin and headed toward the woods. The steady beat of the ground made her smile. She always did like the feeling that running gave her. It was freeing. Like she could always get away if she needed to.

  As a child she’d run to get away from a life that she hated. Now she ran to find herself in a world where she didn’t fit in. But she hadn’t really needed to since coming to the lodge. Something about this place felt right. She’d been more at peace than ever before.

  And more than anything else she’d ever dealt with, the thought of fitting in frightened her the most.

  Something snapped to her right, and her heart kicked up into her throat. Val tried to calm herself as she envisioned some deer in the woods.

  Another snap, and she was sure it was more than a deer. Maybe it was the Horatius Group. She’d spent all this time going under the radar, but there she was, now as vulnerable as the rest of them, and given how surprised they were about her, she might represent something even more rare and valuable than the normal hybrids. Her abilities were certainly different.

  Val came to a clearing and stopped. Her pulse thumped in her veins, but she let all her training come into play. She wasn’t some helpless woman. All her life she’d been preparing to make sure that whatever came her way, she’d be able to deal with it.

  Two bright eyes glowed in the tree line.

  “Just come out,” she shouted. “I can see you.”

  She swallowed as the bright eyes came forward and into the light of the moon.

  “Apollo?”

  His face was stern, and he moved slowly, like there was more going on than what she was seeing.

  “What are you doing out so late?” he rumbled.

  She frowned. “I’m running.”
r />   He snorted, and she could feel the anger radiating off of him.

  “That’s not a good idea,” he said quietly.

  Val crossed her arms and glared at him. What was it with the men there trying to give orders and expecting them to be followed? She wasn’t some kid. If she wanted to go for a jog, that’s just what she’d do.

  “And why is that?” she said.

  He was fast, so quick she almost didn’t even see him coming. Before she could even stop him, Apollo was standing in front of her.

  “There are bad things out at night,” he said so quietly it was nearly a whisper. Her breath picked up.

  “Is that so?” she asked and turned away. “Well, I’m fine.”

  Before she even knew what was happening, her back was being pulled against a massive wall, and her arms were bound to her sides.

  Val struggled to get out, but he held tight.

  The feeling between them shifted as she struggled. She didn’t even have to read the energy around him to know what was happening.

  Her bottom rubbed against something hard, and he let out a low groan.

  She shifted again, not sure what she wanted from this, but she liked the sound he made. Her nipples tightened, and her breath hitched in her throat as his arms held her hard against him.

  “Val,” he warned, his voice hot and near her ear.

  She shifted again and lay her head back against his hard chest. This was dangerous, far more so than anything that might lurk in the woods.

  Val bent her body hard, grinding her ass into his hard cock. He moaned loudly. Now was her moment. She twisted hard in his arms and ducked out from under and onto the floor where she darted away.

  She turned to stare at him and found him grinning at her.

  “Think it’s going to be that easy?” he said and cocked a brow.

  It was a smug look that she’d dealt with so many times before from just about everyone who had ever underestimated her. It pissed her off.

  “You think it’s going to be that easy to catch me?” she replied.

  His smile widened. “I think I already did.”

  She frowned. That was so not going to happen again. Whatever game he was playing at, she had no problem ending it.

  Val turned as fast as she could to sprint away. If she could do that, then she could make it to the cabin.

  Two steps. That was all she got before his massive hands were on her again. This time they were flying through the air. She stifled a scream as they plummeted toward the earth, his giant body firmly behind her. At the last second, he whirled her in the air. She landed on the soft cushion of his body.

  His breathing was ragged, and she wondered if it had taken a lot out of him to maneuver like that.

  She shifted to climb off of him but gasped when his arms wrapped around her, holding her firm against the hard length between them. His glowing eyes stared back at her, and she swallowed hard. Lust swept over her, and the tension in her stomach grew.

  “I don’t think you know what you do to me,” he growled to her.

  Val shivered in his arms and blushed as her nipples responded to the sounds he made. The corner of his mouth turned up as he continued to stare at her.

  “Or maybe you do,” he said.

  He couldn’t wait any longer. Every time he tried, she ran. This time he was just going to have to act fast.

  Apollo rolled on top of her and sighed when she spread her legs for him. Feeling her warm heat pressed directly to him made his heart race in ways that he didn’t know it would. She wanted him. He could smell it in the air.

  He shifted slightly, creating friction between their bodies. A tiny moan came from her sweet lips, and he wanted to shout his excitement. Her eyes went wide with shock, and she looked away as quickly as she could.

  No. He wasn’t going to let her shut him out.

  All the passion that had been building in him bubbled over as he pressed his mouth to hers and hoped for better results than the last time. At first she latched on to his lip, and he prepared for the worst. Her sweet tongue swept the area, and he moaned.

  When it happened, he threaded his fingers into her hair and moved her head for a better angle. He wanted to feel all of her.

  Her hands made their way up his back and down his sides. He nearly choked when she slipped her palms over his ass and ground herself hard against him.

  He broke away from her mouth and pressed hot kisses against her neck, sucking on the tender skin there and nipping at times.

  Her breathing grew ragged. She wrapped her legs around him and rotated her hips. She was close. He could smell it in the air all around them. Her need pulled him in.

  “That’s it, baby,” he cooed in her ear.

  His hands slipped to her breasts, and he brushed the hard peaks there.

  She moaned loudly and threw her body back hard.

  “That’s it, Val,” he whispered. “Come for me.”

  She froze. Her body went stiff in his arms, and he struggled to look at her.

  “Get off,” she said firmly.

  Apollo climbed off and watched as she stood.

  “What?” he asked, completely and utterly confused.

  She stared at him for a few moments before sprinting away.

  * * *

  Run.

  It was all she could think. Run. As fast as she could. Some place far enough away that he couldn’t get her. She didn’t really think Jenna’s place would be better, but there weren’t many options.

  It didn’t matter. She ran. As hard and as fast as she could.

  Run until he didn’t want her anymore. Or better yet, she didn’t want him.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Apollo stood just outside her door. He didn’t know what he had expected, but it couldn’t end like this. His feelings were far too strong for him to let it end.

  “Val,” he said. His voice cracked as he said her name.

  He could hear her breathing just on the other side and rested his head against the cold door. She had wanted him. There was no question in his mind.

  “I can’t,” she said quietly.

  His heart ached at her words. She was for him. This was his one chance, and he couldn’t just let her walk out of his life.

  Everyone else had been right. He thought that being without a woman had made him stronger than the others, but he’d been wrong. It’d made him weaker.

  “All my life,” he said quietly. “I walked alone. Trying to make the most out of a situation that would never be good.”

  He gave a bitter laugh at his former self.

  “It never brought me anything good,” he said. “Being that person was lonely. But it didn’t matter. Because I knew one day there would be someone I could share my life with. That kept me going, kept me…maybe not happy, but at least not angry.”

  The air was quiet around him as he struggled to tell her the things nestled close to his heart.

  “One by one I watched the men around me find that someone,” he said. A lump formed, and he struggled to continue. “When you came, I had given up. The chances were almost zero. But there you were, defying everything that I thought.”

  He thought of her sweet face and smiled.

  “Whatever you might think, I’m not going away,” he said. “I’ll change. I’ll be what you need. I’ll make myself a better man, and then you’ll want me. I wasn’t always a dick, you know.”

  He nodded to himself. Of course she wouldn’t want him in his current state. Everyone had said he was a dick, and now that was only coming back to bite him in the ass.

  “Goodnight, Val,” he said and turned away.

  Being a better man was a good goal. He finally understood what they others had gone through.

  He made it to the bottom step when he heard the lock on the door click. Not daring to hope, he turned around.

  She stood in the door, eyes glittering with tears, her silhouette outlined by the lights inside.

  “You don’t need to make yourself
a better man,” she said quietly.

  He climbed up one of the steps and waited.

  “I don’t want you to change,” she said and stepped out onto the porch. She didn’t stop until she was right in front of him. “I like you the way you are.”

  His heart thumped in his chest.

  “Well, maybe you could be less dickish at times.” She grinned, and he couldn’t help but return the smile.

  “I can work on that,” he mumbled.

  Val grabbed his shirt and pulled him down until their mouths were level.

  “I don’t want you to go home,” she whispered.

  Every nerve in his body sparked at the same time. Not even waiting, he swooped her up into his arms and carried her inside.

  He kicked the door shut behind him and locked it.

  Her breathing was driving him crazy. If he didn’t get her to the bedroom, he was going to have to lay her on the floor.

  Love.

  The feeling nearly choked her, but there was no denying it. Apollo loved her. Even if he never said it, she would always know. She could feel it pouring off him.

  They entered her room, and she was grateful the bed was at least full size.

  As if she was the most precious prize he had, Apollo placed her feet carefully on the floor.

  Val reached down for the hem of her shirt but stopped when his hands found hers.

  “I want to go slow,” he said.

  “Fuck slow,” she huffed.

  “That too,” he said with a grin.

  She stared into his slightly glowing eyes. The color was just amazing.

  “I’ve not…” He stopped, and she frowned. He was nervous.

  Val placed a hand against his face and forced him to look back at her again. He seemed so vulnerable, and it made her chest ache.

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him in for a sweet kiss. When he leaned back, she smiled.

  His unease seemed a bit better, but worry still filled the air. He pushed her gently to the bed and sat next to her.

  “Val,” he said. His voice was raw with emotion. “In the facility, they tried to match up people to other Vestals. Some of the men were easier to match.” His eyes held hers, and she watched as the ring there spread to an intense glow. “And some men didn’t find a match at all.”