I’m so excited and bursting with energy, I feel like I could run up to the top of a mountain or even fly.
“I hope you don’t mind having an unexpected visitor.” His voice sounds deep and sexy.
“I knew you would come.” I grab him and pull him inside.
With one smooth, athletic movement, he pushes the door shut.
“What took you so long?” I mash my mouth against his before he can answer. God, I love those lips. His strong, steely arms close around me in an instant. Our kissing is urgent and hungry. We devour each other’s lips and then his tongue forces my lips apart. I open up for him and our tongues merge in a tangle of hot desire. He pushes me backward so I have no choice but to step or stumble. When I feel the edge of the mattress against the backs of my legs, I wait for him to push me onto the bed. Instead, he stops kissing me and speaks. He’s still gripping my back tightly and I’m all too aware of how firm and toned and strong his body feels.
“I have to say that swimming dress looks much better on you than Helena’s skirt.”
“Too bad you don’t have any of your own clothes. Mihalis’ clothes do nothing to show off your body.”
The corners around Eros’ mouth curl up in a grin, making his dimples look more pronounced and damn sexy. “Do you think I am some trained lion, here to show off for the women?”
I burst out laughing. I know he’s teasing me. “But I’m someone special. Don’t you want to show off for me?”
“I do not think so. What is wrong with these clothes I am wearing?” He tugs at the cotton shirt that hangs on his frame.
“You look like a little boy wearing your big brother’s hand me downs.”
“You think this is very humorous, don’t you?”
“Maybe. But I’m sure I looked ridiculous in Helena’s clothes, too. And at least we had something to wear. They were very kind to us, giving us food, water and clothes. I wish we could let them know that we’re okay. What if they’re worried about us?”
Eros strokes one of my cheeks. His beautiful deep brown eyes look wide and reflective. “That is good that you have not forgotten what they have done for us. I did say we might not be returning tonight. I also said I would return to visit them when it was possible to repair that one wall on their house that is cracked.”
“Oh, Eros, how kind of you. I feel better knowing that they won’t be worried. I hope I will have a chance to see them again, too.”
“I would like very much for you to go with me.” Eros’ hands slide around to the back of my neck. Slowly, deliberately, he unties the knot holding up my sundress. His gaze is locked with mine the entire time. His eyes are ablaze with desire. He leans in and kisses my throat. His hot breath tickles my collarbone. “Now if there is nothing else very important to talk about now, I have something else I want to do with you now.”
I feel a rush of wetness between my thighs. Why does every word he says sound so hot? Maybe it’s hearing him say how much he wants me. “No. There’s nothing else I want to talk about.”
He peels the dress off down over my abdomen and hips. When it crumples to the floor around my ankles, I cast it off with one foot. His eyes widen and I see that familiar flash of lustful gold in his eyes. “You have the most beautiful body, Maya.”
Maybe it’s just a line, maybe it’s not, but right now I don’t care. His words set me on fire. He moistens his lips with his tongue and his hot gaze wanders over my nakedness. My nipples tighten in response. In his mind, he’s already making love to me.
His gaze appears locked on my breasts as he unbuttons the wrinkled, loose fitting shirt he’s wearing and tosses it away. He shucks off the slacks and the swimsuit underneath.
I draw in a breath and hold it. He’s so damn big. His cock stands up thick and tall and ready. Maybe he is always ready like he says when he’s joking. I’ve never seen him naked and not ready. Even after we had crazy sex before, he was hard again within minutes. Not that my body is lacking in desire. Eros is my body’s new addiction.
Eros slides his hands underneath me and scoops me up like I’m almost weightless. He drops me onto the bed and falls down beside me. His hand slides down the side of my neck, drifts over my collarbone and over the mound of one breast, leaving a trail of hot tingles behind. His fingers pause to tantalize the nipple. “I have waited all night for this,” he whispers.
“Me, too,” I answer. And it’s true. All the while we were dining and talking with our friends, I was thinking about his hands stroking my breast and drifting between my thighs. His fingers pushing their way inside my vagina, teasing and exploring until my legs fall open and I gasp. I’m so hot and wet and ready. I’m aching for him to take me.
“Tonight, we should try very many different positions,” says Eros. “We will enjoy much pleasure that way.”
Talk about a suggestion I can’t resist. “Mmm. I could go for that. What should we try first?”
“I want you on top of me. I want to see all of you and to be able to touch your breasts.”
I maneuver myself over him and straddle his hips. He looks so hot, sprawled out on his back. His eyelids are heavy and his lips turn up in a sensual smile. I dip my head down to kiss him. His mouth is warm and sumptuous. I taste his lips from every angle and nibble on his lower lip. The meeting of our mouths sends shivers of excitement racing from my lips through my body.
He has no patience with my slow, deliberate kisses. His lips devour mine in a feverish frenzy. Our kisses are hot and wet, our breathing raspy and desperate. His tongue presses against the seam of my lips. I yield to him, allowing his tongue to breach my mouth. As his tongue tangles with mine, I feel a gush of wetness between my thighs. I can’t wait much longer. I need to feel him inside me.
Gripping the back of his shoulders and straddling him, I slowly descend over his length. I groan with pleasure as he sinks deep inside me. He thrusts up, pushing his full length deeper inside. I grind my hips down onto him, feeling greedy for more.
Eros’ head falls back in a groan of pleasure whenever I undulate into him and bury him deep inside. His hands glide from my shoulders down to my breasts. His fingers circle each one, fondling their fullness until the pads of his fingers reach my nipples. He tantalizes each one, gently manipulating them with his thumbs. It only heightens the pleasure I’m feeling moving over him.
“Straighten your legs and lie flat on top of me.” Eros voice sounds gruff and commanding. It turns me on.
I pull one leg back and the other. Without my legs spread wide, as hard as I dry to grind into him, I can’t get him in deep enough.
Pushing up on one hand and pushing one of his broad shoulders against mine, he maneuvers me onto my side. “Now bring your top leg around my back.
I hook my heel around the back of his buttocks. Once again, I have more control and I can pull him in deep. He grips my back tightly and thrusts into me with urgency. I groan and gasp as he slides in deep. As we move together, heat pulses through me and my mind empties. I’m completely absorbed by the sensation of his deep penetration and the delicious friction against my clit. I open my leg wider. The sensation thrumming through my body is pure hedonism. I want more. I pant and thrash, turning my body over to sensation. All at once, Eros slips out of me and pushes me onto my stomach. Oh, my God, he’s going to fuck me from the back. How hot is that?
I lie on my stomach, waiting. My pussy aches for him to penetrate me. What’s taking him so long? I arch my back, raising my buttocks so he can see I’m ready.
“Now, come up on your knees. It will make the view much more exciting.”
I push myself up quickly, not wanting anything to delay him from fucking me. I groan with need as a pulse of wetness surges from my pussy. “Oh, please, don’t make me wait.”
He grips the sides of my buttocks, but still leaves me wanting. I feel his breath on my back before he kisses me between the shoulder blades.
My muscles twitch. The kiss tickles and excites my nerve endings. I feel another wet pulse bet
ween my thighs. By now my pussy aches to the point of pain. “Please.” My plea sounds as desperate as I’m feeling. I want his huge hot cock in me so bad.
“You are so impatient.”
The mattress shifts. Is he positioning his cock outside my opening? God, I hope so. If he makes me wait any longer, my pussy is going to explode. This is so crazy. I can’t believe I want him this much. One of his hands skims over my buttocks and then a strong finger slips into my wetness and opens me up. “You are so hot and wet.” His voice sounds thick and raspy.
I’m about to beg for him to fuck me when the head of his cock teases my entrance. I shift back against him.
“You have no idea how hot it is to see you so wet. To see you wanting me like this.” His fingers dig into the flesh of my buttocks just before he thrusts in deep and groans. The deep penetration really sets me off. This is so fucking hot. He’s so huge and he’s so deep inside of me I shout with ecstasy. The hot sensation jolting through my vagina and the smack of his balls against my pussy are to die for. I groan and pant. “Oh, yes. More. Eros. Give it to me.”
He continues to pound into me faster and faster. His grunts of pleasure excite me even more. I push back into him and his pelvis slaps against my clit harder, overwhelming me with lusty sensation. The intensity of my pleasure builds and builds and I scream with ecstasy as an orgasm rips through me. The shockwaves of pleasure go on and on. I’m almost too weak to move when they finally subside. Eros shouts my name as he drives into me one last time and explodes inside of me.
He kisses me gently on the back once and then pulls out of me. His hands caress me and he maneuvers me slowly onto my back. He snuggles up beside me and strokes my cheek while he studies my face. “I got a bit carried away. I hope you liked me making love to you like that.”
I laugh. “It was great.”
His eyes, just a minute ago, raging with lust are now full of tenderness. His voice is gentle and comforting. “I did not want it to seem like it was just sex without feeling, but when I am inside you it’s very hard to think straight.”
I wonder if there’s any way I could love him more than I do at this moment. His words often surprise me, but are always so honest and often so intimate, they draw me even closer to him. “I understand. It is like that for me, too.”
“I love you, Maya.”
“I love you, too, Eros.” A glow of warm happiness seems to surround me. We are together and it feels so right I don’t want it to ever end. I’m too comfortable to think about tomorrow or the next day. Today is all that matters.
“I am having a strange feeling.” His eyes look suddenly sad.
“What is that?” I wonder why he has that tragic look on his face when I feel like I’m standing on top of Mount Everest looking out at the surrounding Himalayan Mountains as if I own them.
“It feels as if there is a great and heavy weight inside my heart. I feel a strange premonition. I think you are going to leave.”
I grab the back of his head and pull him in closer. “No, Eros. That will never happen.”
“But you will be far away from your family and the life you have always known.”
“My parents are my only family. I’m an only child. I usually only see my mom and dad twice a year anyway. They live far from me in the States. I can go back to Seattle once a year and I’m sure they will come to visit me here. As for my old life, I don’t want to go back to it. I’m ready for a change.”
One of his fingers traces an outline around my face as if he’s trying to memorize its shape. “You say that now while we are out here where real life doesn’t exist. But are you sure of what you will do once we are back to Lefkada where you can send emails and call America?”
I release a lighthearted laugh. But it doesn’t feel as freeing as the words I say next. “Yes, I’m going to tell everyone I’m never coming back.”
“My heart is hoping that you will make that choice. But in the end, you must do what is best for you.”
“Being with you is the best for me.” I lean in and kiss him. “But enough of this talk. I have another idea of what I would like to do with you,” I say in a teasing voice.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
While Libby pilots the inflatable boat, Maryann and the others talk in excited voices, eager to reach Lefkada and to find out what’s happened to the others. Eros sits beside me, his arm slung around my shoulder. I gnaw on a fingernail and then jerk it from my mouth. Why do I feel so anxious? I try to push aside Eros’ strange premonition. Why am I letting it get to me? I’ve already made up my mind. Maybe I’m just not ready to return to real life just yet.
When we enter the bay we left two days ago and see Nidri, the devastation, even from a distance, is clearly apparent. Seeing what happened to Kalamos Town was bad enough, but many more people live in this tourist town. And while many of the Kalamos Town homes were built high on a hill, in Nidri most of them are, or I should say were, along the coast. Most of the neat little row of buildings along the shoreline is in ruins. All collapsed roofs and crumbling walls. And what happened to the hundreds of boats anchored in the bay? Maybe twenty or thirty float about anchored while others lay battered and beached along the shore. I cover my mouth, feeling a wave of nausea wash over me.
“Oh, lord, look at that,” says Maryann. “Those poor people.”
“Crikey, that’s dreadful,” says Libby. “If Geni is buggered up and we see no signs of Dmitri’s ship, I will take you all to the Nidri bus station.”
“Do you think it will even be open?” asks Maryann.
“I really don’t know. We’ll have to see,” says Libby. She steers the boat toward Geni.
Everyone falls silent. I imagine like me, they’re not sure how to feel. Maybe our passports and other belongings have been washed away. Maybe we won’t be able to leave even if we want to. Without my passport, I’ll have to go to the U.S. Embassy in Athens and apply for another one. And unless the money in my room is still there, the ten Euros I have in my dry bag won’t be enough for a bus trip to Athens or to secure another passport.
Why am I worrying? I’m here with Eros. He’ll help me figure out what to do. I’m not going back to the States anyway.
Libby steers our boat close to a sailboat and talks to a man sweating bullets sanding the deck. He stands up and looks at her, then shakes his head.
“He doesn’t understand English,” says Eros. “Let me ask him if he’s seen Dmitri’s boat.”
“All righty. That would be a right help,” says Libby.
Eros talks to the man in Greek. He answers and points back toward Nidri. After thanking the man, Eros explains that he saw the boat in Nidri just yesterday.
“Thank the lord,” says Maryann. “I do hope we will find all them well. I hope you won’t be narked at me for asking, but could we stop right quick at the hotel? It would be quite nice if we could come across our passports and money.”
“All righty. But I do need your word that you will stay with me. If the building is buggered up and too dangerous to enter, we will have to leave at once.” Libby looks around the boat, clearly waiting to hear that everyone is on board with her plan. Keeping people safe is a skill she’s got mastered.
Once everyone agrees, Libby accelerates and the boat zooms over the smooth water toward the dock.
“You really are a dear,” says Maryann. “So brave and taking care of us all through this time.”
Libby’s arm muscles flex as she maneuvers the tiller. “It has been no trouble. I can’t imagine a group of lovelier people to be stranded with. I’m vexed the holiday didn’t turn out right.”
“Yes, it really is a shame.”
Libby steers the boat alongside what remains of the dock. All the wood has been crushed and washed away. Only the cement part remains. Eros jumps off the boat and ties the rope around a cement pillar. He extends a hand and helps everyone disembark.
We walk up the cement stairs, which remain in place by some miracle even though most of the muddy soil su
rrounding them has been eroded away. We cross the road, approaching the hotel where we stayed three nights ago. The sign is missing as are the pots spilling over with colorful flowers. Dried mud is caked around the base of the buildings, but other than that, they seem to be in decent shape.
“Let’s walk from room to room together as a group,” says Libby. “Are any of you in these lower rooms?”
“No, I believe we’re all neighbors on the second floor of that building in the back,” says Maryann.
We stride up the mud-caked, stone road.
“I can’t believe the water came up this high,” I say.
“The waves didn’t even look big until they were just off shore,” says Randy.
“That is why they are so deadly,” says Eros. “They surprise people.”
“Our building doesn’t seem damaged.” After we walk up the stairs to the second floor, I pull out my room key from my dry bag. “Is it okay if we go into our rooms?”
“The building looks secure enough. I see no harm in it,” says Libby.
“Oh, dear. I think we’ve lost our keys,” says Maryann.
“I always travel with this.” Eros pulls a small knife from his pocket. “It will open any door.”
While Eros helps Randy and Maryann get into their room, I pull my door open and close it behind me. I peer around the room, feeling a strange sense of sadness. Everything is just as I left it. But I’m no longer the same person who occupied this room three days ago. Before, I was broken and depressed. Now I’m empowered from surviving a life-and-death emergency and saving peoples’ lives. And I’m in love with Eros. I’m no longer high maintenance Maya. The new me is primed and ready for adventure and the unpredictable, and doesn’t have to be comfortable every minute of the day.
Someone taps on the door. I open it and see Maryann standing there. “Aren’t you going to gather your things?” she asks.
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