Love's Immortal Passion

by Cat Johnson

  He came once inside her, then kept going as she writhed beneath him, his strokes growing faster and harder as he felt her strength grow. They stayed locked, moving together until nearly dawn. When he finally left his place between her legs, had Eros not been a god he would indeed have been unable to walk from their fucking, just as she’d predicted when they’d first met.

  Dressed again, Eros leaned over her as she lay on the bed, sleeping soundly, looking peaceful though exhausted.

  “You deserve to be loved,” he whispered against her cheek. “Never forget that.” Then he ran his hand gently over her face, erasing all memory of him and their night together.

  With one last glance back at the woman who had taught him, the mighty Eros, so much about love in only one night, he left the room and headed to finish what he’d started.

  *

  Erato smiled the moment he saw Eros enter the hall.

  “Friend! You've returned.” Erato’s dark eyes inspected Eros more closely. “From the looks of you, I can’t tell if you enjoyed your time in the mortal realm or not. Shall we share some wine as well as some Valentine tales?”

  Eros raised an eyebrow. “You would share the details of your time with Acantha with me?”

  Smiling, Erato shrugged. “Some, yes. But not all.”

  Eros shook his head. “But you would want me to share all the details of my night with you?”

  “Exactly.”

  Eros laughed. “Ah, Erato. You are indeed one of a kind.”

  “And you have never hesitated to brag about any of your deeds before, which only makes me suspect that something of actual consequence happened since you don’t want to speak of it.”

  Something of consequence. Erato was correct in that. At that very moment, the bastard boss, unaware of the golden arrow lodged firmly in his heart, was so in love with his wife he would do anything to please her. While at the same time his wife, equally unaware of the lead arrow lodged in her heart, was planning how best to rid herself of the man while keeping all of his money. Fair was fair, and the bastard boss deserved to feel the pain of unrequited love. Perhaps, one day soon, Eros would travel down and remove one or both of the arrows, but not too soon. Let the man suffer. The bastard deserved that and more for what he had done to both his wife and his lover.

  Thoughts of the woman Eros had lain with caused a strange feeling in his chest. Regret perhaps that they were not meant to be together for more than one night. Though it was only Eros who bore that feeling, because his lover, his Valentine, if only for one night, had forgotten all about him already.

  More importantly, she was finally confident and strong enough to accept the love Eros knew she deserved. And it had taken only a brief glimpse into her life the next morning for him to see that the man she was meant to be with all along was actually the bastard boss’s assistant.

  When Eros had opened himself and dropped his shields again, it was obvious the shy younger man was already so in love with her, he didn’t need one of Eros's arrows. Eros had left them together late that morning, sipping hot beverages in the office lounge, his former lover blushing at the newfound attention, the man equally amazed at the time his love was suddenly willing to spend with him.

  “Eros?”

  Erato’s voice broke into Eros's memories of the mortal realm. “Yes, my friend?”

  With a grin, Erato laid an arm around Eros's shoulder. “Welcome back.”

  “Thank you, Erato. For everything.”

  When they stepped into Erato's chamber, a serving girl stood before them, head bowed, awaiting instruction.

  “Wine for both of us,” Erato told the girl, and then glanced at Eros. “Eros. Do you require anything?”

  He knew what Erato was asking. Did he want the girl for more than just drink? For once, Eros had the feeling of being totally sated. He shook his head. “No, thank you. I’m good.”

  One dark brow rose. “I will hear this story, Eros.” Erato watched him closely again.

  “Perhaps,” Eros replied. “I’d be open to a trade. My story for a night with Acantha.”

  “Eros…” Erato’s voice resonated with warning.

  Laughing, Eros sat in the chaise opposite Erato to enjoy a cup of fine wine, the company of a good friend and Valentine memories that would stay with him forever.

  BLISS

  Prologue

  The soft swish of the door opening told Eros he was no longer alone. Drawing in a deep breath and letting it out loudly, he let his annoyance be clearly heard by whoever had disturbed him.

  “Sigh all you want, Eros, but I’m not leaving. You’ve kept your own council to the exclusion of all others for far too long already. It's been more than a mortal year since you've graced us.”

  In no mood to be social, Eros didn’t bother to turn to face his friend. “I simply find my own council superior to that of any other. That’s all, Erato. Now, if you’ll excuse me…”

  “Sorry, but no.” Erato moved farther into the room and sat in the chair directly in front of Eros's chaise, thereby blocking his view of the hills beyond his window. This was the vista he’d spent he didn’t know how many hours staring at of late.

  Another sigh emanated from the deep sorrow within him.

  “If you insist on being here, at least make yourself useful.” Eros thrust his empty cup forward. When Erato made no move, Eros nodded toward the flagon of wine on the table between them. “Pour one for yourself as well, my friend. It’s from Dionysus. Ever since I befriended his maenads they’ve been most generous with his private stock. It does incredible things to a body.”

  Erato raised a brow. “I know exactly what Dionysus’ private stock can do, thank you. I’ll pass.”

  “Suit yourself.” Eros shrugged. He rose and splashed the deep claret liquid into his cup since it had become more than obvious that Erato wasn’t going to. “Though I must warn you that after drinking a bit more of this, I’ll most likely be summoning a few of the serving girls. Given that you don’t partake of orgies any longer since you’ve found your one true love in Acantha, you would do best to leave.”

  “I’m not leaving and you’re not drinking any more of that.” Erato rose and grabbed the cup from his hand, sending scattered droplets into the air.

  Brushing spilt wine from his hand, Eros frowned. “Why, my friend, would you take your life in your hands and do something so foolish?”

  “I’m the only true friend you have. You’d never harm me, and you know it.” Erato scowled, and after placing the cup on a table out of Eros's reach, sat again.

  “Don’t be so sure.” For the first time since the unwelcome intrusion, Eros noticed Erato held a bound ream of paper in his hand. “Is there a purpose for your visit? Or are you here simply to annoy me?”

  “Oh, there is a purpose.”

  The book in Erato’s hand landed heavily on the end of Eros's chaise. He barely gave it a glance, instead focusing on Erato. “You are the man of words, oh great muse of poetry. Not I.”

  “Read it, Eros.”

  He snorted in disgust. “I don’t read.”

  Shaking his head, Erato grabbed the item back. “Then I shall read it to you.”

  Couldn’t a man be left to wallow in sorrow and loneliness in peace? Eros leaned his head back and closed his eyes. “If you must. Forgive me if I take a nap while you do. I’m suddenly very weary.”

  He heard Erato rifling through the pages. The man was actually going to read to him. What lunacy had gotten into his friend? Against his wishes, Eros found himself curious.

  Erato cleared his throat. “My name is not important, but the story I tell is—“

  “Not exactly Shakespeare, is it?” Eros cracked open one eye. “Why am I being forced to listen to this?”

  “You’ll see.” Erato turned his gaze back to the age-yellowed parchment he held. “I am an old woman now. I feel my death upon me. Almost all whom I know and care for are dead. That is the reason I dare defy the gods and tell the truth which has never been tol
d before. Not another living mortal knows what I do, until now. My tale begins in my youth, when I was a girl of seventeen—”

  Eros sighed loudly. “Wonderful. How old is she at the time of the writing? How many years worth of this drivel must I suffer through the telling of?”

  Ignoring him completely, Erato continued with the reading. “—working in the palace of the King and Queen of Miletis as a handmaiden caring for their three daughters, Bliss, Adelfa and Psyche—“

  His attention captured now, Eros sat up, eyes wide open, his heart pounding. “Where did you find these writings?”

  “In Sicily. I was conducting an inventory of the contents of the palace library. I found this hidden behind the books. It appears to have been there for quite some time.”

  He eyed the book that most likely held the truth he’d long ago seen buried. The past he’d hoped would stay buried. The memories of which snuck up on him a few times a century and kept him secluded and morose until he could force back the darkness with enough wine and women. “Have you read it?”

  “Oh, yes. Every word and I must say for the first time in our long friendship I actually feel as if I understand you, Eros. Now I see why the god of love hates love so passionately.”

  Eros forced a laugh. “You don’t know what you’re talking about. Whatever tale this senile old woman conjured from her addled mind on her deathbed has nothing to do with me.”

  “Then why do you appear so interested in it?”

  “I’m not.”

  “You should be, because this woman knows things even you, the mighty Eros, do not.”

  “I doubt that.” Eros swallowed the acid in his throat. The bitter taste of lost love and heartbreak. He forced down the feelings he swore he’d never allow himself to be afflicted by again, no matter how long his immortal life should last.

  “Fine. I’ll take my leave then.” Erato shrugged and rose, the pages that consumed Eros's attention still held tightly in his fist.

  “I want to read it.”

  Eyebrows raised, Erato paused. “Excuse me?”

  “I’ve reconsidered and I’d like to read the damned thing.”

  “That offer is no longer on the table.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I was skeptical of the old woman’s tale when I first read it, thinking it was just another story made up by the mortals about the gods. Then, the more I considered both it and you, the more it became plausible. After seeing your reaction now I’m convinced, there is truth contained within these pages. Admit the truth, Eros. That you’ve felt both love and betrayal. That you, Aphrodite’s most loyal follower, disobeyed her because of that love and suffered the consequences for it. Then I will give this to you.”

  Shocked at Erato’s boldness, Eros laughed. “Oh, Erato, you have no idea of what you ask of me.”

  “I’m your friend. I ask nothing. What I offer is to hear your story and share your burden. And I swear to you, whatever you tell me will go no further than this room.”

  “That matters not. As the old woman wrote, all the players are now dead. All save me. Ah, the joys of immortality. Sit, Erato.” His friend complied and with lead in his heart, Eros began his story. “It was an eon ago that Aphrodite called me to her chamber. She was angered by something happening in the mortal realm, but that was nothing new…”

  Chapter One

  “Eros. What took you so long?”

  “I came the moment I was summoned. The messenger left my chamber barely a breath ago.”

  “Then the messenger dallied along the way and shall be punished.”

  Unable to miss Aphrodite’s fouler than usual mood, Eros sat on the step of her throne and waited in silence. He didn’t dare ask why he’d been summoned, nor what had her in such a state. Why tempt the fates? She’d reveal the reason for it soon enough. Until then, soothing her would only benefit them all. Taking one delicate foot in his hand, he began massaging the arch until her eyes closed and he felt her calm.

  “You’re so good to me, Eros. My faithful follower. The only one I can trust.”

  “You have many faithful followers, goddess.”

  “Not any more.” Eyes flying open, she yanked her foot from his hand and stood. He scrambled backward to avoid being stepped on as she descended the steps to the floor and began pacing. “There is a mortal female whose beauty has been compared to mine. Those who used to worship me, now flock to her. A mortal! Can you believe it?”

  “No, actually I can’t.” That wasn’t even a lie to appease her. That mortals would follow one of their own rather than the ancient goddess was beyond comprehension. “There must be some mistake.”

  “There is not. I’ve sent spies. They’ve confirmed it. My temple sits empty while her father’s palace hall teems with suitors and those vying for this girl’s attention. If she’d just marry one and be done with it, things would die down. But no, she refuses each and every proposal.”

  “Thereby inciting their interest further.” Nothing interested a man more than the disinterest of a woman. Eros had seen that proven time and time again among mortals and immortals both.

  “Exactly right. Though I doubt her beauty is as great as they say, she’s obviously cunning and knows how to use what she has to manipulate.”

  Being well versed in manipulating the lives of others, Aphrodite should know about such things. Eros kept that thought to himself. “What can I do to help, goddess?”

  A venomous smile curled upon Aphrodite’s lips. “You will make this girl Psyche fall irreversibly in love, preferably with the most hideous, foulest-tempered man you can find, and make sure they marry. Her new husband will keep the hoards following her at a distance and they, once removed from her presence, will return to their senses…and my temple. I may even eventually forgive their weakness. We shall see.”

  All she asked was well within his power and that of his quiver of golden arrows. Eros gave one quick nod. “Consider it done, my goddess.”

  On golden wings Eros flew to Miletis to fulfill his assigned task. The sooner it was accomplished, the more quickly Aphrodite would forget her anger. The great goddess’s mood affected more than those around her. It was obvious to him that the entire world suffered with her unhappiness, based on the evidence he found in Miletis.

  Walking the streets outside the palace where he was to locate the object of Aphrodite’s ire, Eros could already see the effects of the goddess of love’s malaise. Where there would normally be couples hidden in doorways while locked in passionate embraces, instead he saw mischief and mayhem. Where he should have heard sounds of lovemaking coming from within the homes he passed, instead there came voices raised in anger.

  Eros dared to drop his protective shield. He opened himself to the mortals and absorbed the feelings filling the place. Roiling emotions slammed into him. He stumbled from the intensity of hatred and jealousy, among so many other things. Unable to bear more, he mentally pulled the barrier back into place and strode quickly to the palace entrance. There was no time to waste.

  After making himself invisible to mortal eyes, he drifted past the guards as easily as a breeze. It wasn’t hard to locate the king’s daughters within. He merely followed the sound of giggling and the path of the bustling servants.

  It seemed the King had three daughters. At least that is what Eros assumed when he slipped into the bathing chamber and found three females of similar appearance nude and partially submerged by bath water. All three leaned their arms against the edge of the pool, facing away from him as they chatted. They were the same height, with the same long flowing brown hair that hung damp down their backs to just touch their similarly heart-shaped and tantalizingly rounded asses.

  Aroused and considering the possibilities of what the three sisters could jointly do to pleasure him, Eros took a step farther into the room, then another, anxious to see if the front view was as enticing as the rear.

  Then she turned and his foot faltered. Never in his life had he seen a woman who matched her bea
uty, and that included Aphrodite.

  “Psyche.” Her name escaped his lips unbidden. He knew instinctively this vision of beauty was the one he sought.

  Though there was no way for her to see him, she raised her head and seemed to look directly into his eyes. A slight frown furrowed her flawless brow.

  “Did you hear that?” Her voice held the song of angels. With the sound, his heart clenched in pain, as if pierced by an arrow. So strong was the sensation, he touched a hand to his chest to make sure he hadn’t been struck.

  “What, sister?”

  “What did you hear?”

  The two bathers flanking her each asked their question in turn. At another time, in another place where the light of Psyche’s brilliance didn’t eclipse them, Eros would have thought the two others more than enticing. Today, they paled in their sister’s light and came up sorely lacking. His gaze was drawn back to Psyche.

  “I thought I heard someone say my name. Strangely, it was man’s voice.”

  One of the girls giggled. “There are no men here. Only females. You know that.”

  “It must have been the wind,” the other sister said.

  The vision his eyes couldn’t seem to leave for more than the briefest of moments nodded. “You’re right. Of course.”

  Eros rubbed his chest again. What was the cause of this ache within him? He understood the need she aroused in his rapidly rising cock, but not the clenching of his heart. His gaze took in her features, so perfect they nearly pained him while at the same time bringing him joy. He let his glance drop to her breasts, beaded with water and longing to be suckled. Wetting his lips with the tip of his tongue, he imagined how they would taste. How she would squirm while he loved her with his mouth, hands and cock. He would not rest until he had her.

  She took his breath away and he realized having her would not be enough. He could not give this woman to another man. He couldn’t bear the thought of another’s hands or lips upon her. To let another man’s seed spill inside her would foul her perfection. It would slight the gods who’d created her.