Poseidon's Bride (Olympians, Book One) Read online

  “Perhaps she’ll dream of you tonight. More than one maiden has had a wild night thanks to a single dip in the waves when you were near.”

  “I’m certain she will.” He paused for effect, and then confessed, “I allowed her to see me.”

  Hera sighed. “Okay, before I leave here, we have to get all these details straight. If you made no contact, except for the slightest touch, how did she see you?”

  “As she pleasured herself, I wanted to be near her.” Images of her flooded his mind again. He gazed into Hera’s eyes so she could see what he saw.

  She closed her eyes to savor the image. “Very inspiring. She’s lovely, darling.” She peered at him again. “So you rose from the sea and went to her?”

  He nodded. “Her eyes were closed, and she wasn’t aware of me at all. I lay down on the sand next to her, breathing in her scent. I could taste her as the waves lapped between her legs.” He licked his lips at the memory. “I’ve never tasted a sweeter woman. No offense.”

  “None taken,” she said with a genuine smile. “It’s lovely to see you this way.”

  Puzzled, he asked, “What way?”

  “Falling in love.”

  He shook his head, even though something in his mind whispered that she was right. “It hasn’t even been an hour since I first saw her. I’m not willing to go that far yet.”

  “You will be soon. I know these things. No matter how many other people we fuck, Zeus and I are in love. A god really falling in love is rare, but it’s amazingly powerful when it does happen.”

  He didn’t pretend to completely understand Zeus and Hera as a couple, but he knew she spoke the truth. No one would deny the power between Hera and his brother. He pushed the seriousness of such thoughts away for the moment to continue his confession. “I wanted to see her eyes, so I lingered until the moment she opened them, and then I fled in the mist.”

  “Did she seem surprised when she saw you?”

  That wasn’t how he would have put it. If he had been willing to endure even more teasing about his falling in love, he would have said that for a brief moment he felt connected to her, but instead he said, “She looked more confused than startled or scared. You know, as if I reminded her of someone. Or even as if she somehow knew I hadn’t been just a figment of her imagination.”

  She ran a finger down his cheek and lifted his chin for a moment. “Maybe she was picturing her ideal lover and he looks just like you.”

  “I doubt that.” He knew he probably fit the ideal for many women, but that would be too much of a coincidence. Too much like the work of the Fates.

  Hera smoothed her clothes. “We’ll see. Keep me updated. I’m off to find a hot, young thing to tie me up and make Zeus unbelievably jealous.”

  “Good luck,” he said absently, his mind clinging to the images of his new object of desire.

  * * * *

  Hera smiled to herself. She almost envied this beautiful young mortal, but she knew there were plenty of fish in the sea. As she left Poseidon’s home, she snapped her fingers and her business suit transformed into a skimpy leather outfit as her hair fell past her waist in long, black curls. A girl just needed the right bait.

  * * * *

  Layla stepped out of the shower, but she didn’t feel any more relaxed. How could she feel frustrated after having such a fabulous orgasm? As she wrapped the towel around her body, she knew exactly why. She’d much rather be stepping into the arms of her dream man than wrapping a towel around her body and settling for chocolate. Mild aphrodisiac or not, chocolate wasn’t going to make her feel better tonight.

  She sat down on the bed and started to comb through her hair slowly. She still didn’t understand why the color of the man’s eyes had changed. She loved brown eyes, and her fantasy guys always had brown eyes. She had felt, for just a moment, that if she’d reached out only a few inches she would have been able to touch him. But that wasn’t possible. There had been no one on the beach. Even the most agile of men couldn’t have jumped into the waves and disappeared that quickly. She believed in the paranormal, but she wasn’t ready to believe the beach was haunted just yet. He could very well be the ghost of a long dead sailor, lost at sea and separated from his lover, roaming the shore searching for another one. She giggled. It sounded like a nice idea for an erotic ghost story, but the man had been too close to her fantasy. That kind of coincidence simply didn’t happen in real life, so he had to have been the product of her horny imagination.

  She felt a warm breeze from the window move across her face. She put her robe on, dropping the towel into a chair, and moved toward the window. She peeked through the slightly open door and looked out across the waves. No ghostly figures on the beach. No phantom sails or ships filled with lusty, muscular phantoms. No unidentified cars. No mysterious strangers.

  She sighed. She’d been caught up in her own fantasy, nothing more. She’d just ended a bad relationship, having only recently realized exactly how much she was missing. So, of course, now she found herself waiting for Mr. Perfect to come into her life in all his sexy glory and whisk her away to a magical, happy existence. That wasn’t like her at all.

  She still couldn’t get that man’s eyes out of her head as she stared out across the waves. As the wind caressed her face again, she could almost have sworn she felt those eyes watching her.

  “Snap out of it, Layla,” she whispered as she turned and walked to her dresser.

  * * * *

  Poseidon stared up at her window. “Layla,” he repeated. Such a beautiful name for such a lovely creature. Though he felt tempted to watch her more closely, he decided not to. Normally, it wouldn’t have been a big deal, but now he didn’t want to rush things. He didn’t feel strong enough to resist seducing her if he got any closer, so he kept his distance.

  He moved out of the shadows and sat down on a rock. A plan for meeting her was already forming in his mind, but he had one problem. If he revealed himself immediately, he’d never have a chance. She’d think he was crazy, or worse, she’d be afraid of him. Either way, she’d most likely want nothing to do with him. He didn’t want to lie to her, but wasn’t that the way it always had to be? When maidens threw offerings into the sea and begged to be taken by him, he knew how to act, but times had changed and so had people. If Hera was right, so had he. He’d simply have to cross that bridge when he came to it. Looking up at her window again, he hoped he’d get to it very soon.

  A playful giggle echoed through the air, and Poseidon groaned. “Out for a walk, Aphrodite?”

  “Out for a gloat, actually.” She ran her hands over his shoulders and down his chest. She came to stand in front of him, stroking his cheek before taking her hands off him. She wore a sheer silver bikini and nothing else. Her curly blonde hair was piled on top of her head, but several ringlets framed her face. Her blue eyes flashed at him.

  “And why is that?” he asked.

  “My precious boy finally got you, didn’t he? You’re in love! Hera told me all about it.”

  Poseidon sighed, amazed Hera had been able to work so fast. She and Aphrodite must have had a craving for the same kind of man that night. “I haven’t seen Eros for months, and he certainly hasn’t been here tonight…and I’m not in love.”

  She shook her head. “If you’d said you weren’t in love first, I might have believed you, but you didn’t.” She shrugged. “Just because Eros didn’t do it doesn’t mean it isn’t true. Nowadays, people fall in and out of love all the time without us.”

  He smiled, despite his annoyance. “We all know what your opinion on that is, don’t we?”

  “Exactly.” She folded her arms. “There aren’t any great love stories anymore. Royal couples can’t even manage to stay together. It simply isn’t true love.”

  “But at least they get to choose. Isn’t that the truest love of all?”

  “They certainly do get to choose, and look what happens. They choose spouse number two before they’ve even gotten rid of spouse number one. Then
move on to spouse number three before they reach forty.”

  He laughed. “Since when do you care about fidelity?”

  “I’m not talking about fidelity. I’m talking about passion. Couples who stay together no matter what they go through. I’m talking about love that can move mountains, that can conquer and forget an infidelity, the kind of love people were willing to die for.”

  “Right. The kind that used to drive people mad. I haven’t forgotten all the maidens who used to throw themselves into the ocean.”

  She giggled. “That was their subconscious. They all secretly wanted to be bedded by you.” She reached around her back and undid her bikini top. It fluttered to the ground. “But I don’t believe in keeping secrets.”

  “What about true love? Moving mountains and all that?” He tried not to look at her voluptuous breasts. They’d made love many times before, but now it didn’t feel the same.

  She undid the hooks on the bottom and slipped it off in one movement. “It doesn’t have to be about love.” She shook her hair out, and in an instant it was straight and auburn-colored instead of curly and blonde. Her eyes turned green, and her features became Layla’s as she smiled down at him. “You can’t tell me you don’t want her.”

  He looked away and sighed. “Aphrodite, this isn’t fair.”

  “Why not? Consider it an offering to the goddess of love.” She eyed his crotch and moved to straddle his lap before he could protest. “Don’t deny me. Why should you have to pleasure yourself again tonight when I can give you what you need so badly?”

  Desire crashed over him as his body became aware of hers. He put his hands on her hips, then ran them up over her breasts. She moaned under his touch. He looked over her body. She did look exactly like Layla, and the image of Layla coming on the beach enflamed his brain and his body. He ran his fingers through her auburn hair as his cock swelled under her ass.

  He looked at Aphrodite sternly, though he couldn’t hide the flames of lust in his eyes. “Don’t say a word. If I hear your voice, I’ll leave you, no matter how close either one of us is to bliss.”

  She smiled and put her arms around his neck. She nodded and moved her mouth to his. As they kissed, he lifted her up and then laid her down on the sand. He removed his clothes quickly, never closing his eyes. His cock grew harder as he looked down at her, spread and ready for him, as willing as he wanted Layla to be when they were finally joined.

  He ran his hands down her thighs, pausing to rub one thumb over her wet core and swollen nub before moving his hands up to her breasts. He savored every curve. Even though it wasn’t real, it might ease his pain until their true moment came. He lowered his head and took one nipple into his mouth as he looked into her eyes. He suckled slowly, then pulled gently with his teeth. He did the same with the other nipple, and she began to writhe beneath him.

  He crawled over her chest and straddled her face, positioning his cock near her mouth. “Suck my cock.”

  She took his cock into her mouth eagerly and ran her tongue up and down it as her hands kneaded his ass. She sucked his cock to the back of her throat.

  Poseidon stroked her hair, her face, remembering Layla’s voice when she’d spoken to herself on the beach and at her window. He imagined her moaning, saying his name.

  “Layla,” he whispered as he stared down into the green eyes that were so like hers. He stroked her face again and pulled his cock from her mouth. As he positioned himself between her legs, he recalled the enraptured look she’d had on her face during her orgasm and the sweet nectar he’d tasted mingled with the waves.

  He held her face firmly. “Don’t look away.” He plunged into her.

  She gasped, but didn’t close her eyes. They widened as he stroked in and out, grinding his body against her clit, finding a deep, steady rhythm that literally took her breath away. As her pussy trembled with her hard and fast release, he pushed himself deep inside her one last time and spilled his hot seed into her.

  “Layla.” His lips hovered over hers for a moment before he plundered her mouth with a deep, searching kiss. When he opened his eyes, he was staring down at Aphrodite.

  He climbed off her. He couldn’t explain why he felt embarrassed—him, one of the most powerful of the gods. He’d made love to almost every goddess, and he’d done some of the kinkiest things he’d ever imagined with Aphrodite. This time had been simple and to the point, a quick, fevered coupling to ease the ache inside him, but he still didn’t want to face her. Something inside him was stirring, and he didn’t understand what it was.

  When Aphrodite put her hand on his shoulder gently, he finally turned to her. She smiled, but not in a mocking or teasing way. She kissed him on the cheek. “I hope she realizes how lucky she is to be loved by one so great.” He felt the heat from her kiss all the way to his heart. It was her blessing. She only gave it to those who asked, and then only rarely, so hope began to swell in his heart. She would not have granted this honor if he and Layla were not fated for one another. The thought of love still scared him though.

  He started to shake his head, but she held up her hand. “If anyone knows about love, it’s me. So no arguing.” She stood up and brushed off as much sand as she could before snapping her fingers, magically wrapping her body in a skintight, black leather dress. She pointed a warning finger at Poseidon. “By this time next week, I expect you to have thoroughly swept her off her feet. Hera and I will be watching.”

  “You ladies are setting high expectations for me.” He sighed, his mind drifting back to Layla again.

  Aphrodite smiled. “Look at her the way you were looking at me a few moments ago, and she’ll fall at your feet in an instant.”

  “I’ll make sure I catch her then,” he said dryly as he turned back to Layla’s window.

  “I’ve no doubt you will.” She waved her hand and flashed a mischievous grin before heading down the beach.

  Poseidon ran his hands through his hair, wondering how he was going to get through the night without seeing Layla again.

  * * * *

  As Aphrodite walked down the beach, anxious to find Hera and tell her the fabulous news, she hoped to find her still in the company of the same two muscled men she’d been with earlier that night. They’d both been glorious in their leathers, and their eyes said she wouldn’t have to teach them how to please even a goddess. Poseidon could stare up at a window all night if he wanted to, but she was looking for a little more action. And lots of it.

  Chapter Three

  Layla knew she had been unusually dreamy all night, but she hadn’t imagined the voice that had just sent chills up her spine. She’d been brushing her hair, trying to decide if she would read a book or watch a movie before going to bed, when she’d heard a man passionately call out her name.

  As she stood frozen to the spot, she felt something lightly brush against her cheeks, like fingers framing her face.

  “Layla,” the voice whispered again. She had a vivid imagination, but she’d never heard such desire in a man’s voice before. The fingers on her face lingered longer than the voice did. She dropped her brush and ran her hands over her cheeks, thinking maybe her hair was clinging to her face because of static electricity in the air, but she felt nothing unusual.

  She looked all around the room, but saw nothing. No shadows lurked outside on her balcony, and there were no intruders creeping out of her closet. She shook her head and took a calming breath. Her eyes strayed to her top drawer, where she kept her vibrator. If another orgasm was what it took to get some peace, she certainly had the option. But she had to admit she would prefer for her dream man to come walking through the mirror, or whatever it was mysterious, magical men did, and sweep her into his arms for a long night of loving.

  She closed her eyes and envisioned the man again. His dark hair begged her to run her fingers through it. This time she pictured him with blue eyes, crystal clear eyes the color of the ocean, filled with passion as he plunged his cock into her and whispered her name. A shiver ra
n through her body, and she began to think she wouldn’t even need the vibrator. All she had to do was think of that man’s eyes and imagine his voice whispering her name to send herself over the edge. She sighed as she imagined the man coming up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist, moving his hands up to cup her breasts, pressing his long, hard cock against her ass.

  She jerked the drawer open and grabbed her vibrator, unwinding the black silk blindfold she kept wrapped around it. She dropped her robe onto the floor and pushed her hair back over her shoulders. She turned the vibrator on and lay back on the bed. Reaching down between her legs, she felt how wet the thoughts of her mystery lover had already made her. She ran her fingers over her clit, just to dampen them with her own dew, then pressed the tip of the vibrator to it.

  She closed her eyes and thought of those blue eyes as she pretended he was watching her. She imagined the hunger in his eyes as she slid the vibrator back and forth over her clit. But that simply wasn’t enough. Her pussy begged to be filled.

  She moaned. “If only you were real.” She pinched and rolled her right nipple, and then slid the vibrator slowly into her throbbing, wet pussy.

  * * * *

  Poseidon knew watching Layla through her window was not the gentlemanly thing to do, and even though he had never been that much of a gentleman before, he had wanted to wait until the next day, when he would have a real chance to meet her. For once, he was very pleased he had gone against his well-laid plans because the visual feast before him made his breath catch in his throat.

  Layla was stretched out on her bed, sliding a purple vibrator in and out of her pussy. A moment before, she’d said the words, “If only you were real.” He assumed she meant that she wished the vibrator was a real cock, not just a piece of vibrating plastic, but now he was starting to wonder. What might he see if he went into her mind? Was she living out some kind of fantasy? Was he completely conceited to think that their brief moment on the beach was still affecting her as much as it was affecting him?