Grounded (4 page)

"What do I thin
k
I’
m
doing? What the hell do you thin
k
you’r
e
doing? And who the hell do you think yo
u
ar
e
?" Not the least bit shy, he didn’t care that he was standing there naked, yelling at his mother.

"I think I’m your mother…
"

"I don’t give a shit. How I live my life is none of your business!" he thundered. Then, as
quickly as she had brought him there, he left on his own power.

"Well," Aurora said on a sigh. "I could’ve handled that a little differently."

"Really? You think?" Ira asked sarcastically, appearing next to her.

"Oh, be quiet," she said with exasperation.

"Mother, even I have to agree with him this time. That was totally uncalled for."

"Did you not see how he’s carrying on? Not the least bit concerned about anything or
anyone other than himself?"

"And just what did you think jerking him out of that pool and into your chamber would
accomplish?"

Aurora slumped into a chair. "Is it too much to ask for one single grandchild?"

"When you do it like that, it is," Ira answered and disappeared.

After a full week of decadent delights, Dion felt refreshed and invigorated. Not only had
he managed to regain his perspective, he’d also had the opportunity to tell his mother exactly what she could do with her interfering ways. More clear-headed than he’d been in a long time, the following Monday he returned to work. Ms. Reed’s feathers were ruffled over his prolonged absence, but he let her surly comments slide right off his back.

Nothing could bother him, and he was absolutely sure he could face Patty now and be
completely professional. After all, he had hired her for her abilities pertaining only to the job at hand, and not because of any emotional response to her.

Her qualifications were top-notch and she was exactly the type of assistant he needed.
She’s totall
y
no
t
my type, he told himself, and that was a good thing. With no sexual attraction to distract him, he’d be free to work with a clear mind.

They’d keep their relationship on a strictly business level. Totally professional, he told
himself. Everything is going to be just fine.

But if that were true, then why did his hands shake every time he thought about seeing
her again?

Patty couldn’t believe how quickly she’d gone from the unemployment line to earning a
paycheck larger than she’d ever imagined in her life. In fact, she was earning so much working for Dion Vine International, Inc., she fully expected someone to show up and shout, "April’s Fool!" at any moment. Not only did she not have to stress over all of those bills she had been so worried about just two weeks ago, she could now afford to pay off every credit card she owed. And not onl
y
that
,
she now had a passport in her purse that had been arranged by her employer, a company car at her disposal, and a limo was parked out front, waiting to take her to the airport. Oh, and she wasn’t going to be flying on a commercial flight, no, she would be flying with Dion in the company jet to Italy.

Italy!

Looking around her apartment to make sure she had everything she needed, she glanced at the empty cat bowls near the fridge. Leaving Elton was her only regret, but the cat had been tucked away at the Purr-fectly Pampered cat motel. The luxurious cat-boarding kennel offered mechanical mice to chase, stuffed doggie-shaped toys to chew on, and plenty of staff to rub a visiting kitty’s tummy. Elton probably wouldn’t even miss her.

The doorman buzzed her apartment, announcing that the limo driver had indicated it
was time to leave, and she almost squealed when she told him she’d be right down.

Imagine, she thought, me, Patience Ellen James, running off to Italy with a man so
gorgeous he should’ve been a model. Could’v
e
totall
y
been a model. A man so gorgeous, even Brad Pit paled in comparison. A man, she reminded herself, who was now her boss and off-limits.

Oh, well, she thought, refusing to allow anything to ruin her mood
.
There’s a down side to everything
.
Pulling the handle up on her suitcase, she dragged it behind her, locke
d
the front door and threw her purse over her shoulder as she headed to the elevator. Thi
s
was the most exciting thing that’d ever happened to her, and she hoped she could do th
e
job well enough that Dion wouldn’t be sorry he hired her.

~ * ~

"I told you it would work," Aurora said. "I know my children better than they know themselves."

"Yes, mother," Ira agreed. "But it would be nice if just once you could refrain from saying,
‘I told you so’."

His mother smiled brightly. "It’s simply one of the perks of motherhood."

"So, what now? How do you know Dion won’t just fu-screw her socks off then dump her like he does all the others? He has never fallen in love in his life. He’s brought lust to new heights!"

"And there is nothing wrong with lust, my boy. You should try a little of it once in a
while," his mother noted. "But don’t worry about your brother; this woman is made for him. Literally. I saw to it myself."

"Mother, what have you done?"

"Nothing at all." She trailed her perfectly manicured fingers along the edge of his desk.

"I’ve been planning my youngest son’s future since before he was born. The gods know if I
wait for you to give me grandchildren, I’ll die a lonely, old woman."

"Ha," Ira snorted. "First, you’ll never die. Second, you’ll never grow old, and third, you
don’t know what lonely means. And as for me giving you grandchildren, if you’ll remember, I have responsibilities. I am your eldest son and you have left all of this on my shoulders. I’m the one who has to take care of all the personal needs of the lesser gods and goddesses, settle their disputes, and soothe their tempers and hurt feelings. I don’t have time for a personal life because I’m in charge of drama queens! And perhaps if my brother hadn’t been pampered all of his life, he would feel just a little more responsibility toward his family and not just his own desires. Perhaps, if he hadn’t been spoiled rotten by an over-indulgent mother, I wouldn’t have to do everything myself and would have the time to find a mate and have children of my own."

"Fine, I’ll take over while you find a mate," Aurora said, looking at her son.

Ira shook his head in exasperation. No wonder Dion was such a pain in the ass; he was exactly like his mother. To Aurora, he said, "Never mind, Mother, just deal with Dion, please. Otherwise, I’m afraid I will be responsible for you having only one son."

"Why do you make such threats? You love him as much as I do."

"Of course I love him, and I’d also just love to strangle him with my bare hands."

Aurora’s laughter sounded like music, and then she kissed her eldest son and

disappeared.

~ * ~

"I’ve never been to Italy before," Patty said as they waited to go through customs. "I hope we’ll have time to go to the Vatican. I’ve always wanted to see it."

Dion chuckled. "You’ll see it. You’ll have a guided tour like no tourist has ever had."

"What? No! You mean… no!"

Nodding, he said, "Yes, I do mean exactly that."

Patty leaned into him and whispered, "You’re going to break into the Vatican?"

"Not exactly. Here you go," he said and lifted her luggage for her. "I’ll explain it all when
we get to the hotel."

Dion had watched her on the long flight across the Atlantic as she’d made appointments,
updated records, and even made a pot of coffee. He liked her coffee. She wasn’t his usual type of woman, no, but she was something he needed. He jerked involuntarily at the thought. Had he really just admitted h
e
neede
d
this woman? He shook the idea away and tried to think of other things.

He tried to focus on the job he needed to do in Rome, but he simply couldn’t concentrate
with her so near. She was fresh and new and bright, and maybe that was what he needed most, he thought. After living for so long, both in his own world and in this one, there truly was nothing new under the sun. He took everything for granted, but for Patty, everything—all the experiences he was sharing with her—was brand new and her excitement was rubbing off on him.

He took a deep breath as he followed her into the limo. Her sweet little ass was right
there in his face and he could’ve kissed it, had he taken a notion to. So, if it wasn’t his mother’s doing, and more than a week of fucking his brains out hadn’t cooled his desire for her, what was causing him to feel this way? He refused to believe himself capable of any feelings beyond the purely physical, but he was at a loss to explain the emotions rolling around inside of him.

If he’d only found himself physically attracted to her, he could have dealt with his desires
easily enough. He kne
w
exactl
y
how to handle his physical urges, and lust was a familiar feeling, an old friend he liked very much. But these other emotions… he didn’t even know what to call them. The thoughts running through his head were a jumbled mess, and they all centered on Patty.

At the hotel, he showed Patty to her rooms, and then went to his own. Putting his
suitcases down, he lay back on the bed and stretched. A single door connected their suites and he could hear her moving around, most likely unpacking and exploring every nook and cranny. He climbed from the bed and went to the door. He knocked, and she opened it, a huge grin on her face. He couldn’t help but smile.

"This hotel is awesome!" she exclaimed. "Come here." Grabbing his hand she pulled him
to the open French doors and out onto the balcony. "Look at that. The Vatican! And there’s St. Peter’s! Can you believe this?"

Her face glowed with excitement, and her eyes sparkled with
delight. This is what true joy looks like, he thought. Had he ever known that feeling himself? Had he ever looked out at the horizon and been filled with wonderment and excitement at what he saw? Had he ever been happy just t
o
b
e
? Happy with what he had? With what was around him? The answer to those questions came quickly enough. No. He’d never in his life been so contentedly happy. Period. Oh, there were moments of happiness, to be sure. But every moment of happiness he’d ever had was because of something he had acquired, whether a work of art, a new yacht, or a new woman. He’d never been truly happy just being who he was.

"It’s quite a sight," he agreed, though she didn’t notice he wasn’t looking at the scenery.
"Tomorrow we’ll have a meeting with the curator of ancient artifacts, then afterwards, we’ll take a tour of the Vatican, and St. Peter’s, if you’d like."

"That would be wonderful.
I really can’t believe all of this, Dion. Thank you," she said, and standing on her tiptoes, she kissed him on the cheek. He just stood there - mute. Floored by her goodness, by her innocence, and by her utter decency.

"You’re welcome," he said softly. He was uncomfortable as hell, but she didn’t seem to
notice because she was back at the railing, leaning over it, squealing with innocent delight. For a moment, he longed to do nothing more than take her in his arms and share in her delight
.
Shit, what the hell is wrong with me
?
Taking a few calming breaths he reined in his emotions, clamped down on them with unshakeable control, and cleared his throat. "Perhaps we should go to out to dinner? You must be hungry by now."

She turned back to him, her face flushed with excitement, and he felt his implacable
control begin to slip.

"I would love to," she said. "Give me thirty minutes to get ready."

"I’ll be back then," he said. He turned on his heel and went back to his room.

Kicking off his shoes, Dion shook his head. He peeled off his clothing as he headed to the shower. Standing under the hot spray, he contemplated his reactions to Patty’s joy. One human female should not be able to make him feel the way he was feeling right now. Not only was there a physical reaction, like the obvious one he had right now in spite of himself, but Patty pulled at something deep inside of him. Pulled at something no one else ever had. At something he hadn’t even been fully aware had existed within him.

A Greek-fucking-god, that’s what he was! He was Dionysus, the son of Aurora, Goddess
of Light. He was the brother of Ira, the God of Wrath. He was the freaking son of Zeus himself! Dionysus, the God of Wine and Revelry, the god of fucking women’s brains out! That’s who the hell he was, and hadn’t he proven he was worthy of the name? Hadn’t he spent his lifetime enjoying wine, women and song across both worlds? Hadn’t he left hundreds, nay, thousands, of women wanting more of him, even though they could barely move when he was through with them? Hadn’t he taken revelry to new freaking heights?

Rinsing off, he took a calming breath, stepped out of the shower and grabbed a towel,
which he rubbed quickly over his body and head. He leaned on the sink and stared into the mirror. The face before him was ever familiar, not having changed in a few thousand years, but he didn’t usually look at himself. Now he examined his face, his eyes, his hair, and his body.

Never had he wondered what his life meant. Never had he questioned who he was. Never
had he doubted his goals. Never had he thought of changing for anyone. So why was he having such a problem with all of that now? Why was one woman invading his thoughts through the days and his dreams at night?

Perhaps he just needed to fuck her until she begged him to stop. Perhaps it was only
lust. Perhaps all he needed was to get her naked and under himto get all of this, this
…
emotiona
l
crap out of his system.