Immortal Dreams (80 page)

They felt like they were burning against my legs because they were.  There's barely any material still intact.  I'm surprised the entire house didn't get torched.  I'm sure he had to break out some of his Poseidon juice to extinguish that shit.

Oh boy
.  This is all so crazy.

I can hear everyone outside, but I tune it out.  At least I'm learning to do that much.

I pull on my shirt, which has suffered some burns as well.  Hopefully I can get through the house without anyone seeing me.  At least my underwear is still intact.  I slide them on and peek out the door.  I don't see anyone, so I decide to risk it.

I sprint toward the stairs and shriek as a guy barrels down them.  His mouth falls open, and he shakes his head to try and assess if he's seeing clearly.

His eyes blaze with excitement, and he licks his lips like I'm a juicy steak someone just threw on a plate in front of him.

Who the hell is this guy?

"Hey, girl.  Where did you come from?"

He takes a step toward me, and I inch backwards in a ready-to-run stance.  He takes another step, the swirling yellow staining his once brown eyes.  I don't like the way he's looking at me, and I don't hesitate.

"Devin," I murmur quietly, the fear evident in my tone.

Devin flashes to my side the moment I call his name.  He pulls his shirt off and hands it to me to put on.

I quickly shrug it on, and I'm thankful it drips lower than my underwear.

"Back off, Trey," he threatens.

The guy seems possessed, and he steps toward me again.

"Trey?  What the hell?  Back the fuck off," Devin blares.

Persia walks in just as Devin grabs Trey and throws him out of the house.  He rushes to the porch, and yells at him.

"You don't want to try this with me."

Persia sighs, "It's not his fault.  This is why I wanted a limited amount of people here.  She has to get her Aphrodite under control.  The others here seem to have acclimated to her growing powers somewhat, but all these new ones are going to struggle until she gets her supercharged sex appeal subdued."

Supercharged sex appeal?

Devin's lips tighten, and then he nods.

"Yeah.  Most of us have been around her from mortal to immortal.  I'll talk to Mom about keeping everyone else out of this house until she figures it out," Devin grumbles with his eyes still burning against the brooding man limping away.

"I'm going to put some pants on now," I say with a blushing, shameful, downward gaze.

"Aphrodisia, you should concentrate on Devin and only on him when you're in a room full of men.  If you make eye contact with another man right now, it could push them to a limit with severe consequences - even the ones who have gotten used to your... charms," she instructs.

"I'll fucking kill someone if they try anything," Devin interjects.

"It won't be them.  They lose control," Persia adds.

"I've walked away from her Aphrodite stare, so can they," he growls.

"You're the only man I've ever known capable of such.  It's astounding actually.  Her eyes bear the aphrodisiacs to the gods in them, and it's unbelievably strong in the early stages."

"Got it.  I'm not even allowed to look at people now.  Great," I mumble.

Persia's eyes soften, and I know she actually knows exactly what I'm going through, but I still hate her.

"It gets easier.  Getting your goddess under control will free you from such issues, but for right now you have to play carefully.  Eventually, you'll control the gaze and your Aphrodite.  You can't hide out here forever.  It's too dangerous."

"Too dangerous?  I thought this was a safe house," I say in confusion.

"A safe house is only good for intense training.  We hide better among the mortals.  Out here, we're too obvious.  There's no interference with our scents or anything else.  Our presence is easily detected.  We stay here to give someone time to get their powers under control.  Usually we have about two weeks before someone starts sniffing around," Devin answers with a huff.

"And no one bothered to tell me I had to be ready to go back into society within a couple of weeks.  You told me I'd be ripped apart in a few days, so why not tell me I can go home in two weeks?"

"Because he didn't know how strong your scent was.  These people were half mad by the time they got here.  They're intoxicated and drinking you in.  Their presence is a safety risk."

Devin shakes his head.

"Their presence is necessary in case we run out of time before we're ready.  Things have gone awry in other safe houses.  There's a reason we have multiples.  I'm not going to let anyone here touch her, and they're going to be here in case someone outside our group tries."

She tightens her lips, but sighs in defeat.  "I'm used to doing things on my own.  It's easier to move quicker."

"I guess that's the real reason why you threw me away twice," I grumble while I make my way up the stairs at last.

I almost feel pain exuding from her.  I suppose she's using her goddess to express how cutting my words were.

Kry runs in, and Devin speaks to him as he follows behind me.

"No one in the main house.  They're vulnerable to her goddess."

"Yeah, well, it's not easy on Ther and me either."

"Just let me know if you feel it's too much," Devin exasperates while gripping his head.

"I'll be fine.  Just make sure she stays in here as much as possible when the others are out.  I'll keep them back, but we've got some hikers to deter right this moment.  I'm going to inspect so we can be sure there not immortals."

Devin looks at me as I finally step into the room.

"Take Trey.  He needs the fresh air," Devin mumbles.

"Will do."

Devin enters the bedroom and walks over to hold me in his arms.

"He didn't touch you, did he?"

"No.  I called you when I saw the swirls of crazy in his eyes," I grumble softly.

He kisses me gently, and Aphrodite wiggles freely inside of me.

"We have to get you sorted out.  I don't like knowing so many men want you," he says with a forced playful tone.

My eyes look up at his, tears brimming my lids.  I feel so scared right now.

"I just want you, and I shouldn't," I sigh.

"Yes you should because I want you too.  You have no idea how surreal it was to learn you're immortal.  I was elated, and I felt free to fall for you.  I need you, and I'm more determined now than ever to keep you.  I'm never going to let you go."

He jerks me into his kiss, and his hands slide up my hips to graze my underwear.  He pulls back slightly, and I'm still me.  The small bit of intimacy hasn't brought out Aphrodite.

"You're already getting some control, and I love kissing you when you're you," he whispers.

There's that word again,
love
.  It sounds so good rolling off his tongue.  Why does such a word send me into an aching throb?

Restrain the goddess.  Get a grip.  Learn to control her.

"So, educate me on your visions," I say to derail the goddess's plan of seduction.

He shrugs and plops down on the bed.

"Tell me what you want to know."

I climb over him and shiver as the inside of my left leg grazes him.  He smirks as he sees Aphrodite stir, and my eyes spark with an unseen force.  I swallow hard and try to subdue her once more.

"How far can you see?" I ask shakily.

His grin stays apparent, but he answers casually.

"It depends.  Sometimes I can see seconds ahead, and sometimes I can see years ahead.  It varies.  There're sometimes I can't see anything at all, and that usually means someone is heavily blocked.  You're the only one on our side I can't see."

I smile a little as the goddess sparks her power in my eyes, and I'm taken aback when I see the mirror on the far wall.  My eyes are a bright, emerald green.  Frigging green.  It looks so... unnatural yet familiar.  I love it and hate it at the same time.

I play Aphrodite's delicious game when my strength wavers too much.

"So, you can't see me at all?" I ask with a hint of playful seduction.

He narrows his eyes in suspicion as he answers.

"No.  Not at all."

"So you can't see me before I do this?" I ask teasingly as I lean over and graze his bare abdomen with my lips.

His breath hitches, and I smile as I speak softly with the seductive tone more pronounced.

"Or this?" I ask while trailing my lips up his stomach to his chest.

He squirms as a dull moan rattles in his throat.

His voice trembles as he whispers, "No."

I smile again as I weave my passionate web on him.

"And you can't see before I do this either?" I ask as my lips scrape back down to kiss just below the waistband of his pants.

He squirms more, and I can feel his desire materializing and running over his body.  The power surges back on, despite all the damage we caused to it earlier, and light bulbs begin sounding off violently in their bursting melody across the house.

He grabs me and jerks my face to his.  I can feel his body grinding against mine, calling to mine, and holding mine without a chance of escape.  My lips play over his for a moment before giving into the devouring kiss.

I feel my body burning against his and the room begins to shake beneath us.  He pulls my hips to meet his, the desire coursing through us both.  The passion erupts, and the remaining windows blow free from the room as I fall prey to the man I need.

I wake up in the
warm arms of the immortal I adore despite all my logic.  He's staring at me, and I grin bashfully under his beguiled gaze.

"Kry is very upset he has to go get more windows.  He has threatened to board everything up until you're gone," he teases.

I laugh a little and cover my face which is still beaming its favorite shade of red.  He removes the sheet from my head and leans over to kiss me.  His sweet lips bring my blood boiling to the surface, but I calm the storm that's trying to brew.

"How do you feel?" he asks genuinely.

"Like I've passed a few tests.  There wasn't a hurricane forming from one kiss.  Granted, I did break your electricity, bedroom, and now this bedroom as well," I joke while glancing around from the bed that once sat much higher in the air.

"Perhaps a wooden bed frame isn't the best idea for you," he chuckles.

I smile a little as I climb out of the smashed bed and pull on my shorts and shirt.

"What are you doing?" he asks softly.

"I thought I might take you up on your offer to lend me your phone."

He smiles as he picks his pants up from the floor and pulls a phone from the pocket.

I straddle him for a second as I wrestle with the awakening goddess, and then I kiss him gently on the lips while I take the phone from his hands.

I pull back with a smile spreading when I see his.  It takes more strength than I should have to exert, but I climb free from the very, very tempting position and walk out while calling my dad.

"Hello," his worried tone says to the number he doesn't know.

I flash down the stairs, my head jolting back as I cover the mouthpiece of the phone to keep it from sounding like a windstorm to the man who has probably been awake for days.

"Hey, Dad," I say guiltily.

"Aphrodisia!  I've been worried to death.  Where have you been?" he gasps in a scolding, terrified tone.

My ex-boyfriend kidnapped me, I turned immortal, I met my birthmother, and then I broke a few beds while trying to train my Aphrodite...
Hmm
.  How about a lie instead?

I take a deep breath to prepare myself for the hellacious lie I'm about to have to tell.  I really should have rehearsed something.

"Sorry.  I had a rough few days, so I held up in my apartment with no contact with the outside world, and now I'm on... vacation."

"Vacation?  Adisia, your boss said you haven't come into work in days.  She said you'd lose your job if you didn't show up tomorrow.  What's going on?  Does this have something to do with that boy?"

I laugh a little.

"Boy?  Dad, he's old enough to be called a man," I snicker out.

Speaking of which, just how old is he?

"Adisia, you can't do this.  You're a strong, confident, level-headed girl with a good sense of direction in your life.  Don't give all that up because you've got eyes for a guy.  He has too much money to trust him.  Men like that; they don't stay with women for too long.  Don't do this to yourself, honey.  Just forget about him, and come home," he pleads.

My dad has never been one to hold back.  He always gives me his opinion, whether I want it or not, and then he tells me what to do even though I never listen.

"It's not like that.  I love you, Daddy, but I just called to check in, not to get in trouble," I tease.

"I'm not getting on to you, but I'm worried," he mumbles.

"Don't be.  I'm fine.  I'll see you when I get home.  Don't worry about my job.  I hated it anyway.”

"You need a job, young lady."

"I love you, Daddy," I mumble as I hang up.

Sheesh
.  Why did I start my morning out with that phone call?

I dial the next number on my list and hope for a better conversation.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Mom.  It's me."

"Where are you, young lady?" she scolds.

So much for this call going better.

"I'm with Devin," I murmur with an involuntary smile spreading across my face.

"Oh.  Well then.  Never mind.  I suppose I'd lose track of time too if I was with such a cutie."

Cutie?  Really?

"Yeah.  I just wanted to call and tell you I'm okay.  I love you, Mom."

"I love you, too, sweetie.  Have a good time with that piece of perfection," she teases.

I blush as I end the call and dial the next number.

"Oh this had better be you, Titan," Clara demands.

I laugh at the irony in that name showing more dominance now.

"Yes.  It's me.  How are you?"

"Don't you dare laugh.  Where are you?  I've been to your apartment, your work, your favorite coffee spot... I've been every-damn-where trying to find you.  Your cell phone is still on your dresser.  Your clothes and suitcases are still in place.  I've been to the police station three times, and they wouldn't do anything."