Sunburn (15 page)

Doris sashayed back to her seat. “Big, fat balls. Don’t you forget eet.”

“I like balls,” Gilles murmured, seemingly to himself, even though his strange admission caught everyone’s attention. Eduardo dropped his spatula onto the grill with a loud clang. Gilles looked up, with the torn expression of a man who’d just made a life-changing realization. “I do. I love a man with huge, hairy balls. I like to feel them slapping against my…”

“Mon Dieu,”
shouted Claude. “I’m sharing a room with you!”

“Don’t worry,” returned poor, mortified Gilles. “You’re not my type.” He sighed into his beer.

“Well.” Patience stood up. “I’m not hungry anymore.”

Apollo stood and took her hand. His knowing grin made her want to peel right there. “You wanna get out of here?”

“More than you know.”

As he led her away from the table, she stopped, went back, and dropped a kiss onto Angie’s head. “Be safe,” she whispered to the bubbly redhead. And then she walked over to Doris and gave her a hug.

“I just don’t want you to be sad when we go home,” Doris admitted, stirring her martini.

Patience stared at her, not sure she was even going home. The sadness of it all overwhelmed her, but she was still touched by her friend’s nurturing instincts. “I won’t be. Promise.”

She and Apollo walked out of the restaurant hand in hand, and in silence. As he led her down the torchlit pathways to his villa, she reveled in the feel of his strong hand around hers. Why did it feel as if she could take on the world as long as she was holding that hand? He made her feel safe, even in a situation that caused her to suspect every sudden movement.

She could die here.

And even though she’d known Apollo such a short time, she could die happily as long as her hand was clasped in his. The depth of the emotion was so staggering it made her reel.

Well, if the demon was coming for her, she wouldn’t let him win until one thing happened. There was no way she was going anywhere, heaven or hell, until she got to have sex with Apollo. No way, no how.

To that end, she stopped him in front of his villa, and pulled him to her. She reached up on tiptoe and smashed her hungry mouth against his. His eyes widened in delight and he wound his strong arms about her waist, holding her tighter. Their tongues met in a fevered duel, seeking and finding a passion that was as sustaining as it was crushing. He licked at the corners of her mouth. She nipped at his tongue. He dug his hands through her hair. She grabbed his perfect ass, pressing his crotch against hers.

No more good girl.

When their mouths finally fell apart minutes later, they were both breathing heavily. Apollo gazed at her, his eyes a fathomless navy blue in the darkness. He ran a finger along her cheek, making her erupt in goose pimples.

“You don’t think I’m fucking with you, do you?”

Patience was overwhelmed he cared so much. “No,” she whispered. She smiled at him, and hoped very much her smile resembled Angie’s sexy grin for Eduardo. She ran a finger down Apollo’s chest, and then let it linger near his belt loop. She hooked her finger in his pants. “In fact, if I remember what happened on Tulum beach, you didn’t get to fuck with me at all. Let’s fix that.”

The god’s eyes changed, glowing gold with furious need, shimmering in the dusk. She’d never seen anything like it. If he hadn’t been holding her, Patience was sure her knees would have buckled. Luckily, he wrapped his body around hers, cocooning her in his strength. Enveloped by him, they both evaporated into mist.

* * * *

When they reappeared inside his villa, Patience felt the same disorientation hit her that she’d felt the last time they traveled in such a manner. The whole disappearing act really threw her for a loop. She leaned against his bedroom wall, steadying herself.

Apollo reappeared a few feet away. She took him in. He looked strong and confident, not in the least bothered by their bizarre transportation. His eyes weren’t glowing with that unearthly shimmer anymore, but the heat hadn’t disappeared from his expression. He was too beautiful to be believed. Patience raked her gaze over his form. His corded arms made her want to be possessed. His broad chest made her want to be consumed by him. His full, luscious lips made her pant for his kisses.

It was really going to happen. She was going to have actual sex with a Greek god! And the absolute hottest one ever. Surely they didn’t get any better.

Patience doubted her own sexual prowess just then. It was one thing to throw herself at him in the darkness outside the villa, but now she wasn’t so sure. What could she possibly do to him to make her stand out in the crowd that was his long line of sexual partners?

He took a step toward her, clearly reading her mind. “Just be yourself, Patience. That’s all I want tonight. Just you.” He looked a little scared, then. The same way he did when he’d expected her to run from him before. “If you’re not sure…”

“The hell I’m not.” Resolved to live for the moment and seize the damn day, Patience launched herself at him. She threw her arms around his neck, he picked her up, and she wrapped her legs around his waist. Their lips found each other in a desperate caress. Kissing her madly, Apollo carried her over to the bed.

She stopped him and smiled shyly through her swollen lips. “I was kind of hoping we could use that sinful shower of yours first. I’ve been fantasizing about it since you showered for me.”

Apollo grunted with deep desire, and his thick cock pulsed against her bottom as he carried her into the outside shower stall. “As you wish.”

He set her down and his lips found hers again, taking her mouth in a savage kiss. As he kissed her, his fingers fumbled with the straps on her sundress. She couldn’t help noticing his hands were shaking. Him! Shaking over undressing her, a weak mortal. Seeing as her whole body was quivering, she supposed she could allow him a few tremors.

He stopped his fumbling and smiled at her, a smile that warmed her to the core. “Do you mind if I just … you know?”

She leaned in and sucked at his bottom lip. Immediately, his dick swelled against her stomach. She giggled, so excited about his desire. “Just get it all off, Apollo.”

With a nod of his head, their clothing disappeared, only to land in a messy pile on the other side of the room. They stared at each other, completely bare, absolutely vulnerable to each other. For a moment, he did nothing other than warm her with his gaze. Finally, his eyes crinkled and he smiled the sweetest smile anyone had ever bestowed on her. “Patience, I’ve driven the chariot of the sun over the Acropolis. I’ve swam with dolphins and wild swans. I’ve bathed in warm brooks on Mount Olympus when the moon was high. And I’ve never seen anything more magnificent than you.”

Oh God
. She suddenly wanted to cry. Apollo took care of her, he challenged her and comforted her, and no man had ever made her feel so beautiful.

I’m falling in love.

Patience stared and felt loopy in his divine presence. She felt a real need to get on her knees and worship him. Dropping her gaze toward his crotch, she decided that was a good idea. She licked her lips and kneeled on the cold shower floor tiles.

Apollo stopped her and guided her back to a standing position. He backed her against the wall and turned on the flow of warm water so it coursed over their bodies. And then he positioned himself before her. “If anyone here is going to do any worshipping, it’s me.”

Crouching before her, he danced his tongue over her right nipple, teasing it until it was rock hard and screaming for his teeth. His hands traced the curves and slopes of her body, grabbing at the flesh of her ass, smoothing up her sides, slipping between her legs.

Patience’s body was already on fire. As those wonderful suns waltzed through her brain, she grew wetter and more ready for him. Hell, who was she kidding? She’d been ready for him the day he offered her a cocktail in the lobby.

She was dazzled as he kneeled. He kissed her belly, lapping at the water that trickled over her body. Apollo lifted her left leg and positioned it over his shoulder. And using a move that would forever astound her with its simple devotion, he kissed her sex. Just a soft, sweet kiss on the folds of her pussy. Adoration, pure and simple.

Her body tensed, wanting more, wanting it hard. Apollo looked up, just as stunned as she must look. Water cascaded over his head and body, making him look more like a sea god than god of the sun. His face split with a lusty grin, and before Patience managed another thought he buried his face in her pussy.

She flattened her back against the cold wall, so taken by pleasure. And all at once, she understood the power Apollo had to destroy, because his carnal kisses were devastating her. He dragged his tongue through her slit, rimming each delicate fold, exploring every little ruffle of sensitive flesh. On and on he licked and sucked, putting ever more pressure on her swollen clit. It felt so good. At one point, he removed his mouth just to snatch a quick breath. And even in that fleeting moment, she felt bereft of his touch. She dug her fingers into his hair and dragged his face back to her crotch.

She felt the deep rumble of his laugh, muffled as it was by her body. “Such greed.”

“Please,” she begged, overcome and ready to collapse under the showerhead.

He sucked at her clit, and her first orgasm ripped through her, seizing her frame, making it tremble with utter satisfaction. Wave after wave of the heady sensation took her as Apollo continued to drink. He couldn’t get enough. Even as the orgasm died down, it built again under the pressure from his marauding tongue.

Sweet Jesus, I’m going to come again!

That was one for her personal sexual record books. She’d never come twice in one sitting.

He looked up, grinning, resembling a satyr more than a god. “Fuck, you taste so good.”

Her head spun. Her heart pounded. She wasn’t sure she could take much more. He was giving her the most supreme bliss she’d ever experienced.

As the wave crested in her again, Apollo moved her leg off his shoulder and stood. He crushed her with his body and devoured her mouth with his. He tasted delicious. He tasted like her, and she loved having her flavor all over him.

His cock nudged her opening, wanting in. Needing in. For one bewildered moment, the good girl inside her jumped out and made her pesky presence known. “Should we get a condom?”

“Don’t worry,” he mumbled into the crook of her neck. “I can control whether or not you get inseminated.”

“Oh thank God,” she blurted. “Do it, then.”

Once more, Apollo picked her up and she wrapped herself around him. Holding her there, so easily, against the cold tile wall, he thrust his huge cock inside her.

As his scent, the fragrance of sunny days, filled her nostrils, Patience gasped. He was big, so very big, and he was stretching her farther than she’d ever thought she could go. Slowly, he filled her, not stopping until he was buried inside her welcoming body. Only when he was fully inside her did he pump. Unhurried, deep thrusts that made her spirit soar and her body ache with voluptuousness.

“By all the gods,” he grunted into her hair.

“Oh, yes,” she cried as another merciless orgasm racked her frame. Sending her spiraling into an abyss of voracious delight. “Apollo … oh. My. God!”

As he came, shooting a stream of white lightning into her core, he cried her name. His own body shook with several mighty quakes. Finally, he sagged against her and they stood there together, bodies still attached. Letting the steamy water wash over them.

Under the stream from the showerhead, Apollo looked up and gazed into her eyes. Searing her with such affection. “I’ve never…”

“Felt anything…” she continued for him.

“Like that,” he finished.

For the longest time, they just stared at each other. Once they were both good and pruney, Apollo turned off the tap. He then picked Patience up and carried her, sopping wet, to his bed. He laid her down, his eyes deep and mysterious, and lay atop her. He nudged her knees open, and she welcomed him between her legs once again.

She wanted him again.

He loved her long into the night. Long after the rainforest animals ceased their scurrying, he continued to brand her with his kisses. Hours after the hibiscus flowers had closed for the night, Apollo continued ruining her for any other man with his fervent touches. And the last thing Patience recalled of that magical evening was being held by the god of the sun and music, and having him sing her to sleep.

Chapter 12

Apollo stared at the vision in his bed as he fought to calm his erratic heartbeat. It was early morning and he’d done little else but watch Patience as she slept during the night. She was too exquisite for words. Her pretty, dark waves were strewn all over his pillow, giving him a strange sense of pride. Her black lashes fluttered over those caramel eyes. And the sweetest little smile had graced her lips all night long.

Sighing in her sleep, she shifted. She pushed the blanket off her chest and her perfect breasts were exposed. Tantalizing mounds, capped by soft, dusky nipples. Unable to refrain from touching and kissing her, Apollo leaned down and grazed the nearest nipple with his lips. She uttered a soft moan. Feeling devious, he licked at it, skimming his tongue round and round the hardening peak.

Even asleep, she gasped.

Fuck, what this woman does to me…

What did she do to him? Something had changed in him. Indeed, something had changed in him from the moment he first clapped eyes on her. He had a new curiosity, a new desire for a happy ending. She made him feel like freaking Prince Charming. And it wasn’t just her beauty. It was her goodness. It was the way she cared for her friends, the way she held herself. It was the fact she’d been more worried about his welfare in this demon business than hers.

He couldn’t remember any of his partners ever caring so much about his feelings or well-being. They’d all been more concerned about what they could get from him, or focused on the fact he was different than the average man. Patience knew he was unusual, to say the least. And she hadn’t turned tail. She’d talked to him and treated him as her equal.