The Oracle of Delphi (Greek Myth Fantasy Series) (7 page)

BOOK: The Oracle of Delphi (Greek Myth Fantasy Series)
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Six

 

 

Andromeda floated on a breeze as carefree as the wispy clouds basking in the summer sun. Her body vibrated, the essence of life strong within her. Her temples surged with ecstasy, warm and vibrant, circles of pleasure whirling through her mind. The vision of the demi-god Perseus lingered upon her thoughts. His dark hair glistening in the sunshine, his golden hawk-like eyes focused upon her, she saw him step from a pool of water, naked, making his way toward her.

She ran to him, opening her arms to embrace him, realizing she, too, was void of clothes. Their lips met, and limbs entangled, as they fell upon the soft grass rubbing their bodies together. He entered her, making her cry forth his name as his essence mingled with hers in a most delicious manner.

“Andromeda. Andromeda, I am here.”

The sound of his voice woke her, bringing her back to reality. Her eyes fluttered open, and there before her was Perseus, leaning over her prone body with his fingers making small, sensuous circles upon her temples.

“Perseus?” she asked, looking around and wondering where he’d brought her.

“You cried forth my name, your voice full of passion.”

She suddenly remembered her dream. Embarrassment flushed her cheeks and her body grew warm at his touch. She’d given away her secret dream by crying his name out loud. She pushed his hands away from her, sitting up abruptly.

“What are you doing!” She looked down to her garments and realized she wore an oversized tunic-wrap made for a male. It looked a lot like his.

“I saved you from falling into the pit,” he said, sitting back on his haunches. Suddenly, she remembered everything. The oracle, the cave, the reason she’d almost died to begin with. It had been his fault.

“You bastard!” She reached out and slapped him hard upon the cheek. He seemed surprised, losing his balance, falling backwards to sit upon the earth in the process.

“Mayhap next time I will let you die.”

“There will not be a next time,” she sniffed. “I’m never going back to that cave again. How dare you make me climb the chair and call forth the oracle! And all because of your selfishness and impatience, only wanting your own answers.”

“Well, I can see the herbal remedy worked. Your spunk has returned intact.”

She looked around and saw the pouch lying open at his feet. A fire burned at the campsite, a pot of hot water with floating herbs brewing above it. A small jar of sweet ointment lay open on the ground before them. The alluring smell of the herbs drifted past her nose, reminding her of her euphoric dream.

“What is this?” she asked, picking up the jar and sniffing the contents.

“The priestess of the Oracle of Delphi gave it to me to heal you. I’ve been rubbing it on your temples for the past two days.”

So that is where her erotic dreams came from. She wondered where else he had been rubbing it on her body.

“I didn’t think it was working,” he relayed. “But when I heard your passionate cry with my name on your lips I knew it had.”

A heat coursed through her, the dream vivid in her mind’s eye.

“It was not a cry of passion,” she lied.

“Then what was it? The last time I heard my name cried so fervently from a wench’s lips is when I bedded the merchant’s twin daughters. And they truly had a set of lungs on them!”

“Both at once?” she gasped.

He smiled a crooked smile, his eyes holding a tinge of mischief about them.

“I did not say that.” He stood, brushing the dirt from his clothes. “But it is an interesting idea.” His eyes raked over her, causing her own thoughts to flare. The dream stayed vivid in her mind. “It is also interesting to hear the idea springing from the lips of a virgin.”

She didn’t like where this conversation was leading. She pushed to her feet, wobbling drastically. He reached out to steady her, his hands strong and warm upon her bare arms. She didn’t want to like this man. He could help her slay the sea serpent, but wouldn’t. He wasn’t heroic in her eyes. And she would see him burn in Tartaras before she let him touch her again.

“Release me,” she said, shaking loose of his hold. “I don’t need you to help me stand.”

“I’m here to help you, Princess. Just say the word and I’ll be at your command.”

“Then help me by slaying the sea serpent that’s threatening to consume every single life in my village.”

He did not answer at first. Just looked at her, his face as cold as stone. He walked over to the fire and bent down to stoke it.

“I can’t do that. I told you I don’t have much time to find and kill the Gorgon, Medusa. I need to bring the head back to Seriphus soon or King Polydectes has threatened to kill my mother. I have already wasted two days nursing you back to health.”

She didn’t like to hear the words
wasted time
associated with her. There were many suitors back home who would give anything to spend even a few minutes in her presence. She didn’t need his crude assumptions, but she did need his skills as a demi-god to kill the sea serpent so her own life would not need to be sacrificed.

“Well, I’m sorry to hear I’m a waste of your time. Perhaps I’ll just leave you to your own worries and be on my way.”

She sauntered slowly toward her horse, feeling wobbly, wanting him to stop her. She needed him to request she remain, if only to know he felt attracted to her.

“Go ahead,” he said, “but I doubt you will do it.”

She stopped, holding one hand on the saddle, knowing he was right. She didn’t really want to leave, but she did not want to let him know that.

“Why is it no one from Thessaly is looking for you, Princess? Or could it be they are, but you are hiding from them for some reason?”

She looked over her shoulder, but he didn’t look at her. Instead, he stayed hunkered down near the fire, poking at it aimlessly with a stick.

“I’m not hiding from anyone,” she said, hoping he’d believe her.

“You don’t sound very convincing.” He put down the stick and faced her. His eyes captured her presence with a weight so heavy she couldn’t move. “I think you are afraid to go back.”

Once again, he read her so easily. Almost as if he knew her. She looked to the ground when she answered, her toe making small circles in the dust.

“I am,” she admitted. “The sea serpent is a horrible creature.”

“I’m sure it is.” He stood close to her now, so close she could feel the warmth coming from his body. “But could it be there’s something else that frightens you, too? Something you have been keeping from me?”

He leaned one hand above her on the saddle. Her back rested against the horse. He looked down at her with raised brows, waiting for her answer. She suddenly wondered what she had said while sitting on the oracle’s chair. Had she told him about the oracle’s words that she must be sacrificed to stop the sea serpent from attacking her village? Was that the reason he was in no hurry to kill the beast? He felt he didn’t need to?

“What could I possibly be keeping from you?” she asked, trying to find out exactly how much he knew.

“Oh, I don’t know,” he said, staring at her lips. “Mayhap you are just hiding the fact you want to kiss me?”

She smiled at that. So, he did not know she was to be a sacrifice after all. His own vanity caused him to want her to kiss him. She felt she needed to feed that hunger in his eyes. If for no other reason, than to make him want her, not to mention make him want to help her.

She raised her chin and closed her eyes, reaching toward him. Her lips brushed past his in a whisper, but it was enough to fuel the sparks of fire igniting within her. She opened her eyes. He was smirking at her.

“Well, you got your kiss,” she told him. “Why do you look at me that way?”

“That was not a kiss, my little virgin. This is a kiss.” He pulled her into his arms, pressing his mouth against hers. She felt the passion ignite as he claimed her as his own. He kissed her several times and traced her lips with the tip of his tongue. A warmth grew in her belly, and she felt the reaction all the way down between her thighs.

“Open for me,” he whispered against her lips. Thinking it much too wanton to do such a thing, she opened her mouth to protest. When she did so, he took advantage of the opportunity, slipping his tongue inside her mouth. She gasped at the intimacy of it, his tongue filling her mouth completely. Hot, warm and sensual, she tingled at the feel of him inside her. He removed his mouth and whispered into her ear.

“Now give me yours in return.” He let his tongue slip into her ear for a brief second, making her squirm in his hold. Once again his mouth claimed hers, and this time when his tongue invaded her she reached out with her own. Then he took her into his mouth, their tongues dancing in rhythm before he closed his lips upon hers and sucked gently.

Her knees grew wobbly and she felt light-headed at the experience. She crumbled in his arms, breaking the connection. He pulled her back up to her feet and kissed her on the forehead before walking back to the fire.

“Not bad for a virgin,” he remarked. “But I can see I have a lot to teach you.”

She did not like to be treated like an immature child. She may not be experienced in the art of making love, but she knew for certain that he was aroused by their encounter.

“I do not need a teacher,” she said walking up next to him. “I need a warrior. Now, if you are not man enough for the job then I guess I will have to look elsewhere.” She played off his vanity and hoped it would work. If he called her bluff, she didn’t know what she would do or where she would go. No normal man in the whole of Greece would be able to kill off a sea serpent sent by the gods.

“I beg to differ with you on the teacher part,” he told her. “And if you are trying to snare me into helping you by that comment, then I must inform you - I am not as vain as you think.”

He walked over to the saddlebag and started digging through it. He pulled out items to use for a meal, including bread, cheese, fruit, and a flask of ale.

“You are welcome to stay around for a bite to eat before you go,” he told her.

So, she thought. He did not want her after all. He was releasing her. He really wasn’t going to help her.

“No, thank you. I think the sooner I leave the better.” She hadn’t meant to test him this time. She really meant to leave, but he stopped her before she could mount her horse.

“I’ll wager you don’t get half a day’s ride from here before you’re overtaken by ruffians. After all, a princess on her own suffering from weak knees is easy prey even for the saddest excuse of bandits.”

“I made it to Delphi on my own just fine. And there’s nothing wrong with my knees.” She mounted the horse. “I don’t need you to tell me I’m not capable.”

“I will escort you home if you tell me where to find the land where men eat not Demeter’s golden grain, but only acorns.”

She smiled inwardly. So, he needed her help after all. He would not let her go without getting the information he wanted first. She saw a perfect opportunity to join him in his sly game.

“I am not in need of an escort. I am in need of a warrior to slay a sea serpent.”

“So you have already mentioned.”

His cheek twitched a little when he looked at her. Then he looked away, busying himself with spreading the food on a blanket upon the ground. Her stomach ached from hunger, and watching him seat himself next to the meal, purposely holding the grapes high as he dropped them into his mouth one by one, was more than she could handle. She needed food desperately but wasn’t willing to give him his answer until she received a commitment from him in return.

“So,” he said, breaking off a hunk of bread and holding it in front of him as he spoke, “what is your answer?”

She dismounted and made her way over to the fire. She tore the bread from his hand and ripped off a hunk with her teeth. His eyes watched as she chewed and swallowed. Then she picked a grape off the bunch, licking it with her tongue. She couldn’t help but hear the intake of his breath and see the extended blink of his eyes as she did so. Pursing her mouth, she used two fingers to place the grape directly between her lips. His eyes fixed on her mouth - just the attention she wanted. She quickly sucked the fruit into her mouth, a wet popping noise announcing its new home within her body. He squirmed on the blanket, throwing down the hunk of bread he held in his hands. She smiled inwardly, chewing and swallowing the grape in triumph.

“You kill the sea serpent and then I will tell you what you want to know,” she said in a sultry voice.

He picked a long blade of grass from the ground, running it up the back of her leg. The intimacy brought a surge of life through her; her knees once again grew wobbly beneath her. Her strength was not yet fully regained from her ordeal with the oracle. Her legs gave way and she landed with a plop atop his lap.

“Oh!” she said, feeling his body beneath her.

He then took the blade of grass and ran it over her cheek and down her neck. “You give me my answer or I am going to keep teasing you until you are begging me to take you right here on the blanket.”

Just the intimate thought had her melting in his embrace. The dream she had of him came back to taunt her. She felt like holding back the information purposely just to know what it felt like to make love with a man. His male hardness grew beneath her and she knew she had to move away before it was too late.

BOOK: The Oracle of Delphi (Greek Myth Fantasy Series)
10.45Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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