Deep Water (26 page)

Griffin’s cock was doing its absolute
damnedest to inflate. “You mean that? You’ll let me fuck you?”

“I’ll relish it.” Poseidon’s voice dropped
into a low, velvet purr. “I plan on riding you like one of my stallions, my
love. I can’t wait to feel your cock push inside me, filling me and rubbing
against that wonderful spot that makes me want to scream with pleasure. I want
you to make me come, my muscles milking your cock as I spurt all over you. And
then I’ll watch your face when you come inside me, making me yours.”

“Oh, God.” The ache in Griffin’s ass
shifted, accommodating a new ache in his balls. “If you’re trying to talk me
into an orgasm, it’s working,” he groaned.

“Good. You need to come a few more times
today, I think.” Poseidon shifted, avoiding the tray as he straddled Griffin’s
outstretched legs. He leaned forward, brushing his lips over Griffin’s. The
simple contact made them tingle. “I’ll just have to make that happen, won’t I?”

“Works for me,” Griffin said hoarsely,
sinking back on his pillow and letting the god cover him. Poseidon was heavy,
but in a good way, and it was obvious he was taking the bulk of his own weight
on his arms, judging by their bulging muscles.

Another bulge nudged his cock. He winced.

Poseidon froze. “What’s wrong? Did I hurt
you?”

The worry creasing the god’s face would be
comical if Griffin didn’t know what was behind it. “Seriously, calm down. It’s
okay. I just thought … you probably should fuck me again, yeah?”

“If your tumor is as aggressive as it
seems to be, you should have daily doses of my seed, yes.”

“Yeah, that’s what I thought. But right
now my
arse
feels like someone drove a lorry through
it.”

“Ah.” Poseidon dropped down at his side.
“Yes, you’ll need a day or so to recover.”

“But I also need your … you know.” Griffin
grinned nervously, trying to steel himself. “So if you can’t bugger me, I guess
it’s Plan B.”

Poseidon’s expression contorted in an odd
way. After a moment, Griffin realized the god was trying not to smile. “What?”

“You needn’t make it sound like I’m asking
you to slaughter innocents.”

Griffin flushed. “Fuck. Sorry.”

“It’s all right, love. I’m teasing,”
Poseidon said. He turned thoughtful. “That being said, it would be easier if
you could get hard. That way we could pleasure each other at the same time. As
that’s not possible right now, I could always masturbate and you could consume
it in some sort of food. Oatmeal, perhaps, or a protein shake?”

The thought of adding Poseidon’s semen to
a bowl of already glutinous oatmeal made Griffin gag. “I suppose,” he said,
unenthused.

The god rolled onto his back, stretching
out with his hands tucked behind his head. “Tell me, love, have you ever
pleasured a woman with your mouth?”

Griffin turned onto his side. “Yeah, lots
of times.”

“Why?”

“I like it.
It’s
fun,
and I like the taste. Besides it’s a power trip. I love knowing that I can make
a woman moan and beg with just my tongue.”

Poseidon gave him a slow, absolutely
filthy smile. “How would you like to make a powerful immortal moan and beg?”

Griffin blinked. Put that way, oh very
much yes, with sugar on top. “I see what you mean,” he said. “Okay, I’ll try
it. But I reserve the right to use protein shakes if I just can’t swallow.”

“Agreed.” Poseidon glanced down
meaningfully at his now tented trousers.

Well, it wasn’t like he wanted any more
burned toast. Feeling nervous and strangely excited, Griffin put the breakfast
tray on the floor, then undid the god’s trouser catch and slid the zipper down,
careful to avoid the rigid shaft underneath.

Easing out Poseidon’s cock, he took the
measure of it. It was definitely longer than average, not to mention thick (as
the ache in his
arse
could attest to), but it wasn’t
the monster dong so common in porn videos. Instead, it was elegant, if that was
a word that could be applied to a hard cock. A few shades rosier than
Poseidon’s skin, it was beribboned with an impressive set of veins. Underneath
the foreskin, the head was a fat mushroom cap that was just starting to peep
out of its protective cowling.

Griffin had to admit it was a gorgeous
piece of equipment. Now all he had to do was man up and suck it.
Experimentally, he licked the foreskin, letting his tongue drag over the soft,
spongy flesh. In his peripheral vision he saw Poseidon’s thigh muscles twitch.

He smacked his lips. “Huh. Tastes like
skin. Well, it would, wouldn’t it?”

“I certainly hope so,” Poseidon said,
sounding a bit strangled.

Weirdly, that made Griffin want to laugh.
Well, I know what I like when it comes to
cock-sucking. Might as well see if he likes it, too.

Using his lips he teased the foreskin back
and forth over the head, pausing every so often to run his tongue around the grained
flesh. Poseidon’s legs flexed slowly, tensing when Griffin dropped lower and
placed an open-mouthed kiss against the shaft. The skin felt incredibly soft
against his lips, and the flesh underneath was broiling hot and so very stiff.
Idly he traced the path of a vein with the tip of his tongue, following it down
to where it disappeared into the main body of the shaft near the balls.

Let’s see how he
likes this.
Flattening
his tongue, Griffin licked a wide, wet stripe up the underside. When he reached
the top he gently nudged the foreskin down, licking the ridged bit under the
corona there.

There was no other word for it. Poseidon
let out a whimper. Grinning, Griffin concentrated his efforts on the head,
sucking it into his mouth and working it with his lips and tongue. That
maneuver always sent him into orbit, and judging from the muffled sounds he
could hear Poseidon making it was having the same effect on the god.

After a bit the foreskin retracted fully
and he could lick under the corona, before coming up and dipping into the slit
where a small, translucent pearl had formed. A taste of something fresh and
pleasantly salty burst over his tongue, more like tears than anything. With
another grin, he started deliberately tonguing the slit.

There was another divine whimper overhead.
“Please, Griffin,” Poseidon panted.

Yeah, I could get
used to this.
“Please,
what?” Griffin teased.

The god audibly gulped. “Suck it. Please.”

“Well, since you asked so nicely.” Griffin
took the whole head into his mouth, letting it bump against his soft palate. He
had no illusions about being able to deep throat and wasn’t even going to try.
At least, not this time.

Instead, he formed a seal with his lips
around Poseidon’s shaft and sucked on it while wrapping his hand around the
thick flesh and pumping it up and down. He lowered his mouth until it met the
curve of his thumb and forefinger. More fresh salt oozed over his tongue, and
he swallowed it easily enough, letting some of his excess saliva drip out and
form lubricant for his steadily pumping hand.

He knew he’d hit the right rhythm when
Poseidon started muttering in what sounded like Ancient Greek, clutching the
sheets tightly as his entire pelvis twitched. Griffin recognized the urge to
thrust up into a warm, wet mouth and appreciated the god’s self-control.

But where’s the
fun in that?
Feeling wicked, he stepped up his game, giving his mate the best wet,
delightfully messy blowjob he could manage. He added some slurping sound
effects that had always ramped up his own excitement, gagging a few times as he
went down too far and not caring a bit.

And then Poseidon went rigid. “Love, I’m
close,” he panted. “Get ready.”

Griffin steeled himself, hoping that
divine spunk didn’t have the bitterness that he’d tasted in his own when he was
first going through puberty.
Just swallow
it. It can’t be worse than the boiled slop you had to eat at school.

The hot flesh in his mouth thickened,
going impossibly hard as Poseidon shouted something in a cracked voice. Then a
warm, thick, salty fluid filled his mouth.

He swallowed automatically before
registering the flavor. And then swallowed again, more easily this time. Ichor
apparently made divine cum taste, well, divine. There was a savory undertone to
the semen that, in more restaurant-based circumstances, he would call tasty. It
also left his tongue tingling, not the burn of peppers or curry but almost
electric without being painful.

He could feel the tingle traveling down
his throat, now, lighting up his stomach like a good single malt. He imagined
the fluid being absorbed into his system, flowing through his arteries, making
its way to his brain.
Hey, tumor? Take
that, you bastard.

More semen oozed onto his tongue and he
kept swallowing, breathing through his nose so that he could maintain the
suction that made coming in someone’s mouth the amazing experience it was. When
he judged Poseidon was growing sensitive he eased off, lapping the last few
drops of magic tumor-buster off the shaft.

Licking his lips, Griffin grinned up at
Poseidon. “Why didn’t you tell me you tasted so damned good?”

“Do I?” The god had a hazy, blissed-out
expression. “Ah. Good to know. No protein shakes required, then?”

“Definitely not.” He wiped his mouth off
on the back of his hand. “Besides, now that I’m going to live I want my
security deposit back, and I’m pretty sure this stuff would blow up the
blender. I’d better drink it from the source.”

Poseidon smiled. “Probably for the best.”

Chapter Eleven

Aphros jogged up to the blue and white
cottage, absently stripping the water from his skin and hair. If he pushed, he
had just enough time to whip up a quick curry for lunch. Ian and Bythos were
busy studying the new coral reef that had bloomed on the site of the goddess
Claire’s death, but there should be more than enough food for them when they
came back.

Once in the kitchen he summoned fresh
chicken thighs and laid them out on the chopping board, thinking about his own
work that morning. The latest patrol had turned up no signs of ilkothelloi or
any other creatures with Thetis’s venom, and he was starting to wonder if his
father’s interaction with the ilkothella had been a one-off. The question was,
was it meant to show that Thetis could send her creatures anywhere, or was it a
deliberate feint at Griffin Moore? The former meant that Thetis’s hubris was
growing, but the latter meant that she knew far more about their private lives
than he liked.

Not for the first time, he wondered if it
was wise not to inform his mother that her long-lost
agapetos
had been reincarnated in the form of a dying British
marine biologist.
I’m sure Father
thinks
he has a plan, but if it doesn’t work it means
Mother’s been deprived of Griffin’s last days.
The demigod frowned.
Assuming he really is their
agapetos
and this isn’t some kinky fancy of
Father’s.

There was a knock at the back door, then a
creak. “Aphros? A word, please?”

Speak of the
devil.
He glanced over his shoulder at Poseidon—and yes, Griffin stood next to him in
the back doorway.

Then he stopped, taking a closer look at
the mortal. “You’re looking much better.”

“Yeah, so your dad said,” Griffin said
easily. “Apparently I’ve got streaks of orange in my aura now.”

Aphros’s eyebrows went up. “Your aura?”

“That’s not necessary, son. He knows
everything.” Poseidon took Griffin’s hand. “Including who he was.”

The demigod’s eyebrows rose further until
they were up near his hairline. Poseidon’s stance and attitude, not to mention
the fact that he was now holding Griffin’s hand, undoubtedly meant that his
father had successfully bedded the human. The less Aphros thought about that,
the better.

“Ah. Well, then…” He searched for
something else to say. “Would the two of you like to have lunch? I was going to
make chicken korma.”

“Curry?” Griffin said longingly. “I’d love
some.”

“Take a seat.” Soon Aphros was setting
plates of
pilau
rice heaped with fragrant chunks of
chicken in a rich yellow sauce on the table. Reaching out to his favorite baker
in Mombasa, he snagged three naan breads and added them to a waiting platter.
“Please, eat,” he urged.

Griffin didn’t hesitate, digging into his
meal. “Oh, that’s the stuff,” he said after swallowing, smiling beatifically. “This
is fantastic,
Aph
.”

“Quite,” Poseidon agreed, scooping up some
curry in a bit of naan bread and eating it with relish. “I do appreciate you
feeding us on such short notice.”

Aphros almost choked on his mouthful of
korma.
Father, grateful? This is new.
“You’re welcome,” he said after clearing his throat. “So I take it you two
are…”

Griffin looked to Poseidon, who smiled
like the proverbial cat with canary. “Yeah, guess that’s obvious,” the mortal
said.

“Which is why we’re here,” Poseidon said.
“I feel that your mother should meet Griffin as soon as possible, but the last time
I tried to speak to her she refused to talk to me. I would appreciate any
advice you might have.”

Aphros shut his open mouth with a soft
click. “You’re asking
me
for advice?”

Sea blue eyes glinted at him in good
humor. “I know I’ve been somewhat rigid these past few millennia. But it is
possible even for an aged fossil such as myself to learn. And one of the things
I have learned is that a direct approach won’t work with your mother—it’ll put
her back up and I won’t see her again for centuries.”

“And I don’t have that kind of time,”
Griffin added.

Aphros saw a flash of pain cross his
father’s face. He knew that pain. It was the risk a god took when he fell in
love with a mortal, knowing that they would eventually be lost to the cold hand
of death. If it hadn’t been for Gaia’s intervention, he and Bythos would be
facing the same situation eventually with Ian. It made him feel more
sympathetic towards his father. “Why don’t I invite her over for dinner tonight?”
he suggested. “If the two of you simply happen to drop by, she can meet Griffin
then.”

“That would work very well for us,”
Poseidon said, glancing at Griffin.

Aphros nodded. “If you’re willing to take
some more advice, be aware that she may not welcome you back with open arms,
even with Griffin at your side. You remember what happened with Nick and Liam
when they first met.”

Poseidon sighed. “I do.”

Griffin looked curious. “What happened
when they met?”

The god grimaced a bit. “Liam tried to run
Nick through with his trident, then choked him. Granted, he thought Nick was
raping Aidan at the time.”

Griffin’s mouth dropped open. “Holy God.
But they act like they’re absolutely potty about each other.”

“They are, now. But Liam had to work for
Nick’s forgiveness.” Aphros eyed Poseidon, noting the high color coming out in
his father’s face. “Then again, it could be said that you’ve been working for
Mother’s forgiveness for quite some time, now. I think she’ll take that into account.”

“I hope so,” Poseidon said, toying with a
piece of naan bread. “And if not, I’m hoping Griffin will be able to change her
mind, or at least ease her anger.”

“Oh, really? Two ex-wives, remember?”
Griffin said, waving a fork at Poseidon. “Don’t expect me to smooth over your
marriage issues. I’ll be lucky if she doesn’t throw something at me.”

“Oh, she won’t throw anything at you,”
Aphros said cheerily. “Father, on the other hand, had better be ready to duck.”

Poseidon gazed at him flatly. “Thank you,
my son.”

“You’re quite welcome. More curry?”

****

Amphitrite lowered her teacup. “That’s odd,”
she announced.

Hyacinth frowned. “What is?”

She and Hyacinth were having tea in her
sister’s little office at The Lady’s Touch. After the unsettling events of the
last few days she felt the need to hole up somewhere where she could relax and
talk to a sister.

Even if it meant dragging said sister away
from rearranging her fall décor offerings. “I don’t know,” Amphitrite said,
trying to focus. This time it wasn’t a sudden rush of desire distracting her. Whatever
this was, it had a taste of malignancy to it. She reached out to find the
source of the disturbance, but it was gone.

“Dammit.” Frustrated, she turned her
attention to Hyacinth, who was now fussing with her teacup. “Did you sense it
at all?”

“
Er
, no.”
Hyacinth took a hasty mouthful of tea, spilling some of it onto her blouse.
“Would you like another cookie?”

Amphitrite narrowed her eyes. “Not
particularly.
Hy
, you’re fidgeting. Do you really
need to get back to your display that badly?”

“No, of course not.” The other Nereid
hunched down a bit, not meeting her gaze. “I’m just thinking about … things,
you know. The boys, Ian. Poseidon.”

Her hesitation on the last name told
Amphitrite a great deal. Hyacinth was many things, but a good liar she wasn’t.
“Why are you thinking about Poseidon?”

“I’m not,” Hyacinth said, adding on a
nervous laugh. “Well, just in passing. Like when you think of something you
don’t want to think about, but it just pops in your head anyway?”

With care, Amphitrite put her teacup down
on the table and clasped her hands in her lap. That way, she reasoned, it would
be more difficult to reach across and shake the truth out of her sister. “Hyacinth,
what’s going on?”

The other Nereid’s expression turned
miserable. She put her own teacup down with a fine rattle. “Aphros made me
swear by Zeus
Horkios
not to tell you.”

Amphitrite felt a flicker of shock. What
in the world would prompt her son to require the gods’ most unbreakable oath
from his aunt?

Unless...
“Does this have
something to do with Poseidon?”

Hyacinth remained silent, but her
discomfort said volumes.

So it did involve Poseidon. “He came to my
home unannounced a few days ago,” Amphitrite said. “He was babbling something
about Medusa. I ordered him to leave. Does your oath…” Her throat went dry.
“Does it have to do with Poseidon
and
Medusa?”

Hyacinth gave her a wretched look. “
Ammie
, I
can’t
say anything. You know that.”

“No, of course you can’t. It’s all right.”
If Aphros had invoked Zeus
Horkios
, he was unlikely
to reveal anything he knew about his father’s activities to her, and Bythos
would be just as closemouthed. Ian was easier to finagle, she suspected, but it
was very likely that Poseidon hadn’t told his new son-in-law anything useful.

There was no hope for it. She would have
to beard the lion in his den. “Thank you,
Hy
,” she
said, standing up and brushing a few wayward crumbs from her lap. “I’m sorry to
eat and run, but I think I need to speak to Poseidon. And no,” she held up a
slim hand, “I won’t bring you into the conversation.”

Hyacinth looked torn between relief and
dismay. Even so, Amphitrite was mildly surprised when her sister skirted the
table and wrapped her in a strong hug.

“I wish you all the happiness in the
world,
Ammie
,” Hyacinth murmured into her hair. “Of
all the people I know, you truly deserve it.”

Amphitrite hugged her back. “Thank you,
Hy
.” Wondering what she was going to find, she opened a
portal to Olympus and stepped through.

But Poseidon wasn’t in his palace, and his
daimons
,
once they’d gotten over the surprise of seeing her, informed her that their
master hadn’t been home for days and they had no idea where he’d gone. Another
portal to Greece and a lift from a friendly dolphin delivered her to the
undersea palace she’d once shared with Poseidon.

Very little had changed about the place,
she noted, eyeing the well-maintained courtyard with its shimmering marble
columns and manicured seaweed topiary. A number of staff swam out to meet her, the
awestruck
mers
quickly escorting her inside the
palace.

There she met a dignified
mer
who introduced himself as Cam, Poseidon’s steward. “I’m
afraid you just missed
m’lord
,” he informed her after
sending one of his underlings off for refreshments. “He was here last night.
I’m afraid he didn’t inform me of his current location, however.”

She noticed the very tips of his tail
fluke twitching slightly. The
mer’s
face was serenely
handsome, but she knew
mer
body language. That sort
of twitching indicated nervousness.

She took a gamble and put on her best
winsome expression. “Oh, dear. Poseidon had asked me to catch up with him
before he left, you see. Unfortunately I was delayed,” she said. A stroke of
brilliance struck her. “And I had been so looking forward to meeting his
friend. It isn’t often that he brings someone here, as I’m sure you know.”

Cam’s eyebrows rose slightly. “I have to
admit, the human did surprise me somewhat,” he said. “But I’m not one to
question
m’lord’s
tastes, of course.”

“Of course,” Amphitrite said encouragingly.
“But Poseidon does like to give his favored mortals a treat every now and then.
And really, I suppose a trip to this beautiful palace would certainly count as
a treat.”

A faint smile played over the
mer’s
lips. “The human did seem quite impressed,” Cam
allowed. “His head kept swiveling so much I was afraid it would fall off at
some point.”

His
head?
Poseidon had brought a man to the palace?
“Out of curiosity, how did the human strike you?” she said,
sounding casual.

Cam frowned in thought. “I didn’t really
speak to him, but he seemed pleasant enough for a
landwalker
.
He had the most striking hair, a mix of silver and black.”

So the mystery visitor was middle aged. That
was frustratingly unhelpful. “I’m almost afraid to ask, but was Poseidon
annoyed at my tardiness?”

Cam’s lips pursed. “I can’t really say, my
lady. My lord left early this morning and took the human with him. After the
amount of wine they drank last night, I thought the least they would want was a
good breakfast, but they were both gone when the maid went to wake them. Do you
know when
m’lord’s
expected to return?”