Eros (16 page)

‘Her name is Alice,’ Coop said into Skye’s ear, as he pulled out his gun.
‘And there, to your left, is Frank.’

Skye turned to see a man walking towards them, hands stuffed in his pocket.
She watched, her heart in her mouth at what she knew she was about to witness.
Alice’s hat was still scuffing its way along the street towards the man called Frank.
He bent down to pick it up, while she ran towards it.

Coop, feeling oddly bereft now that his hands had left Skye’s warm body, quickly assembled his weapon.
He might not believe wholeheartedly in what he was doing, but it seemed that she did.
If doing this impressed her, then that was good enough reason for him. Coop aimed quickly and fired.
And frowned.
He stared at the couple, then down at his gun before flicking a glance at Skye who was still watching the pair of them, unaware that anything was amiss.
Shit.
He’d missed.
He never missed.
Trying not to panic, he aimed again, breathing a silent sigh of relief as his second shot found its mark.
Then he quickly turned to the man and squeezed the trigger in his direction.

Skye watched as Frank scooped up the hat and presented it to Alice with a bow and a flourish.
She took it, putting her hands up to her face and seeming to giggle.

‘That’s amazing,’ Skye whispered.

Coop barely noticed.
He was still trying to work out what had gone wrong.
If his mother found out, she’d be furious.
He looked again at Skye.

‘Doesn’t anyone ever see you?’ she asked.
‘I mean, you’d think someone would notice a man pulling out a golden gun in the middle of a city.
Even at this time of the morning.’

‘People only see what they want to,’ Coop answered, focusing on her rather than his failure.
‘Olympus is the same.
We have a large complex near Litochoro.
If you don’t expect it to be there, you won’t see it.
It’s all to do with belief or something.’

Skye shook her head.
‘Wow.’

Coop turned to watch the couple standing together under the dark sky.
Even from this distance he could see the look of surprised adoration with which Alice was looking at Frank.
If only Skye would look at him that way, he thought idly, then caught himself.
Where in the hell had that thought come from?
Besides anything, she couldn’t even see him.

‘Come on,’ he said.
‘We have a bit of time before the next one.
How do you fancy standing on top of the Empire State Building?’

‘Isn’t it closed?’

‘Shut your eyes,’ he whispered in her ear, ‘and you’ll find out.’

She did as he bade, opening them only when he instructed her to do so.
When she did, she was almost completely bowled over.

‘Oh my God,’ Skye breathed.
‘This is unbelievable.’

The whole of New York lay before them, twinkling lights stretching across the sweeping dark purple night sky.
She could make out the silhouettes of famous landmarks she’d only ever seen in films.
It was utterly breathtaking.

‘Can you see that?’ she asked Coop, pointing towards the glittering river.

He smiled, watching her face glowing.
‘Yes.’

‘It’s magnificent.’

Coop moved up behind her and gently held her shoulders.
Skye, feeling the pressure of his hands, held her breath then slowly turned towards him. With her heart thudding in her chest, she seized the moment and reached out with one extended palm, feeling it connect first with his broad chest, then upwards to the rough hair where his shirt opened and over the stubble of his chin.
She rested her hand on his cheek and, for the first time, it seemed to Coop that she was gazing into his eyes.

He leaned forward and kissed her, his arms reaching round her back and pulling her in towards him.
His tongue ran over her bottom lip and his teeth nipped at the soft flesh there, then he deepened the kiss, entwining his fingers in her long hair.
She tasted of toothpaste and freshness and Coop was drowning in her scent.

Without warning, Skye pulled away.
Her face was flushed and her breathing quick, but there was a wary, troubled expression on her face.
‘Is this another lesson?’

Coop stared at her, not sure at first what she was referring to.
Then dull comprehension seeped through.

‘No.
By Olympus, Skye, no.
I…’ He stepped back and raked a hand through his hair.
‘I want you.
More than I’ve ever wanted anyone.’
As soon as he said the words, he realised they were true. He took both her hands in his and fixed his eyes on hers.
‘Do you…?’ he swallowed.
‘Do you want this?’

She nodded mutely and he felt cascading relief and joy flood through him.

‘I’ve still got two more jobs to do,’ he said, struggling to focus on anything other than her.

Skye looked confused for a moment, then her face cleared.
‘Are they close by?’

‘Not exactly.’

She licked her lips and his eyes followed her small pink tongue.
‘Well, let’s hurry up and get them over so we can get back home.’

He pulled her to him and planted a long hard kiss on her lips, and whispered in her ear, ‘Yes, let’s.’

***

By the time they made it back to the mansion, Skye felt more nervous than ever.
Coop’s attitude towards his final two jobs had been perfunctory to say the least; even her continued amazement at what he could achieve with a single shot was dampened by the anticipation and trembling excitement she felt in the pit of her stomach.
He’d taken every opportunity to brush lightly against her, making her shiver.
They certainly hadn’t gone on any more side trips to do some sightseeing.

As soon as the door closed behind them, she felt him move in front of her and press her against its sturdy wooden frame.
Regardless of whether she could see him or not, she could certainly feel every inch of him.
With his hot breath on her cheek, she reached up and traced her fingers over his biceps, marvelling at the rippling strength she felt there.
Then his breath moved down her face until she could feel it at the base of her neck.
He moved his arms, pinning her against the door so that she was trapped.

If this is what it’s like to be the prisoner of a love god, then give me more, Skye thought, before his lips pressed against her skin and all thought fled from her mind.

‘Don’t move,’ he whispered and began trailing kisses up her neck, pausing to nibble gently with his teeth at a place near her ear.

Skye sucked in her breath and closed her eyes while Coop continued upward, his kisses becoming more gentle as he reached her mouth.
The hot, hard length of his erection pressed insistently against her and she moaned under his lips.
As if in answer, he began to move his mouth back down her neck again, his kisses searing into her skin.
This time, however, he didn’t pause at the base of her neck but continued downwards until she could feel his breath warming her through the light fabric of her blouse.

‘You have no idea,’ he murmured, ‘how much I hate this piece of clothing.
I think I’ve wanted to rip it off you since the first time I saw you in it.’

Skye opened her mouth to protest but, before she could say anything, he shifted his weight slightly, still keeping her in place against the door while he pulled hard at the top of her blouse. Buttons flew off and spun across the marble floor, leaving her top half exposed.

Coop returned his mouth to her skin, kissing her collar-bone and the softer flesh below.
He paused briefly at the lacy edge of her bra, then his tongue moved down to the
bare skin at the valley between her breasts and back up again.
Skye shuddered.

Gently, he reached up to one bra strap and pulled it down her shoulder before doing the same to the other.
Then he peeled the lacy cups down, exposing her breasts.
Skye felt him take a momentary half step backwards.
A hot flush suffused her skin.

‘You shouldn’t be embarrassed,’ he said softly.
‘You’re beautiful.’

As if to emphasise his point, he leaned in and kissed her on the lips, then used his right hand to cup her breast.
She felt his finger and thumb take her nipple tenderly and she gasped.

Now that she had some more freedom to move, Skye reached out to find Coop’s own shirt.
He caught her hand, however, and gently pushed it back against the door.

‘You’re a goddess, Skye,’ he said.
‘I want to pay homage to you.
Let me do this.’

Swallowing hard, Skye let her arm relax.
Then Coop’s mouth found her breast.
His tongue circled her nipple then he began to suck while his hands reached down around her back to the waist of her skirt.
Before she could move to allow him easier access, he had unfastened the button and the zip and her skirt pooled in a black circle on the floor.

His lips left her breast and she started to utter a muffled protest but they immediately scorched a trail down her midriff.
Skye’s hands involuntarily reached down until she realised they were clutching at what had to be Coop’s hair.
Part of her registered that it felt softer and slightly longer than she’d imagined, but it was a half-formed thought as Coop’s tongue found her belly button, rimming round it gently until she was gasping.
As his head lowered even further, she removed her hands from the down of his hair and pressed her palms against the warm wood of the door, her back arching.
He pulled back slightly, although she could still feel the fire of his breath against her skin and, with one finger, he traced along the edge of her pants.
Then his tongue followed the path his finger had taken.

Coop moved back again and rolled down the edge of lace barely an inch, tracing over the newly-exposed skin again with his finger.
His tongue followed.
Skye moaned and moved her own hands to pull off the fabric between them, but he took her hands again and returned them to the door.
Then Coop himself gently peeled her underpants over the curve of her hips and down past her legs to join her skirt on the floor.
For a heartbeat, he seemed to hang there, doing nothing.
Not being able to see him was incredibly erotic and yet so unbelievably frustrating at the same time.
Fortunately he didn’t keep her waiting for long, gently inserting one hand between her legs to coax them open before his mouth pressed into her, flicking at her clitoris.
Skye cried aloud in pure, uncontrolled pleasure.

Once her body had stopped its orgasmic shuddering, Coop stood up.
He took her hand and guided it to his chest, directing her fingers to unfasten each button and expose the smooth hard flesh underneath.
Once he had shrugged off the shirt, he took her palm and pressed it against his heart, not saying anything but allowing her to feel how fast his pulse was racing.
He left her hand there while
he undid his trousers and pushed them down over his hips, kicking them quickly away.
Then he grasped her hand in his and gently pulled it down until she could feel the rough hair underneath his belly and the hot, hard rigidness of his erection.
Her fingers circled his girth and, finally, it was Coop’s turn to moan aloud.

Skye closed her eyes in delight at his reaction, lightly moving her fingers up his length and marvelling at his size and smoothness.
Coop leaned in towards her.

‘Enough now,’ he murmured in her ear.

He positioned his weight against her and thrust inside her wet warmth, completely filling her body and soul.
Skye curved her arms around his back and the pair of them moved together in unison, hips rising to meet each other’s while their breath quickened.
Her skin slick with sweat, Skye felt herself tipping over the edge.

‘Coop,’ she moaned.

His lips found hers for one prolonged kiss, then he whispered in her ear. ‘Skye.’

Coop slammed into her for one final tumultuous thrust and the pair of them exploded in a tingling, shuddering, shivering wave.

Coop’s phone buzzed annoyingly.
He ignored it and pulled Skye’s sleeping frame closer to his, hooking one leg round hers as if to hold her in place and prevent her from ever leaving.
She murmured something and reached behind her, her hand seeking the warmth of his skin.

The phone buzzed again.
Skye shifted slightly, the sound finally penetrating her sleep, and her eyes fluttered open.

‘Your phone,’ she muttered.

Coop propped himself up on one elbow and gazed down at her.
‘I can’t hear anything,’ he said softly.

The corners of her mouth curved upwards.
‘Nothing?’ she teased.

‘Not a thing,’ he asserted, pressing his lips against her temple.
‘Other than my heart, which is probably thudding loudly enough to wake the dead.
It must be the excitement of waking up next to you.’

Skye turned towards him, wishing she could see his face and look into his eyes to read the expression there.

‘I’m pretty excited too,’ she whispered.

Coop trailed one finger down the curve of her waist and she shivered.
Then the phone buzzed yet again.

‘You should probably get it,’ Skye said.

‘I should probably throw the damn thing into the pool,’ he grumbled, reaching over her to scoop it up from the bedside table and answer it.

‘Love God speaking,’ he purred into the receiver while lazily caressing Skye’s bottom lip with his thumb.

‘Where in the hell have you been?’

‘Hello, Mother.’

Skye abruptly sat up and pulled away from him, her eyes wide.

‘I simply do not have time for your flippant, devil-may-care attitude.
Why didn’t you answer your phone before now?’

‘I was busy.
You should be happy, mother,’ he said, keeping a careful watch on Skye. ‘I’ve done what you thought I never would.’

‘And what’s that exactly?’ Aphrodite snapped.

‘Fallen in love.’
The tone of Coop’s voice was soft but, nonetheless, Skye’s entire body tensed and her mouth dropped open.

There was a moment of engulfing silence.
Coop reached out and squeezed Skye’s hand, barely registering the fact his mother was no longer speaking.
His concern was the woman in his bed.

It wasn’t long, however, before Aphrodite found her voice. ‘Interesting,’ she said, in a tone which conveyed entirely the opposite.
‘And would this be the reason why I’ve just discovered you missed a target yesterday?’

Coop frowned.
How in the hell did she manage to find these things out?
He shrugged. ‘I suppose so,’ he answered eventually.
‘It wasn’t a problem though.
I corrected it immediately.
Besides,’ he chided, ‘you should be happy for me.
I’ve finally discovered the meaning of love.
True love.
It turns out it does exist, after all.’

Aphrodite failed to notice the sincerity in her son’s voice.
‘I have had enough of your cynicism and antipathy towards everything our family stands for,’ she said.
‘You have an hour to present yourself at Olympus.’

Coop opened his mouth to retort, but she had already hung up.
He sighed heavily.

‘What’s wrong?’ Skye asked anxiously.

‘It’s my mother,’ he answered.
‘She insists I show my face at Olympus within the next sixty minutes.
Frankly, I’m tired of being at her beck and call.’
He leaned over and kissed her.
‘I’ve got you, Skye.
Why would I ever need anyone else?’

She pulled back.
‘You’re going to go, though?’

‘And leave this “hallowed temple, this soft bed”?
No way.’

Skye wasn’t going to be distracted, even by the poetry of John Donne.

‘She’s your mother.’

‘I’m not a little boy.
And she can’t treat me like I’m her servant.’

Skye was silent for a moment, then she took a deep breath and spoke.
‘Coop, do you think maybe she treats you that way because you’ve been acting like a little boy?’

He stiffened.

‘I’m not trying to be hurtful,’ Skye interjected, reaching out one hand towards him. ‘It sounds crazy but I think I’m in love with you too.
I never thought…’ Her voice trailed off for a second.

‘You think I’m a little boy?’ he asked flatly.

‘I know you’re not.
But,’ Skye looked down, ‘you have been a bit, um, self-centred sometimes.’

Coop moved back, pulling himself out of bed.

‘Don’t be annoyed.
I’m sorry, Coop, I shouldn’t have said anything.’
Skye hugged her knees to her chest, dismayed that she was already screwing things up.

‘No,’ he answered, sounding distant.
‘You’re right.
I have been acting like a petulant, spoilt brat.
The way I treated you proves that.’

‘Coop…’

‘Shh,’ he said, opening his vast wardrobe to hunt down something suitable to wear.
‘You need to say what you really think, Skye.
I
need you to say what you really think.
Because being with you makes me want to be a better person.
A more mature person.
You deserve the best and you shouldn’t be afraid to tell me what you think.
I’m going to go to my mother and prove to her that I’ve changed.’ He licked his lips.
‘Or at the very least that I’m changing.’

Skye blinked, at a sudden loss for words.

‘Get dressed,’ he instructed.

‘What?’

His voice was gentle.
‘You heard me.
You need to come with me to Olympus so my mother can meet you for herself.
Then she’ll understand.’

‘I can’t come to Olympus!’ Skye squeaked.

‘Of course you can.
I want you to meet her.
I want to show you Olympus and where everything really happens.
I want you to know everything there is to know about me, Skye.’

She bit her lip.
‘She sounds a bit scary.’

‘My mother?
She’s a bloody dragon of a woman.’
He bent over and kissed her forehead.
‘But she’ll also love you as much as I do. “Come away, O human child”,’ he quoted, ‘“To the waters and the wild.”’

‘Well if W.B. Yeats thinks it’s alright, then I suppose I can’t argue,’ she answered, smiling up at him and trying to ignore the whirlpool of trepidation building up in the pit of her stomach.

‘It’ll all be fine.’

* **

Skye had never seen anything like it.
The golden gates which led into Olympus were vast.
They swung open noiselessly as she approached hand in hand with Coop, revealing an even grander courtyard within.  Standing next to the gates was a motionless guard, clad from head to toe in shiny armour.  Even his face was obscured by a helmet.  Intricate eyeholes were carved into the bronze, but all Skye could see through them were dark shadows.  She shivered. 

‘Oh my God,’ she whispered.

‘Oh my gods,’ Coop corrected with a laugh.

She dragged her gaze away from the sinister guard and looked around.  The guard didn’t move a muscle, allowing the pair of them to walk through. ‘Everything’s so pristine and perfect.’

‘Believe me, it gets rather tiresome after a while,’ Coop said as they passed a gigantic statue of Zeus glaring down at them with a thunderbolt clenched in his frozen fist.
‘All this white marble and gold opulence.
Spend too long here and you’ll find yourself longing for something more mundane and down-to-earth.’

‘Is that why you don’t live here?’

‘It gets a bit stifling,’ he admitted.

Skye stared around her.
‘I can even see my reflection in the stone.
Who on earth does the cleaning?’

Coop pursed his lips.
It had never occurred to him to wonder.
The pair of them turned left down a sweeping corridor.
Several giggling girls dressed in swathes of white fabric passed by, giving Skye curious glances.

‘You’re still invisible,’ she commented. ‘They can’t see you either.’

‘No, they can’t.’
He squeezed her fingers gently.
‘It’s only temporary, Skye.
Does it bother you?’

‘I’d like to know what you look like,’ she said softly.
‘To look into your eyes.’

‘You’ve got little green chips.’

‘Eh?’

He smiled.
‘In your eyes.
You’ve got flecks of green.
They become brighter when you’re angry.
Or happy.
Last night, when we were together, they were the brightest I’d ever seen.
You know, when you…’

Skye went bright red.
‘Okay, you don’t need to spell it out.’

Coop laughed.
‘Don’t be embarrassed.
I’m going to need to make sure I do a lot of things to make them stand out that much again.
Lots and lots and lots of things.’

Skye went even redder.

Coop tugged at her hand.
‘Come on,’ he said.
‘I’ll give you the guided tour later.
After I’ve made your eyes go greener and after we’ve faced my mother.
She’s just down this way.’

Swallowing hard, and praying the flush in her cheeks was going to die down quickly, Skye nodded and let Coop lead her down the next corridor, past open gardens with elaborate fountains and grand-looking rooms which she only caught brief glimpses of.
She could have sworn that in one she spotted a man who looked as if he had the top half of a muscular man and the bottom half of a goat.
She shook herself.
This was certainly all a far cry from life at home.
Unfortunately their short walk was over far too quickly and they were soon standing in front of an unassuming door, which was engraved simply with a single rose.

‘Her quarters are in here,’ Coop said.

‘Okay.’

‘Don’t be afraid, Skye.’

‘Okay.’

‘I mean it.
I won’t let anything happen to you.’

She nodded.
‘Okay.’

He squeezed her hand once more and pushed open the door.
What was revealed within was extraordinary.
Skye gaped up at the high ceiling adorned with a painted landscape of cherubs and clouds dancing across a blue sky.
The walls were, surprisingly, not the marble white of the corridors but instead a soft rosy pink.
In the centre of the room there was a gilt table with ornate legs and a huge display of exotic flowers.
And standing next to the table was the most beautiful woman Skye had ever seen.
Her face was unlined, although she had a maturity about her that suggested years of wisdom and experience.
Long golden hair flowed down her back, almost reaching to the floor, and her hands were clasped in front of her.
She was staring at Skye with an icy blue expression in her eyes.

‘Mother,’ said Coop.

‘You’re late.’

‘I got here as quickly as I could.
You didn’t give me much time to get myself and Skye ready.’

Aphrodite’s lip curled ever so slightly.
‘I didn’t ask you to bring your latest girlfriend.
I asked for you.’

Skye stiffened.
Latest girlfriend?

‘She’s not my latest girlfriend,’ Coop said, with a dangerous edge to his voice.
‘She’s my soulmate.’

Aphrodite folded her arms.
‘I’m not in the mood for your jokes, Cupid.’

‘And I’m not joking.’

Skye felt a tremor run through her.
Coop’s goddess mother wasn’t scary; she was absolutely terrifying.

‘Well, she’ll need to wait out here.
You and I are going to have some words together first.’

‘Anything you say to me, you can say to Skye also.’

Aphrodite glared.
‘We’re going to do this alone.’

Skye let go of Coop’s hand.
‘It’s okay,’ she said, giving the invisible shape beside her a small nudge.
‘I’ll wait here.’

Coop would have continued to protest to the contrary, but there was a flicker of fear in Skye’s eyes which made him relent.

‘Fine then,’ he snapped to his mother, softening his tone when he spoke to Skye.
‘I won’t be long.’

He leaned towards her, his lips gently brushing against hers.
Despite her surroundings and Aphrodite’s glare, Skye still felt a shiver of pleasure run through her.