The Wager- BBW Erotic Curvy Paranormal Romance (TOUCH OF THE GODS) (10 page)

I nodded, trying to stay calm, and looked where she gestured.

  A long and lean, dark skinned man sat the table she pointed at. Just as he turned, the sudden allure to touch him struck me hard and I knew this was no ordinary man. I wondered if he realized he was a demigod son of Aphrodite. He had the beauty and grace of the goddess, but lacked the cold vanity that she always possessed. In fact, I found it easy to smile and join him, sitting across from where he lounged. His movements were fluid as he sat forward and extended his hand, which I promptly took into a firm grasp.

              “Hello, darling. You must be Hephaestus. I'm Calvin, but you can call me tomorrow!” He winked.

It took me a minute to understand that he was flirting, something I was very unused to from males or females. It made my grin broaden and I barked out a laugh, shaking my head while feeling my face warm.

He reclined once more, folding his hands and smirking.

If I had one word for Calvin, it would have to be refreshing. “A lovely idea, but I must decline.”

              “Oh, well. Willa did say you only have eyes for my girl, Vanessa. I'm glad she'll finally have the right kind of man in her life. She's in need of—oh, my God! Is that—is that...?” Calvin couldn't finish, his mouth hanging open.

Actually, he wasn't alone. Looking around, all the men, even ones that were coupled with dates were staring in the same direction.

A loud crash of glass sounded as Willa stood gawking and dumbfounded her tray of food and beverages scattered around her feet.

A light breeze passed me by, carrying a scent I knew too well, mixed with an energy I hoped was a mistake. Either way, everything about this was so portent it made the hair stand on the back of my neck. Rotating my body, I followed everyone's gaze and the sight that I locked onto was beyond my wildest imagination. The voluptuous body of the woman I could still taste upon my tongue was tucked into black leather and boots. She wore a purple bustier so naughty that the frozen, staring cop who stood on the walk should have given her a ticket.

Vanessa sauntered up the sidewalk, her hair blowing behind her and Kronos be damned, I swear she moved in slow motion.

I hardened so fast, it took my breath away, the pain of how hard my cock pressed against my jeans making me dizzy. Or that could have been from the loss of blood flow from my brain. Either way, I was lost in every lush curve of her body. Once she stopped in front of Calvin and I, the business of the cafe was completely silent.

At some point, Willa had floated over and stood in awe of her sister who looked down at me, a brow arched in a way that seemed eerily familiar.

“Damn, Nessa! You workin' it something fierce!” Calvin whistled.

              She flung her hair over her shoulder and gave the young man a sideways smile. The tingle I had felt earlier, the blanket of arousal, changed as I looked deeper into her eyes and saw the river of blood flashing through them. This woman, as stunning and sensual as she was, was not my Vanessa. I stood up so swiftly, the chair toppled over, though that didn't break the spell everyone else was under. Grabbing her by the shoulders, I shook her, the scent of lust, rage and revenge that coated her skin, assaulted my senses. “When, Vanessa? When did he get to you? Are you hurt?” I growled in dark anger.

“Oh, Heph or is it Hephaestus? Who are you talking about?”

“My brother, Ares!”

“He came to my rescue last night and has opened my eyes to the truth.”

              “And what truth is this?”

             
“That I am a beautiful woman who has been shadowed by the theatrics of a back-stabbing, bitch slut of a sister!” Vanessa stated with venom.

             
The sharp intake of air that came from Willa was followed by a choked sob.

This turned my anger into a need to protect both women from the obvious works of only one. I released Vanessa and pulled her sister to stand behind me, though she still gaped at her sister in disbelief.

And only too late, did I watch what little warmth left in Vanessa’s eyes, fade away.

Vanessa’s steely glare was cold and it was not fixed upon me. “Look at you, Willa. Always taking what I liked, because you can. Because you think everyone finds you cute. If only they knew how much you whored yourself to get that attention.”

              “Nessa, why are you saying this? I've never done these things.”

             
“Oh puh-lease! Wearing your see through shit with tight pants. You try so hard and for what? To feed your low self esteem or to cover the fact that you lack any form of intelligence?”

             
The painful sound that was wrenched from Willa reminded me of one of Artemis's wounded animals, sad and broken. It was then, I noticed several of her coworkers and supervisors standing, watching with disapproving countenances.

Calvin came over to take Willa back, while tears streaked her cheeks.

  Regardless of the spiteful grin curling Vanessa's lips, I couldn't focus my outrage on her. Oh no, the product of my ire finally showed up to the party on a loud, smoke-spewing motorcycle that was made of human skin, though he would never admit that to the mortals.

Just as quickly, my emotions switched to a burning jealousy, as I watched her run up and kiss him in a manner that seemed illegal. If that wasn't appalling, his manhandling of her body sent me over the edge. I stood fuming while they strutted up to me, his arm possessively around her.

              “Well, gee! I didn't know you'd be here, little brother. Are you here visiting Willa? She's Vanessa's sister, you know?”

             
“What game are you playing at here, Ares?”

             
“Me? Play? Never that, Hephaestus. Just enjoying the beauty of a fine specimen.” His arm curled around her neck while he stroked the white globes of her breasts with his fingers.

I saw red and released a growl that vibrated down my body and shook the very foundation of the sidewalks which the cafe rested on. People shrieked in alarm, but I didn't care, I was out for blood. Forgetting myself, I ripped Vanessa away from Ares, then gripped him by the throat and slammed him down onto the cement, leaving a nice size crack.

He struggled under my strength and seemed to slowly realize he was no match for me. The welling of panic I saw in his eyes filled me with so much pride I actually imagined how great it would be to squeeze the very immortality from him. Around me, people began cheering me on, almost begging me to kill my brother and I could hear it in my own mind.
Do it! Do it!
And I almost did, until I heard Vanessa's frightened voice and my cloudy thoughts dissipated.

             
“Don't hurt him! Please, Hephaestus, everything you're doing, burns me! Just stop!” She pulled at my arm, her tears dropping on me, stinging my skin in accusation of what I was about to do. Looking down at my older brother, the God of War only smiled and I knew, without a doubt then, he had planned the whole thing.

His powers surged through me, making me lose my head and nearly kill him; a crime punishable by immediate death from our father. Not only that, I concluded that the dream from the night before wasn't that at all, it was Ares showing me what he’d done.

Glancing over at the woman I loved and desired above all else, I saw it on her face, pain and misery. How I missed it before, I was unsure. It was one thing to place a curse on her through telepathic projections, however once a god physically touched a mortal, total control over the human in question was achieved. Vanessa was his and even the smallest of injuries to him would destroy her mentally and physically.

There was challenge in my brother's face and we both knew this indisputable fact—if I harmed him, she would pay as well.

Sighing, I removed my fists from around his neck, conceding that he had won this battle.

Once he stood, she flew into his arms, kissing him all over and cooing sweet words as she brushed the dust off his clothes.

I almost threw up. “This isn't over, big brother.”

             
“I don't count on it to be. But nice to see you growing those balls, as dear Eros said you had.”

             
Baring my teeth, I took a step forward and was pleased when he flinched. Maybe, I did leave a lasting impression on him. The ground certainly felt it.

Calvin and Willa came to stand on either side of me, their faces filled with bewilderment and sadness.

              “Vanessa, please don't go with him. You're my sister, I love and know you. This isn't you!”

             
“Oh save it for your pimps, whore.”

             
“C'mon, sklávos, I've decided I'm not hungry for this place. I'm craving something much sweeter than what they have on the menu here.”

             
The sound of his hand slapping against her leather covered ass while accompanied by her throaty laugh was enough to shatter my heart into a million pieces. I watched them go back to their vehicles and I vowed that I would have her back in my arms, making sure to return the finger my brother so proudly gestured as he drove by. The bottle in my pocket had been a warm reminder and now it seemed to burn with the heat of determination.

Once they were out of sight, the people around me came back to life, the War God's charm wearing off and the clarity of all that had occurred came spiraling down on them all.

One of the supervisors came over to Willa and whispered in her ear. Whatever he said caused her face to pale considerably. She nervously glanced at both Calvin and I, then followed silently behind the young man, disappearing inside the darkness of the restaurant.

With a long, loud sigh, the man beside me finally spoke, and what he said let me know, he knew who he was and what had just happened. “You gods really know how to screw up lives, don't you?”

              Turning to look at him, I wanted to dispute his question, but couldn't because what he said was very true and sadly, I was among those wrongdoers. “So you know that your Mom is---”

             
“Your ex-wife? Of course and I can't thank my Daddy for these good looks. But seriously, what are you going to do to save Nessa? You need to fix this mess.”

             
“I know Calvin, I will. I have to.”

             
“Because of the bet?”

             
Someone had been watching the Muse News.

             
“No, because I love her.”

             
“Good to hear. But Hephaestus my friend, you've got a hell of a battle ahead of you.”

             
He was right. While on a normal day, I would have feared failure, having been as much in the eyes of all the gods. I would be one, no more. I clenched my fists and left the gossipers behind. Mentally, I sent up a prayer to father to keep Willa safe, and drove home.

If Ares wanted war, I'd give it to him in spades and even hearing Vanessa's cries of passion pouring out of her open bedroom window wouldn't stop me. In fact, her moans only fueled my resolve. Slamming the door to my home, I closed all curtains and set to work on my greatest creation yet.

Chapter XI

Hephaestus

             
The sun had come up, filtering through the curtains like fingers of light. My hands were calloused, bleeding from overwork and my limbs were sore. Regardless, sitting back, I looked over my completed work and smiled with relish. It was the best yet and with it done, I now had to come up with a way to get it to my back-stabbing brother. I could already see his reaction, the very thought making me laugh outright.

             
“Wow, uncle. That's going to piss the big guy off. You must have a death wish, like me.”

             
With a mumbled curse, I quickly covered my project with the throw from my sofa and turned to face the shadow that had silently come into my home.

Unlike any other godling born of Aphrodite and Ares, Himeros's god form was a mist and taking on a mortal one was very difficult for him. It was said he was that way, because he forever lived in the shadow of his twin, Eros. However, it was later revealed that he was a blanket of lust that covered most mortal souls.

Now, he drifted before me, ethereal and dark, but not cold. He smelled of the strongest pheromones, a true aphrodisiac that could knock either man or a god to their knees with desire. Like a shade, he wafted close to me and I had to place a shield over my body to keep from being affected by him. I was seriously done with losing my senses, because of a god's powers and was grateful when he took his mortal form, the image fading in and out several times before he stabilized.

             
“Himi! You startled me. What are you doing here?”

             
“I saw you speaking with Wil—I mean, a mortal woman at the museum, and then, there was that commotion at the cafe. Why?” He walked around my side, his black hair pulled back in a queue, while smelling vaguely of sex. His hands glided against the covering, while his eyes shifted from color to color, finally landing on the same hazel color that was Vanessa's. When Himeros glanced up, the sight caused my breath to catch and it was all that I could do to maintain my bearings.