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I HAD NO IDEA where to go, so I returned to that magnificent tree as the sun dipped below the horizon. But this time, instead of facing the sea and the rest of the town where I could easily be spotted, I took the opposite side of the tree, hiding me from most of the town. The only door I faced was the entry to Hippocrates’s office. My wings fluttered, and I considered snapping them away, but they would offer me some level of warmth in the cooling night.
I settled onto the hard earth and uncorked the bottle, hoping to drown out all thoughts of my mission. The long swig burned as it flowed down my throat, but I kept chugging as if it were cool water instead of a potent cocktail. When I pulled it away, only half the bottle was emptied. My stomach flopped and then righted just as warming numbness shot to my extremities. My limbs became heavier as the alcohol seeped into my cells.
I tore a piece of the bread and nibbled on it to try to counter the drink. I pulled the bottle close, staring at the writing, but I couldn’t make out what kind of alcohol it was. After another piece of the bread, I took a sip, swishing the sweet crispness around in my mouth before swallowing. That produced a kick that I had experienced in the bar at the end of every sip, and it nearly had me wincing.
The bread didn’t seem to dilute the buzz at all like I hoped. Well, I wasn’t sure what I hoped to accomplish by drinking, except it seemed to dull the ache in my chest every time I thought of killing Hippocrates. So, I focused on something less stressful. Like all the things I could have done in that bar, and each one heightened my irritation with the entitled attitudes.
“What wankers.” My auditory mutter startled me, and then I chuckled at myself.
Drinking made me careless, so I was thankful I hadn’t been in this condition when the bartender hit me. I would have wiped the bar with his ass. As it was, I made the man piss himself. I snorted a laugh at that memory, and then brought the bottle back to my lips and emptied it. This time, the warmth was immediate and when I came up for air, a burp broke the silence surrounding me. I tossed the empty in the direction of the building.
If I happened upon anyone, I’d have to be very careful what came out of my mouth. Alcohol had a way of stripping my defenses and inhibitions. I might confess my intentions or worse.
The door to the building cracked open, grabbing my attention from my alcohol-soaked thoughts. Hippocrates stepped out as if he were headed to town with a worried crease in his brow.
I snorted in derision. I should be reaping this man, but my heart just wouldn’t allow it. It felt wrong on so many different levels.
Hippocrates turned toward the noise and squinted into the darkness. His gaze landed on the bottle on the lawn between the tree and the building. “Hello?”
My black feathers surrounding me hid my form in the shadows, so I snapped my back, making them disappear before I attempted to stand.
The sound made his gaze jump to where I stood, leaning on the tree for support.
“Kara?” He moved closer cautiously, as if approaching a scared deer. “I thought I told you to go to the tavern,” he said as he stopped in front of me.
I lifted my chin. “I did, and those idiots thought they could manhandle me.”
He froze in place, and his eyes widened. “You told them I sent you?”
“No. I just asked for a meal and a room for the night. And after I ate, the bartender grabbed my arm and tried to drag me somewhere. When I refused to go, he slapped me.” I brushed my hair back from my shoulder and stood tall, despite feeling the earth moving under my feet like a slow rolling sea. “I don’t think anyone from this village will attempt to touch me in that manner again.”
“What did you do?” His voice held the trepidation reflected in his bright eyes.
“I lifted him in the air and threw him after I told him he just made me a very angry goddess.” My wings snapped out again of their own accord, reacting to the aggravation layering over my skin at the memory.
Hippocrates stumbled back as his gaze took in what he could see of my ebony wings. He dropped to his knee again.
This was getting old. “Get up,” I demanded.
“But...”
“But what?” I didn’t understand the reverence.
He waved at me with his eyes still averted.
I stepped closer, wobbling enough for him to look up. “I am not a goddess. Get up.”
“Are you drunk?” he asked before his gaze moved to the bottle and then back to me.
“Maybe,” I said and promptly stumbled to the side.
Hippocrates leaped to his feet and snaked his arm around my abdomen, brushing my feathers with his knuckles in the process.
That single brush of my wings unnerved me and set me on fire.
His arm steadied me against him.
On instinct, I pressed my palm to his chest. His warmth coated me, and his heartbeat ricocheted off my hand like a fluttering bird trying to take flight. Being this close to him nearly ignited my already awakened libido and without a clear head, my body ruled my actions.
His eyes widened at our proximity and his grip around me tightened, pulling me flush against him.
I didn’t fight being in his hold the way I had the bartender. Being against his chiseled chest sent my blood pounding in my veins with something other than anger. Something deeper and more insistent. I stared into his bright eyes.
His lips tilted into a smile. “I have never held a goddess before,” he whispered in a husky manner that I could listen to for a millennium. “Do you think I’ll be smited for it?”
I snorted laughter, and my wings wrapped around us in a cocoon against the night. “I’ll protect you,” I whispered. Although if Thor or Odin were to show up, my protection would mean nothing against their wrath. I’d be lucky to survive it, and this frail human holding me would be dust.
His free hand ran across the top of my wings, caressing in a manner that sent a shiver down my spine. “Nike?” His eyes found mine.
His reference to another goddess of this realm threatened to derail the heat layering over me. “Kara. I was not lying when I said I am not one of your goddesses.” My hand remained on his chest as his heart drummed a beat that echoed mine. Stalling on my mission was putting me in peril, but I couldn’t tear my gaze away from his, or pull out of the comfort of his arms, even though I knew it would damn me.
“But you are a goddess.”
I slowly shook my head, wishing this entire community would stop with the goddess references. “I am a warrior.”
It was his turn to laugh. “A warrior with this face?” His hand caressed my cheek. His thumb moved gently over my lips. “I think not.”
I snapped my wings out of existence and pushed my hand on his chest with the intent to step away from him, but his arm didn’t budge from around me. If anything, he pulled me closer.
“You intrigue me.” His lips were a breath away from mine.
I had the urge to close the distance, but I refrained despite my inebriated brain. If I fell into a kiss and all that his eyes promised, I’d never reap him like my duty dictated.
Hippocrates closed the distance before I could escape him. And the moment his soft lips caressed mine, I balked, opening my mouth to protest. That only seemed to ignite him, and his tongue slipped past my teeth, tangling with mine in a slow dance that left me breathless. He tightened his grip on me, running his hand into my hair, deepening the kiss.
I planted both hands on his chest and pushed, breaking the kiss.
He stepped back to keep from falling and stared at me. A buzz of electricity sizzled between us as his chest rose and fell in time with mine.
The damn half smile on his lips brought a familiar wetness between my thighs. It was far sexier than any smile bestowed on me, weakening my knees with that and the intensity in his eyes. Thankfully, the corset I wore hid the fact my nipples were hard enough to cut through glass. Need flushed me, and I took a step back to distance myself. I could not give in to this insanity.
The war of emotion on his face kept me captivated. It was as if Hippocrates argued with his sensibilities as much as I did.
I leaned back, pressing my hands to the trunk behind me as air raced in and out of my nostrils.
Hippocrates raked his hand down his face as his gaze dropped from my eyes and traveled down my body like a lover’s caress. “May the gods strike me dead,” he whispered and stepped in, pressing me against the tree as his mouth found mine again. This time, his hands didn’t wrap around me, they wandered, stroking whatever skin he could reach. When his hand dipped between my thighs, I moaned, helpless to stop this bliss.
It was as if I were a teenager all over again. Hormonal and urgent, I pulled at his clothing, forgetting my purpose. Forgetting everything but the sensations he created with his hands and his mouth.
He stilled and his lips withdrew before he leaned his forehead to mine. “Have you put me under some sort of spell, goddess?” His eyes closed.
“No.” My breath heaved. “But I am under the influence of whatever that bottle contained.” I pointed to the discarded decanter. I studied his face as he stepped back.
“Then perhaps we should not follow whatever is possessing us.” He slid his hands away from me. His flushed cheeks and the tenting of fabric on his toga told me he had much more self-control than I had ever had.
And now was no different. “What if I disagree?” Damn the alcohol, even more than Thor and Odin for sending me on this fool’s errand.
He blinked as if he could not process what I had insinuated.
I stepped forward and slid my palm against his hardness. The sound that escaped him made me grin. I reached behind me with my other hand and unclasped the dress, letting it fall to the ground around my feet.
He moved us to the back of the tree, dragging my dress with me. “If anyone sees you...” He inhaled deep as he glanced down at me in the shadows.
I peeled off my undergarment and tossed it on the bodice of my dress, my actions be damned. Who knew what the morning would bring, but at least I’d have this experience before I reaped the man.
“Kara,” he whispered reverently. And then the fabric covering him was on the ground, and he pulled me close enough to cement my decision. Our bodies fit together as if they were made for each other. “You are the definition of beauty.”
My hands ran up his abdomen and into the nest of soft chest hair. I marveled at the silky feel of it. None of the men on Asgard had chest hair, so this was a novelty.
His lips tickled the side of my throat as he kissed his way from my jaw to my breast. This man was not without expertise, and I found his subtle strokes and alternating pace fascinating as he moved his way down my body. This was a slow kind of burn that engulfed me with its intensity.
I leaned against the tree, reveling in the sensations as he explored me with his hands and his mouth until my legs were trembled with need. I think I whined because Hippocrates worked his way back up my body and hiked my legs around his waist. His gaze met mine, and he plunged into me hard enough to pull a gasp.
The look he gave me shined on the possessive side, and with each thrust of his hips, it flared in his eyes. The minute I started to moan, his mouth captured it. He wasn’t tender and thoughtful like some of the lovers I’d had. No, this was demanding as he pounded me forcefully into the tree like a claiming of old. His kiss required just as much attention as the motion of his body. It was as if he had been as starved of physical connection as I’d been.
The intensity of his grip on my hips along with the growling moan against my mouth was enough to catapult me to the next plateau. My eyes rolled back with the force of my release, and I squealed into his mouth as my body tightened and then released, milking him into his own release.
He slowed his pace and leaned back to see my face before he looked up at the sky as if waiting to be struck dead. When his gaze fell back to mine, he smiled. “Next time won’t be so rushed.”
I cocked my eyebrow at him. “Next time? That’s mighty presumptuous of you.” I couldn’t help the retort. He’s assumed I’d be around long enough for a next time.
His smile faded. “You will come live with me now.” This was delivered in such a way that it flipped the switch on my irritation.
I opened my mouth to argue when my brain decided to weigh in. I had nowhere to go, and if I went home without his soul, I would face Odin’s wrath. I nodded and dressed quietly, wondering where the hell this common sense was a little while ago. My gaze landed on the bottle, and I nearly huffed.
That’s where my common sense had run to. It nearly drowned in that damn bottle.
My dress easily slipped on and clasped, and my undergarment slid on in seconds. I waited for Hippocrates to stop fiddling with his tunic, glad for the simplicity of the dress I was wearing. I did not give this outfit the credit it was due when I first saw it.
“Women are not supposed to be unescorted,” he finally said after he adjusted his cover and met my gaze. “I do not know where it is you come from, but your lack of an escort concerns the townspeople greatly.”
I crossed my arms and jutted my chin. “I come from a place where women are not suppressed.” We were the warriors who protected the people.
He rolled his eyes. “I understand. Especially since you carry such a weapon as the one on your thigh. But here, the traditions are thickly embedded, and you must adhere to them. Otherwise, what happened in that tavern is likely to happen again. The only females without escorts are the whores.”
My arms fell to my sides, and my mouth dropped open.
“Which is why I told you to tell them that I sent you.” He sighed and wiped his face. “Come.” He called me closer with his fingers.
Temptation to reap him filled me, but my heart squeezed at the thought. I took his offered hand, and he led me out of the shadows and onto the dark streets.
Curiosity tickled my center. “Why would telling them you sent me have mattered?”
“Because I am one of the few healers on the island.” He glanced at me. “They would not have attempted anything with you had they known you belong to me.”
I stopped and ripped my hand from his. “No one owns me.” My voice came out feral, and I found the hilt of my dagger. I didn’t unsheathe it, but temptation had my fingers itching to do just that.
“No?” His hands found his waist, and he cocked his head, challenging me.
I stepped close, narrowing my eyes. “No. You do not own me. I am agreeing to your kindness of a roof over my head while I am here. And if I feel the need to strip you down and take you again, it is within my right to act upon it. But if you attempt to bed me without my permission, I will dislocate both your shoulders and then show you the most agonizing way to fix them.”
His mouth popped open, and his eyebrows arched before he recovered. Dimples appeared in his cheeks before he started to chuckle. “Noted.” He took my hand, and we continued the short journey to his abode.