In the Nyx of Time Read online

“No.” He turned to me with a grim look. “She was murdered; ten years ago. They never found her killer.”

  “Someone murdered a goddess?” I asked as a horrible ache filled my chest.

  I have no idea why it made a difference to me; it wasn't as if I knew her.

  “It's not easy to do, especially not for one of us, but yes; someone managed to kill the Goddess of Spring,” Re confirmed. “Another grandson of mine was close friends with her, and I know her husband, Hades. He has nearly lost himself to his grief.”

  “That's awful,” I murmured.

  “It is.” Re stared at me strangely; his eyes softening as his lips parted slightly. “Will you have dinner with me?”

  “Now?” I asked in surprise.

  “After the show,” he clarified.

  “It'll be late,” I said. “I don't think there will be any restaurants open.”

  “Not here.” Re started to smile again. “But I can take us anywhere you like.”

  “Anywhere?” I asked skeptically. “You're not talking about tracing are you?”

  “That's right,” he said in a surprised tone.

  “Tracing isn't safe.”

  “When you're with a god, it is.” Re took my hand and used it to draw me closer. “I promise you; I will never knowingly put you in danger.”

  “But you might do it without knowing about it?” I challenged.

  He shrugged. “I can't be held responsible for things I can't control, and I don't make promises that I can't keep.”

  “I can respect that,” I said softly. Then I surprised myself by saying, “All right; I'll have dinner with you.”

  Re smiled brilliantly.

  “But right now, I have to sell these paintings,” I said. “So, I have to mingle.”

  “Let's take care of that then.” Re took my hand and walked me over to Jennifer. “I'll take them all,” he said as he pulled out a black American Express card.

  I gaped at Re as Jennifer's eyes lit up.

  “I just need an ID and an address to deliver them to,” Jennifer said as she snatched the card.

  Re pulled his ID out—that shocked me nearly as much as the purchase—and handed it to Jennifer.

  “I'll send someone to pick them up,” he said.

  “You don't even want them delivered?” She asked gleefully. “I think I love you.”

  “Well, of course, you do,” he said.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  “You are the most obnoxious, arrogant asshole,” I said to Re.

  We had left the show early since I wasn't needed to work the crowd. The paintings were left up for everyone to enjoy, and the booze continued to flow, but little tags were placed discreetly beneath each painting to show that they'd been sold.

  Re had asked me to take him someplace private where we could trace, and I'd showed him into the storeroom. I was nervous; my mother had warned me that tracing was dangerous and was a talent lost to history. But when Re tucked me in against his chest, I felt safe. He held me tightly as a shivering magic pulled us into the Aether. I felt my body fade until I was just energy—pure thoughts—surging through the place in between realms. Then we had reformed inside an Egyptian palace.

  “Why am I an asshole?” Re gaped at me as I stepped away from him.

  I stared around the magnificent home—at all the décor that looked authentically Egyptian—and then back at him. I put my hands on my hips and glared.

  “This is your home, isn't it?” I said in accusation.

  “Yes,” he admitted readily. “What's wrong with it?”

  “Nothing's wrong with it,” I growled. “The fact that you brought me here after just meeting me this evening is what's wrong. Do you think I'm going to have sex with you?”

  “Aren't you?” Re blinked in confusion. “You want to, don't you?”

  “I don't have sex with strangers,” I snapped.

  “I'm not a stranger; we've met.” He started looking even more confused.

  “Women just fall into bed with you, don't they?” I shook my head at him.

  “Of course.” He waved a hand down his body. “I'm the Sun God, Re.”

  “Ugh!” I threw my hands up in disgust. “This is why you're an asshole. I'm not having sex with you, Re. I take time to really get to know someone before I get naked with them.”

  “Why?”

  “Because it's more than just pleasure for me,” I said as if I was explaining it to an idiot. “It's an act of love, and I don't love you.”

  Something surged through me when I said those words; an uncomfortable shiver that I always felt when I lied. I was a horrible liar and usually didn't bother to even try, but when I did, my body rebelled. I frowned in confusion and when I looked up at Re, I saw a matching expression on his face. Except Re looked more than confused; he looked hurt.

  “What in all the realms is happening?” Re whispered.

  “A woman was bound to say no to you sometime,” I said to cover my own unease.

  “You know that's not what I meant,” Re said as he drew closer to me. “When you said that you don't love me, I got this horrible ache in my chest.” He lifted a hand slowly to my cheek. “Why would that hurt me?”

  “And why does it feel like a lie?” I whispered.

  We stared at each other in wonder, and then Re's hand slowly shifted back through my hair as he leaned closer. His golden eyes heated but there was also a question in them. His gaze searched mine for the answers he needed, and he seemed to find them. Re's lips brushed mine—the softest of touches—and then he groaned as he yanked me against his chest.

  I was gone. All of my protests were gone, all of my inhibitions were gone, and all of my morals were gone. I wrapped my arms around Re and pulled myself up his body; deepening our kiss. He picked me up and started carrying me up a staircase, and I still couldn't stop kissing him. My hands roamed his body; sliding beneath his shirt to knead the muscles of his chest. Re sped up his pace and the next thing I knew, I was lying across an expanse of white silk; staring up at him as he flung off his clothing. I started to pull up my dress, but he stopped me.

  “No; don't,” Re whispered as he slipped his hands up my thighs and slowly pushed up my hem. “I want to undress you.”

  “Okay,” I whispered.

  Instead of removing my dress, Re's fingers crept beneath it and hooked around my panty. He slipped it down my legs and then tossed it aside. When Re lowered himself over me again, he shifted my thighs apart and laid between them. I inhaled sharply to see him there; even more golden against my pale legs. Re looked at me and held my gaze as he inched up my dress.

  When the hem just barely started to skim over my sex, Re finally glanced down and made a growling sound of pleasure. He lowered his face as he continued to lift my dress and laid his cheek against my sex. I moaned as Re rubbed his face against me; angling his chin against that most pleasurable spot. My hands went to his silky, brown hair, and I gripped him tightly.

  “Don't rush me,” he murmured. “I want to remember our first time forever.”

  I went still and stared at Re as he continued to push the fabric up my body and over my breasts. My lace bra was revealed, and Re's fingers circled my nipples through the material before he gripped my breasts roughly. I cried out as he simultaneously split me with his tongue. Re moaned against my flesh and thrust his tongue in deep before starting a slow licking.

  “Oh, God,” I whispered.

  “That's right,” Re said as he got to his knees. “But this god is going to worship you, sweetheart.”

  Re took his golden shaft in hand and rubbed it against me. My thighs fell open wider, and he slipped the thick head of his manhood inside me. I writhed, but he held himself back as he arched over me and slipped his hands behind my back to undo my bra. I'd had enough of this slow strip; I took my dress and bra and yanked them over my head together. Re took them from me and tossed them aside with a soft smile.

  “Tell me again that you don't love me,” Re said as he lowered hi
s face to mine.

  “I don't love you,” I whispered against his lips.

  “I don't”—he shoved himself inside me to the hilt—“love you either.”

  Re groaned as he ground into me. I took his face within my hands and kissed him wildly as he pounded into me. My legs wrapped around his slim hips, and I undulated against him; trying to get as much of my skin in contact with his.

  “I don't,” I said it again.

  “Don't what?” Re asked as he drove himself deep.

  “Love you,” I said. “I love you.”

  “I love you too,” Re admitted with wonder and then sealed the triumph of our truth with a kiss.

  Chapter Twenty Eight

  “What the hell is this place?” I asked Re hours later when we had finally satisfied our rampant lust enough to lie still for more than two minutes.

  “It's my bedroom.” Re frowned at me as he drew me in against his side.

  “But all of this.” I waved my hand out toward a raised area and the golden machines, chains, and odd pieces of equipment set upon it.

  Glass cases held sex toys, masks, and things I couldn't identify. There were chains attached to one wall, and a rack of intimate apparel beside it. I saw leather whips set out beside paddles and dildos. And in the center of it all, there was a gold throne.

  “Do you rule over a court of nymphomaniacs?” I teased him. “King Re, the Sex God?”

  “I have no court,” he said. “And if I did, I would release them from their fealty immediately. I'm beyond shocked to admit this, Vervain, but I don't want anyone else, and I know that I never will.”

  “This is crazy,” I whispered as I angled up on my elbow. “Is this magic? Did someone enchant us?”

  Re gave that considerable thought and then shook his head. “I feel no trace of invasion in my mind or heart; only this newly revealed love for you. It's as if I've always loved you and merely needed you to remind me.”

  “Yes; exactly!” I exclaimed. “I feel as if I've known you for years.”

  “Let's not overthink this,” Re said as he sat up. “I've found someone to love at last, and I just want to enjoy it.”

  “All right,” I whispered as I stared at him in amazement.

  How had I wound up in a god's home; in his bed and in his heart? All in the space of a few hours.

  “Come here, beautiful,” Re said suddenly as he scooped me up.

  “What are you doing?” I asked cautiously as I saw where he was taking me; to the platform of passion.

  “I want to show you what the throne is for,” he said.

  Re deposited me onto the slick seat and then went behind the chair and started manipulating it. I dropped backward with the throne's back and looked up to see Re smiling down at me; his cock level with my mouth. I couldn't resist giving him a little lick, and his whole expression went rapturous as he grabbed the finials to either side of my face.

  “This wasn't what I had in mind,” he said. “But by all means, proceed.”

  I leaned my head back further, and he slid into my mouth. I took all of him in; using my tongue to add to his pleasure. Re's hands went to my breasts and then continued down as he leaned over me. Soon, the angle changed, and Re was on the throne with me; his knees to either side of my head and his face buried between my thighs.

  Re's talented tongue took me over the edge; the hot swirls and thrusts making me scream in ecstasy around his flesh. When the screaming was over, I tried to bring him there with me, but he drew out of my mouth and shifted off the throne.

  “Not yet,” he said. “I want to draw this one out.”

  Re took my hand and helped me off the throne and then led me over to a section of bare wall that had gold chains attached to plates at the base and halfway up. Re fastened the gold manacles around my wrists and then my ankles; spreading my legs and arms wide.

  “You have at me at your mercy,” I said with a smirk. “Now what, Sun God?”

  “Now, I prepare you for my pleasure,” Re said.

  Re picked up a crystal decanter from a nearby shelf and pulled out the stopper. The scent of almonds wafted up to me as he lifted the bottle over my chest and poured a golden liquid onto my skin. It dripped over my breasts and down my belly a bit before Re caught it with his hands. I laid my head back against the wall as he rubbed the oil onto me. Then he pressed his body against mine and rubbed against me like a cat. I think that I purred.

  As I rubbed back against Re as best as I could, he angled his cock into me. He pressed us together tightly so that the sensation of our slick skin rubbing together was nearly as pleasurable as his flesh filling me. The wet sounds of our bodies joining rose around us and sent me spiraling into orgasm again.

  “Beautiful,” Re murmured into my ear. “I can't get enough of watching you flush with pleasure.”

  “Then don't stop,” I said breathlessly.

  “Oh, I have no intention of ever stopping.”

  But then, suddenly, a horrible fear filled me. I panicked and started pulling at the manacles.

  “Vervain?”

  “Let me out!” I screeched. “Unchain me!”

  Re dove for the keys and released the manacles as I continued to thrash. As soon as I was free, I jerked away from him and ran down the steps.

  “Vervain?” Re ran after me. “Please, stop. What did I do wrong? I don't understand.”

  “I... I don't know,” I whispered as I shivered. “Just, don't try to chain me again. I don't like chains.”

  “All right.” He stroked the hair back from my face. “No chains; I got it. You could have mentioned that earlier.”

  “I didn't know earlier.” I shook my head in confusion.“What the hell is wrong with me?”

  “I don't know, but you don't get that kind of reaction without reason.”

  “I was perfectly fine,” I said. “And then I felt as if I'd been...”

  “What?”

  “Tortured,” I said with wide eyes. “But I know that's not true. That's the first time anyone has bound me, and it didn't feel anything like torture.”

  “I'm relieved that you think so,” Re said gently. “Let's not dwell on it. Now, we know to stay away from bindings. No bondage play for you, young lady.”

  “I'm kind of disappointed by that,” I admitted.

  “You and me both, sweetheart.” Re chuckled. “But there are lots of ways to find pleasure without using restraints. And I happen to know all of them.”

  Re's smile turned sensual as he picked me up and carried me back to his round bed.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  “I've never done that before,” I said to Re over breakfast the next morning.

  “What?”

  “All of it.” I laughed. “Well, not all of it, but most of it. The thing with the silk; that was amazing. And then your bed lifting up into the ceiling so we could...”

  “Make love within the sunrise?” He finished for me.

  “Yeah; that,” I whispered. “This is unbelievable.”

  “For me as well,” he said softly. “I haven't felt this way in...” His face fell into shocked lines. “Ever. I had a wife, Vervain. I loved her very much, and I haven't loved another woman since the day she died.”

  “I'm so sorry,” I said gently.

  “You don't understand.” Re shook his head. “I love you more than her.”

  “This isn't possible,” I said.

  “And yet, here we are.”

  “Eating breakfast on the balcony of your palace,” I added.

  “In the God Realm.”

  “In the what?” I asked as I gaped at him.

  “You thought we were on Earth?” He asked in surprise.

  “I thought we were in Egypt.”

  “It's similar,” he said. “But this is my territory; Aaru. Anubis lives nearby; in Duat.”

  “Aaru,” I murmured. “This is where the dead go?”

  “They journey past my palace,” he explained. “But there is another section of Aaru where t
hey find their eternal peace.”

  “Wow,” I whispered. “I'm in Egyptian Heaven.”

  “Heaven,” Re said as he looked me over. “Yes, indeed.”

  “When did you stop being annoying and become charming?” I shook my head in wonder.

  “I believe it was sometime between your second and third orgasm.” Re smirked.

  “And now, I'm annoyed again,” I said teasingly.

  “Grandfather, are you in here?” An Egyptian man strode into Re's bedroom. “I hope you're not indisposed.”

  “We're clothed; you may join us,” Re called out to him.

  The man had short brown hair, golden walnut skin, and dark eyes. He was trim and athletic, with a long, nearly-pointed nose. His clothes were casual business attire—dress pants with a collared shirt—and he had a serious air about him. His gaze fastened on me with interest.

  “A human?” The man asked Re in surprise. “I've never known you to take a human lover.”

  “The human can hear you,” I said with a grimace.

  “No offense meant,” the man said immediately. “I was taken aback.”

  “No problem,” I said.

  “Horus, this is my...” Re looked at me and made an amused huff. “What are we, sweetheart? Can I call you mine, or is that too soon?”

  “I think we've established that we have a connection,” I said. “It would be silly to pussyfoot around it now. Call me whatever you like.”

  “I'm so overjoyed to hear you say that, that I can't even bring myself to make a joke about the word 'pussyfoot.'” Re declared and then laughed.

  “That's pretty damn happy,” Horus said with a dry, shocked tone.

  “This is Vervain, my fiance,” Re said.

  “Your what?” Horus and I asked together.

  “You said that I could call you whatever I wanted,” Re reminded me with a wicked smile.

  “But I assumed you'd ask me before you called me something that would lead to a binding ceremony,” I growled.

  “Will you marry me?” Re asked. His tone was casual, but his eyes were earnest.

  “Yes,” I couldn't stop the word from coming out. “Now, was that so difficult?”