me and I stumbled backwards. I jerked my wrists, making the vines taut again and pulling on them to stop myself falling.
'Bastard,' I growled. 'That's not fair.'
His eyes were dark with something that could definitely have been lust, and a tight black t-shirt suddenly covered his perfect body and I squashed the stab of disappointment.
'Better?' he said, and another wave of power slammed into me. I gripped my vines harder, trying to work out what I could do next.
'Much,' I lied, and tried to remember what it had felt like when the vines had turned into the tattoos.
But I'd been furious and scared then. I still had plenty of pent up frustration and tension roiling through me, but when I was with Hades like this, I couldn't access that primal rage, that fear that drove me to lose control. The only thing I was going to lose control of here was my grip on my desire for him. Especially if he lost his shirt again.
A little bolt of anticipation charged through me as I glared at his impossibly beautiful face, remembering his words. 'I want to worship you.' I saw his eyes flick to the vines wrapped around his chest, then widen as he looked back at me. His expression changed completely, a predatory hunger filling his face. His lips parted, and he reached up with both hands and pulled on the vines. I stumbled towards him with a yelp, then my breath caught.
My vines were gold. Shining, glittering gold.
'I guess it's time we talked about your other power after all,' Hades said, his voice deep and low and so loaded with desire it made my core clench. 'Your gold vines do the opposite of the black ones. They share your power.' He was breathing hard, and slowly reeling me towards him.
'What do you mean?' I asked, making a show of trying to pull against him, but it was a half-assed attempt. The truth was, I wanted nothing more than to be pulled into him completely.
'When your gold vines do this,' he said turning his forearms towards me so that I could see the gold vine tattoos swirling around them, 'I can feel what you're feeling.'
I stopped tugging, and my mouth fell open. Heat leapt to my face.
'You can feel what I'm feeling? Like mind-reading?'
'Let me show you,' he said, barely audibly.
Blue light began to shine along the gold vines, starting at his body, then whizzing along them, back towards me. When they reached my palms, I gasped.
I could feel his desire for me. More, I could see it. Images flashed through my mind of the two of us in the largest bed I'd ever seen, but I barely noticed the beautiful posts and black drapes adorning it because oh my gods, I was seeing and feeling it through his eyes. He was staring down at me laying on the sheets before him, naked and holy fuck, I looked a million times better than I really did. A series of images began to flash before me, so fast I couldn't hold onto a single one; me sinking onto his lap, him burying his face between my thighs, me bending over before him and spreading myself, his length hard and pounding and ready.
'Oh gods,' I moaned aloud, and the images stopped abruptly. I opened my eyes and saw my own lust mirrored in Hades' wild eyes. 'You said no magic sex!' I panted.
'You started it!'
'What?'
'That's what these do,' he said through gritted teeth as he lifted my gold vines. 'You're sending me images like that right now.'
'What!' I yelped, and the gold vines vanished instantly. Hades sagged slightly, before standing straight again, eyes still wild. 'Why didn't you tell me I had magic sex powers!' I demanded, trying and failing to ignore the urgent need between my legs.
'Because I didn't know if they were back or not.' My eyes flicked to his groin. I'd just got a glimpse of what was in his jeans, and now I couldn't shift it. I didn't just want him. I needed him. The pounding was becoming painful, and I squirmed where I stood. Either we were going to fuck right now, or I needed to be wherever he wasn't.
'Maybe we should try the training later,' he ground out. Guttural disappointment hit me in the gut. But I need you. 'Hecate can teach you healing before the next Trial.'
'Right,' I said tightly. He looked into my face.
'I'm sorry, Persephone. If I stay here a second longer,