Worth It - Lisa Oliver Page 0,35

looked so calm, leaning back in his chair, wine glass in hand. “Ganymede was beautiful yes, and us Greeks, we love our beauty. But he knew what he looked like – he thrived on attention. He took to being my lover as if it were his due because that’s how he’d been raised. He was liked by almost everyone at Olympus because he was exactly who he portrayed himself to be – an exceptionally beautiful, reasonably intelligent, and socially clever young man.”

“In other words, nothing like me.” Paulie was hanging onto the sink bench like a lifeline. All he wanted was to fall into Zeus’s arms and stay there for eternity – but under his skin, Paulie was nothing more than a homeless half-breed, rejected by all who were supposed to care about him.

“You’re right. Ganymede is nothing like you, thank goodness. I didn’t marry him. I never bound myself to him in any way or even suggested I’d stay faithful to him. I gave him eternal youth and immortality yes, but only because it would’ve been a crime against beauty to see him age and wither before my eyes. But he didn’t hold my attention. He was always one of many. He knew that. He accepted that, happy with his life on Olympus until he saw his mate.”

Zeus took a sip from his glass and then waved it in Paulie’s direction. “Ganymede didn’t have depth. He didn’t intrigue me like you do. I never felt this overwhelming sense of protectiveness I feel when I watch you. I want to know what you’re thinking. I’m interested in how you feel – are you warm enough, too hot, have you been eating – and when Cass reminded me you hadn’t finished high school, instead of laughing it off, like I would as a rule, I worried.” Zeus put his glass down. “I worried about you; don’t you get it? I don’t worry about anyone, and I’ve worried about you for nine freaking months.”

“But…”

“There are no buts in this equation.” Zeus stood, his height and power swamping the small space in the kitchen. He pointed to his crotch – or more specifically, the substantial bulge straining the denim in his groin area. “I’ve been hard for you since you walked up the pathway. But do you know what I want to do to you now?”

“No?” Paulie’s breath hitched as Zeus came closer.

“I want to dry your tears.” Zeus reached out, lightly touching his damp cheek. “I want to wrap you up in my arms and protect you from all the evils in this world and beyond. I want to be your safe place, and your smile would mean so much more to me than the fleeting pleasure of any orgasm.”

Zeus was so close, Paulie was overwhelmed by his scent and body heat. Zeus was watching him, as still as any marble statue… waiting… waiting… Letting go of the sink, Paulie reached out and immediately he was pulled against a solid chest. “I’ve got you,” Zeus promised as Paulie tilted his head up for his first ever kiss.

Chapter Twelve

Relief was another one of those pesky emotions Zeus didn’t have a lot of time for. Why would he need to feel relieved something had gone his way when everything usually did anyway? But Paulie’s pain had touched a chord deep inside of him – a part Ganymede, and Zeus’s countless other lovers had never reached. Zeus knew his honesty was the cause of Paulie’s pain, and while he couldn’t change his past, his immediate future was going to be very bleak unless he made things right.

Their lips met. Such a simple act and yet a kiss was such a powerful conduit when emotions were involved. Zeus was shocked by it. Paulie wasn’t an amazing kisser – he’d clearly never done it before, but as Zeus angled his mate’s head so their noses didn’t get in the way of lips touching, he could feel the repressed energies pouring from Paulie’s body.

A groan rang around the room. It might have come from Zeus; he didn’t know and frankly didn’t care. Who wouldn’t groan when they were suckling on the lips of the sweetest demigod, holding a toned slim body that trembled against him with a need that surpassed the desire to come? Zeus’s own blood was boiling, but for once in his eternal life, he ignored his base needs. Paulie whimpered, his soft lips yielding to Zeus’s like a dream. There was a steel core in