Hermes (Frozen Origin #2) (8 page)

“I’ve learned a lot and I know all about men like you, Jack. Call them Romeos, playboys, or man whores, but I have no interest in a man like that.” She spit the words at him, her disgust evident.

Hermes stomach cramped and his chest hurt, was he a male like that? Would she consider him a man whore? Would she show him the utter disdain she had just shown Jack? If she found out how he had been captured, she would never let him touch her again. Why was it when things started to look better, something bad always seemed to happen? He’d had enough worries before but now that Jack wasn’t a worry anymore it seemed his recent past and his foolish decisions would defeat him with no help from anyone else. She found Jack attractive, hell, he was one of the Superman line bred for looks, intelligence, and who knew what else, but she didn’t want him like she wanted Hermes. Jack wouldn’t steal her away from him, he would lose her all on his own.

“Cherish, most men will take what is offered to them until they find the right woman, a woman like you.” Jack said and he looked sincere, but Cher didn’t look like she was buying it.

“So you intend to settle down, the white picket fence, 2 and 1/2 kids, and a dog, really Jack? Whatever you’re selling, I’m not buying. You can explain your lack of character anyway you want to, but in the end, it’s a deal breaker.”

Jack wasn’t the only one with a pained look on his face, Hermes knew he had one too. Jack had moved across the room maybe to pull her into his arms but he stepped back when
she spoke and Hermes was glad because he knew if Jack touched her he would rip his head off.

“Fine, Cherish, I understand you don’t believe someone can change, that they can want someone enough to change the way they live for them or feel enough not to ever want anyone else again.”

“Coming from you, Jack, that’s rich. How many women fell for your charm only to have their heart broken? Can you even remember most of them? Any of them?” Jack flushed and his eyes fell to the floor. Hermes thought he might be ashamed or at least he was giving a good impression of shame. Cherish turned away from him and walked to a chair to sit down and stew.

“Why did you come here, Cherish? Did you plan to make me want you and turn me down as some kind of petty revenge for my lack of interest when you were younger? Is that what this is all about?” Jack asked angrily.

“No, I’ve been checking security and I’ve found some serious problems. There’s also the matter of money paying for ghost services and supplies that we aren’t receiving. I was trying to figure out if you were in on it or not. We’ve lost millions through direct costs and I fear that information about our clients has been accessed, with the help of someone on the inside. That, Jack, is why I’m here.”

Jack moved to a chair and he collapsed into it. His face seemed pale and
Hermes noticed his hands were shaking. “I didn’t know, Cherish, but I can’t say I’m surprised. I’m sure Origin planted others to see that I did what they wanted. When I refused, they just had someone else do it.”

“If I believe that, which I don’t, how would you explain why you never saw what was going on right under your nose?” Cher asked.

“I suppose things have gone well and everyone seemed to be doing their jobs. This is a billion dollar company with so many accounts, departments, and employees that one person can’t possibly track everything. I have to rely on others to deal with the day to day issues that arise. Someone must have covered their trail carefully for no one else to find what they’ve done.”

“Someone did find it or I wouldn’t know about it.”

“How and why didn’t they tell me?”

“Because they told me!
” She almost yelled it at Jack.

“Calm down Cherish, we’ll get this straightened out. Now tell me exactly what is happening!” Jack said and he did pull her into his arms but he stepped back when Hermes growled at him.

Cherish explained what she had found in detail so Jack could see that since her father had died, the discrepancies had increased progressively in time and amount. It was time to put a stop to the financial losses and the security leaks.

“I assure you, Cherish, I will fix this.” Jack told her.

Hermes carefully observed the interaction between Cherish and Jack feeling confident that Cher wasn’t attached to Jack. If only she would be attached to him, his dreams would come true. Jack agreed to handle things personally and Cherish agreed to give him a chance. It was time to leave, Cherish and Doc turned to go so Hades and Hermes followed them. They went down to the lobby where Cherish called her driver to pick up Doc and her. Hermes wanted to go with her but he knew it was pointless to ask. She had as little use for him as she had for Jack and she didn’t even know about his recent history.

Back at their rooms, things were still uncomfortable between them and Hermes noticed the relationship between Hades and Doc which he had thought stalled at bad, had now gotten worse. Doc refused to engage Hades, she simply froze him out. The coolness wasn’t limited to Doc, Cherish was learning from Doc how to drive a god crazy. Since they had left Jack, she hadn’t said a word to him refusing to even glance his way. Neither female would even answer a direct question so Hermes decided to try something different.

“Doc, what’s your opinion of these supermen? Hades and I recognized something similar in their scent even though they lack Cronos’s DNA.” She looked at him, her eyes alight with interest and enthusiasm.

“They were probably the basic start Origin used before adding in your father’s DNA. We might learn so much about all of you if the right superman were found. I’m sure some were used to help with your project maybe as lab assistants, maybe even as researchers, since Origin required secrecy and it takes a
lot of people to pull off such a large scale project.” Doc was in her element, discussing her passion. She even forgot herself and answered a few questions Hades sent her way.

Cherish stood back watching with her mouth slightly agape probably shocked that a sophisticated female like Doc didn’t realize what
they were doing. He was sure Doc knew, but her excitement over meeting two supermen and having someone else who was interested in the subject was just too much for her to fight. Cherish left the room going to the bedroom, maybe to brood. He wasn’t inclined to let her escape so easily, he followed her there.

“Why are you so angry with me?” He asked.

She looked stunned as if she hadn’t expected a direct approach, he was sure she hadn’t. He could see the war going on in her head, answer or not. He thought she wanted to tell him, but she wasn’t sure she knew the answer herself. She finally just rushed past him back into the sitting room where she set up her computer planning to use it as a shield between them. He followed her to the table she planned to use and pulled the laptop from her hands.

“Cherish, you need to answer me. Why are you so angry?”

“I thought you were different but now I see you are just like him.”

He flinched as if she had struck him. Did she know what he had done? She couldn’t know since only her brother could tell her and he hadn’t found them, but she was right. He was a lot like Jack and before he met her, he would have slept with any female presented to him. She thought that was wrong, even though he couldn’t understand why. Didn’t Cherish have those kinds of needs? Didn’t she ever ache for release, want it so bad that it didn’t matter who gave it to
her as long as she got it? He wasn’t like that anymore, not since he had met her. He had no interest, no desire for any other female, he only wanted her.

He set her computer down and closed the small space between them pulling her into his arms and branding her lips with his hot passionate kiss. She squirmed in his arms trying to wiggle away but he wouldn’t allow it. She was his and she needed to know that now. He plundered her mouth with his tongue stealing her breath robbing her of her will to escape. She slowly relaxed and leaned into the kiss instead of away. Her arms came up and around his neck as if she feared she would fall and she pulled him closer as her heart beat wildly and her breath came in ragged gasps.

She might not be ready to commit to him, she might not love him or plan to stay, but she wasn’t immune to him, she wanted him physically and that was a place to start. He moved his hands over her body squeezing her breasts as his kiss intensified. He felt her moan, a slight vibration in his mouth that gave him satisfaction. She was responding to him even if on a purely sexual level. He rocked against her, his hard cock pressing on her stomach not where he wanted it, but it was a start. She brought out the wild beast in him and he struggled to hold him back, to slow down and remember how gentle and inexperienced she was.

His kiss gentled, his hold eased as he tried to woo her, to convince her with his mouth and his hands that she wanted, needed him and only him. He could scent her arousal, feel her temperature had risen and it stoked his need to sink himself inside her. His rigid cock ached for her alone as he pressed it into her soft stomach, but it wasn’t what he wanted or needed. He stepped back pulling his shirt over his head and tossing it aside as he looked into her eyes. She had that well known deer in the headlight look, her eyes wild as she looked for a path of escape.

He stepped back to embrace her again but she pushed on his chest thinking he would let her go again as he had last time. This was different and he only held her tighter as he started to move his lips toward hers. Somewhere deep inside she found the strength to whisper one word with a ragged breath. “No!”

He looked as if he had been decked, so stunned and the hurt look in his eyes was hard to b
ear. She did what she had to so she wouldn’t be used because she was handy, available when he needed someone. She wanted to be loved, respected for who and what she was and not be just an available body for someone to slake their passion. He might mean a lot to her, but she knew the score and she wasn’t playing around anymore. She would only be with someone who could return her feelings, and that wasn’t Hermes. She could never aspire to capture the heart of a god.

She hastily retreated to the bedroom and then she ran into the bathroom. She had to wash off the scent of him that was driving her crazy. It wasn’t fair that he could make her crave him while he felt so little. She closed the bathroom door and locked it before she stripped for her shower. She set the water stepping into the shower alone wishing she had someone that loved her, wanted her
just for her. Instead her body ached with a desire she had never known and feared she would never know for another. She stepped into the shower feeling the water run over her excited flesh, needing something to relieve burning feeling in her belly. She soaped up and washed her tender breasts but found herself cupping and squeezing them, pinching the already hard nipples and biting her lip to quell the moan that threatened to erupt from them.

One hand stayed on her breasts while the other moved slowly downward over her firm belly and down further still. She moved it to her pussy feeling the heat as she moved her finger over her nether lips moving until she slid inside the slick seam. She moved to the hard pearl that begged for attention and cried out for relief. She circled it, pressed
down, and felt a shiver of sexual tension run through her. What was wrong with her? This wasn’t something she did in the shower with other people in the suite. She just couldn’t deal with the things Hermes had done to her body and made her think about. Her soapy fingers slid over her clit but in her mind she imagined Hermes’s hand doing it instead. The thought thrilled her and sent a wave of need through her that made her knees weak.

She felt her juices flow
into her already slick pussy and she burned hotter still. Her hand moved faster bringing her closer to the bliss that would take the pain away, she would no longer worry that she would give in, if she could only find relief. She closed her eyes, her head thrown back as she concentrated on the image in her head. Yes, Hermes was kissing her silly as his talented fingers pressed just firmly enough and she went flying over the edge. She gasped, and moaned softly, she just couldn’t help herself as the vortex of ecstasy swept her away. She stepped into the spray of water as she tried to come back from the effects of the almost painful pleasure she had inflicted on herself. She prayed no one had heard or would realize what she had done.

She dried off thoroughly, dressed, and prepared to go to bed. The second she opened the door and saw Hermes in the bedroom, his eyes glowing the brightest she had ever seen them, she knew he had been there the entire time and was awa
re of how she had satisfied her own needs. His eyes raked over her body possessively making her quiver with the desire she thought she had quenched. She ignored him pulling back the covers on her side of the bed and fluffed her pillows. She started turning off the lights and he caught her arm using it to pull her up against his hard male body. He wrapped his arms around her making her feel his heat as she breathed in his unique spicy scent. Now in just seconds, he had gotten her back into the same condition she had been in before her shower.

“I heard you in the shower.” He said as
embarrassment swamped her causing her face to heat as she searched for something to say to him.

“So?” Well she wouldn’t get an award for being a brilliant conversationalist.

He nibbled on her ear, driving her crazy before he whispered to her. “Let me bring you pleasure, Cherish. I can make you feel so good if you’ll just let me.”