He released a deep sigh, the deep, accented timber of his words, vibrating through me until I could relax against his body and listen to his sad tale.
“Though the artist did take liberties with the looks of me and my mother, the story told was primarily correct. My sister, Athena was born of Zeus, by bursting forth from his forehead, and Hera, Queen of the Gods was enraged by the fact that her husband could birth a child on his own. She also had her issues with the fact that Athena's mother was a female Zeus swallowed after already conceiving my sister. I'm sure you know those tales of his many infidelities and such. Well, mother decided if he could have a child without her, she'd have one without him. Unfortunately, when I was born, she felt I was disgustingly ugly. Not because I was, but because my face was the very image of Zeus. Even though he had nothing to do with my creation, he managed to still ‘taint’ me, so in a fit of anger, she threw me from the clouds of Olympus, where I fell for a full day and a night. ”
Gasping, I smothered my mouth with my hands and watched Hephaestus’s somber face as he recalled his horrific birth.
“I landed on the sharp peak of a mountain and lacerated my side, before finally hitting the ground. I was left with this limp and a grotesque scar, leaving me as weak bait for my brother's bullying. Long story short, I lived within humanity, aiding them in secrecy until my longing for my immortal home became unbearable, and went to Hera's temple to beg back re-entry. She said no, that I was a lame blight on the family, and should be shamed to still consider myself a god,” he paused from his misery laden story and gazed up at the azure sky above.
Tears formed in my eyes to hear how someone as majestic as he, could be treated like that.
“I decided then and there, if they weren't going to let me in, I'd force their hand and created a throne for her. Selfish as she is, she took it not knowing I set it up to trap her, with me being the only one who could free her. I obviously got back in, but was forced to work in the deep forges away from sight. I have grown accustomed to it, but I do get lonely.”
His head hung low, Hephaestus reminded me so much of a boy looking for a home that all I could do was wrap him in a tight hug. I may be a mere mortal, but hearing the raw emotion behind the telling of his story, made me want to call his bitch mother, Hera, and slap her into the next century. How could anyone be so cruel to a man who lived in such torment from those who were supposed to love him?
The startling truth abruptly hit me like a ton of bricks and it smacked me just as hard too. I was doing the same thing to him. Nothing he’d done was out of hate, the bet wasn't his, the curse wasn't on purpose and he stood up to Ares, just to save me. While, all I had given him was angry defensiveness that he really didn’t deserve. Decision made, I poked him in the ribs to get his attention and smiled while I stood.
Hephaestus narrowed his eyes in curiosity before accepting, and stood beside me. “What is this, Vanessa?”
“I'm ready to go home. Let's go.” I held out my hand.
With furrowed brows, he set to work folding the blanket and together, we headed back to his truck, the park almost empty now that dinner time was approaching for some. I could feel him watching me, even while keeping his eyes on the road, but I said nothing, wanting to surprise him with my sneakiness. It was exciting, the prospects of what I was about to do, making my palms sweat while my stomach quivered with butterflies. My only hope, I thought as we pulled into his driveway, was that I wouldn’t have to face rejection.
The sun was fast descending, and my mind was churning with the various possibilities of what might happen this night. Keeping my face serene, I waited while he came around to open my door, then together, we walked up to my door. Like a young girl, the awkwardness that came with the end of any date almost broke my strong reserve, but I couldn't fail. I wouldn't be like all the others in his life.
He was first to break the silence, clearing his throat and gingerly lacing his fingers through mine. “So, I guess this is goodnight.”
“Well....”
“What? Is something wrong?”
Taking a deep breath, it was now or never, and all I wanted from the man before me was forever. “Nothing is wrong. But, I don't want the night to end. Please, stay with me tonight.”
“And do what, agápi̱ mou?”
“Stay with me, Hephaestus and make love to me until we both almost die from the pleasure.”
Chapter XVIII
Hephaestus
If I hadn't been skeptical before at the park, I certainly was now and honestly, I didn't know how to respond to Vanessa's request. One part of me wanted to fling her over my shoulder and run up to her bedroom, while the other half debated flashing back home as quickly as possible.
Zeus would say to listen in on her thoughts to figure out if she was sincere or not, but I hated the idea of intruding on anyone's privacy. In truth, I had never physically been with a female, and even though I told her I was scarred from my descent from Olympus, I feared how she'd truly react to seeing my body. Only once did Aphrodite catch me in the nude. Her response was to promptly throw up on the marble floors, and then fleeing to tell all the women she could, left me with a bad feeling about what Vanessa would think.
Tensing, I looked into her beautiful eyes as she touched my cheek, the simple gesture setting me on fire, and easing me into believing that only good could come from taking this chance. That’s exactly what it would be, a precarious risk, that leap for love that Eros had mentioned. This decision would seal my fate forever and I knew, I wouldn't turn back, but would she? If I gave into my love and desire, would she regret taking me into her bed?
Please don't despise me after this, Vanessa.
“Yes, Vanessa. Let us sore higher than gods have ever gone.”
The bright smile she graced me with made my heart fill until I thought I would die from the explosion of lust that threatened to happen. It would have to wait though, as I was about to learn what it was that drove men to do the most heinous of crimes because of a small, yet powerful touch of a woman's body.
With our hands still entwined, Vanessa pulled me up along her stairs to the bedroom I thought I'd never enter again and pointed to the bed. “I'm going to freshen up, make yourself comfy.” She disappeared into the bathroom.
The soft click of the door setting my nerves on edge, I tested the full size mattress and slowly sat. It dipped and I could only hope I didn't break it with my weight alone, but that was forgotten when Vanessa opened the door, the light of the bathroom casting a golden aura around her body. Even in the long white night shirt she wore to try and conceal her body, I could easily see the outline of her full curves through the cotton material, and my cock instantly hardened.
Wearing a saucy grin, she sauntered over to where I waited, easing in between my legs, which automatically spread, so that I could pull her closer. I wrapped my arms around her waist, and she leaned down to kiss me, teasing me with her tongue. In minutes, our mouths went from a gentle exploration, to a plunging domination on my part. Somewhere, I forgot to be afraid, maybe it was because I could feel her insecurity about her looks. I pushed my tongue deeper, branding her lips so that she'd never want another's. I turned her until her back faced the bed, and lowered her down, pinning her with my body. “Let me rid you of this ungodly shirt.”
“Okay, but turn off the lights first.”
“Why would I do that?”
“You know… because.”
I did know, but decided to not acknowledge her distress and mentally made her shirt vanish, growling deep in my throat once my eyes came face to skin with all of her exposed body. In my grip, I held up her right breast, my mouth salivating as I brought it closer. The beauty of how her paleness compared to a lush pearl in my tanned hand, begging for my touch. The pulse in her neck fluttered with anticipation, and I squeezed her flesh, until I victoriously garnered a moan that reverberated throughout her physique.
Vanessa's nipple perked up in such a tantalizing way, I decided to no longer torture us both by prolonging the inevitable by just giving a small lick and I sucked the sweet pebbled flesh into my greedy mouth. Pressing down, I flattened the nipple, then bit gently around both the areola and part of the flesh surrounding it, thrilling with every pleasure filled sound that came from her mouth. After lavishing my attention on the right, I moved to the left, devouring the silk that made her perfect in every way. I knew her arousal grew, as the room became saturated in her musky scent. It wrapped around me, and my erection became even harder, to the point that if I had a nail, I could hammer it through a brick.
“Oh, Heph! The way you touch me… it makes me feel so beautiful!”
Why she would think otherwise, I didn't know, and if it was due to any men, including my brother, I promised to make them pay later with the worst of curses. Spurred by the need to make her feel the love that buried my heart, I released her nipple, smiling in approval at how it glistened, and moved down her torso, leaving a trail of love bites in my wake.
It was beautiful, seeing how her skin would turn bright red with my markings, and it fueled the alpha side of me. I wanted more, needed to brand her for both our sakes, hoping that I didn't screw up such an intimate act. Moving to the curvature of her waist, I nipped until she whimpered, then slid to the other side with my tongue to repeat the sensual motion there. By the time I got to her smooth, hairless pelvis, she quivered. With the tip of my nose, I drew circles until I reached her already swollen clit, and switched to my tongue, lapping up her slit, along the pink lips to my heart's content.
Endorphins thundered through my mind, as my senses were bombarded, my jeans no longer comfortable, or my sanity in check any longer. I pulled away, but not before indulging in several more licks, and began to pull out of my shirt, giving Vanessa a slow, seductive reveal. I kept my body turned slightly, hiding the scar from her hooded eyes.
“Heph?”
I knew what she wanted, and tried to ignore her soft, beckoning voice.
“Hephaestus, please don't hide from me. You wouldn't let me hide from you.”
She was right. I hadn't given her a choice to cover her body from me, so why did I fear doing the same? Swallowing past the lump in my throat, I glanced at her. Unlike my mother, Aphrodite, or the other immortals that I ever came across, I saw none of the repulsion marring her features. Instead, in her hazel gaze, I saw adoration, arousal and dare I say, even a hint of love.
This gave me the push of strength I needed to turn until I faced her, full frontal. My muscles tensed and I tugged at my jeans, kicking off my boots before removing them from my legs. Never one to wear undergarments, my cock, sprang up, to smack below my navel while dripping precum.
Her eyes widened at the shining object that stood out against the red of my cock's head. “You have a Prince Albert?”
“Yes, I do. Al and I got them done together. Who would have known his peculiar fashion sense would still be prevalent today.”
“Wait, you're talking about the real Prince Albert, aren't you?”
“Yes, Vanessa. I'm old - Immortal. Now, can we please get back to what was happening. I'm showing you my body, remember?”
“Which is decadent by the way.” She gave me a hazel eyed wink.
Snorting at her flattery, I stood still. The pale, yellow glow of the room, making the wound now long healed, stand out jagged, puffy and dark brown against my tanned skin. Since I had fallen head first, the sharpest mountain point had pierced right under my nipple and I slid down the rocks, before disconnecting. I was left, sprawled on the ground, opened wide and in so much pain, yet it was the mental anguish of being the lame god, the ugly one, that damaged me the most.
It took a moment to realize my eyes had closed while I relived my dark memory, until I felt the gentle press of her lips against my sensitive flesh. Tensing even more, I cracked one eye open, sneaking a peek, and watched in awe, as Vanessa anointed my scar from the top down ward to where it wrapped around my knee. She looked up at me and I knew that with her, I would always be true perfection.
Still on her knees, she slid her hands up along my thighs, her fingers so close to touching me that I almost came at the very idea of how it would feel. Fortunately, Vanessa kept me from embarrassing myself, and tangled her fingers into my dark blonde curls, leaning up until I could feel her breath, cooling the liquid that trailed down my shaft. It sent shivers up my spine, my mind spinning at all the scenarios that would happen, and when she kissed my weeping tip, my thoughts shattered as she took me into her moist, hot mouth. Not knowing if I would cry or die from how amazingly she worked me.