Deep Water (18 page)

“To new friends,” Jennifer said, pressing
a glass into Griffin’s hand.

“To new friends,” he agreed, clinking his
glass against theirs before taking a sip. The wine was just as delicious as he
remembered. It was definitely going to be a wonderful day.

The BMW pulled onto the main road and
headed south.

****

Poseidon eyed the luxurious clump of
railroad vine growing on the beach, its lavender blooms glowing against the
sand. Lovely as it was, the flowering vine hadn’t been there the night before,
and was undoubtedly a result of divine seed falling on the sand.

I really shouldn’t
have let him do that.
But it had been irresistible having Griffin lying beneath him, gorgeously
flushed and panting from their kisses. When his mate had reached down and taken
him in hand, Poseidon had almost spent right there and then. It had been an
effort of, in a word, Herculean willpower to hold off and enjoy Griffin’s
inexperienced but enthusiastic stroking for just a little longer.

The only canker in the rose had been
Griffin’s inability to rise to the occasion. Poseidon had no plans to let his
mate suffer from unrelieved arousal and had been more than willing to explore
other ways of helping him orgasm. But in the end Griffin had needed comfort
more than release. The sea god was a bit proud of himself for recognizing that
and for offering Griffin the chance to let go of his fear and anger.

But listening to his mate struggle to cry
silently had torn at his own heart like Prometheus’s eagle.
I swear, my beloved, I will not let you die.
If I have to tear the oceans apart, I will find a cure for your illness. And
then I will bring you and Amphitrite together, and the three of us will finally
have the life together that we were denied.

He shifted his attention to the water,
extending his senses. A small system was building off to the southwest,
promising rain later in the day.
If we
plan on sailing, we’d best get it done early.

He walked up to Griffin’s back door,
knocking.
And afterwards I could lure him
onto the couch for more kisses. Surely I could get him out of his clothes with
a bit of effort—

Something was wrong. He scanned the
cottage.

Griffin wasn’t there.

Quickly, Poseidon checked the rest of the
cottages. The doctor’s cottage held a sleeping Nick and two
mers
eating breakfast, and his sons’ home held only Ian and Bythos. The rest of the
unoccupied cottages were just that—unoccupied.

Did he wake up and
think I’d gone? I should have left a note.
The
Seabird
was still docked, and he didn’t see any other boats on the
water.
Wait. He has a vehicle, doesn’t
he? Perhaps he had to go to the market for something?

Poseidon jogged around to the front of the
cottage, hope fading when he saw Griffin’s car still parked in its spot. “Damn
it to Tartarus,” he muttered. “Where are you, beloved?”

And then he smelled it. A floral scent
that hung on the breeze like the curtain of a bedroom window. A very familiar
scent.

Rage flooded through him. His
sisters-in-law had been there. And there could only be one reason for that.

Thrusting out his hand, Poseidon summoned
his trident.
Find the Nereids
Iaera
,
Pasithea
, and
Ligeia
.

The trident glowed, tugging him towards
the water. Furious, he followed.

****

Griffin opened his mouth for another
grape. Lisa popped it in, and he bit into the juicy fruit with relish.

“You like?” she cooed. Somewhere along the
line she’d shed her gold dress, and was now wearing a very well cut bikini in
the same color. She lounged next to him on the huge pouf, a bowl of chilled
grapes between them.

“’S great,” Griffin said, swallowing.

“My turn,” Jennifer said, leaning across
him to snag a grape. Her blue dress was also gone, replaced by an azure bikini
filled with a beautifully curved, ripe body that would have made his pre-cancer
cock sit up and howl. She held the grape up to his lips and he opened them
obediently, taking the treat.

“
Feh
—grapes.
What you need is the liquid version, sweetheart.” Patricia knelt gracefully in
front of him, red bikini blazing in his field of vision as she refilled his
champagne glass yet again from the magnum. It had to be a new one by now,
didn’t it, he thought muzzily as he was encouraged to take a sip. They’d
finished the first bottle in the car, then another one on the boat, and now…

Where were they again?

He blinked up at creamy silk fabric
overhead. They were in a little pavilion, like something out of
1001 Arabian Nights
, filled with huge
velvet poufs and smaller cushions for their feet. Little tables scattered
around the pavilion held a staggering variety of food and drink, and he could
hear soft music playing in the distance. Out front was a perfect blue sea
almost exactly the color of Jennifer’s bathing costume. It was the ideal
location for a party, just as they’d promised.

A party?

Oh, right. They were party planners, and
wanted to show off their skills. “When are the others getting here?” he asked,
blinking at the pavilion.

The women shared an amused look. “I’m
afraid you’re the only one who took us up on our invitation, darling,” Lisa said
with an adorable little pout. “You don’t mind having us all to yourself, do
you?”

A flicker of guilt penetrated the pleasant
haze. “No. But I wanted to invite my friend—”

“We don’t really need anyone else, do we?”
Jennifer added, leaning closer. He couldn’t help staring at two round, creamy
breasts as they pressed against his arm. “We’ll have so much fun, honey.”

“You
are
having fun, aren’t you?” Patricia said, big blue eyes wide and ingenuous. “If
there’s anything you need, we’ll get it for you. All you have to do is ask,
sweetheart.”

He nodded, and his head spun from the movement.
Beautiful women, good wine, amazing food, gorgeous surroundings on the beach.
It was all he wanted, wasn’t it?

Something niggled at the back of his mind.
Something about kisses and a soft, baritone moan.

He blinked, struggling to sit up. “Dunn,”
he croaked. “I need Dunn.”

“No, you don’t,” Lisa said firmly, pushing
him back. “You’d much rather be with us, wouldn’t you?”

The other two moved in until he was
surrounded with lush feminine beauty and a perfume that spun his senses.

But part of his mind was still fixed on
Dunn. “Why can’t we invite him?” Griffin said woozily. “He’s my friend. I like
him. I think I’m falling in love with him.” He grinned in wonder. “I’m falling
in love with a bloke. Fancy that.”

Lisa
tsked
.
“He’s a party pooper and an old grouch. And he’s married. You don’t want him.”

“You want us, sweetheart,” Jennifer
purred. “We’ll take such good care of you.”

He could feel hands on his belt now,
tugging it loose from its buckle. “No,” he said, putting his hand on a feminine
one.

Patricia frowned at him. “Why not? Don’t
worry, honey. We’re all clean, I promise.”

Another hand moved lower, caressing his
still-clothed and flaccid penis. It felt ... wrong.

“What’s wrong, darling?” Lisa asked,
biting her lower lip. “Don’t you want us?”

All of them jumped when an authoritative
voice barked, “No, he doesn’t, you vapid harpy. Now get your hand off his
cock.”

Griffin was suddenly alone on his pouf, sinking
into the engulfing fabric. All three
bikini’ed
women
now stood like a wall in front of him, hands planted on hips as they argued
with—

Dunn.
Relief washed
through him, sweeping away the
muzziness
. He wanted
Dunn, that’s who he wanted. Tall, handsome, bearded, muscular Dunn, who stood
there wrangling with the party planners while one hand rested on the huge,
glowing trident planted at his side.

Trident?

He struggled to sit up, and realized he
was in his underwear.
What the
everlasting fuck was I thinking?

More of the haze cleared.
No, I wasn’t thinking, that was the
problem.

He glared at the trio of rounded backsides
facing him. “What the hell did you do to me?” he croaked.

Lisa turned, startled. “You’re awake?
That’s impossible,” she said. “You had enough nectar to knock out a bull.”

“You fed him
nectar
?” Dunn bellowed. “How dare you?”

“How dare
you
, brother-in-law?” Lisa spun back, pointing an angry finger at
him. “Canoodling with your mortal lover out in the open like that? You
know
Amphitrite comes to the cove
regularly to visit her patients. I know you’re heartless and cruel, but that
goes above and beyond even for you.”

Griffin could see Dunn flush. “I was not
canoodling, whatever that means,” he said angrily.

“No, you were spilling your seed freely,
as usual,” Jennifer spat at him. “And leaving behind evidence that
Ammie
will see.”

“How could you?” Patricia demanded,
stamping a foot. “How could you deliberately hurt her like that, Poseidon?”

Griffin felt his jaw drop open. He had to
have misheard it, or it was a nickname, because there was no way, no way in
hell—

“Enough!” Dunn roared, slamming the butt
of the trident into the sand. The island trembled as if shaken by a small
earthquake. Griffin clung to his pouf, riding out the temblor. Beyond the
arguing quartet, the blue horizon began to rise slowly. “I do not have to
answer for my behavior to the three of you. And if you come near this mortal
again I will personally make sure that all three of you wind up in the deepest
trench I can find.” He glared at the women. “And if I cannot find one deep
enough, I will make one specifically for you. Is that clear?”

All three women screeched at that,
launching back into loud argument. Furiously Dunn waved at them.

And they were gone.

Gulping, Griffin stared up at the huge
figure looming over him now. The horizon was even higher, the unmistakable sign
of a—

“Tsunami,” he croaked.

“What? Oh.” Dunn turned and waved his
trident at the ocean. The horizon froze, then began to drop down again. “My
apologies. My anger got the best of me.”

Dunn’s anger. That could make oceans rise
and women disappear. “W-who are you?”

Dunn paused, somehow seeming to shrink
from a towering form to something more human. He knelt in front of the pouf,
still holding onto that incredible trident. “Oh, blast. Are you all right?”

Griffin goggled at him. “I—I—I don’t
know
,” he managed.

Dunn sighed. “I was afraid of that. I
think it’s time for that talk, beloved.”

He waved again, and everything—the
pavilion, the beach, the ocean—disappeared.

Chapter
Eight

Griffin found himself sitting on the couch
in his cottage, body trying to adjust to the sudden shift. “How—you—what the
hell
, Dunn?”

Dunn stood and his trident disappeared
into thin air. “I’m sorry for being so abrupt, but I didn’t want to stay in
anything
Iaera
,
Pasithea
,
and
Ligea
had concocted,” he said. “They have a bad
habit of booby-trapping things.”

“Booby-trapping—” He tried to wrap his
head around the new information. “Who
are
you?” he said, wincing as his voice cracked.

Dunn took a deep breath. “My true name is
Poseidon,” he said. “But I suspect you gathered that already, thanks to my
meddling sisters-in-law.”

“Sisters-in-law?” Griffin grimaced at the
thought of the knockout brunettes. “Wait, where are they? You didn’t … I mean—”

“I didn’t put them in a trench, no,”
Dunn—no,
Poseidon
—said. “Although
they richly deserved one. I simply relocated them.”

“Where?”

“The Tasman Sea. It’ll take them some time
to get back here, which will be good for them. If they were at leisure enough
to kidnap you, then they obviously have far too much free time on their hands.”

“Christ. They did kidnap me, didn’t they?
And you—”
Are Poseidon. The God of the
Sea.
He tried to breathe, but his lungs didn’t seem to want to work
properly. The world started going dark.

“Lean forward, head between your knees.” A
firm hand on his neck pushed him down until he was in the recovery position.
“Breathe, beloved. Just breathe.”

Beloved?
Blood rushed to Griffin’s
head, driving back the dark blooms along the edges of his vision. He gulped in
air as best he could, blinking at the muted pattern of the carpet between his
bare feet. Crystalline white grains of sand clung to the sparse hairs on his
big toes.

The cove had coarse yellow sand, nothing
like this fine sugar sand.
It was true.
He’d been transported to a tropical island by three sea nymphs, and then been
rescued by Poseidon himself.

“Shit. It’s real. It’s all real,” he
muttered.

“I’m afraid it is,” Poseidon said, the
hand on his neck gentling. “Do you feel like sitting up now?”

“Yeah.” He sat up slowly, his face
stinging from the blood that had rushed into it. “What the hell is going on?
And why are you calling me beloved?”

Frowning, Poseidon sat down hesitantly next
to him. “Before I explain that, may I ask what happened on the island?”

“I will be damned if I know.” Griffin
tried to think. He’d been in a luxury car, then a boat. Or had he? He could
remember the vehicles, but at the same time he also remembered Lisa’s arms
around him as they rode along the waves on a bloody great dolphin. “I woke up
and went looking for you, but you were gone.” He glared at Poseidon.

The other man—the god—winced. “I’m sorry
about that. I’d gone for a walk.”

“Huh. Then there was a knock at the front
door. I went to get it. The next thing I know I’m on a tropical island in a
silk pavilion being fed grapes and wine by three gorgeous birds in bikinis.” He
paused, remembering some of the argument he’d heard. “They’re really your
sisters-in-law?”

“Yes,” Poseidon admitted. “
Ligea
,
Pasithea
, and
Iaera
. I’m afraid they were spying on us last night and
decided to take matters into their own interfering hands.”

Last night. When they were making out on
the beach and he’d—

Griffin flushed. “Shit. They saw us?”

“Their dolphins did, I suspect,” Poseidon
said. “I would have noticed their presence in the cove otherwise.”

“You—right.” Griffin sucked in a deep
breath. “Let’s go back to the beginning. You’re really Poseidon, God of the
Seas.”

“
Earthshaker
,
Maker of Horses, yes.”

“Which makes
By
and
Aph
…”

“Bythos and Aphros, my adopted sons.
They’re demigods, sea centaurs who are charged with the protection of the
waters.” One surprisingly graceful hand rose, fingers flicking. “As you may
have gathered, they can also change shape.”

“Change shape. Right.” Griffin tried to
take it all in. “And Ian?”

“He was human. Now he’s a storm god. It’s
a long story.”

“I bet it is. What about Nick and his
blokes? Are they sea gods, too?”

Poseidon smiled faintly. “Oh, no. Aidan
and Liam are regular mermen, I assure you. Nicholas is quite human, although
he’s also the Bearer of the Rod of Asclepius, which makes him something of a disciple,
I would imagine.”

“Disciple.” Griffin rubbed his face,
feeling the bristles rasp against his fingers. “And mermen. All right. And
you’re all living on the Florida coast because?”

“Ian started it.” Now Poseidon sounded
mildly defensive. “After he mated with my sons, they moved in with him. And
Nicholas was Ian’s friend back in Chicago, so he wound up staying here after he
mated with Aidan and Liam.”

“Right. Of course. And
you’re
here because?”

The god hesitated. “At first I came to
consult with Bythos on a project. I wasn’t lying when I told you we were in the
business of marine ecological remediation. We’re working on methods of cleaning
pollution from the waters. Afterwards, I found I rather liked coming here to
visit. And then you moved in, and I realized why I was supposed to be here.”

“Me.” Griffin stared at the god.
He called me beloved. Why would he do that,
unless…
“What do I have to do with all this?”

“That is part of the long and complicated
story I have to tell you. And it’s one that I would prefer not to have
interrupted.” Poseidon looked around the living room, frowning. “Would you mind
if we went to my palace first?”

“
Your
… palace.
You mean, on Olympus?”

The frown on Poseidon’s face deepened.
“No. I can’t—it’s not a good place for mortals,” he muttered. “I meant my
undersea palace. I’ll make sure that you won’t drown. In fact, you’ll never
have to worry about drowning ever again.”

Griffin suspected if his eyes got any
wider they were going to pop out. “You can do that?”

“I’m the God of the Sea,” Poseidon
reminded him. “If I couldn’t make sure that mortal men were safe in my
demesnes, I’d be a very poor god, wouldn’t I?”

“Oh. Yeah, I guess you would. So, um, how
do we do that?”

The god’s frown disappeared, replaced by a
hesitant smile. “I’ll have to kiss you.”

Memories of their kisses blazed through
Griffin’s mind. “Oh. Well, in that case, I suppose I can handle it,” he said,
trying his damnedest for a dry tone.

Poseidon chuckled softly. “You already did
that last night.”

Griffin could feel his cheeks heat up.
“Just kiss me already, you big gob.”

Nodding, Poseidon leaned forward and pressed
their lips together gently in a chaste kiss. Griffin closed his eyes, enjoying
the touch of those firm, full lips on his own.

And gasped when something cold rushed into
his mouth, gushing down his throat and causing his lungs to spasm. He tried to
jerk backward but hands clamped firmly around his head, holding him in place.

Suddenly the coldness changed, turning
warm and bubbling. He sucked in a breath through his nose and felt his lungs
inflate reassuringly. Then moaned as Poseidon’s tongue slid silkily into his
mouth, luring his own tongue into a winding, sliding dance.

When the god finally let him pull away, he
was breathing heavily. “You could have warned me,” he said, rubbing his chest
and throat.

Poseidon grinned. “I apologize. Different
mortals have different reactions to my kiss. Nicholas seemed to take it much
more easily.”

Griffin narrowed his eyes. “You kissed
Nick?”

“Only to give him the ability to breathe
underwater,” Poseidon assured him. “Admittedly, Gaia then lent his body to one
of my former lovers for a brief interlude. It was purely a matter of closure, I
assure you, and will never be repeated. I have no intention of ever betraying
your trust again.”

Again?
Before Griffin
could ask, Poseidon stood and held out a broad hand. “Shall we?”

Griffin glanced down at his underwear.
“Shouldn’t I get dressed first?”

“Why? It’s just going to get wet. In fact,
I’d suggest going and putting on a bathing suit.” The god’s smile turned
sensual. “Or go nude. That’s probably the most practical method, come to think
of it.”

“Yeah, no,” Griffin muttered. Before he’d
gotten sick he would have shucked off his Y-fronts and vest without a second
thought. But now he knew he looked like a pale weed next to Poseidon’s leanly
muscled frame. “I’ll go put on my trunks. And a t-shirt.”

“Suit yourself.”

****

Three fuming Nereids surfaced off the
coast of Tasmania.

“I am going to gut Poseidon for this,”
Lisa said, wiping water out of her eyes.

“I am going to turn his guts into macramé,”
Jennifer said.

“And then I’m going to set it on fire,”
Patricia snarled. “How in Gaia’s name are we supposed to get home?”

“I’ll be damned if I’m swimming all that
way,” Jennifer said, tossing her sodden hair back. “I say we call
Ammie
right now and tell her what her philandering husband
is up to—”

The water around them calmed, going still
in a perfect circle. “Hello, girls,” a familiar voice said. “What have you
gotten yourselves into now?”

“It wasn’t our fault, Hyacinth!” Lisa
said, slapping at the glassy surface. “
Ammie’s
idiot
husband is throwing his weight around again.”

“He’s having an affair with a mortal right
on Olympic Cove,” Patricia added. “We tried to stop it, but he chucked us halfway
across the blasted globe.”

The water around them rippled. “I see.
Would this be Griffin Moore, by any chance?”

The three Nereids gave each other
identical startled looks. “You know about him?” Lisa said suspiciously.

“Yes.”

“And you didn’t tell us?”

The water sighed. “There’s more to this
than you know, girls.” A brief but surprising explanation followed, to the
Nereids’ mutual astonishment. “For once in his life,
Earthshaker
is actually trying to do the right thing. He doesn’t need you joggling his elbow
right now. I’ll send someone to pick you up, but you have to promise to stay
out of Olympic Cove and Olympic Beach, at least until everything is resolved.”

The sisters glanced at each other. “All
right,” Lisa said slowly. “But if he hurts
Ammie
again with this—”

“He won’t. He knows what’s at stake here.
Now, there’s a British Royal Navy ship in your vicinity. Would you like to use
the usual sunken sailboat excuse?”

All three Nereids perked up at the thought
of a ship full of fit, healthy sailors. “Yes, please,” they chorused.

“Consider it done.” Hyacinth’s indulgent
chuckle rolled over them. “Have fun, girls.”

Suddenly the day was looking up.

****

Knowing that he could breathe water safely
and actually doing it were two completely different things, Griffin thought as
he rode next to Poseidon in the god’s chariot. But the ability to stay
underwater without the constant soft hiss from tanks or the bubbles from his
regulator was absolutely glorious. Diving had always been one of his favorite
activities, and thanks to Poseidon’s kiss he had been unshackled from the need
to bring his own air with him. He sucked in a deep lungful of seawater, and
breathed it out just as easily.

The god, now out of mortal clothes and
wearing a white tunic belted at the waist, glanced at him. “Enjoying yourself?”
he asked.

Griffin learned that he’d also been
granted the ability to speak
Éthlé
, the sea tongue.
But it was still strange to hear Poseidon speaking in something that sounded
like dolphin song.

“Oh, God yes.” He grinned when he realized
what he’d said. “Sorry. It’s habit.”

“I understand. We should be arriving at
the palace in a few minutes.”

Griffin looked back at the dark water
rushing by. He had no idea where they were, but Poseidon seemed to know where
he was going. And the gorgeous white seahorses harnessed to the chariot
certainly surged through the water like they were on course. He took a moment
to admire the startlingly beautiful creatures, with the front halves of white
thoroughbreds merged with huge, powerful fish tails. They—galloped, it could
only be called a gallop—easily through the water, pulling Poseidon’s chariot
along in their wake.

Ahead of them, a soft green glow grew
brighter. As they drew closer Griffin saw the outlines of a grand mansion that
would have been quite at home on an English country estate. To his untutored
eye the building appeared to be classical in design, mimicking the elegant
lines of Greek and Roman temple architecture.