Page 21

“You’re dancing with fire, Awakener.”

Icarus shivered as Ivmir’s breath teased the delicate shell, his pulse beating frantically under the demigod’s fingers.

What am I doing right now?! I just told him I couldn’t respond to his desires.

But his body wasn’t listening to his mind. Icarus was helpless against the instinct that made him tilt his neck to the side, exposing the column of his throat.

Ivmir froze for a breathless moment at the silent invitation.

The kiss he pressed to Icarus’s skin was as tender as it was hot.

Icarus moaned.

The sound galvanized Ivmir. He wrapped his arms around Icarus, nosed his chin up, and took his mouth in a savage kiss. Every inch of Icarus tingled and throbbed as Ivmir claimed his lips with a passion that would not be quenched. It was only when he felt Ivmir’s erection probe his belly that he realized he’d looped his arms around Ivmir’s neck and was clinging to him wantonly.

“ IVMIR! ”

They flinched and wrenched their mouths apart as a Goddess’s roar swept through the gardens.

Tenebra was winging her way through the sky toward them, her expression dark.

“You little wretch! I am going to wring your neck!”

Ivmir groaned. “My sisters are going to be the death of my libido.” He released Icarus, pressed a peck to his lips, and shot up into the sky. “I’ll see you soon, Awakener!” he yelled over his shoulder.

Icarus brought a trembling hand to his mouth, unaware that the flames Ivmir had lit inside him would make him ache in places he had never ached before for days to come.

Icarus blocked the Spear of Light with his sword and darted out of the way of Nildar’s blade. It skimmed his shoulder, causing him to lose his balance.

He froze when the Spear of Light stopped an inch from his throat.

Rohengar straightened and lowered the weapon. “You are distracted, brother.”

Nildar looked equally troubled beside him.

Icarus averted his gaze from their probing stares. “I’m just a little tired.”

He wiped the sweat from his brow and looked around, his chest heaving and his heart racing from their practice session. The beauty of the Nether struck him once more, causing his breath to catch all over again.

The star that graced the sky bathed the vast kingdom in a sparkling, golden light. Verdant islands floated amidst soft, white clouds all around them, the forests, mountains, rivers, and lakes upon them full of life and resplendent with their unique charms. Flocks of birds danced above the towering trees and sailed across the firmament, their colorful wings bright as they soared through the crystal clear air, their silvery calls a sweet song Icarus would never tire of hearing.

He never expected the forbidden domain that few could enter to be so majestic. It made him glad he had been chosen as a Guardian, even though the role came with heavy duties.

“Is Ivmir the reason you cannot focus on your training?” Nildar grunted. “I heard he was like a bull with a sore head when his sisters banned him from saying his goodbyes to you.”

Icarus swallowed a sigh. The East Star was too shrewd for his own good.

It had been two weeks since they had returned from the celestial banquet. Though Ivmir had promised Icarus they would see each other again, he had not laid eyes on the demigod since they’d kissed that second time in the gardens. It was only afterward that Icarus had learned the demigod had been ambushed by his sisters and practically gagged and trussed up before being hauled off the grounds.

I can’t blame him for not keeping his promise. It’s not like he can enter the Nether at will.

A figure appeared in the distance before Rohengar and Nildar could question Icarus further. Archon approached, four deer swung on a giant shoulder and a net full of freshly-picked fruits in his hand.

He’d been out patrolling the Nether’s borders.

“Come, let us take a break, brothers.”

Night was falling by the time Icarus returned to his island and the pale palace that graced its center. Bright orbs darted out from the building and appeared from between trees and flower bushes when he landed in the gardens, the spirits who served him assuming ethereal cherubic forms as they converged on him.

“Master, you have returned!” they sang merrily.

Icarus smiled as they flitted and danced around him, their touches soft and warm where they caressed his hair and face. “I’m back, little ones.” He gave them the deer Archon had gifted him. “This is a present from the West Star.”

“Let us prepare Master’s bath and meal!” the spirits chanted animatedly to one another.

They zoomed toward the palace with the game Archon had hunted, golden sparks trailing in their wake.

It wasn’t until he’d retired to the open-roofed observatory that graced the north dome of his palace and his bed chambers later that evening that Icarus’s thoughts turned to Ivmir once more. He hesitated before tracing his mouth with a hesitant finger. Heat warmed his cheeks and pooled in his belly when he felt a stirring in his groin.

Icarus flushed and lowered his hand as the memory of the torrid kisses they had shared danced through his mind for the umpteenth time.

To his embarrassment, he’d woken up to an erection most mornings since he’d returned from the banquet, the heat and hardness of his flesh a direct consequence of the sordid dreams that had filled his every night. Dreams where Ivmir delivered on the wish he’d made to bed him.

Icarus was aware of the practicalities of how two males mated. He’d seen enough depictions in the books on sexual arts his sister Kalliste used to sneak out of the royal library in Rain Vale to make him blush. Though it had surprised him to no end that males found such an act pleasurable, he’d never envisaged himself in that position.

He was not a stranger to physical attraction. He had sometimes felt a tightness in his chest and butterflies in his stomach in the presence of certain Nymphs and Potamoi, back when he was still a prince of Rain Vale. But none had tempted him enough to want to explore those feelings further.

It was not frowned upon for male Gods and demigods to enter into relationships. The practice was indeed widely accepted in all the realms and had been from Heaven’s very inception. As far as deities were concerned, the souls of their partners carried more importance than the physical bodies they inhabited.

A wry smile curved Icarus’s mouth then. The Wild God was possibly the only exception to that edict. As Archon had once declared, barring war demons, Pan could fornicate with just about anything with a pulse.

Icarus took a sip of his honeyed tea and sighed as he watched the stars twinkling far above.

I wonder if I will see Ivmir at the next banquet.

He was lost in contemplations when the hairs suddenly lifted on his arms. Icarus stilled, his pulse quickening.

His gaze swung west and found the spot where he could sense a disturbance in the sky. Something was coming. Something that did not belong in the Nether.

Brightness flashed high above his palace. Icarus’s stomach twisted.

A portal had opened in the Nether’s wall.

Something fell through it as it closed. Something with dark wings.

Icarus jumped to his feet.

Is that a war demon?!

Divine power flooded his veins, bringing with it Heaven’s Light. It bloomed on his skin and hair and made the air crackle as he prepared to unleash his armor and sword.

Icarus flinched when a distant expletive reached his ears.

“Oh, the Hells!”

The falling figure crash landed in a lake a short distance from the palace. Icarus froze for an instant before spreading his wings and darting in that direction, his heart slamming against his ribs.

He knew that voice.

Spirits swarmed Icarus as he arrowed to where the figure had emerged from the water and was swimming steadily for the shoreline.

“No, Master! Run away!” the orbs pleaded. “We will take care of the intruder!”

They shifted, their new forms no longer that of sweet cherubs but the deadly warriors they had once been. For the spirits who inhabited the Nether belonged to fallen soldiers who had once served in a divine army.

“At ease, my old friends,” Icarus said soothingly. “I know this demigod. He means me no harm.”

The spirits traded anxious glances. Still, they obeyed his command and fell back to a safe distance, their suspicious stares swinging to the figure in the shallows of the lake.

Icarus landed in the shadows of a grove of trees in time to see Ivmir rise from the water. Air locked in his throat.

“I’m going to murder that Wild God the next time I see him,” the demigod grumbled under his breath, ripples sloshing around him. He ran a hand through his wet hair and stepped onto the bank, his sandals squelching under his feet.

Icarus barely heard Ivmir, his enthralled gaze raking every inch of his sharply defined anatomy where his see-through tunic clung to his flesh. He swallowed when he glimpsed the shape and thickness of Ivmir’s manhood. The fire that had been smoldering in his veins since the demigod last held and kissed him ignited with a vengeance.

Ivmir stilled when he noticed Icarus’s presence. The smile he gave Icarus lit up his face and made Icarus’s heart throb.

“I kept my promise.”

Ivmir adjusted the toga Icarus’s servants had given him awkwardly. Truth be told, he loathed wearing the things. Since Icarus’s clothes would not fit his frame, it was the best they had been able to offer him.

Judging from their mistrustful stares, Ivmir suspected they would rather have seen him dressed in rags.

He followed one of the spirits as it led him from the guest quarters to Icarus’s chambers in the north wing of the palace. The spirit closed the door after him when he entered the suite. Ivmir looked around curiously.

Icarus’s residence was nowhere near as lavish as it ought to be, considering his status. Though the place was beautifully furnished, the inherent simplicity of the decor spoke of someone who cared not for appearances.

He spied a large, white bed through the archway to his right as he crossed a sitting area and a dressing room. It was covered with a gossamer canopy and strung with gauzy curtains that added to its privacy.

Ivmir’s pulse quickened. He could smell Icarus’s scent the strongest from that direction.

He stepped inside a circular, north-facing room. A star-filled night sky spun above him, the light the celestial bodies shed sparkling on the surfaces of the lakes and rivers that dotted the island.

Books lay scattered on a desk to his left. A reclining seat stood next to it, its surface similar laden with piles of texts and scrolls.

Ivmir’s gaze skimmed the star-gazing instruments gleaming in the half-gloom before landing on the figure to his right. Icarus sat on a window seat loaded with soft cushions, a glass of steaming tea in his hand.

Ivmir’s breath caught as the Awakener’s beauty struck him all over again.

Icarus’s features were perfectly symmetrical and exquisitely refined, the sharp lines of his cheekbones softened by his jawline and his elegant nose. His long, fair hair shimmered where it hung loosely past his shoulders, a pale curtain that draped a solid physique which was not overly muscular. His limbs were long and graceful, their form lissom despite the strength Ivmir knew they possessed.

Every inch of him is breathtaking.

Icarus turned his head, as if he had read Ivmir’s mind. His gray eyes rooted Ivmir’s feet to the ground, the emotion he glimpsed in their silver depths masked behind a neutral stare in a heartbeat.

“Come,” Icarus said quietly. He indicated the spot opposite him. “Have a drink with me.”

Ivmir hesitated, feeling strangely nervous all of a sudden. He crossed the floor and sat down. Icarus poured him a glass of tea from a carafe. Ivmir accepted it with a wry grimace.

Icarus eyed him quizzically. “What is it?”

“This isn’t quite what I had in mind when I said I wanted to share a drink with you.”

Icarus arched an eyebrow. “Don’t tell me you were planning to get me intoxicated with liquor so you could take advantage of me?”

“I was, actually,” Ivmir said bluntly.

Icarus’s eyes rounded. He burst out laughing in the next instant.

Ivmir gave him a vexed look. Icarus laughed harder.

“I’m sorry,” he chortled. “It’s just, I didn’t think you’d be so honest about it.”

“Yes, well, I would rather avoid any more misunderstandings between us.”

Icarus’s eyes twinkled as he took a sip of his tea. “Your faux pas was the talk of the banquet.”

“Don’t remind me,” Ivmir groaned. “Coraos makes it a point to tell me how much of a dolt I was every time we see each other.”

Icarus chuckled. His breath stuttered when Ivmir leaned over and gently fingered a lock of his hair.

“I’ve never seen you with your hair down before.”

Flags of color painted Icarus’s cheekbones a pretty pink. “I—I only have it like this at night.”

Ivmir glanced in the direction of the archway. Icarus’s blush grew.

“I like your bedroom by the way.” Ivmir brought the lock of hair to his lips, his hooded gaze on Icarus’s flushed face.

The way Icarus shivered and his pupils dilated told Ivmir he was just as aroused as he was.

Ivmir reluctantly let go of Icarus’s hair. He’d promised himself he wouldn’t rush the Guardian.

Icarus blinked. Something that looked like disappointment flitted in his gaze.

Ivmir hid a satisfied smile behind his glass as he took a sip of his drink.

“How exactly did you get into the Nether?” Icarus asked.

Ivmir stiffened.

Drat. I thought he’d forgotten about that.

“I…would prefer not to reveal that detail.”

Icarus narrowed his eyes slightly. “Was Pan involved?”

Ivmir sucked in air. “How did you know?!”

“You were grousing about him when you were coming out of the lake.”

“Oh.” Ivmir lowered his glass to his lap and scratched his cheek awkwardly. “I didn’t realize you’d overheard me.”

Icarus’s face tightened. “So, Pan has a way of getting in and out of the Nether without the Guardians’ knowledge?”

Ivmir sighed. He had a feeling Icarus was not going to let this go until he got an answer.

“Who do you think keeps giving the East Star liquor from the Spirit Realm?”

Icarus flinched and gasped. “Nildar knows?!”

“From what Pan said, they’ve been in cahoots for centuries,” Ivmir drawled.

A muscle jumped in Icarus’s cheek.

“Relax, Awakener,” Ivmir murmured. “Pan is not your enemy.”

Icarus’s expression grew pinched. “Still, there are rules for a reason.”

Ivmir couldn’t resist anymore. He put their glasses on a side table, clasped Icarus’s cheeks, and kissed him.

Everything Icarus did. Each expression and gesture. How his lips moved when he spoke and the corners of his eyes crinkled when he smiled. All of it stoked his desire for the Guardian.

The way Icarus responded made Ivmir want to drag him to his bedroom and make a mess of him and the pristine sheets he’d glimpsed a moment ago. Icarus’s lips parted eagerly to welcome Ivmir’s probing tongue, the breathless little moan Ivmir swallowed full of hunger and pleasure.

It took all of Ivmir’s willpower to end the kiss and lift his mouth from Icarus.

Icarus’s fingers clenched on his shoulders. His chest heaved with heavy pants as he stared dazedly into Ivmir’s eyes.

“What have you done to me?” he whispered.

Ivmir traced his glistening lips with a finger, his belly tight and his cock hard. “The same thing you have done to me. You have bewitched me, Awakener.” He pressed his forehead to Icarus’s brow, his flesh tingling where it met Icarus’s hot skin. “You have beguiled me, body and soul, and I fear I never wish to be rid of this spell.” Ivmir shuddered. “I want you, Icarus. I want your everything.”

His heated confession filled the space between them.

Ivmir realized he had never been as honest with someone he wished to bed as he was in that moment.

No. Not just to bed. He traced Icarus’s cheek with a trembling hand as a shocking realization rocked him to the core. This is not just about sex. I want to own this deity. I want him to be mine forever more.

Icarus took a ragged breath and squeezed his eyes shut, as if he found Ivmir’s gaze scorching. “I?—”

Ivmir stayed his words with a finger. “You don’t need to give me your answer right now. I do not wish to pressure you into a decision you might regret.”

Icarus swallowed and nodded tremulously. “Alright,” he breathed.

“Good.” Ivmir smiled. “I’m going to woo you, Prince of Rain Vale.” He tilted Icarus’s chin with a knuckle and kissed the tip of his nose. “Look forward to it.”

“Did something happen?” Rohengar quizzed Icarus.

They’d just put away their weapons and were wiping their faces with a cloth. Dull clashes rose from the island where Nildar and Archon still sparred below them.

Guilty tightened Icarus’s throat. “Not particularly. Why do you ask?”

“You are full of smiles these days.”

Icarus blinked. “I am?”

“Yes.” Rohengar patted his shoulder, his expression warm. “Not that I mind in the least. It makes me happy to see you happy, brother.”

The lie he’d just told the South Star burned Icarus’s stomach. He knew he was going to have to tell the other Guardians about Ivmir eventually.

It had been a month since Ivmir began sneaking into the Nether to visit Icarus’s palace. So far, all they had done was share drinks and meals and gone for walks on the island. The spirits serving Icarus had finally warmed to the demigod and even greeted him affably when he arrived for his night time visits.

Ivmir hadn’t touched him since the first night he infiltrated the realm of the Guardians. Icarus was conscious he was waiting for an answer to his confession.

The problem is me. Icarus frowned as he and Rohengar flew down to the island where Nildar and Archon had just finished their training session. I…don’t know what I want to do.

His inner voice mocked him at that disingenuous thought. Icarus bit his lip.

Truth be told, it wasn’t that he didn’t know the desires of his own heart and soul. He just wasn’t sure he was allowed to fulfill them.

The role of Awakener was a most sacred one. Only a few were ever chosen for it. To wish for more seemed the very definition of selfishness and arrogance.

Yet, Icarus couldn’t stop longing for Ivmir.

Is it a dereliction of my duty to crave him? To want a relationship with him? One that will consume my very being?

Saying yes to Ivmir would mean giving his everything to the demigod, just as he had articulated that night he’d first come to him. Ivmir had made it clear how serious he was about him during the long hours they’d gotten to know one another since. And Icarus had never once doubted his sincerity.

Once we cross that line, there will be no going back.

Still, there was one thing Icarus was confident about. Ivmir would never become a liability to his role as Guardian and Awakener. If anything, he would become a pillar of strength that would support him, just as the other Guardians did.

The day ended faster than he’d expected, his tumultuous thoughts making haste of the hours of training the Guardians went through when they weren’t busy patrolling the borders of the Nether. Nildar came over to him as they prepared to leave for their respective domains.

“Can we talk?”

Icarus studied the East Star’s inscrutable expression before glancing to where Rohengar and Archon were talking. “Sure.”

Nildar led the way to a willow tree dipping its branches into a lake. It was far enough that Rohengar and Archon would not overhear them.

“Here. This is for you.” He slipped something out of his tunic and gave it to Icarus. “You only need a tiny amount of it.”

Icarus stared at the glass vial. It contained a shimmering, golden oil.

“What is this?”

“It’s the nectar of the Fenoa flowers. It comes from the home of the Naiads.” Nildar sighed at Icarus’s puzzled expression. “It makes penetration easier.” He made a graphic gesture with his fingers.

Icarus gasped and almost dropped the vial.

“It has analgesic properties, so it should soothe the sting and burn of having a giant manhood rammed into your hole,” Nildar continued bluntly.

Icarus covered Nildar’s mouth with his hand and hushed him, mortified.

“How,” he stopped and gulped, his face hot, “—how did you know?!”

Nildar peeled Icarus’s fingers away from his lips. “The Wild God blabbed.” He shrugged. “I swear, that horned bastard almost burst an artery trying to keep the fact that Ivmir was visiting you a secret from me.”

Icarus groaned and closed his eyes. He snapped them open a second later and pierced Nildar with a frown. “I can’t believe you taught Pan how to enter the Nether.”

“I lost a bet,” Nildar confessed glumly.

Icarus stared. His stomach plummeted. “Wait. He didn’t?—?!”

“Oh, please,” Nildar scoffed. “The only way that beast’s cock is going anywhere near my behind is over my rotting corpse. Since I’m pretty certain Pan isn’t into necrophilia, I think I’m safe.”

Icarus breathed a sigh of relief. He pursed his lips as he studied Nildar. “You know, in all the years we’ve known each other, I never realized your mind and mouth were quite so filthy.”

Nildar stared. His shoulders drooped.

“What?” Icarus said worriedly.

“Ivmir is going to eat you alive,” Nildar mumbled. “I sure am going to miss that sweet innocence of yours.”

Icarus rolled his eyes and sighed. The thought that had troubled him the past few weeks rose to the forefront of his mind. He hesitated. “You do not find it wrong?”

Nildar tilted his head, puzzled. “Find what wrong?”

Icarus rubbed the back of his neck. “Ivmir and me? I…can’t help but feel I’m being selfish even entertaining entering into a relationship with him.”

A soft smile stretched Nildar’s mouth. “There is no rule that says you cannot be a Guardian and be happy, Icarus.”