Melis frowned and moved closer until his kneestouched the bedsheets and the mattress gave beneath his weight.Antero turned again in his sleep, falling onto his back, an armthrown over his face. In his dream, he was alone, wandering andexhausted. Melis could have pushed his hand into the hair on thehuman’s chest; he nearly did, marveling at it compared to his ownalthough he’d never marveled at Storm-Bringer’s chest, or TheEver-Present’s, or the chests of any of the heroes who dwelled inthe stars. All that stopped him was the knowledge of what mighthappen if the king felt his touch.
The air left Antero’s nipples taut and made himshiver. His dream changed again, becoming a garden of roses, a softbody yielding beneath his, oil-slick thighs, heat and a whisper inhis ear. Not words but feelings.Surrenderandpleaseandmore.Love, the feelings said,love, pleasedon’t make me wait.
Antero’s cock stirred beneath the blanket,filling while Melis could only watch.
Melis had a heart, had blood when he chose, asgods did. It had never throbbed beneath his skin before. Heswallowed though his mouth stayed dry.Love, the dreamcalled to him. Antero’s mouth was busy granting kisses and gentlebites; his dream-lover was the one to sigh and beg sweetly.Love,do not make me wait.
Melis furled his wings against his back andclenched his hands against his thighs so he would not reach for therigid evidence of Antero’s need. The breeze could not cool him.Antero, dreaming, pressed him down into green moss and spread hislegs with one thick thigh.
“Love,” Melis rasped, pleading, and Anteroflinched as he was pulled from the dream and into the wakingworld.
Melis fluttered back clumsily, almost human. Heforgot himself and put his feet on the ground, arms tangled in acurtain until he freed himself and spun to face the king.
Antero was sitting up, blanket at his lap, chestand shoulders bare and shining in the presumptuous moon’s light.His face was the most perfect face Melis had ever seen on a mortal.He was bronze and shadow, with hair that curled like new tendrilsof ivy, and plush, parted lips that looked softer than even Melis’roses. His eyes were deep in the dark of his room, warm with lifeand hot with the passion lingering from his dream. His gaze waslike the voice Melis had heard for years now, full of lust and lifeand affection… and pain now that the dream was over.
Melis exhaled, shaken, and Antero stilled beforefrowning into the shadows.
“Who’s there?” he called, then waited,motionless.
Antero the devoted, Antero the lonely, Anterothe king, threw aside his blankets to stand beside the bed, hisbody still affected by his dream. Melis stared at legs and hips andthighs, at hair and skin gilded from exercising in the light of thelascivious, hateful sun. He studied the heavy cock, and Antero’schest moving with his rapid breathing, and then his cock again,until Melis’ entire body was aflame. Then Melis stumbled backward,his heart racing, his legs weak, his thoughts a whirling panic.
His palms had never felt empty before, had nevergone damp with sweat. But he couldn’t tear his gaze away to studythem, or his shaky knees, or his feet, which tripped over eachother whenever he moved. He swallowed, but his tongue was too largefor his mouth and his thoughts much too loud to allow for clearspeech.
The window was near, offering escape and coolerair to calm his senses. Melis snapped out his wings to ready forflight only to go still when Antero moved quicker than Melis couldsee to grab a short sword from the side of the bed. He held italoft, not rushing forward, but prepared to defend himself.
He probably wielded his sword well, Melisthought admiringly, although he cared not a jot for weapons orcombat.
“Who’s there?” Antero demanded again. “Showyourself.” He glanced toward the door. His concern for his guardsrang pure and real through the air to Melis.
Melis wanted to touch all of him at once, andthen again, slowly, taking his time with hands and lips and tongue.Antero’s mortal skin would not be smooth, his hair might be soft orcoarse. He’d offered light kisses and bites in his dream, and usedthe weight and force of his body to keep a smaller, slighter bodydown and displayed for him. Melis could be that body. He wouldn’tknow what to do or where to place his hands, he would undoubtedlynot be as beautiful as Antero’s past lovers, but he would get tofeel Antero and that was surely worth anything.
A more powerful god might have alreadyapproached Antero in disguise to gain his trust, or begun seducinghim, or taken him to their realm to seduce him withoutdistractions. Seductions in name only, sometimes. Those godsthought oftheirphysical desires and nothing else. Meliswas too small to openly defy them, but he thwarted them when hecould.
They could not be allowed near Antero. No matterwhat it cost Melis, or how much older or stronger they were. Ifthey’d thought Melis cruel before, they would learn it again andremember it.
“What are you doing?” Antero suddenly muttered,shaking his head before putting the sword aside. “You must be halfin dream because you are alone.” He swept another look over theroom that appeared empty to him, then sighed and dropped hisshoulders. “As you are always alone, you fool.”
He ran a hand over his face, then twisted tolook out the window. The moon, with some grudge against Melis,flooded its light into the room to drench Antero in silver.
“It’s as if The Most Fair crafted you for me,”Melis murmured weakly, forgetting that his bare, cold feet were onthe floor of a human king’s bedroom and not a world away in a god’spalace.
Antero turned sharply to peer into the darkwhere Melis stood—where no one stood that he could see. He drew ina deep breath, then paused and did it again through his nose.“Roses?” He brought his gaze up to where their eyes would meet,though he couldn’t know that. His quiet guess firmed intocertainty. “Roses.”
There were no flowers in his chambers save theones in Melis’ crown.
“Are you a messenger?” King Antero spoke withpolite composure, though his wary attention did not leave the spotwhere Melis stood. “I don’t know which god has sent you, but howmay I help? Ah! Forgive me.” He didn’t blush, or if he did, thewarm tones of his skin and the silvery moonlight didn’t show it.But he reached for the blanket across his bed and pulled it to hiswaist to conceal his nakedness.
“No!” Melis threw out a hand as if to stop him,then froze, fully expecting Mischief—true Mischief, not Melis thePrankster—to dart from the shadows to laugh at him.
Antero stopped at the word, his chest heaving.“No?” he echoed, his head tipped slightly to the side. His gaze onMelis—on Melis somehow despite how Melis wished he would look awayso he could breathe again—Antero opened his hand to let the blanketfall.
“They didn’t lie about you.” Melis did not givehis mouth permission to do anything and yet he spoke. Yet he saidthat, his voice melted butter. “That is….” He had no ideawhat he ought to say after something like that. He sounded like ayoung, inexperienced human, not a fuckinggod. He stretchedout his wings and lifted his chin. “Antero the Faithful of thissea-cliff city,” he began, only to wince when the radiant powerof his voice struck Antero and made him stumble back a step. “Imean,” Melis tried again, his voice higher but far more human,“I’ve come in answer to your prayers.”
Not much of an answer, he reflected sadly. ButAntero’s head came up and an expression of wonder crossed hisface.
“My prayers?” Antero wet his lips and even thatwas perfect. Or that was the moonlight, drawing Melis’ attention tothe shine at his lips. Antero frowned slightly only a moment later.“Forgive me but I try to honor each of the gods, and I do not knowwhich you are, or are from. There’s perhaps one I’ve spoken to mostoften, but that’s because….” He trailed to silence, bowing his headas if in thought. He took a breath. “Roses,” he whispered as hebrought his head up. “Melis, is that you?” He was too clever, ortoo hopeful; Melis couldn’t decide which, and his silence while hedebated it seemed to spark a worry. “Melis, are you still there?Have I offended you?”
Melis shook his head—like a fool, because Anterocould not see the gesture. “No.” He briefly allowed some power toslip back into his voice to make sure Antero wouldn’t doubt him.“No, never. You couldn’t, most faithful Antero.” A shivertore through the strong body in front of him. Melis tried to gentlehis voice again in case Antero was frightened. “I am here to…” helphim find his match, which meant letting someone else stumble intothose considerable arms. Melis frowned and pushed out his lower liplike Day at his most sulky. “I am here to… to see you.”
