Divine Interventions: Nemesis of the Garden Read online

  He lifted her over his shoulder and headed for the bower. Just before they reached the door, Nina recovered enough to laugh. “I’ve always loved this part, Pan.”

  He grinned. “I know. That’s why I do it.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  It took two months to work out the plans for their wedding, but when the time finally came Nina decided that the result was worth the wait. The day dawned beautifully, as was typical for Olympus, warm but not too warm, just perfect for the off-the-shoulder Grecian wedding gown she’d picked out.

  Pan was a little less comfortable in his tuxedo, and he’d managed to misplace the tie that went with it, but he still was the handsomest man in the garden. He’d polished his hooves so they gleamed against the grass and she barely even noticed the absence of shoes.

  Hep stood proudly by as best man, wearing a superb new toga that had all the women eyeing him, although none more than his wife, Aphrodite. Nina had brought Echo—that is, Chloe—and her fiancé Alex to Olympus to be her maid of honor. It was amusing watching the human man trying not to stare at all the mythical people and creatures around him.

  The ceremony was brief but moving, with Zeus nodding wisely as she and Pan exchanged vows. She was surprised when Pan produced a ring for her, since that was rarely done on Olympus, but was pleased by his explanation that this way all the humans she worked with would know she was spoken for.

  That wasn’t even an issue. When she’d returned to the LUV channel with her Arabian Nights script, everyone had congratulated her, telling her that the glow on her face meant she was either pregnant or deeply in love.

  When Pan took her hand after their vows and slipped the narrow gold band onto her finger, she knew that they were at least half right. She was deeply in love with her husband, hairy legs and all.

  Now that the ceremony was over, the party was in real swing. Nina smiled at her new husband as he passed around glasses of Hep’s beer, much to everyone’s pleasure, especially the Titans, who’d developed a real taste for the brew.

  Alex tried it and complimented the weaponsmith on his creation. A single affectionate blow from Hep’s hand almost landed her sister’s husband-to-be in the fish pond, but Pan grabbed the man’s belt at the last moment and pulled him to safety.

  Now the three of them were drinking, laughing and joking in the corner. Nina was watching them from a distance when a beautiful young woman approached. She smiled tentatively and put out her hand.

  “Nemesis, I wanted to thank you for inviting me.”

  “Call me, Nina, please,” she said, taking the proffered hand and trying to place who the woman was. Finally she shook her head. “I’m sorry, there were so many people invited. I don’t remember your name.”

  A wry smile appeared on the other’s face. “I’m not surprised. It was so long ago we met. About three hundred years.” She hesitated. “I’m Livinia.”

  “Livinia…” Nina’s voice trailed off as she placed the name and her cordial mood disintegrated. This was the former vestal virgin who’d seduced Pan so long ago, ruining her chance at happiness with him at that distant time.

  Nina struggled to control her anger. She’d forgiven Pan already. She could do the same with this person. After all, she wasn’t a vengeance nymph anymore…

  “I see you remember me,” the other woman said quietly. “I don’t blame you for being upset. What I did was wrong, trying to steal your man from you.” She tried what seemed like a sincere smile. “I’m just so glad it worked out for you after all this time.”

  Nina took a deep breath. The woman was being nice. She in turn would be polite. She would be a good hostess. She would not rip the hair from Livinia’s head.

  Realizing she was still tightly gripping the other woman’s hand, Nina dropped it and tried not to feel pleased when Livinia rubbed it, obviously trying to return circulation to her fingers. She tried a smile that didn’t go further than her teeth.

  Polite conversation was called for. Something noncontroversial. “So, Livinia, tell me about yourself. What do you do now?”

  “Oh, I’m still a vestal virgin,” she said, pointing to her outfit, which Nina now recognized as the official VV formal gown.

  For a moment Nina didn’t think she’d heard right. “Isn’t that a bit tricky? After all, you have spent the night with Pan.”

  Livinia blinked at her, then her eyes widened and jaw dropped. I’m afraid you have the wrong idea, Nina. I said I tried to steal your man, I didn’t say I was successful.”

  Her laugh was rueful. “He was pretty much the worse for wine, but all he could do was talk about how much he loved you. I decided if I was going to give up my virginity it would have to be to a man who cared for me the way he did you.” Again she laughed and pointed to her gown. “As you can see I’m still looking.”

  Stunned, Nina exchanged further pleasantries with Livinia but couldn’t remember later what they talked about. As she watched the woman walk off, she considered what she now knew. Pan hadn’t been unfaithful to her all those long years ago. More to the point, if either of them had looked beyond their own concerns they would have known he hadn’t been since Livinia was still a virgin. All this time this time they’d been apart because neither of them had faced the situation honestly.

  Honesty and trust. Nina vowed that from now on that’s what she and Pan were going to have in their relationship.

  For a moment she considered telling Pan what she’d learned, but decided to keep it for later. Instead she moved closer to where the men were talking. From what she could hear the two gods were teasing Alex about his impending plunge into wedded bliss. Pan looked over to grin at her and she grinned back.

  Her face exhibiting exasperation, Chloe came over to stand with Nina. She nodded at the cluster of men. “I swear, if they talk Alex out of it, I’ll turn vengeance nymph and take them all on.”

  “No fear of that,” a soft voice interrupted and they turned to see Eros approach. “I can see from their smiles how much your men love you. They tease, but they are happy to have you.”

  The god of love resembled his name. Soft golden curls covered his head and his smile was so sweet he looked as innocent as a young child.

  Nina tried to control her snicker at that thought. She’d once been in Eros’ bedroom and found his and his loving wife’s closet of sex toys. Innocent was one thing he wasn’t. He glanced at her and the twinkle in his eyes made her wonder if he could read her thoughts. Oh, well, who wouldn’t be thinking about sex when they were married to Pan, a god who lived up to his reputation for sensuality.

  Eros reached over and touched the heart pendant she was wearing. A grin took over his face. “Where did you get this? It looks like one of my arrowheads.”

  Well, she’d hoped to avoid ever telling him, but it was such a special day. Nina couldn’t seem to tell any lies today. “Actually, it is.” She took a deep breath. “Aphrodite gave it to me. It seemed appropriate to wear today because it’s from the arrow that struck me and Pan and brought us together.”

  Confusion and concern showed in Eros’ eyes. “I never shot you with an arrow Nina, nor Pan.”

  “It wasn’t you that fired it,” she said. For a moment Nina felt like melting into the ground. “Aphrodite did it. She was angry with me for interfering with her plans for Chloe and Alex.”

  “Nina was trying to help me,” Chloe burst in. “So she had one of your bows and an arrow.”

  Eros stared. “You took one of my bows and arrows?”

  “I know it was wrong, but Chloe was so unhappy and was going to have to turn back into a statue, and I thought if I could just make Alex love her everything would be all right.” Words of explanation poured out of Nina’s mouth at the god’s censuring look.

  Chloe put her arm around Nina’s shoulders. “She really only wanted to make Alex love me.”

  “I’m so sorry, Eros. I really am,” Nina said mournfully.

  Their words must have touched his heart because Eros shook his head. “Y
ou meant well, I guess, and as it turned out no harm was done.”

  His serious look faded and he burst into a grin. “It’s a good thing it was only a practice arrow.”

  It took a moment for his words to make sense. Nina shook her head. “What do you mean it was a practice arrow?”

  “Just that. It was from my smallest bow set, right? The wooden one? That’s left over from when I was just a little god. Mom didn’t trust me with a bespelled set so she gave me the wooden one to practice with.”

  Nina grew cold inside. “Aphrodite knew it was a practice set?”

  Their conversation had gotten louder and attracted the attention of the men. Pan was suddenly by Nina’s side, listening closely to Eros’ words. “Let me get this straight, Eros. It was a practice bow and one of its arrows that Nina took? There was no spell on it? And Aphrodite knew which bow it was?”

  “Did I hear my name? Are we talking about archery?” Looking absolutely fabulous in her off-the-shoulder designer gown, Aphrodite joined the group.

  Eros gave her a confused look. “Mom, did you shoot Nina and Pan with one of my arrows?”

  For a second Aphrodite looked guilty then she shrugged. “I guess this is a day for sharing secrets. I wanted to teach Nina a lesson about interfering with me, and Pan stepped in the way and got hit as well, that’s all.”

  Eros closed his eyes for a moment. “I don’t suppose that you’d guessed ahead of time that he might do that.”

  The goddess examined the polish on her perfect fingernails. “I might have suspected that he would step in front of the arrow. He always was a little protective of Nemesis and I suspected there might be more going on between them.”

  “But mother, you didn’t tell them it was a practice arrow and you had to know. You gave me that set.”

  Aphrodite patted his cheek. “Well, of course I knew, sweetheart. I wouldn’t aim one of your real bespelled arrows at anyone—that would be wrong!” She glanced mischievously at Nina and Pan. “But I knew what they didn’t know wouldn’t hurt them. And now look at them, happily married just as they should be.”

  Aphrodite’s beaming smile took in everyone at the party. “So many happy couples, here,” she sighed. “It’s a shame Violet and Nick couldn’t make it, since they were my first, but there is Chloe and Alex, and now Nina and Pan.”

  For a moment she eyed Astraios and Eos, the Titan couple near the refreshment table. The pair was arguing about something, but they were smiling all the time. A slight frown wrinkled the skin between her eyes. “They seem to be doing all right on their own, but giving them a little push wouldn’t hurt…”

  “Woman, I’m putting my foot down.” Hep limped over and seized Aphrodite by the shoulders. He glared into her surprised face. “For months now Nina and Pan have been worried that the love they had wasn’t real and would go away soon. If you’d told them before now that it was all them and not a spell they wouldn’t have had to go through that.” He gave her a little shake that dislodged some of her perfect coiffure, allowing a single strand of golden hair to snake down her face. Aphrodite’s eyes crossed as she looked at the strand next to her nose.

  Hep pushed the hair out of her face. “You’ve interfered for the last time. From now on the only love affair I want you involved with is ours.” He dragged her to him and his lips covered hers in a passionate kiss that drew applause from everyone around. Even Eros looked impressed.

  When they broke off, Aphrodite lay limp in her husband’s arms. Hep tossed a grin at Pan, then gathered up his wife and threw her over his shoulder. The rest of her hair came down in a golden stream that fell across his back.

  “I hope you don’t mind, Pan, Nina,” Hep told them. “Lovely wedding and all, but got some stuff to work out with the wife.” He turned and made his way out of the garden.

  Pan didn’t even try to hide his snicker. “Think nothing of it, Hep. Good luck!” he called after them. “He’ll need it,” he added quietly to Nina once they were gone.

  Eros convulsed with laughter. “I didn’t know the old man had it in him. I guess Mom will have to be more careful from now on with her meddling.” He grinned happily then sobered briefly as he glanced at Nina and Pan. “There is one thing you should know, though. There was one small spell on that arrow, just on its point.”

  He pointed to the heart-shaped pendant on her chest. “The arrowhead is a normal shape unless it hits someone who really is in love. Only then will it turn into a heart.” He pointed at both Pan and Nina. “Since it hit both of you, I’d say you were both in love when it happened.”

  Eros placed his hands on both of their shoulders and it felt to Nina like a benediction—a divine blessing on their marriage from the god of love. She felt aglow with happiness.

  “Congratulations to you both,” he said. “You deserve your happy ending.”

  * * * * *

  Well, Nina said to herself, maybe you could end a sexually explicit story with a wedding after all. She waited next to Pan as they said goodnight to the last of their guests. A short burst of air blew past them and then they were alone in the garden.

  Pan looked at her and winked. On the other hand, Nina added to her previous thought, adding a sexy wedding night wouldn’t be amiss. She winked back at him and watched the grin on his face widen.

  “Hello, Mrs. Pan,” he told her, gathering her into his arms. He rubbed his beard on the top of her head and glanced up at the moon and stars above. “Time for us to be in bed.”

  “I’m not very sleepy,” she told him, nuzzling his neck.

  “Good,” he said, smiling broadly. “Neither am I.”

  He swept her up into his arms and strode toward the bower.

  “I can walk,” Nina told him, but he wasn’t listening.

  “I’m told this is what a man does, carry his new wife over the threshold. Has something to do with the Romans stealing women, or something like that. Something about the Sabine…”

  He continued talking nonsense as he walked and Nina was laughing by the time they passed through the doorway. Pan set her down by the bed and kissed her tenderly, silencing her laugh and making her swoon again. He then pointed his fingers around the room. Scented candles burst into flame near the bed and on top of Nina’s new chest of drawers. A bouquet of sweetly scented flowers appeared on the table near the new his and hers walk-in closets, further perfuming the air.

  Shaking her head in wonder, Nina examined the transformed room in its romantic coziness. There really were a lot of advantages being married to a god, especially a god who knew how to set the stage for a really good seduction.

  The candles, the flowers, the fresh black satin sheets she could now see peeking out of the covers on the bed, all of those were a surprise he’d cooked up for her. Of course, she had a few surprises coming for him tonight. Nina tried to keep from grinning openly at the thought of what she had in store for her new husband.

  Pan shrugged his way out his tuxedo jacket and unbuttoned the matching vest, letting both fall to the floor, then undid his pants and dropped them on top of the rest. He waved his hand and all three disappeared, followed by his shirt. Nina looked down expecting to see him naked, only to be caught by surprise.

  She giggled then laughed. “Oh, Pan.”

  With a devilish grin he glanced down at the bright red bikini thong that covered his genitals. “I figured I might as well join you in wearing underwear, at least for today.” He drew her into his arms. “Besides, those tuxedo pants you had me wear were so tight, it was the only way I could keep from displaying my erection.”

  “You had an erection?” She hadn’t really noticed.

  “Oh yes. Every time I looked at you in that dress. All I could think of was how many people were around and how long I had to wait before I could get it off you.” His face showed honest distress. “I’m not used to waiting that long for satisfaction.”

  “Oh, poor baby,” Nina said with amused sympathy. She ran her hand along the ridge of his erection, now peeking above the
edge of his underwear. “Maybe there is something that I can do to make it feel better.”

  In a moment she had the thong pushed aside and his cock in her mouth. She sucked him long and hard and he groaned under her gentle ministrations.

  “Oh yes,” Pan said through gritted teeth. “That’s real good. You always have such a great mouth.”

  She grinned up at him, caressing his cock with her hand. “I always thought you said I was a mouthy wench.”

  Unperturbed, he grinned back at her. “That, too. Get back to it, wench!”

  She did. With long strokes of her tongue she pulled him deep inside her, laving the head and shaft with her lips. One hand cupped his heavy balls through the thong, giving them a gentle massage that had him gasping for breath. Through gritted teeth Pan gave her half-heard instructions for what he wanted.

  Nina didn’t really need to hear him to know what to do. She knew what Pan wanted without him saying a word. Eventually his words were less directional and more merely expressive of appreciation. His hands cupped the back of her head, his long fingers slipping through her loose hair, clenching against her scalp.

  Soon she felt the clench of his imminent release into her mouth. She pulled back from him. “Want me to stop?”

  Pan grabbed her head and pulled her back onto his cock. “Not on your life.”

  He came in her mouth, spurting hot and hard against the back of her throat, and Nina swallowed it, its taste so special. It tasted of Pan.

  Pan’s cum acted like a love potion for her and made her hot with desire, the sensation pooling deep inside her and flooding her core. Pan pulled her up off her knees and kissed her, sharing in the taste of his cum on her tongue.

  “Don’t worry, wife, there is plenty more where that came from.” He grinned at his pun. “But here I am, naked, and you’re still completely dressed. That doesn’t seem fair.”

  He examined her gown and its elaborate fastenings. “I suppose you like this garment, right?” he asked, obviously hoping he could simply tear it off her.