Sage's eyes popped open wide and she immediately glanced down at his crotch. "Like, for real?"
He nodded, heat licking up his spine at her perusal. "It might have been for the whole day, but with those stupid pills, I couldn't tell."
"Wait…what?" She shook her head. "How?"
The words of the curse were never far from him, but he'd never fully examined what it could mean after the extent of it had become clear. "Pan said, 'I hope one day you find a nymph who desires you more than anyone else ever will, and your own hubris prevents you from reciprocating it.'" It became painfully obvious now. "Once I broke out of my cycle of hubris, my pride, I stopped blaming others and feeling sorry for myself. Stopped expecting things to be handed to me without fighting for them. I could feel desire again."
"You did it all on your own." She smiled and kissed him lightly on the lips, but he shook his head and pulled back enough to catch her gaze.
"No, Sage. Without you, I never would have realized what I wanted, what I needed, in life to fix it. I owe everything I am and will be to you and you alone."
She rolled her eyes. "That's sweet, but you need to take some credit where it is due."
He laughed and then his attention turned upward. The shadow of the Earth flirted with the edge of the moon above. The Satyr Moon was here, and he'd wanted to make love to this woman for too many days now. Desire shot up his spine, an ache he'd despised from the curse but had taken for granted until it hadn't been there. That, of course, had been a blessing in disguise since Sage turned out to be a nymph, and he wouldn't have been able to fully be with her that way until tonight regardless.
But now…
His eyes grew heavy lidded as his gaze lowered to her chest. Her breathing had grown shallow, and he pulled the strap of her little black dress down her arm. Sage bit her lip and stared up at him with such admiration he nearly trembled.
What would sex be like with someone who actually loved him? He'd never had that, even when he thought perhaps he had. No time to dwell on bad memories now. It was time to create new ones. Better ones.
Sage sat up on her knees and pulled her dress over her head. She hadn't worn a bra, and her black lace thong made his mouth water for a taste of her. The desire to take her right then and there was strong, but he resisted. There was time to go slowly since they had all night once the ritual was done. Adonis laid her back against the blanket, kissing her as she wrapped her arms around him. Her warm vanilla scent enveloped him, and her natural hair color brought her beauty out in a way the purple hadn't quite managed. If Aphrodite had thought she'd make Sage unappealing, it'd had the complete opposite effect.
Beneath them, the ground rumbled. This is it. It's happening. The ritual had begun. A quick peek above the trees revealed the edge of the moon partially shrouded in shadow. The lunar eclipse was set to last over half an hour. As a dais composed of earth and rock broke through the ground, Adonis sat up and gave Sage a reassuring smile. "It's going to bind you to it. Let it. Once we are done, it will let you free."
She nodded with a wicked glint to her eyes, raising her arms above her head and lying back. Gods, she was sexy. The black fleece blanket pooled to the ground as the dais rose higher until it finally stopped at just the right height for him to make love to her while still standing. Vines crawled up the sides to enwrap her wrists and hold her steady.
"This is a bit barbaric," Sage tugged on her bonds. "But I have to admit…it's turning me on, old man."
He chuckled at the names they'd mocked each other with that first night, when he'd been angry and lashed out at her. "I can't play along this time because what I see here is all woman, and I'm too eager to finally have her."
He stripped off his T-shirt, ripping it on one of his horns but he didn't care. Making quick work of the rest of his clothes, he came closer to her. The last time he'd seen this dais, he'd been under Dionysus' influence, made stronger by his own internal rage and selfishness. "I don't deserve this," he confessed softly. Adonis reached out to touch her but closed his fist at the last second, letting it fall to his side. "I…don't deserve this."
"Look at me," Sage snapped. He listened. Her body was displayed for him alone, her sex wet and ready beneath those lace panties. Everything he wanted, dreamed of, was laid out for the taking. "You deserve to break your curse. You deserve to be happy."
"I'll always have the emotional baggage with me. I'm not sure I'll ever be truly rid of it."
She smiled faintly, "And I'll always be there to listen if you need to talk about it."
His heart was so full. "Are you sure you want to do this?"
Sage's eyes narrowed. "Did I not come to this very spot to get some kinky satyr sex? What are you waiting on? Fulfill my fantasy before you're not a satyr anymore."
Her teasing did a lot to ease
