“I’m being summoned. Dad thinks he’s being funny,” Lasse scowled at the conch shell vibrating crazily on its shelf. He and Jason had just finished lunch, sprawled on the couch and were debating whether or not to go into town to see if they could pick up Cerberus’s trail. “Dad would’ve felt it when I called the waters yesterday. He seems to think every incident involving water concerns him. At least I put the wave back where it belonged; not like Nereus who stole a shit ton of water for a private lake.”
“You guys can do that? Make your own lake on dry land? Spiffy.” Jason threw a grape up in the air and caught it between his teeth before swallowing it. “What will happen if we ignore your dad?”
“He’ll come here.” Untangling his legs from Jason’s, Lasse pushed himself up off the couch. “I haven’t got a problem with dad dropping in, but he’s likely to do it when we’re in the middle of something sexy. Worse, he’ll hang around afterwards and give us pointers or a rating out of ten.”
“He sounds like a bit of a voyeur to me,” Jason jumped up and snagged another handful of grapes. “Let’s go meet the old man of the sea then. Am I dressed suitably to meet a god?”
“My dad looks younger and sexier than the two of us combined,” Lasse said ruefully, running his hands over Jason’s muscle shirt. “And if you’re dressing for my dad, the less clothes the better. Although, with any luck he will have Claude with him which will keep his innuendo to a minimum. Come on, let’s get this over and done with.”
Lasse could sense Jason’s confusion – their mind link was bubbling between them without being intrusive. But he purposefully didn’t want to think about how most men preferred his father to him. It did nothing for his ego and over the years he’d done his best to ignore it. He always felt like an overgrown walrus in Poseidon’s presence, not that it was his dad’s fault. His father’s looks, and his go-get ‘em attitude combined with a total lack of mouth filter, were the key reasons Lasse dreamed of having a mate.
But now he was taking his mate to see his father, and while Lasse knew doubting Jason was disrespectful to the man and their mating, he was still worried. Even mated, his father had a mouth on him, and Lasse didn’t want to spend the next time he and his mate had sex worrying if Jason was thinking about Poseidon while fucking him.
“Something you’re not telling me?” Jason asked as they solidified in Poseidon’s giant hallway under the sea.
Lasse blushed, but he couldn’t refuse a direct question. “Just old insecurities rearing their ugly heads. This is the first time I’ve ever introduced anyone to my father. The fact you haven’t fucked him before is a huge bonus; however, the fact that he’d probably bend over for you if he wasn’t mated, makes me feel sick.”
“Even though you know shifters are incapable of being unfaithful once claimed?” Jason reminded gently. “You claimed me good and proper last night. My butt still aches.”
“I told you I was being silly,” Lasse’s heart did lighten. “But…well, you will see for yourself in a moment. This way.”
Jason’s hand was a solid heat on Lasse’s lower back as they made their way to a set of huge doors. “The throne room,” Lasse’s mouth twisted in a half smile, half grimace. “He likes to show off for company.” He opened the door and went to usher Jason inside before rapid movement in the center of the room made him push Jason back. “Or Claude really likes fucking his mate on the throne.” He slammed the door again hurriedly but not before he’d seen Claude’s naked ass. “We’ll wait out here.”
Jason collapsed laughing onto the loveseat by the door. “I can’t imagine what it must have been like for you growing up.” He wiped his face. “He summoned you. He had to know you’d catch him in the act.”
“Poseidon’s never worried about anyone seeing him naked,” Lasse shook his head as he took the seat beside his mate. “I mean, he kept things covered when we were little, and we never got to meet any of his lovers except Abraxas. But there’s been a lot of time between then and now and since we grew up, he does whatever comes naturally whenever he feels like it.”
“Maybe we should go in there and rank their performance.” Jason grinned to show he was joking. “His new mate, this Claude you mentioned – I take it he doesn’t mind being part of a show?”
“Claude is the son of Fenrir, although that was a well-kept secret until recently. It kinda came out when Poseidon found out he was pregnant. But Claude’s spent a lot of years building up a respectable wolfpack in Tulsa, which is run from his personal BDSM club. So, no, Claude doesn’t care if anyone sees him shafting my dad. Knowing dad, he knew you were coming, had heard things about you and commented enough on your physique to get Claude all riled up, and the wolf’s claiming him again.”
“Er,” Jason shifted in his seat, “Isn’t that kinda creepy? I mean, your dad talking about your mate that way?”
“You never want to be around when my dad’s visiting the Cloverleah pack that Nereus is a part of. He hit on every couple and ménage there, offering to take all comers. That’s how he met Claude as a matter of fact. The guys at Cloverleah were so annoyed with him because most of them are true mated, that they took him to Claude’s club to blow off steam. Claude took care of it personally and the rest as they say is history.”
“I’m not sure I like being discussed like a piece of meat,” Jason shivered. “But don’t worry. I know how to be respectful. I won’t forget he’s a god, even if he is an old one.” A furrow developed between his eyes. “Hang on a minute, did you say Poseidon got pregnant?”
“Yep. He had twins not so long ago. Why? You can’t tell me you’re surprised.” Lasse wasn’t sure what Jason’s frown was for, but it wasn’t likely to be anything good. “You know men from the god line can get each other pregnant. We’ve talked about my two fathers, and Artemas and Baby have two fathers as well. Dad was only shocked because he didn’t realize who Claude was descended from. It’s not a big deal. Thor has countless half brothers and sisters and I know I’ve got more than ever lived in this house.”
Jason rubbed against the scar that bisected his eyebrow. “Has anyone ever mentioned how far back that god line has to be for male pregnancies to happen? You know, is it just immediate relatives like Claude is Fenrir’s son, and Abraxas was formed from the god line for the purpose of pulling the sun. And you….” Lasse watched as Jason swallowed, his trepidation growing, “you’re a direct descendent of the god line, even though you are a demi-god.”
“Well, yes,” Lasse couldn’t see what the issue was. He was more worried about whether or not Jason could keep his eyes in his head when he saw Poseidon for the first time. “I mean, if you were from the god line then I could get you pregnant. But if you were descended from them then there’d be more chance of me being pregnant, don’t you think? I don’t understand why you’re asking.”
“Where do you think I came from?” Jason’s voice was hollow.
Lasse wished he had Artemas’s brain. “I’m not a hundred percent sure,” he said slowly. “Greek legends talk of the sphinx being born from Typhon and Echidna, but that can’t be right because that would make you related to Cerberus and you’re Egyptian.”
“You’re right there,” Jason agreed. “The Greeks were so taken with the sphinxes form, my sister being the most notable example, they commandeered it for their own, claiming we came from Africa as a gift from the gods. But then they had to go and sully that account by determining we were spawn of the mother and father of monsters – namely Typhon and Echidna. In true Greek fashion, because we were monsters, we all met horrific deaths at the hands of the likes of Hercules, or in the case of the sphinx, she couldn’t take losing a riddle game and threw herself off a cliff.”
Lasse winced at the bitterness in Jason’s tone. “Myths are just human stories, made up around the campfire by people with avid imaginations. Most claim Fenrir died in horrific circumstances because he upset the gods, but he’s living with his pack quite happily in a remote mountain area in the United States.”
“You’re right again,” Jason took a deep breath. “My apologies. It’s just my people fought hard for our gods during the ancient wars, well before the Olympians came into being. I lost my family during that time and I guess even after such a long time, the thought of my people being so vilified by ignorance angers me.”
“That’s understandable,” Lasse reached over and rested his hand on Jason’s knee. “You should see some of the things they claim Poseidon did. The only reason the myth creators left the likes of me and my brothers alone is because no mortal could entertain the idea of men being pregnant. They’ve never been aware of our existence.”
Jason snorted. “Wasn’t it one of the great philosophers who broached the topic of men being together? Plato, Socrates, one of them anyway, and they basically said men being together was fine provided the elder man was always the top and the younger man looked to him for mentoring purposes or some other such tripe.”
“It’s probably where the daddy kink originated from.” Lasse twisted his head to look at his mate. “You never did answer the question. Do you stem from a god line?”
“The Egyptian sphinxes are the off-spring of Sekhmet and Amun-Ra. They were never actually together, but this was before Sekhmet met her husband after she went on a rampage under Ra’s orders. The sphinxes were created under Ra’s command, to protect those places considered special, and to act as a conduit between Ra and the first pharaohs. We, or rather my parents, were created from their essence which makes Sekhmet and Amun-Ra my grandparents.”
Crap. The door to Poseidon’s throne room flew open and Poseidon and Claude strolled out; the wolf looking very smug. “Hello offspring,” Poseidon said with a wink and grin. “We’re just having something to eat. Do you want to join us and you can tell me why you saw fit to use the sea as a demon clean-up yesterday?”
Stumbling to his feet, his mind still going a mile a minute, Lasse pointed to Jason and then the well-fucked couple. “Jason, this is Poseidon, God of the Sea, and his consort, Claude, son of Fenrir. Dad, step-dad, I’d like to introduce Jaxarinth Savopoulos, currently known as Jason Savo, my fated mate. He’s an Egyptian sphinx.”
“I told you Jason looks a lot like you. All that hair, arrogant expression like when you get your alpha on, and all those dreamy muscles. See, tell me I wasn’t wrong.” Poseidon grinned at Claude and elbowed him in the ribs. Claude growled, Jason scowled and Lasse wondered how soon they could eat and run.