Page 133 of Thanatos' Craving

Thanatos huffed. “I can’t help it if they accidentally get pushed into oncoming traffic.”

Before I could argue, Fluffy whined at the end of the bed, two front paws lifted, and an enormous nose resembling a black truffle followed. He whined again and huffed, slapping his paw on the bed.

“What does he want?” Thanatos pulled me impossibly closer and growled at him.

Oh my gosh, you banged me into oblivion. Does he still need to establish some dominance?

I nipped at his neck and let my gold fingernails run down his chest. “Fluffy is lonely. We’ve ignored him for days. He just wants cuddles, too.”

Fluffy’s ears perked up, and he took it as an invitation to jump on the bed. I burst out laughing and quickly pulled the sheets up over my body to avoid being attacked while naked. Thanatos’ eyes widened, and he jumped on top of me. Both bodies lying kisses of either tongue or lips and instead of a lazy morning—or afternoon—I was smothered with more love that I’d ever had in my human life.

Hera, Athena, and Zeus walked out of Hades’ office. Zeus was definably the most uncomfortable one out of the three. His shirt was untucked, his hair an obvious mess, and his face was bright red.

Athena adjusted her glasses and whispered to Zeus. “I wish you had told me this earlier Zeus. We could have discussed this for years.”

Zeus didn’t look at her. He ran his fingers through his messy hair. “Not that anyone would have believed me anyway,” he muttered. “But thanks.”

Zeus met my eyes and gave me a side smile and walked toward me. He left the other women behind, but Hera called out to him again. Her hand reached for him but didn’t touch him. “Zeus?” He turned, but his eyes didn’t reach hers. “I’m truly sorry I didn’t believe you.”

Zeus nodded.

“It was for the best. You were to be with Michael all along. It was best it worked out the way it did.”

“Not–not the way you were—” Hera swallowed heavily, her fingers pulling at her robes.

Zeus held up his hand to stop her. “No–I deserved it. For treating you the way I did years ago. It was my punishment.”

Athena stepped forward. “It still is punishment.”

“And you never,” Hera swallowed. “You haven’t been with anyone?”

Zeus looked away. “Not since I swore to you, I would not be with another. Twenty years before the Medusa incident and thereafter. I’m a flirt, but I haven’t felt the heat of another man or woman since.”

A tear slid down Hera’s face.

“How does his dick not fall off?” Loki whispered to me.

“I’m sure he masturbates,” Lucifer whispered behind him. “His balls would explode.”

I rolled my eyes and walked toward Zeus. I could still feel his power radiating in the hallway, but not nearly as powerful as when I was a human. I had felt a beckoning call from across the room and when I stood in front of him, he gave me a smirk and nodded.

“You are getting the hang of the goddess thing. Great job,” he said.

Thanatos’ hand wrapped around my waist, my glowing skin brightening his ebony feathers. “What can we do for you, Zeus?”

Zeus shook his head. “Nothing, I’m here to thank Juniper. Thanks to your help, I no longer have to carry the burden. You brought forth a hidden secret that makes me not lookasterrible,” he chuckled. “You don’t need to be spreading it around, though. It’s for Hera and the family of the Underworld.”

“Don’t you want people to know you didn’t cheat on Hera after you promised her you wouldn’t?” I asked.

Zeus casually slipped his large, calloused hands into the deep pockets of his worn-out dress slacks. “I could. But where is the fun in that?” he winked. “Congrats on your bonding, I’ll see you at the party. I heard Dionysus has big plans for the God of Death and The Goddess of Revelations. Something about Truth Tonics for the adults and Life or Death games for the kiddies.” He smiled.

And with that he strode down the hallway without a backwards glance and slowly disappeared into nothingness like he was never here.

Thanatos’ wings surrounded me as we gazed down the hallway. We had a silent conversation between ourselves. It was strange we could communicate with each other without even talking, but we both knew why he didn’t want people to know that Medusa had taken advantage of him.

It wasn't common for a male to be overpowered by a female, or at least it wasn't reported as often—or believed. Look whathappens when someone reports it. No one believed him, and even someone that he trusted. How many others, even humans, has this happened to? Been drugged? Taken advantage of? Coerced? An icy shiver ran down my spine at that and it made me hurt more for him.

“He will be okay,” Thanatos whispered. “Fate is humbling him. Zeus used to be hotheaded, and even though he has suffered much more than any of us could have imagined, he will heal and come back to be the king of the gods we all need.”

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