I heard him mutter something about her being tired and wanting to protect her feet, but I knew it was just an excuse.
Curious, I flicked my eyes over to Jason, who walked beside me, behind the rest. He watched Percy and Atalanta with an unreadable expression, yet he radiated loneliness. I knew what he would be feeling. The made Mer wouldn’t experience the mating urges like someone who was born, especially the males. For us, its a much duller sensation, but I still remembered Aria telling me how being away from me, not being able to touch me when she wanted, was extremely unpleasant, like going through withdrawal.
I made a mental reminder to make sure Atalanta sat with him during the movie.
Chapter Four
Atalanta
Ajax’s cabin really was cozy and very tidy. Not what I would have suspected from the often paint-covered Ajax. Simple, dark furniture contrasted with the light wood of the walls. It was warm and shined with a unique quality that made me love it instantly.
The moment we got there, all of us had been nosier than was polite, wandering around the rooms and asking all sorts of questions. At one point, I learned that Ajax had built the place himself, which made me look at the beautiful kitchen with its long marble-topped counters and dark cabinets with near adoration. Even if I could be out-cooked by a toddler, this kitchen made me want to be the best chef I could be.
Now, after getting our fill of being horrible snoops, the five of us marveled over his entertainment system. Theseus won rock paper scissors for movie pick and decided we would watch the next superhero movie on my required watch list. After fiddling with turning the captions on, we settled on and around Ajax’s large black couch and began watching The Dark Knight Returns.
I was snuggled with my back against Jason’s side while my legs were sprawled in Percy’s lap. Being between the two of them like this made my heart race. It didn’t help when images of the last time I was on a couch with Jason flashed into my mind.
My eyes went to Ajax, who had chosen to sit on the Lazy Boy instead of the floor in front of me where Theseus and Hip were. His multicolored gaze flickered to me and then to the two men on either side of me. I could have sworn I saw a flare of smugness on that ruggedly handsome face of his. He had totally planned this. The meddler.
I would like to say that I watched the movie, and I did watch some of it, but my mind kept wandering. With every move and shift, I was reminded of how close I was to the four guys around me. My body hyper aware of their innocent touches. It got to the point where fantasies of them began to run through my mind. In one of them, they were all together.
I was riding Theseus, his head tilted back in pleasure as Jason and Percy worshiped my breasts and neck from behind. Hip was in front of me, whispering in my ear as he stroked my clit. Ajax, his bulky frame too large to fit on the bed, watched from the sidelines eagerly, his hand stroking his erection. All of it was driving me crazy!
I blinked and shifted, hoping that they couldn’t smell my arousal. By the way Ajax stared at me, he certainly knew what was running through my brain. The smile he gave me was inviting, daring me to act.
I seriously was not ready for something like that though, so to distract myself from them, I kept practicing on relaxing the little ball inside my chest that I designated my Mer form. It was extremely difficult, probably because my arousal kept pushing my scales to the surface, but I kept trying.
I was excited when after about ten minutes I succeeded on getting my feet to return to normal, but then there was a massive explosion in the movie which startled me, making that little ball tighten all over again, and I was back to having webbed hands and feet.
The ones who heard my squeak of surprise and then groan of frustration began laughing. Much to my embarrassment.
When the movie finished, I nominated a movie with less action.
“Two bets she wants to watch one of those romantic comedies,” Percy said, his brown eyes sparkling.
“In fact, I do,” I challenged.
Hip shifted around to look at us better. “I don’t mind. I kind of like chick flicks.”
Theseus, who I had tapped when I put out my request, shrugged. “I guess, if that's what she wants.”
I turned back to Percy, quirking a brow at him, challenging him to tell me no.
He met my stare with one of his own, and we were in our showdown for a solid minute before he broke.
“Fine,” he grunted and pulled my legs, which had fallen, back into his lap.
Curious about his silence, I tilted my head back to look at Jason. His eyes were closed and breathing even. He was asleep?
I looked back to the others, who were studying Jason as well.
“He fell asleep during the climax of the last movie.” Ajax confirmed.
I was surprised he could sleep through the explosive ending, but I couldn’t really blame him. He appeared more exhausted than the others. I had known that during my two week long nap Jason had barely left my side, hardly sleeping or eating, and it showed. I don’t think it helped when I finally woke up either. I felt horrible being responsible for his exhaustion.
Quietly, I pointed to the blanket which had been draped across the back of Ajax’s chair, and he tossed it over to me. With Hip’s help, we swaddled Jason in the blanket; he didn’t even stir.
Having won my battle for a rom-com, we found one on Netflix and relaxed back for a much calmer movie, making a point to keep the volume lower this time. Carefully, I snuggled myself closer to Jason’s warmth, and about halfway through the movie, I joined him in dreamland.
When I woke up next, I was laying entirely across the couch, Percy, Ajax, and Theseus were gone. As I shifted, I realized that I, too, was now wrapped up in the blanket cocoon with Jason spooning me, still fast asleep.
Careful not to wake Jason, I loosened our cocoon and looked around. Hip was now in the lazy-boy watching some show on the television. I spied Percy wandering around the kitchen behind him, but I didn’t see either Ajax or Theseus.
At my movement, Hip looked away from the screen and gave me a smile. “Hey there, Speedy. If you keep sleeping so much, I might need to call you Droopy.”
“Droopy?” I asked sleepily. “Is that one of the seven dwarves?”
“No, you’re thinking of Dopey. I’m talking about that little white cartoon dog who was always tired.”
“That’s a really vague reference.” I smiled and asked, “Do you like cartoons, Hip?”
He rested his chin on his knuckles and grinned. “And if I did?”
“Hey, no judge,” I yawned. At Hip’s cocky look, I added. "A girl needs her beauty sleep.”
His eyes, which looked green at the moment, studied my face. “I think you’re good.”
I ignored his comment and asked, "Where are Theseus and Ajax?”
“They are in Ajax’s studio, I think.”
A studio? Was that the second smaller building I had seen next to the cabin? Curious, I slowly began to untangle myself from Jason and our cocoon. A difficult process, as Jason was wrapped around me like a snake. He was definitely one of those people who liked to sleep cuddle. Just as I was free, a relaxed arm wrapped over me from behind and pulled me back against a hard chest.
Jason had pulled me closer in his sleep and was nuzzling my hair, making my heart swell and then immediately begin to gallop and spread a warmth through my body as my ass was being prodded by some morning wood.
The wide smile I had didn’t last, though, as I looked back to Hip, who was scowling. My smile fell, and I felt terrible for letting Jason wrap himself around me like this, in such an intimate moment, in front of Hip.