Bright sunlight burned red through my eyelids but what woke me was Luke's voice and the kiss he planted on my cheek.

I blinked bleary eyes open and saw Luke sitting on my bed. "You're up early…" I said, rubbing the sleep from my eyes.

"I'm going for a morning run," Luke said, one hand raking through my hair. "You wanna join?"

I blinked once… twice…

Luke's eyes twinkled in sunlight.

"Okay."


We didn't have a planned path for the run so we just went at it aimlessly. We started at the porch of the villa and took whatever route was available. At one point we ended up on the steps to Olympus, which we climbed up and then down and then we were back on the streets. We ran along the very edge of the mountain that hosted Olympus. The other residents of the godly city waved as we passed, offering fruits and fresh baked goods but we declined politely. Both of us were completely soaked in sweat by the time we called the run over.

"Shower first?" Luke suggested as we closed the front door behind us.

"Sounds good," I agreed, grabbing Luke's hand. "Which way is the bathroom again?"

Luke stared at me for a second and I couldn't control the blush that spread all the way down to my neck.

"Right this way," Luke's voice had a different quality to it as he led the way.

The bathroom was a high-ceilinged room with a rectangular pool at the center, along one side was a row of showers without partition and on the corner was a large cabinet carved from the same stone as the floor and walls, holding a variety of toiletries and some towels.

My hand shook as I reached for what looked like a bottle of shampoo and I ended up toppling it over. Luke grabbed the bottle and replaced it on the shelf, turning concerned eyes to me.

"Percy, you don't have to," Luke said, tactfully finding the right words to say. I envied him for that. But I also wanted this very, very much.

I dropped his hand. Looking morosely into icy blue eyes, I didn't really care much if I sounded a little desperate. "But I want to. I want you, your kisses, your hands all over me – I want to touch you and I want to feel you so much…" I stepped closer, allowing myself to be bold because this line had to be crossed sometime and that sometime was now.

Luke's eyes darkened but he didn't move, he just stared back, lips parted and that was probably the only cue I'd need.

My hands wove into the sweat-damp spikes of sandy blond hair and I pulled Luke into a kiss. It sent sparks all over my body when Luke's hands reached under my t-shirt and started pulling it off. Luke tossed the garment aside and appraised my form. I started to go for another kiss when he held up a hand and a smirk rose on his lips.

"Off with everything first." Luke's voice had this darker shade to it and I shivered as I slipped off my briefs and sweatpants in one go. His eyes cast a quick glance downwards and I was all too aware of my half-hard cock.

"Get the shower started," Luke said, a finger tracing down my jaw.

I nodded and went to do as he'd said. I got the hot water working until the temperature was just right. A nervous shiver wracked through my body as the sound of clothes being shucked off echoed in the room. A second later, Luke slid up behind me, one arm circling my waist and pulling me back against him. He dropped a bar of soap on the brass wall mount and started kissing down my neck.

I turned my face towards Luke, slotting our mouths together and holding him in place by his dripping-wet hair. Water-slicked skin slid together and steam started to rise around our feet. Luke pulled back, his high stature shielding me from the spray, a drop of water slid down his long lashes and fell to my cheek, his lips followed the drop.

"I'll wash you up first, alright?" Luke whispered and I pecked at his lips in reply. Luke took the bar of soap in hand and turned off the showerhead. I lay my head on his shoulders as large hands spread the lather across my chest. I could see a grin playing on Luke's lips from my peripheral vision as he stretched out my arms and dragged the soap over the wet skin. His soap-frothed hands rubbed down my abdomen and without warning a hand ran the length of my cock.

Luke chuckled, setting his hands on my waist and lowering his lips to my ears. "Stand up for a moment," he said. "I'll work on your back."

I swallowed and managed a "Yeah" in response.

Luke did this massage thing to my shoulders which had me humming in delight. He worked the soap down my back, I tried not to shiver too obviously when his hands brushed my Achilles spot. Luke placed my hand on his shoulder to keep balance as he lifted my foot and spread the cleansing lather down my leg.

I took the soap from him as he stood up. It felt a little embarrassing but at the same time I had this sense of fulfillment. Luke's warm skin was stretched over taut muscles and my hands followed every curve down to his calves. With a turn of the knobs, the showerhead rained warm water over the both of us. Luke stepped behind me once again, pulling me against his chest as soap suds diluted and cascaded down our bodies.

Luke wrapped a firm hand around my cock and started stroking me from base to tip. I moaned his name, suddenly weak in the knees. Luke smiled against my skin, lightly biting and sucking on the junction between my neck and shoulder.

The heat from the steamy water and the one that filled my whole body made rational thinking impossible. Instinct made me thrust shallowly into the circle made by Luke's hand and I whimpered, feeling Luke's growing interest poking me from behind.

"L-Luke…" I faltered as Luke's thumb rubbed off a smear of pre cum from the tip of my erection. His teeth grazed my skin, travelling up my neck and nibbling on my earlobe.

"Sorry?" Luke whispered hotly, I could just see the sly grin in his tone. He did this twist of the hand as he went on jerking me off and I arched back against him, mewling. I was getting close but I didn't want this to end – oh gods not yet.

"Luke," I tried again, managing to place a hand over his to still his highly distracting ministrations.

"Yeah?" Luke's hand loosened around me and I took the opportunity – shutting off the shower and turning around to face him.

"I want to try something," I told him, biting down on my lip as I pushed him against the wall.

Luke, never one to be outdone, pulled me in for a kiss and I welcomed his tongue into my mouth. We parted, sharing moans, and I trailed butterfly kisses down his neck, down his chest – going lower and lower until I had to kneel down in front of him. I flicked my eyes up to Luke, asking for permission.

I didn't have any experience to boast of in this department and the internet wasn't a good teacher the last time I checked; I'm just trying to be polite – "Try not to choke the first-timer, okay?" I told him, covering up my nervousness with a smile and a wink.

Luke slapped a hand to his face, muttering a curse in Greek.

I put my hands on his hips, thumbs pressing into the line of his hipbones. Experimentally, I licked the underside of his erection, sealing my lips against the flushed head. I ran the tip of my tongue against the slit out of curiosity – I was rewarded with Luke calling out my name with a lot of extra 'oh's between syllables.

Luke carded a hand through my hair, pushing the wet strands back and pulling my face up in the same move. A ring of ice blue surrounded his blown-out pupils, kiss-swollen lips glistening red. "Just… careful with the teeth…"

I responded by gripping the base of his cock and pressing my palm against his abs. I kept eye contact as eyelids lowered to half-masts and pressed a kiss on his erection. "Okay…"

I took him in, covering what length I could manage – I have to admit, it felt a lot better than expected. The moan that echoed through the room could have been mine if my mouth wasn't occupied. I started sucking, slowly drawing back until I only had the head in my mouth and then taking it in again. I can't say much about the taste but there was a hint of something both sweet and salty.

The hand Luke had on my hair gripped tighter and I felt the muscles in his stomach tense under my hand. I loosened my other hand from the base of his cock, sliding it under his balls, rolling them on my palm and squeezing.

Luke jerked and I just barely kept him from choking me.

"Holy shit Percy!"

I only hummed in reply, trailing my hand from his stomach down long lean legs. I gripped my own hardness and started pumping in rhythm with sucking Luke off. My head was dizzy, my ears were assaulted with sensual groans and heated flesh sparked fire that traveled through veins. There was a comfortable kind of hot – and then there was a hot that drove you nuts; I'm guessing this was more on the latter.

There was a yanking on my hair and vaguely, I started making sense of my boyfriend's words.

"Percy – fucking hell, Percy, get up – get up!"

My eyes snapped open, hazy and half-lidded, my lips painted with semen leaking from the tip of Luke's cock that was right in front of me. A hand locked around my wrist and I was pulled to my feet – bad idea, I'd lost feeling in those limbs a dozen sucks ago. But Luke – gorgeous, hot, fucking fuck me now please Luke, caught me and it was my turn up on the walls.

His body caged mine, his lips devoured mine, his hips thrust against mine, his larger hand grasped both of our cocks and started jerking us off, sparking sinfully delicious pleasure. I freed my mouth from his just in time to scream his name as my vision turned white. I heard him follow just half a stroke later, leaving our abdomens spattered with semen.

I kissed my way down his jaw and back to his lips as we came down from our climax. Slow, languid kisses reeking of sex and passion. I slipped my tongue past his lips, licking out what I could reach of that hot tavern tasting of everything familiar and exotic. Luke's tongue sought my own; lapping, entwining, and combining tastes. Hands traveled over planes of cooling skin; checking, memorizing, confirming each other's presence.

It wasn't clear who stopped kissing fist, or if we pulled back at the same time, just that my forehead was pressed against Luke's, I had my arms draped on his shoulders, and his hands were on my ass.

"Well that was totally counterproductive," Luke said, sly smile bright.

"Only a little." I kissed him quick, noses bumping as he followed to steal a peck. "So what do you say we actually get clean and get out of here?" I peered through wet eyelashes, curling a grin at the corner of my lips. "I want breakfast now."

"Should we attempt pancakes?" Luke asked reaching for the shower knob and turning it clockwise.

"Anything," I replied as he pulled the both of us under the spray. The water had gone cold.


As it turned out, two demigods with a pantry full of ingredients doesn't equate to anything good; especially when I found half a liter of blue food dye in a corner of the cupboard.

You'd be surprised at the levels a food fight could go with only two participants. The kitchen was a total mess with flour, syrups, and fruit pulp amongst other things splattered everywhere. It would've gone on for who knows how long but then Luke pinned me against the refrigerator and kissed me into submission. We decided to save the blue dye for later and settled for making easy breakfast with toast and omelets. Luke went around making coffee while I was content with apple juice.

Cleaning up the kitchen took a lot of time and energy – we had to make sure that everything was spotless. Hermes was clearly a very neat and organized god and he'd been extremely nice in letting us stay at his villa, the least we could do was not wreck the place. It was lunch time when we finished.

A good part of the afternoon was spent exploring. Luke and I found our way to the courtyard at the back where tall maple trees stood amongst rows of blooming delphiniums and hyacinths. A beautiful fountain was the centerpiece of the grand courtyard, two tiers of crystal clear water topped with a beautiful statue of a nymph with waves curving around her form.

"Maia," Luke said with something close to reverence in his tone.

I gazed upon the sculpted features set in a warm smile – I suddenly missed my own mom. A glint of gold caught my gaze and I found Luke holding out a couple of drachmas.

Kind blue eyes met mine. "I think we're due for a call."

May Castellan was at a neighbor's house when we contacted her. Thankfully, everyone else was in another room when we called – apparently our mirage came through a fish tank. May assured us that she was doing fine before returning our questions, asking how the launching went and if we'd settled in nicely at the villa and a lot of other motherly things. Of course, when we called up my house, mom and Paul asked the same questions.

There was a hammock installed between two maple trees and Luke only had to quirk a corner of his lips. I didn't have any objections, not when the constricted space the hammock allowed had me sprawled half-way on top of my boyfriend. My head was nestled against his shoulder, arm draped across his chest, our legs tangled with each other's.

Luke's eyes fluttered close with a sigh, his body language communicating a wish for relaxation.

I resorted to staring at him in silence, watching the dappling sunlight dance across his handsome features. I realize I've never really looked at him close enough. His sandy blonde hair was messy like it always was but there were strands of silver mixed in though they weren't very obvious. His sun-kissed skin was lightly freckled and held a vague smell that reminded me of the sword fighting arena at camp. Short tawny lashes fanned over the darker hues under his eyes. The slight knit of his brows matched the curve of his dried rose lips. A shadow of a beard roughened the area around the strong line of his jaw.

He looked so different from the cool-looking teenager who made me feel most welcome during my very first day at camp.

So much has happened since then. So much is happening right now.

"Sometimes I can't believe I'm really here."

It was a low whisper but it was enough to raise me from my thoughts.

Shifting colors of ice blue peered at me between half-lidded eyes. Luke lifted a hand, brushing my cheek. "Sometimes I can't believe you're here with me." His fingers combed back my hair, a slight grin growing on his lips. "But you are."

My hand moved over his heart, feeling the steady beats through his shirt under my palm. "That's because I love you."

I never thought that a single smile would have the power to melt me to my core. "I love you, too."

The rest of the afternoon was spent curled up together swaying in the light breeze.

That night, we made blue pancakes because breakfast isn't only for mornings. A completely different kind of calm had settled between us. It felt surreal.