Goddess Of Virtue

By Laura Greenwood and Lainie Anderson

How to go from burlesque dancer to goddess in one simple step...

Amilee loved her life on the stage, until the Blood Moon rose and she gained memories of who she used to be. Now she has to reconcile her past and her present, which would be easier if she hadn't just learned she was the burlesque-dancing Goddess Of Virtue.

Lucky for her, three demi-god protectors have turned up at her dressing room door, and they're willing to guide her through her new life.

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Goddess Of Virtue is a paranormal reverse harem with a body-positive heroine and three hot men. It is part of the Blood Moon Rising shared world.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Mountain Shifters Universe
• Release date: Feb 24, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393851820

Laura Greenwood

Laura is a USA Today Bestselling Author of paranormal romance, urban fantasy, and fantasy romance. When she's not writing, she drinks a lot of tea, tries to resist French macarons, and works towards a diploma in Egyptology. She lives in the UK, where most of her books are set. Laura specialises in quick reads, with healthy relationships and consent positive moments regardless of if she's writing light-hearted romance, mythology-heavy urban fantasy, or anything in between. You can find a full book list and more information on her website, or in The Paranormal Council Facebook Group. Happy Reading!

Book preview

PROLOGUE

Many centuries ago...

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The leaves crunched under my feet, the wind rustled through my hair, and the warmth of the day filled me with joy. This was everything I loved about spring, and now that the first day was here, I wanted to dance around the forest and make the most of it. I might not be the goddess of anything that lived here, but I could still enjoy it.

Men's voices came through the wood, and I paused, searching for the direction they came from. I didn't recognize the voices, which wasn't a good sign. This was a holy place, one where only the gods were welcome. If mortals have strayed into the woods, then they'd soon become the prey of less virtuous deities than me.

I crept along, trusting my instincts to guide me. The voices grew louder with each passing moment until they were mere feet away from me. Three men sat around a small fire in a clearing. I double-checked I was out of sight and they wouldn't spot me spying on them, and then listened.

Have you heard about Amilee? one of the men, the biggest of the three, said. I perked up at the sound of my name. What could they want from me?

The redhead to his left laughed. "You want to play with her?"

You'd have better luck seducing a swan, brother, said the third, slapping the first man on the back.

Now that I was closer to them, I made out a slight glow in their auras that proved these weren't mere mortals, but demi-gods. They wouldn't encounter any trouble in the woods unless they ran into their sire's spouse. There was nothing so bad as a goddess scorned, and they should be wary of that, especially with the way they were talking about me.

That's where the fun is, he pointed out. I don't want easy pickings. We could just go after Lyra if that was the case. I want a challenge. Don't you, brothers?

I looked between the three men, trying to decide if they did indeed have the same sire. It was hard to tell. Each had dark eyes and strong jawlines, but their builds were different, as was the color of their hair. If I had to guess, I'd figured they were half-brothers at the most, but brothers by choice, not blood.

And what does the great seducer of Amilee get? the redhead asked.

Other than a sensational lay? the third man asked. I've heard it said she's still a virgin. Can you imagine how tight she must be?

Is that all you ever think about, Gerard? the redhead asked as the men began to laugh.

Ah good, a name. When I got back home, I could look him up and find out who I was dealing with. The Mother of us all had insisted gods and goddesses start registering their half-mortal children to ensure they didn't get too numerous. I had my doubts about it working, but I kept them to myself. No one took me seriously about the subject of sex or motherhood. They seemed to think that because I kept myself pure, I wasn't aware of these things.

How wrong they were. Remaining pure required the highest knowledge of sensual pleasure. Only then could such temptations be avoided. The things I'd seen could make even the goddess of love blush.

Tell me you're not thinking about it yourself? Gerard said after their laughter had subsided. "That long dark hair falling over her shoulders as she rides above you, her soft lips parting, not telling you no."

You should stop talking before you get your cock out and stroke yourself right here, the broad one said.

I licked my lips, somewhat enjoying the idea of them pleasuring themselves while thinking about me.

"But what are the real rules?" the redhead asked.

The first one to seduce the goddess, Amilee, shall be hailed as king for the day and may order the others to do anything he pleases, the first man announced.

Deal, the other two echoed.

Then let the hunt begin, he said.

I almost laughed. Did they think they could catch me? Or that even if they did, they'd manage to seduce me? They might be fine specimens of the male form, but that didn't mean I would fall down at their feet. I'd chased away far worse than them in my time.

They began feasting on the food they brought with them. I smiled to myself. The best thing for their hunt would be if I made things more interesting. I checked my pristine white dress, then pulled part of the fabric away, dropping it to the floor. Without one of the layers, my dress would be almost see-through in certain light. I pushed one of the sleeves down my shoulder, leaving it bare. There was a risk that would cause the other one to slip too, and my breasts would be exposed, but that would only add to the excitement of the hunt. I mussed up my hair in a way I was certain would make them think scandalous things, and bit my lips to make them red. I wished there were berries around here to do the job for me, but we were in the wrong part of the forest for that.

These men thought they could seduce me by deciding they would. They had another think coming to them. I was Amilee, the goddess of virtue, and I wasn't going to be bested by a group of pompous demi-gods.

Certain I looked the part, I stumbled into the clearing, looking around myself in fright.

Help me, please? I asked, holding a hand out to the men.

The three of them looked in my direction, each confused and concerned. Their eyes widened once they'd taken my appearance in, no doubt recognizing who I was. This would be fun. There was nothing I liked better than making a man think he had the upper hand and then teaching him that he did not.

Fair maiden, are you well? the broad one said. All three jumped to their feet.

I shook my head. I was being chased through the woods by a man who wanted to take advantage of me. I made my bottom lip tremble.

You poor dear, the redhead said, stepping forward. Come take a seat by the fire and we'll protect you.

I stopped the knowing smile from crossing my face. The firelight would do exactly what I wanted to my dress. They'd be enraptured by me by the end of the evening.

And then the game would begin.

Thank you, I whispered and made my way forward. I took a seat and smoothed out my skirts, making sure they fell in the most flattering way possible. They lowered themselves back to their seats and gaped at me.

I'm Gerard, the man next to me introduced. This is Theo and Rex, he motioned toward the redhead first, and then to the broadest man.

Thank you for letting me join your fire, I said, fluttering my eyelashes in the process. I feel much safer here.

And so, you should, Rex responded with a glint in his eye. We'd never force a young lady against her will.

But he would seduce a goddess who had publicly stated her desire to remain a virgin. The line between their morality and desires seemed much thinner than they wanted to admit.

I'm Amilee, by the way. I glanced down to the ground, looking up through my eyelashes to see their reactions. As expected, glee, challenge, and lust glinted in all three of their eyes.

Just like I planned.

You'll be safe with us, Amilee, Theo assured me.

In a weird way, I supposed that was right. I knew what they were planning, and they wouldn't hurt me in the process. You couldn't win a game of seduction by forcing it, that wasn't how it worked.

And began a game the four of us played for two hundred years, on and off. None of them ever won, I never lost. If anyone were to ask me, I'd have said I hated it, but in truth, nothing was more exhilarating than the chase Rex, Theo, and Gerard gave me. I was never certain if they knew I was on to them, but I didn't care.

They continued to chase me, and I continued to run.

Until a curse ended it all.

CHAPTER 1

Present Day

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Music filled the air, drowning out the individual words of any one person and adding to the atmosphere of the club. This was one of the things I liked about doing this, it was possible to forget that everyone else existed when I wanted to. Other times, like tonight, I could watch people whenever I wanted to and not get caught.

The ladies at one of the tables to the left were watching my every move and doing their best to copy me. That didn't bother me, it was cute. They were having some sort of last hurrah before a wedding, bachelorette style. I didn't begrudge them their fun. And the one at the end wasn't doing a half-bad job, if she ever wanted to get into burlesque, then she'd be able to, so long as she had a bit of training first. Sights like this were common. Women loved coming to shows like mine because they were risqué enough, without being anything like a strip club.

On the other hand, the men leering at me who kept throwing money onstage bugged the shit out of me. They always misunderstood what they were doing here and thought I was part of their personal entertainment. They were in for a nasty surprise when they realized that wasn't the case.

Even so, I ignored them until the flash of a camera pulled me from the focus of my intricate dance. Breaking out of my routine, I signaled the bouncer by grabbing a green ribbon and dancing with it for a few moments. This was one of the better ideas the management had come up with. Instead of having to stop dancing, we simply had a simple action to indicate there was a problem. It made things a lot easier.

Within seconds, Buddy moved from his spot near the stage, and grabbed the camera from the hands of the man who took the picture. I