Anya reached up with one slender hand and gently caressed his face as more tears fell. In a slow deliberate movement, she placed her cheek against his bare chest and embraced him with a strength he had not known her to possess. He wrapped his arms around her, unsure of the cause of her obvious desperation, but eager to alleviate her pain if at all possible.
“Anya, what is it?”
“I feel as if my heart is breaking,” she whispered, her voice strained with emotions.
Kael’s arms constricted. “Merivic?” Though it distressed him to speak the lord’s name, he knew Merivic’s presence in this exchange could not go unspoken.
She shook her head in denial—either as to the cause of her anguish or to simply deny his name, he could not determine which. Her body seized with a heavy sob and he felt the warmth of more tears as they trickled down his skin.
He eased her back, cradling her face in his hands. “Anya, please tell me.”
“Obligation held me to Merivic’s side,” —she locked her sorrowful green eyes on his before averting her eyes—“but I know now my heart has always belonged to you.”
Kael’s eyes widened with her blunt admission, but he understood well her precarious position. Although he only wished to sweep her up into a fierce kiss, respect held him back.
He nudged her chin up to draw her gaze and smiled so she would know her confession did not fall on deaf, or resistant, ears. The corner of her mouth twitched as she encircled her arms around his neck and pressed her chest to his in a great hug. Kael gladly returned the embrace, but remained undecided as to how he could ease her grief, and apparent guilt.
“Might I stay here for a time?” Her warm breath breezed over his ear.
“Of course, you may.”
“Will you hold me?” she asked in a small voice, as if he would deny her.
“Only as you wish.” He would do anything she requested of him, and he took considerable comfort in that as he lay back on the bed, pulling her with him.
She nestled her face under his chin as her toned body fell in line with his. He held her to his side, his hands clasped easily at her curved hip as she, in turn, snaked her arms around him.
“Thank you,” she breathed as she snuggled closer, her soft hair tickling his neck, further alluring him with the sweet scent he always related to her alone.
“Your gratitude is not necessary, Anya. I am pleased to do so.”
Kael could not hold himself back from kissing the top of her head, although he knew it would be the only intimate contact he would initiate himself. In response, she slid her leg over his and rubbed it slowly up and down his calf, a seductive motion causing a thrill to travel under his skin.
Anya was hesitant, but felt spirited in her decision to show Kael how she felt. Twisting in his arms, she kissed his neck. His body tensed as her mouth trailed to his ear, and the nibble on his earlobe caused his breath to catch and release in a strained gasp. Without forewarning, Anya shifted her body over Kael’s, her auburn hair hanging around his face like a curtain. She stared down at him, trying in vain to read every reaction crossing his face, any clue as to how her actions were being received. His gaze fell to her mouth and he licked his lips, an unintentional invitation she could not resist. She brushed her lips against his, then again with more pressure.
Kael’s mouth barely flexed in return, but his hands clutched the edge of her nightgown at her thigh. She looked at him curiously, torn as to how to read his contradicting reactions. “Do you not return my love?” She sat to fully regard him, her hands lying on his chest.
“You know that I do.”
“Then let us deny ourselves no longer.”
Anya wiggled his fists loose from her hem, then held them close in front of her. Her touch alleviated the tension in his fingers as he watched her work his hands between hers, interlacing and twisting her fingers through his, her gaze never leaving his.
She thought it obvious that he wanted her, and determined it was up to her to make her needs clear. When he relaxed and became content with her touch, she held her breath and pressed his palms against her breasts. “Take me, Kael, as I am only yours.”
Kael’s eyes widened at her brazenness and desire undeniably coursed through him. She leaned forward and kissed him once more, his lips finally yielding to hers, but held back in intensity. He practically had to force his hands to move to her side as he attempted to control the situation.
She lifted back, donning a pained expression, triggering an ache in his chest. “You do not return my love as you say?” Pushing off his chest, she rocked to the side to take her leave.
Kael, again acting upon instinct, grabbed her hips and held her in place as she straddled him. His eyes dragged down her chest, across the buttons of her nightgown which weighed the fabric down to hug her prominent round breasts.
Returning his gaze to her face, he spoke only the truth in which he felt, that in which he feared most. “I do not want to play a part in your future regrets.”
“I want to hear you say it. Do you love me?”
“Why must I say it when you know I do?”
“Do I?”
“I show it in everything I do, every breath I take—it all, in one way or another, leads back to you.”
“Then show me now.”
Kael sat with her on his lap, knotting his fingers in her long hair. His mouth sought hers then, slowly at first then steadily more eager and passionate as he found himself yielding in every way. He was powerless to resist. He wanted to believe and to have, and with her, he could.
Anya had once given what was left of her heart to Merivic, but her body she would give to Kael alone. She wanted to feel him against her, around her, and inside her. She gave herself fully to him in that moment, casting aside any further doubts, knowing she was in the arms of the only man she would ever truly love, and ever want to be with. What they had was not meant to be forsaken.
Anya adjusted her hips to get closer, and a wave of sensations crashed over Kael as she writhed in his lap. A pure hunger for that in which he loved was the only thing driving his actions now, all inhibitions shaking loose as his quick fingers freed the satin-covered buttons of her nightgown. Anya moaned softly as she arched closer. His tongue stroked every curve of her breast while he weighed their soft firmness in his palms, her peaks becoming harder every time he took them in his impatient mouth.
Thrusting her body against his, Anya knocked them back onto the bed and slipped her hands under the band of his pants. Tracing her tongue through the valleys of his muscles, she traveled down, shimming his pants off along the way. She enjoyed tempting him as she halted, her mouth planting small kisses around his navel as her breasts pressed against his groin. Her entire form trembling, she hooked his pants with her foot and pulled them the rest of the way off, her mouth never relenting in its position and her breasts continuing their torturous abuse.
Kael issued a guttural growl as she moved down, eager to please and explore. She took his hard length in her mouth, pleasuring him until his breath was as heavy as hers. And when she could restrain herself no longer, she rose above to take him. But before she could, Kael clutched her hips and flipped her onto her back.
“Not yet,” he murmured, teasing her nipples with his tongue.
She sunk into the mattress with a blissful sigh as he moved his lips over her, then down her slender frame. Her breathing halted as his mouth took her relentlessly—sliding, tasting, stroking. His tongue was hot and luxurious, fast and brutal as he led her on the climb to release. Her heart hammered, her pulse raged. She thought she would go mad with want and need.
Kael listened to her moans and labored breathing, felt her body trembling and quaking from his touch, and he knew she was teetering on the edge. Gripping her hips, he suddenly lifted his mouth. With a quick tug he slid her face-to-face, staring into her eyes he thrust deep, burying himself inside as he drove her into a freefall. His pulse skipped a beat when he took her deeper, a single hard stroke, while h
is mouth closed over hers, muffling her cry as she plummeted over the edge.
Anya locked on Kael’s eyes, hazed over with sensation, while he continued to take her with slow, steady strokes, building her back up into a furious and primal need. Every breath brought her closer, every heartbeat had him grasping her harder. Love on top of passion on top of pleasure stacked against her, waves of rolling intensity built higher, until it crashed over her, leaving her too breathless to do anything other than gasp, cling, and take him with her.
They were enveloped in euphoria as they brought each other to new heightened levels previously unknown to them. This day they came together, and this day they experienced what life was truly about; love and passion, respect and desire. The spent lovers collapsed in an entangled heap, their limbs weaving as they battled to catch their breath.
So intent on each other, and what they had shared, they were unaware of Merivic’s murderous glare from the shadows beside the door. He would never have believed this betrayal to be possible, but he had witnessed it with his own disbelieving eyes; Kael taking his cherished Anya for his own pleasure, and Anya more than a willing participant.
Merivic eased back through the door, silent under the concealment of the lovers’ recovering gasps, and immediately began plotting the hapless couples’ demise. He would be vicious in his patience, waiting for the prime opportunity in which to exact his revenge, and reclaim what was rightfully his.
Chapter 26
“Malik!” Merivic roared as he flung the bookcase aside, storming through to the secret chamber.
Malik’s eyes doubled in size as he eyed up Merivic and backed away.
“You have destroyed everything!” With a mighty swing of his arm, the lord swept the altar clear. Bottles and vials shattered on the floor, small explosions snapping in the air as the contents mixed. He stalked through the smoke, his face tight and muscles flexed.
“My Lord,” Malik stammered as he backed up.
Merivic grabbed him by the neck and slammed him against the wall, easily holding him a foot off the floor. “Because of my indiscretions, she has run to the arms of another!” His irises seeped into a molten red before flaring and turning hazel again.
“Sire,” Malik whispered with what little air he could manage. “I do not understand.” He began to tremble as Merivic’s eyes flared again.
“Kaelestis. I found them…” Shoving his nose close to Malik’s, he shook with rage. Gritting his teeth to maintain control, his voice turned low and deadly. “She ran to his bed. This never would have happened had you not… Do you think she will choose me now?!” His grip tightened as Malik grabbed at his wrists and squirmed against the wall, his face turning an unnatural shade of red.
Merivic suddenly released him and stepped back, resisting the urge to crush him beneath his heel as he gasped for air. “Be thankful I need you for the blessing.”
And Malik was. This man could destroy him without a cursory thought or hesitant blink. He never forgot that simple mortal fact—he could end him in a heartbeat.
“I could kill them both. Perhaps I will!”
Malik looked up and croaked out in a hoarse voice, “We do not have the time to find another woman. All the spells are prepared, all the potions are ready—all specific to Anya.”
“So I’ll just kill him then.”
“Killing Kaelestis would disrupt everything, too. Do you truly believe she will proceed with the union—with you and on schedule—in the face of tragedy?” Malik pushed to his feet.
Merivic eyes flared. “Tragedy?!”
“It would be tragic to her,” he muttered. “Do what you will with him after the blessing, but nothing beforehand. We will find another way to make this all work. We need to focus on completing the promising ceremony, Sire.”
“Someone must die for this. Everyone. Including her father!” he snapped, his anger boiling over again. “Suggesting Kaelestis for a weapons master?! Either he is very sly or extremely stupid.” He lurched toward Malik. “And you! With your foresight into the future…you did not see this?!”
Malik held his hands up defensively. “I foresaw he was the only one to protect her, and so he is. No matter the obstacles it created, he was always the only one to ensure her survival to the end.”
Merivic halted his advance and dropped his hands. “The blessing… I no longer care if she feels pain. Let her feel it. Let her know the power I have over her.”
“As you wish, My Lord.”
“I have to put an end to this. Now.”
“How, Sire?”
“Good, tried and true, magic-free manipulation.” Merivic nodded his head. “This, I can do. In the meantime, you need to watch them. I need to know if I am succeeding and, if not, some insight as to what course of action to take.”
Merivic could not deny the bond Anya and Kaelestis seemed to have, but he was not sure where it came from. He had always thought it was because they grew up together, but now he could not be so sure.
“I will cast a scrying pond to watch them. Only you and I will be able to see.” Malik readily agreed it was a necessary step, but while the lord was unsure of what bond held Anya and Kaelestis together, Malik was now sure of it. Only the presence of a pure, innocent love could have been an antidote to the potion Zabela had been slipping the weapons master. The potion stopped working when Anya arrived—it all made perfect sense now.
“See to it. And I will see to these two. Right now.”
*****
Anya awoke with a start and peered around the darkened room. She was not sure what had awakened her, but she knew morning must be near and she could not be found in Kael’s quarters when it came. As if the sun itself was in tune with her thoughts, the first glows of the approaching dawn broke free from the horizon and flickered through the window.
She looked down to the man sleeping at her side and studied the strong shape of his face, the scruff that added to his ruggedness, and the tangle of dark hair framing it. Her chest fluttered as her lips curved. For her there truly could be no other, not like this. He made her heart beat strong and true. Whereas before it simply kept her alive, it now served a purpose as love and vitality pumped through her body.
Leaning down, she kissed his temple before slipping out of bed. She looked back at him with longing as she buttoned her nightgown, and regretted not being able to wake with him.
Someday, she thought, we will be together as we should be, as we were always destined to be.
Daydreams of leaving Decessus and starting a new life with Kael drifted through her head as she retreated to her quarters, and continued on into the early morning. Such happiness the thoughts brought her, she could not help but hum and sing lightly as she danced and swayed around her room, dressing and prepared for the day in an absent routine.
Merivic paused outside Anya’s door, placing his palm on it. He could hear her humming within; a light and easy tune that spoke of serenity and happiness. His hand fisted as he lowered his forehead to the wood. He knew she acted in vengeance for his indiscretions, and a part of him, however remote, admired the dark streak in her that matched his own. But she did not need to be so damned pleased about it. Besides, his affair was due to a potion, whether she was aware of it or not, whereas hers was done willfully—a far worse deception in his opinion.
I wonder if she will tell me, he fumed, or is it enough for her to simply know what she had done? To know that she betrayed me—us—and exacted her revenge as she saw fit. If she does tell me…
He cut his mind off from the possibility, for if she was brazen enough to confront him with this, he did not know if he would have the control to let her live. Deep down, however, he did not believe she had it in her to flaunt her betrayal in his face, so it was a fairly safe assumption he would not need to concern himself with killing her too soon.
Moving further down the corridor, Merivic took a deep calming breath before pounding on Kael’s door and storming in.
The abrupt knock yanked Kael awake and
a quick survey indicated he was alone, but he could not help the terror slamming into him as Merivic came stalking toward him.
Feigning anxiousness, Merivic had the distinct pleasure of watching Kael jolt out of slumber and straight into panic.
“My Lord,” Kael stammered as he glanced around again.
“Kaelestis, I apologize for the early hour, but this could not wait. I had just passed Anya’s quarters and I could hear her weeping uncontrollably within. What happened to her? Do you know? Is it me? Does she still cry for what I have done?”
“I… She is crying, Sire?”
Merivic had to suppress a smile as he watched Kael’s concern grow. “She is. I thought she might have confided in you, given your history.”
“No… She… No,” Kael stammered, his thoughts in a scatter as to why she was upset, finally settling on the startling realization that she wept for last night. She regretted what she had done.
“What happened last night? Something must have happened?”
“No, Sire.” Kael flinched inwardly. “I retired early and Gerhard was her acting sentinel.”
Merivic’s shoulders slumped. “Has she spoken to you about anything?”
“Not as of late, My Lord.” He swallowed the lump forming in his throat.
“I must try harder with her, Kaelestis. I must make up for my lapse in judgment any way I can.” Merivic wandered to the window and stared out. “Such a life I can provide her, a spectacular life that could be matched by no other, a life beyond her wildest imagination. She will be my queen. Anything she could possibly want, I will give her. She will never want again in her life.”
Kael averted his eyes as he listened to the lord. Yes, he thought, he could give her a better life, far better than I ever could.
“I must do something special for her.” Merivic mused. “Flowers. Something not in our garden. Could you go to town and get them for me, Kaelestis? You know her taste well enough, as well as what we already have here.”
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