by Linda Barlow
"We'll coordinate with Mr. Hepburn on Nigel," Metin said. "I believe he is wanted by several agencies of several nations, but we will try to ensure that The Republic of Turkey has the first shot."
I was glad now that I hadn't succeeded in killing Nigel. My bullet had only grazed his hip, probably because my arm had been wobbling as I'd fired. I wasn't sure how I'd have felt about killing a man. Even though the creep had deserved it, ending his life would probably have haunted my conscience.
But I had no trouble at all envisioning Nigel rotting for a few decades in a Turkish prison.
Chapter 45
ELLIE
The sun was high in the late April sky on the day I finally visited the ancient city of Troy. Nick and I sailed Voyager up the coast from the Aegean port city of Izmir, where the Golden Dolphin Island discoveries were being dated and appraised by experts. I felt more at home on the yacht now; Nick had taught me to crew for him.
I was at the helm, delighting in the responsiveness of the yacht as it skimmed over the bright water near Truva, the site of Troy. Nick came up behind me and placed his firm hands on my waist. I leaned back against him, tossing him a grin over my shoulder. Although the weather was warm in the Aegean region, the wind was strong, so he had changed his usual jean cutoffs for the sexy black leather trousers I'd discovered that first morning in his cabin. With a loose white shirt and the gold stubble of the beard he was beginning to grow, he looked more like a pirate than ever.
I felt his breath against my scalp as he leaned over and whispered, "You're almost home, Helen of Troy."
"She was Helen of Greece, actually. Not until after she was abducted did she become known as Helen of Troy."
His hands slid down my arms and clamped my wrists to the wooden wheel of the yacht. "So? You've been abducted, too. You're still my prisoner, hayatim."
I laughed. "Am I complaining?"
"Haven't heard one word of complaint lately, though in the beginning you sure spit fire at me."
"In the beginning I was frightened of you, Nick."
"I'm sorry for that, but I'm not sorry for the way it turned out. Those old-time heroes were no fools. Abduction is a great way of getting a woman. No awkward texting while trying to wrangle a hook-up, no plotting the chick's seduction over an expensive dinner, no distressing scenes when the boredom sets in. When she begins to get on your nerves, you just grab the wench and toss her overboard."
"Jerk!" I laughed, turning on him with a mutinous expression.
He kissed me on the throat, where I was still wearing my rope collar. I'd grown fond of the thing. Nick had woven it himself, and I thought it was much nicer than those leather slave collars they sell online. "Knew I could get you spitting fire again without much effort." He took the helm himself. "Get your camera. I think it's time you finished your assignment for that website back in Boston, don't you?"
"I took some great exclusive photos of the treasure," I reminded him. "Not to mention all those lovely shots of the artifacts you crooks stole. Or didn't steal."
"Coming about," he warned, bringing the bow across the wind. "Mind the sail, will you, crew? We're gonna bring this boat in for a landing on the ancient Trojan shores."
Actually, since the site was a couple of miles inland, we had to hike a bit before we came to the ruins of the fabled city. And, after the wondrous inner chamber of the cave on Golden Dolphin Island, Troy was a bit of an anticlimax. The Turks had erected a replica of the Trojan Horse near the entrance to the site, but nothing was left of the city itself except some grassy mounds and the rough stone walls that marked the various levels of the excavations.
"How the mighty are fallen," I said sadly as I focused my camera and photographed what little remained of Homer's "holy citadel." Hand in hand, we walked around the deserted grounds. "There aren't even any tourists here."
"No," Nick agreed, slipping an arm around my waist and squeezing. "We have the place all to ourselves." He pushed aside the hair at the back of my neck and nuzzled me. "Very tempting. Why don't we stroll over to that grassy mound and rest for a while?"
"Rest?" I laughed.
"Yeah. I feel a headache coming on. Concussions take a while to get better, you know." He feigned a look of lassitude and his hand moved up to brush across my breast. I felt my nipples harden instantly. "I need a lotta rest."
"Stop. Someone might see us."
"Who? The ghost of King Priam?"
"Think of it," I said, swiping his hand away. "Lots of people died here."
"Lots of people made love here, too, canim." He took my hand and led me toward the grassy mound in question, which was sheltered by a scrubby bush. He dropped to his knees and pulled me down beside him. "It's time, fair Helen, to show me what it took to launch those thousand ships. Your namesake must have had something more than a pretty face going for her to start a war that lasted ten years and destroyed one of the greatest cities in the ancient world." He wrapped his arms around me and delivered a series of devastating kisses. "I'm going to fuck you in this ancient spot."
"We really shouldn't," I said as he laid me back in the stubby grass and brought his golden body down on mine.
"Shame on us."
"It's not what I had in mind when I, uh—" I squirmed a little as he raised my skirt and treated me to the wicked enticement of leather against my bare skin "—planned this pilgrimage."
"No? Well, pet, your Dom doesn't give a shit about your plan at the moment; it's time to follow mine."
I laughed. He'd already taught me quite a bit about his kinky lifestyle, and I'd enjoyed every minute. Still, I protested a little, just for fun, as I felt my panties slip away. "Don't."
"Don't?" he repeated, chuckling softly. "Wrong response, slave. Say 'yes, master, harder, master.'" He stroked me until I grew slick and hot and ready.
"Yes, master," I whispered.
"Seni seviyorum," he told me. I love you.
"Ben de seni seviyorum." I love you, too.
Somewhat later, when we sat up and rearranged our clothing, I stretched and said, "You know, with my claustrophobia and all, I never thought I'd be so relaxed in the presence of anything vaguely resembling excavations. I asked my mother when I called her from Izmir why we'd never talked about that pyramid we were trapped in. She said she thought I'd been too young to remember. She felt guilty when she heard how anxious I had been, and for how long."
"So the idea of puttering around in archeological excavations doesn't scare you anymore?"
"Not after I faced crawling through that tunnel. I think that burned my fear away."
"It's always better to face things. To acknowledge the bad stuff in life."
I suspected he was referring to his own stuff as much as mine. There was still a lot I didn't know about the man who was now my boyfriend, but he was slowly opening up to me.
I hugged him hard. "I love you so much."
"It doesn't matter to you that I'm just an ordinary archaeologist, specializing in archaic linguistics, rather than some sort of badass criminal?"
"Not at all. I left home hoping for an adventure, but I got rather more than I'd expected."
"We can still have adventures. Let's just try not coming so close to getting ourselves killed."
"I'll raise a glass to that."
He wound a long lock of my hair around his fingers and said, "We make a good team, don't we, you and I?"
"The best."
"I'm asking you to stay with me, Ellie."
I laughed. "Wow, you're asking? You're not ordering me to stay with you? How times have changed!"
"Imp. There'll be punishment coming for that." He slapped my ass. I sighed. It felt good. "But we'd better return to the yacht first, before we get arrested again."
"Are you kidnapping me?"
He rose to his feet, swooped down, and dragged me to my feet. "Don't even think about trying to escape. I'll be tying you to my bed when we get back to the boat. No way I'm ever letting you go."
Well, hey. That sounded
good to me.
THE END
Author's Note:
If you want to meet some of Nick's friends, check out Linda's previous romance, Blazing Nights or her short story, A Kiss is Just a Kiss. Other stories about this circle of friends will be released over the next few months in Nocturnal (Max's story) and The Dangerous Hero (Stephen's story). Jeff's story, current untitled, will follow.
Linda's popular Scottish Shifters romance, The Zrakon's Bride, is currently available.
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Linda's website: http://www.lindabarlow.com
Linda's Bio
Linda Barlow is the bestselling author of 23 novels, with more on the way. She lives in New England with her kinky spouse (who sleeps during the day, which has often made her wonder if he's a vampire) and their equally enigmatic and nocturnal cat.
Her novel Leaves of Fortune won the Rita Award from Romance Writers of America, and Fires of Destiny was a finalist for the same award. She loves reading, writing, computer games, and dark chocolate.
Linda lived and worked in Turkey for several years, and keeps up her Turkish by watching her beloved Turkish soap operas on the internet. She has visited the ancient site of Troy on the Turkish Aegean coast. But Golden Dolphin Island and the lost treasures of Troy are the products of her very active imagination.