by Traci E Hall
Unable to contain himself any longer, Raoul pulled her to him, not minding the spill of wine over his boots. “Your gown. Would you have it stained with wine and grass?”
Bella’s eyes twinkled. She kissed his forehead. “We had best take it off before I ruin it completely. And your tunic too. To be safe.”
He gladly lifted his arms, and Bella stood to pull his tunic over his head. He felt the rush of ocean air against his flushed skin and Bella’s intense gaze on his torso.
It was as if she studied him to commit his body to memory. He puffed out his chest, pulling her down to the blanket. He’d branded her every curve to his mind already. He’d know her skin blindfolded, by touch or violet scent alone. The taste of her mouth, the caress of her fingers over his fevered flesh. He’d never known anyone as intimately as he knew Bella.
Bella poured all of the truth of her desire into each kiss. Each touch she lavished on Raoul to make up for the lie between them. He’d openly told her what he wanted from her, and she’d yet to be so forthright.
Her hope was to leave him with this memory of her. If the truth should ever come to light of her spying activities, maybe Raoul would remember her honest caresses instead.
He was a man of deep integrity. A man she admired. A man her heart recognized as an equal partner.
Reaching out with trembling fingers, she pushed his dark curls back from his broad, tanned forehead, staring down into his smoldering black eyes. She dusted his face with feather-light kisses, not missing an inch of skin with her loving mouth. When she reached the warmth of his semi-parted lips, she pressed down and dove her tongue teasingly between his teeth.
His rasping breath as he answered her invitation to spar lit her desire. She shrugged out of her gown with his help, pulling and unlacing without releasing the lock of their battling mouths. Who could bring the other further faster?
Bella sighed as his tongue swept her mouth and then his teeth lightly nipped her lower lip, tugging before releasing the sensitive flesh. Pinpoints of liquid desire raced through her veins, pooling between her thighs as she kneeled beside him in her sheer undergown.
He leaned and captured her erect nipple beneath the lightweight chemise, sucking it to a hardened peak of need.
She reached for his chest, toying with the dark hair, taking little licks of his skin as she followed the onyx arrow down his abdomen to the waist of his pants.
“You are overgarbed, monsieur,” Bella whispered.
Raoul’s eyes were heavy lidded with want, and he rose in a languid motion, pulling off first his boots, then his breeches until he stood before her as naked as the day he’d come from the ocean like a god of old.
Bella understood what her body wanted as her inner muscles clenched with anticipation. Raoul had changed her aversion toward sex to a craving, just by showing her that the sensual act could be shared with mutual pleasure and no pain.
Still on her knees, Bella made her way across the blanket, her gaze on Raoul’s face before dropping to his groin. Scars of battle marked his muscular thighs, honorable scars for an honorable man. She lovingly traced each one with her lips.
Each kiss brought her closer to the prize. Raoul’s muscles jumped as she skimmed the head of his penis with her unbound hair. He groaned as she licked the tip, capturing the bead of salty moisture before parting her lips to take his heavy cock in her mouth.
“Bella, for God’s sake,” Raoul said, wrapping his hands in her hair as she stroked the length of him.
“Not for God, Raoul, but for you,” she said, feeling her feminine power expand as she loved him with her mouth.
“I would have you feel what you’ve created, Bella.” Raoul lifted her to her feet, taking off her undergown. He picked her up and wrapped her legs around his waist. Bella enjoyed the way their skin looked together, his dark and hers pale. His muscled chest contrasted with her soft curves, meant to give beneath his hardness.
Leaning against the stone wall of the cavern for balance, Raoul slowly slid her onto his shaft, and Bella’s desire spiraled closer to combustion as he stroked her from the inside, leaving no pleasure undiscovered. She heard herself moan but couldn’t stop the sound. His thrusts came faster. Harder. His thickness filled her until she couldn’t breathe, yet she couldn’t stop her hips from answering, wouldn’t stop until she heard him call her name. Just as she rode the final crest of agonizing joy, she felt him pull out, his head burrowed in her nape as he placed his weight against the wall, his seed spilling outside her body. No babes, as she’d asked. He’d remembered even in the throes of passion.
Love or lust. Whichever this was, it was worth any risk.
Bella was vibrantly aware of the slight breeze flowing over her naked flesh. She lay on her belly, staring out over the water with no one to see her but the mermaids.
Raoul rested his head in the small of her back, staring toward the blue sky.
There was so much to say that could never be said. Thank you for a lovely afternoon didn’t seem adequate. There was no promise to love forever. Forever was not an option. But if she could dream?
“I have an estate in England. We could run away and live there.”
“What would I do?” Raoul’s hair tickled her back as he moved his head.
“Bring Star and Serena. We could join the circus.”
“There is no battle in a circus.”
“You could learn to swallow fire.”
His rumbling laughter shook her body, and she lazily traced circles in the sand on the rock. She was dreaming. That was all.
“I could hide you away in my room,” Raoul said.
“I see. I offer an estate, and you want to keep me with the dust balls under your bed.” Bella exaggerated her exhale, knowing to keep things light. It would be the only chance she had to survive their separation without obliterating her suddenly tender heart. “Not a fair trade, monsieur.”
He turned, softly nibbling her thigh, using the pad of his thumb to draw a line over her rear. Though she was well sated, her body urged her to reconsider.
“I understand now why Sarah risked all to be with Jonathon. Feeling this deeply is a heady rush. I wonder if she knew he was married all along and just didn’t care.”
“I’ve never felt this way. I would hold you to me if I thought my arms would keep you,” Raoul said in a subdued tone. “I know you would not stay. I don’t have the courage to ask.”
Would she stay if he asked? Non. Her loyalty above all was to the queen. “Perhaps, when the Crusades are over, I will write to you. But you will probably have ten wives by then. And dozens of children.”
He sat up. “I will not marry. And the last thing I need is a Turkish harem.” Raoul stood. “Why must you finish this Crusade? Perhaps you can convince your queen that you and her ladies would all be better off at home, in France.”
She felt a chill and for the first time in hours wanted to cover up. “Why is that? Manuel has pledged his aid. We shall have food and a guide to see us toward Edessa. We’ve come this far. I hardly think we should stop now.”
He stepped forward, one hand in a fist as he scowled, but Bella knew she had nothing to fear from this man. “The hardest part of the journey lies ahead,” he warned.
“Harden your heart, Raoul. I am not yours to worry over.” She turned back on her belly to stare out over the water. There was no other answer. “We should go back. Reality beckons, and this lovely daydream must end.”
“Stay with me,” he said, kneeling at her side and kissing her lips. “A while longer.”
“We’ve done enough kissing to give us fond memories for a lifetime.” Bella stood and reached for her clothing. “And now you must do as you promised and arrange for the queen to meet with the emperor.”
CHAPTER 24
They walked back to the palace, Raoul a thundercloud waiting to burst, she an ice storm frozen against pain.
“Will you send word of the meeting?” Bella caught Raoul’s arm as he made to pass her into the palace wi
thout saying good-bye. He’d been quiet the entire walk, but there was nothing to say that would change their situation.
He looked at her hand until she dropped it from his arm. “I will send word to the queen.”
Bella exhaled. “I would know when the meeting is, so she is not truly alone. I promise you’ll not know I am there.”
“That wasn’t what I agreed to do.”
“Raoul,” Bella said with a slight tremble in her voice, “you would do the same for your liege.”
Raoul shook his head, his wild unruly black curls resting in front of his shoulders. His jaw clenched. “Fine. I will come for you. Chances are they will not meet until tomorrow.”
”We leave tomorrow.” Bella felt the urgency of the queen’s request.
“Perhaps not.” Raoul shrugged. “We’ve been away for hours. In this political climate, a lot could change.”
Bella dipped her head, knowing he spoke the truth. “Until later.” She paused. “Thank you for an afternoon I will never forget.”
His shoulders stiffened, and he looked away. Without a response, he stalked through the courtyard and up the wide marble staircase into the palace.
Her eyes stung, but there were no more words. And now was not the time for tears.
“Bella?”
She turned toward Sarah’s voice to see her friend sitting on a long bench next to Fay, soaking up the afternoon sun. “Hello. I didn’t see you sitting there.”
“Non.” Fay smiled. “You were engaged with a certain angry-looking man with gorgeous black hair.”
Sarah snorted. “Unkempt. He should tie it back.”
“It was tied.” Bella sighed. “He lost it.”
Fay peered at Bella, then studied her fingernails.
“I’ve decided not to hate Raoul. You like him, so there must be something good about him.” Sarah held her side where she’d been stabbed.
Bella looked at her with concern. “Are you in pain?”
“It itches, but I hate to complain. I could be dead, in addition to ruined.”
“Nobody thinks you are ruined,” Fay said.
“I’m glad. Have you talked to Jonathon since, well, everything?” Bella took a seat next to Sarah. What would her friend do if she shared her worries that her lover could be her attacker? Would Sarah nod because she had covered his ill deed, or would she blame Bella for even having such a thought about the man she loved?
“I’ve not seen him. He sent a generic message wishing all of us well, saying he missed his garden ladies. Nothing personal for me.”
“Perhaps the queen had him castrated. He could get a job as a eunuch here.” Fay bobbed her head.
Sarah paled. “Fay, don’t even jest about such things.”
“Sorry. Look there,” she said, pointing to a side door in the courtyard wall. “This place is riddled with hidden doors and secret rooms. I’ve found at least a dozen without trying.”
Bella followed the direction of Fay’s finger and saw Odo de Deuil talking with one of the royal slaves. Talking? Or bribing? “What is he up to?”
“I find him everywhere, his nose to the ground like a deerhound’s. He reports back to Thierry, who filters back what they learn to King Louis. Odo may be right, on a point or two, though it makes me ill to give him any due. Emperor Manuel is not the generous leader who wishes to support the Crusade. He’s making alliances with different tribes of Turks so that when he snaps his fingers, they all end up fighting one another instead of concentrating their efforts on him.”
“That sounds like smart strategy to me,” Sarah said.
Bella nodded. “If we were on the same side.”
Fay stared at the spot where Odo was talking with the slave. “I walked a bit this morning with the cousins after church services, and they said Empress Irene was upset at the way Manuel treated her kin Emperor Conrad. Not letting him stay in the city, as he has allowed us.”
“Because of the way the Germans treated his people. He did not control his army.”
“Sarah, that’s partly true,” Fay explained. “The other part is that the Greek towns did not honor their treaty to offer fair prices for food. They took the Germans’ coin and gave unfair value. They did the same with us, but we didn’t behave so poorly in retaliation, which is why, I think, Manuel relented and let us inside Constantinople.” Fay missed nothing.
“What I’m trying to say is that Odo rightly worries about whether or not Manuel will force his people to honor the treaty of the Crusade or if he will once again look the other way. This causes bad feelings between the locals and us, the Crusaders, when we are trying to bring good to the Holy Land. Odo doesn’t want Louis’s reputation smeared by Manuel double-crossing him.”
“Oh,” Bella said, suddenly understanding what goaded the little chaplain. A king’s reputation was at stake.
“I see.” Sarah sat up straighter. “Maybe once Odo is finished, I will go have a talk with the slave and see if he’s willing to take my coin too.”
“Good idea,” Fay said. “I’ve sent word to the queen that we have much to catch up on. I will wait here until I get a message in return.”
“Oh. Well, I was going to send a similar greeting, so I suppose I’ll wait here with you,” Bella said, settling in for a longer visit.
John Axuch, military commander and Mamie’s quest for the duration of their stay, suddenly came around the palace on the side closest to the water and the bridge. He shaded his eyes as if looking for someone, and when he saw nothing, he turned and went back where he’d come from.
“Odd,” Bella said to Fay.
“You stay here,” Fay ordered, already standing. “I will follow him to see what he is up to.”
Before Bella could protest, she was left alone on the bench in the courtyard. But it wasn’t long before Larissa, carrying a basket of darning over her arm, joined her. “Risky business, this.”
“Oh?” Bella raised a brow.
“Do not ‘oh’ me. If a certain someone is caught, it is treason. And for what? Her power-hungry, manipulative uncle who may or may not deliver on his promises.”
Bella stilled, valuing Larissa’s opinion. “Why would she do this if she were not certain of the outcome?”
“Raymond of Antioch is a charming bastard and sly as a hungry fox. He’s got a hold on this certain someone. Wish I could sever the hold like a knife through soft butter. But I cannot, so here I am, delivering a message to Fay, who was here a moment ago and then disappeared before my eyes.”
“She does that,” Bella said, absorbing Larissa’s keen observations.
“She’s calling a meeting in her rooms after vespers, before the party in her honor this evening.”
“Party?” Bella didn’t remember anything about a party.
“The empress is putting together dancing and food because it’s our last day here. Celebrating, most likely. Not that you asked my opinion, but I think Emperor Manuel respects King Louis, for his piety if nothing else.”
Bella looked at her own hands, pressed together in their habitual prayer form. “That might not be good for …” For the queen meeting the emperor in secret.
“I know it. A man might more harshly judge a woman who goes behind the back of someone he respects.”
It didn’t sound good no matter which way one looked at it. “It’s important to her, gathering lands and making Aquitaine bigger. Better.”
“Yes, and power hunger never gets assuaged. I love her, and I hate to see her unhappy, but she is not going about finding happiness the right way.” Larissa sniffed, then scowled. “But I’m just a peasant, raised to sew on buttons while we traipse across the Holy Land, so what do I know?” She picked up her basket and left.
Bella was more unsettled than ever as she waited for her companions to return.
Raoul found Manuel in his favorite chapel and waited outside the door until he finished praying. Manuel took off his heavy purple robe and gold crown and handed it over to two waiting slaves.
“R
aoul.” Manuel nodded in greeting.
“You must be weighted down with heavy thoughts if you are praying in your ceremonial robes. What miracle do you seek?”
”That is the longest sentence I think I’ve ever heard you say. This Lady Isabella must have loosened your tongue. Not too much, I hope.”
Raoul’s shoulders straightened at the emperor’s sly tone. “Did I offend you?”
“No, but when I look for my bodyguard a few days in a row only to find him chasing a bitch in heat, I must wonder where his loyalties lie.”
Raoul’s fists clenched. If it had been anyone other than Emperor Manuel, mouthpiece of God on Earth, he would have punched him in the nose. As it was, he gave a warning growl and flexed his hands. “With you. What did you need?”
“Oh, good. Back to short sentences.” Manuel tugged at his collar. “I received word that you wish to arrange a meeting with someone. A mystery someone. Is it that blonde angel who has caused us so much frustration?”
“About her.” Raoul sighed. “She is with child.”
“Not mine.”
Raoul rolled his eyes, knowing perfectly well the two had never so much as kissed. “A lover. Possibly a jealous lover.” And a killer. “I doubt the queen will make any further inquiries of us.”
Manuel shrugged. “Too bad. The Queen’s Guard has turned out to be Eleanor’s Whores, from that fiery redhead sucking the life’s blood from John’s cock, to your ebony-haired”—he paused without looking at Raoul—”lady. And the angel, pregnant and unwed. Stories of the queen’s escapades have reached my ears as well, so it is no surprise to find she lets her women run wild. Irene does not like it, and I am tired of listening to the woman go on about it. What about the other two women? The sprite and the chestnut-haired vixen?”
Raoul cleared his throat, swallowing his ire in favor of doing as Bella had asked. “Emperor Manuel, more discretion is called for in this meeting than ever before.”
Manuel turned and studied him. Raoul tried to give nothing away, but he was aware that Manuel knew him too well. “Christ’s bloody cross,” the emperor said, his mouth twisting. “The queen?”