by Sherry Ewing
“Call it what you will, but you will not be dipping skinny again, unless ’tis just the two of us. I will not share your beauty with any other.”
She laughed whole heartedly at his words. “Well, when you put it in such a romantic fashion as that, how could a girl go against such a lovely request?”
The smile she gave him disarmed him to his very core. Afore common sense could prevail, he grabbed her about her waist and brought them chest to chest. She gasped as they made contact, skin to skin. She lovingly wound her arms around his neck. He swore she gave him the most seductive purr he had ever heard in his entire life. ’Twas most pleasing to his ears.
“Do you feel it, Riorden?” she asked huskily.
He gave a brief laugh, since he certainly felt all kinds of sensations, especially a part of him rising to the occasion. “What?” he asked. He easily held her with one arm whilst his free hand moved a stray lock of wet hair from her face.
“Your heartbeat next to mine,” Katherine whispered, ever so softly.
He was momentarily startled at her words until the reality of them hit him full force. They were actually his own words spoken from his heart when they were both nothing more than shadows of what might have been. It humbled him whilst he did indeed feel her steady heartbeat next to his own. They were no longer ghosts, but flesh and blood. She had crossed time for him, and he vowed he would keep her forever by his side.
“Aye, my dearest Katherine, I feel it, too,” he replied profoundly, and watched in fascination whilst the pulse at her throat ticked rapidly. He was pleased to know he had such an effect on her, since the same held true of him. He felt her clasp her arms around his neck more fully as she molded her body to his own. It was almost his undoing.
“Isn’t it wonderful when dreams come true,” she added whilst she began to trace the planes of his face.
Riorden trembled beneath her gentle touch. “Aye, my lady, ’tis indeed most wondrous.”
“Will you do me a favor?” Katherine asked timidly.
“Aye, my lady, anything you wish. I am yours to command.”
“Anything?”
“Aye.” He did not trust himself with an attempt at a longer response whilst she looked at him with those scorching aquamarine eyes.
“Then kiss me,” she begged. Her words lingered in the air between them. “Please…”
His resolve to remain a gentleman vanished abruptly with her plea. His head swooped down and his mouth took possession of hers in a ravenous kiss. ’Twas as if he was starving, and only she could satisfy his hunger. His tongue plunged into her mouth and danced in tune with hers. He moaned at the contact. She moaned in response. His hands roamed down her backside and brought her closer, if that was at all humanly possible. He felt every glorious inch of her and knew in his heart he had found his soul mate. She was the other half of him, making him complete. She was what he had always been missing in his life. She was perfect for him, and she was his.
He deepened their kiss and felt as if time no longer had meaning to them. Time. He vowed Time would not steal her back and take her from his life. He broke their kiss. She took his lower lip and gave it a small nibble. Merde! Where did she learn to be such a seductress?
He reluctantly began to lower her back down the length of him, never taking his eyes from hers. He could tell by the look she gave him, she was disappointed. Wondering what she would do next, he had to remember to inhale when she surprised him by reaching out her hands to place them on his chest. He gave a sharp intake of breath as air rushed into his lungs whilst her fingers began to slowly explore his muscles, moving ever downward on his stomach.
“My God. You must be the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen,” she murmured in awe, biting her lower lip.
’Twas taking everything within him not to smother that delicious mouth of hers in another searing kiss. “A man cannot be called beautiful, my lady,” Riorden managed to choke out.
Katherine stopped her fingertips and laid her palms fully upon him. He sucked in his breath yet again, when she leveled her exquisite bluish-green eyes on him. “Oh, but you are…” Her words trailed off and hovered between them. She gave a tiny smile that could only be termed intimate before she continued touching him.
He could stand no more of her exquisite torture and made a grab for her hands, holding them playfully behind her back. A grin formed at the corners of his mouth, and he heard the sigh that escaped her.
Katherine’s eyes reflected a teasing gleam as she licked her lips once more. Wiggling her arms, he released them, and she placed her hands upon his shoulders.
“Will you think me too bold if I speak my mind?” she asked hesitantly.
He chuckled. “Kat…you stand next to me, naked as the day you came into this world, and you are afraid to speak your mind else I think you too bold? What is it you wish to say to me?”
She did not wait long afore giving him her answer that sounded more like a soft caress. “I want you. Now…today…for all of our tomorrows…”
’Twas a simple heartfelt statement, and he did not doubt her words. “As I want you, Katherine. For all of ever.”
“Then make love to me, Riorden, I beg of you,” she purred with so much hope in her voice as she held her breath waiting for his answer.
“Katherine─” He knew she felt his hesitation. Disappointment and hurt flashed briefly in her features afore she hid her face from him. ’Twas as if he had broken her spirit.
She shook her head, as if she did not want to hear what he had to say. “I see. I certainly understand if you don’t want to make love to me. I’m sure you’re used to women who are far more beautiful than me, flinging themselves at you.”
Riorden watched her arms drop from his shoulders in defeat until she gathered his cloak around her body, suddenly embarrassed at her lack of clothing. She started to back away from him, but he gathered her close again so her ear was now pushed to his chest.
“You are beautiful to me, and that is all that matters. Your loveliness even outshines the heavenly stars lit in the moonlit sky,” he replied, caressing her hair.
She gave a startled gasp at his words and raised her head to stare at him, her eyes opened wide. “No one has ever said anything like that to me before.”
“Then I am glad, I am the first.” He leaned down and captured her lips in a fleeting kiss. “Time gave you to me. I have no intention of letting you return from whence you came.”
She began to run her fingers along his cheek again. “I don’t ever want to leave you.”
He gently pushed her head back down onto his chest. “Do not think even for one moment, I do not wish to make you mine in every way, ma cherie. Listen to my heart and hear how it beats for you. Do not doubt your beauty in my eyes, for there is nothing I would change in you. You are all to me, just the way God made you to be. I will treasure every day we have together and will gladly give all I have that you may share my life.”
“Then why not make love to me?”
He heard her teary whimper and tilted up her chin with his fingers until she looked on him again. He quickly placed a gentle kiss upon her lips. “When I make love to you, it shall be done properly, in a suitable setting when we are alone, and not with others in hearing distance. A man does so like to ensure his wife is well taken care of. I promise to devote myself entirely to the task that surely will require more than a few stolen moments in a pond.”
“Wife?” Her voice trembled with uncertainty that she heard him make such a proclamation.
“Aye.”
“Then you do find me attractive?”
A hearty laugh escaped him. “How could you doubt it, especially when all I saw whilst attempting to train was your very fetching backside diving into the water? I was so distracted, Danior almost lopped off my arm. You are lucky I still have a limb to hold you thusly, instead of a useless stump.”
She smiled radiantly at his words. “Then you do want me?”
He grew serious again. “If I want
ed you any more than I want you at this very moment, I would unman myself.”
“That won’t due.”
“Nay, it will not,” he said huskily and hoped his words appeased her hurt of a few moments afore. “Anymore afternoons like this one, and I will forever have to find a cold stream to plunge myself into, to put out the fire you kindle within me.”
They walked from the water and began collecting her clothes, and yet she still hesitated to break the connection between them. ’Twas obvious she still doubted his affection for her, or that he could want her so completely, given her expression of disbelief crossing her face. She placed her small hand on his arm and rubbed her thumb against his skin. Goosebumps from her touch ran up his flesh. ’Twas a reminder that she was sent to him from heaven above.
“You’re not just making fun of me, are you Riorden?” Katherine inquired apprehensively.
’Twas apparent, there was only one way to convince her. He took hold of her and inched her closer to his body until they could feel those strange currents radiating between them when they were together. Never breaking eye contact with her, he lowered his head and captured her lips. He bent her over his arm to more thoroughly dismantle whatever reservations she still might have that he did not care for her. He kissed her long, and he kissed her hard, until he finally let her come up for air. He took one look at her slightly swollen lips and knew he had done a suitable job. She steadied herself by reaching out to him for support.
He raised a brow at her. “Convinced?”
“Aye,” she said, and the smile she gave him reached into her beautiful eyes this time with a confidence he was happy to see.
He nodded with her answer. “’Tis a good and proper response you give, for a woman who will now find herself residing in the twelfth century. Now go put on your garments and come meet me by the fire. There is much our group must needs discuss afore this night is at an end.”
Intrigued when she crooked her finger at him, he leaned down to hear her words. Instead, he felt her hand reach behind his head and she gave him one last gentle kiss. He watched as her eyelids fluttered open and shyness finally overcame her. A giggle, much like those of her lady friend Juliana, escaped her lips. Riorden joined in her laughter as he sent her off a discrete distance to dress.
Riorden picked up his sword he had hastily thrown to the ground and buckled the belt that hung low on his hips. He brushed his mouth with his hand, still feeling Katherine’s lips on his own. A devilish grin broke out on his face as he made his way to the fire to await his spectacular lady. He shook his head, thinking of what fate had graced him with, when it sent him a temptress for his future wife. He prayed Katherine was ready for all that being his lady would entail. For little did she know it, but she had awoken the lion in him. Given enough time together, he would see to it that she never doubted his affection for her...ever again.
Chapter 22
Katherine felt Riorden give her hand a reassuring squeeze. She returned it in kind and gave him a hesitant smile. She could feel the rough calluses on his palm and fingers from years of training and holding a sword. From time to time throughout the evening, she couldn’t stop herself from glancing at its golden hilt where the blue, sapphire stone winked at her from the glow of the firelight. She could only imagine the continuous danger he had put himself in over the years that caused his need for constant training. To fight, to go to war, to kill without thought, or to survive. She shuddered at the peril he had endured and knew he surely thought nothing of it, since it was a part of his way of life. She would have to get used to it, as well, if it was to become a part of hers.
She supposed it spoke volumes he still sat next to her and hadn’t bolted. She surmised that the fact the other four medieval men remained seated, as well, listening to the unfathomable tale of time and fate she imparted, said the same of them. From their expressions, however, she wasn’t sure they weren’t actually ready to get on their horses and ride as fast and far as the wind would carry them to any other destination than their current location. At least Riorden already understood, at least as much as was humanly possible, the unbelievable miracle that had brought four women eight hundred years into the past. He had, after all, had a conversation with a ghost several times, a ghost that had become flesh and blood, so what was there not to believe? And yet, it was a lot to take in over dinner and a campfire.
She thought of how the men had all grimaced when they learned to what lengths the women had gone to ensure Tiernan’s escape. Aiden, in particular, had scowled at Emily ferociously, and it had appeared to take everything within his power to remain in control. Katherine wasn’t exactly sure if Aiden wouldn’t like to just grab a hold of her friend and turn her over his knee for a good old fashioned spanking. It was either that, or perhaps kiss her for her foolishness. Either one wouldn’t have gone over well with Emily, given, it was Katherine’s belief, that the only one Em wished to be kissing was Tiernan.
Telling Riorden of Tiernan’s escape was almost easier than she thought it would be, especially with her last dream still haunting her. Attempting to tell them of how they had gotten here, which to be honest was still a huge stretch of the imagination, was, in fact, more difficult. The women could hardly believe it themselves. What they held in their purses would be even more startling.
“I know it’s not easy to believe something like this can happen. I only know that it did. Call it fate. Call it God answering my prayers. Call it whatever you want…and yet, here we are, sitting with you fine gentlemen in a time not our own,” Katherine said quietly to the group. She looked up into Riorden’s handsome face and reached up to gently caress his cheek. He placed a kiss within her palm before clasping her hand again with his own. “I can’t say that I’m sorry, for obvious reasons.”
“Mayhap, ’twas faeries!” Patrick exclaimed excitedly. “I hear they can be most mischievous creatures, if they want to be.”
Aiden laughed at his brother’s words. “Maybe I shall go back to Bamburgh and see if these faeries will take me to your future. I can only imagine what wonders your modern times may hold!”
Riorden smirked at Aiden’s enthusiasm for time travel. “Do not even think of tempting Fate, my young friend. Besides...your sister would kill you, and me, if you attempt such a phenomenon. I would not wish to answer to Dristan, either, truth be told, of your disappearance.”
“Well…mayhap you have that aright,” Aiden said glumly, turning his attention to Katherine. “Perchance you have something you can show us instead?”
“Is that a good idea?” Danior questioned. “Too much information is sometimes not a good thing.”
The women exchanged knowing looks over the flames of the fire and laughed.
“It’s good to know, that even through time, some beliefs don’t change,” Brianna chimed in. At Gavin’s puzzled gaze, she continued. “We pretty much have the same thoughts in our day.”
Gavin nodded and reached out for her hand. She took it without hesitation. “Do you wish to go home? Go back to your time, I mean?” he asked, as if afraid of her answer.
Katherine observed Brie’s smile fade and could almost imagine her thoughts running amuck in her head as she gazed at Gavin. Handsome, strong, a living and breathing knight with chivalry ingrained into his very soul. He was someone Brianna could fall head over heels in love with, if the opportunity presented itself, or so Katherine thought. What was there not to like about the man who sat next to her friend, waiting with baited breath for Briana’s response to his question?
“I don’t know if that’s even possible,” Brianna whispered, with a small catch to her voice.
“But if it were, would you want to go back?”
Katherine’s breath caught at the look that quickly passed between the couple, for it was almost as if she had eavesdropped on a private conversation between two souls.
“I think I’d rather stay here with you,” Brianna declared, letting her answer linger between them. It apparently pleased him, since he plac
ed a kiss on the back of her hand, and she sighed at such a lovely gesture of gallantry.
It appeared as if Danior and Juliana were having the exact same dilemma racing through their hearts, especially given the stolen glances they continually gave one another. Katherine watched as Danior finally gave in to the battle within him and opened his arms to Jewels. She didn’t hesitate and rushed into his embrace. Silence surrounded them. At least, Jewels wasn’t embarrassing herself by laughing at something only she found amusing.
Juliana placed her hand over his heart and Danior covered it with his own. Katherine strained to hear her softly spoken words. “I’m so afraid for you, Danior.”
“Have no fear, my lady. All will be well,” he replied, placing a soft kiss on her forehead.
She lifted her gaze to his with tear filled eyes. “But, the king…”
He smiled and leaned forward. “Let me worry about the king, Lady Juliana.” He kissed her. Juliana didn’t seem to mind, her contented sigh told Katherine.
Emily, on the other hand, was looking around at all the happy couples with a frown on her face. Katherine knew Emily was feeling left out. But then she saw Em make the mistake of casting a quick look at Aiden, who gazed on her as if he too thought she might favor his attentions. His brow rose up in a silent question that anyone with common sense could understand perfectly well. Emily shook her head no. Aiden ignored her and did the unthinkable. Before Emily knew what Aiden intended, he leaned forward and placed his lips on hers.
The moment their mouths made contact, their eyes flew wide open in shock and they froze in place, lip-locked and staring at one another with dismay. Then they quickly drew apart. Emily’s chest was heaving, and Katherine could tell, just by looking at her, that Em was not happy, at all. In fact, she looked completely grossed out. Her mouth formed a grim line and her eyes narrowed to meet his. He, too, had almost the same appalled expression.
“Yuck...that was disgusting! Don’t ever do that again,” Emily threatened, poking him in the chest with her finger at each word to ensure she got her point across.