by Pharaoh
Hathor laughed. “I do not know. I am not privy to what goes on at this type of ceremony, but whatever the former pharaohs have done has worked so far.”
Several weeks? Zuri busied her bottom lip with her teeth. What was she going to do with herself until then?
* * * *
All her worries were for naught. Hathor kept her busy with her readings and worship to pass the time away. By the fifth week, she was well versed in the many gods and goddesses the Egyptians prayed to. She had also begun to assume the duty as queen, talking and listening to the complaints of the people and passing down judgment, and working with one of the lesser viziers to collect taxes. By the end of the third week, she was a household name, and then had begun posing for statues of her likeness. Once a week, she had to hold court, dressed in her royal finery, which she thought, was a bit much. In her hands, she held a crook and a flail. Upon her head sat a golden nemes headdress. The gown chosen for her by Bast was blue and fit her like a glove from her breasts down to her ankles, which made walking quite difficult.
“You look powerful.”
Zuri opened her eyes and looked down from her throne. Asar knelt before her.
“Rise, grand vizier. Why are you gracing me with your presence?”
“I think it is time for us to talk.”
“Careful, someone might be listening.”
“I am well aware of that. I have lived here a lot longer than you.”
“What do you wish to talk about?”
“Us.”
“There is no us.”
He walked up and sat down next to her, one of the privileges of the grand vizier. “If saying that helps you make it through the night, then fine.”
“Is that sarcasm?”
“No.” He touched her hand, and she pulled it away.
“I can have you executed for that.”
“Get in line. I have already been threatened.”
“But, unlike Khai, I may actually have it carried out.”
“Why would you kill me?”
Zuri smiled. “Years and years of teasing and torture of my person.”
“We were kids, and it was the only way I knew to get your attention.”
“You have my attention now. Speak.”
“I think I am in love with you.”
Those were not the words she wanted to hear. “It cannot be.”
“Why?”
“Because I am the wife of pharaoh.”
“Do you love him?”
“Yes.”
“Honestly.”
“Yes.”
Asar sighed. “I promised my grandfather that I would not make a scene, that I would bow out gracefully if I thought you did not desire me as well.”
“I do not desire you.”
“Liar.”
Zuri put down her regalia and stretched the kinks out of her arm. “What do you wish me to say, that I have fantasized about you every night since I saw you naked in the bath? Or that I wonder what it would be like to have you hold me in your arms?”
Asar gazed at her. “Yes.”
“Women have died from such thoughts. Khai would kill both of us.”
“What does he make of all of this?”
“He offered me you if I would return with him to Thebes.”
Asar looked at her questioningly. “What?”
“He said I could bed both of you if I wished.”
“That is most generous of him. I have never shared a woman before.”
“Nor will you ever. I know my husband. He would say anything to make me happy, even lie.”
“You do not think that he means to keep his promise?”
“He has shown me that he will not. I am his.”
“He does not own you.”
Zuri nodded. “Body and soul.”
“You have changed. You do not sound like the same little independent princess that I grew up with.”
“I have grown up these last couple of weeks. I have responsibilities. I am queen of Egypt.”
“You are a beautiful, desirable young woman who deserves more.”
“I cannot, no matter if I want to.”
“What am I supposed to do?”
“Find comfort in my cousin’s arms. I hear she is quite smitten with you.”
“It is not the same. She is not you.” He rose and bowed. “I leave you to your duty.”
Zuri watched him walk proudly out of the throne room, taking with him any chance she had of appeasing her curiosity.
* * * *
Furaha waited for him in the halls as he made his way to his room. “You look down.”
“I am tired.”
“Did my cousin turn you away?”
Asar kept walking. “I do not know what you mean.”
“Did you go to her and throw yourself at her feet, begging her to take you to her bed?”
Asar turned quickly and grabbed Furaha by the throat. “Do not say such things. Khai is my best friend. I would never cross that line.” He released her.
Furaha rubbed her throat. “Do what you will to me, but it will not change anything between the two of you. You cannot have her. She is a married woman.”
“I do not know who has been filling your head with such nonsense.” He entered his rooms, and she followed him.
“I am not blind. I see the way you look at her.”
“I have eyes, and she is a beautiful woman, but that does not mean that I want to take her to my bed.”
“You have been in love with her since she was a child. Zuri is blind and naïve, an innocent, and you are living in a dream world if you think that she will dishonor her marriage. She is foremost a princess of Nubia. She has her pride.”
Asar backed her up to a wall. “You are also a princess of Nubia, but you show no hesitancy when it comes to what you want.”
“I consider myself more liberal than my cousins. I know what I want, and I go after it.”
He stroked her face. “What do you want, fair princess? Would you like me to woo Zuri away from Khai so that you can have him?”
Furaha laughed and pulled away from him. “No, but the thought has crossed my mind. I do not wish to be queen. I want to be the bride of the Grand Vizier.”
Asar choked. “You what?”
“Make me your wife, and I will help you forget her.”
Asar looked down on her beautiful face. “What is in it for me?”
“My undying love and admiration.”
He shoved her aside. “I can get that from any woman in the harem.”
“I can give you power, make you a prince of Nubia.”
Asar thought about it. “Now that is tempting, but I do not see how I can be both grand vizier for Egypt and a prince of Nubia.”
“You can be both, and you will not have to worry about losing your head for dallying with my cousin.”
A simple fix. If he was married to Furaha, he would not have time to think of Zuri. “I suppose you would want one of those long, drawn-out courtships. What is it, forty days?”
Furaha shook her head. “That is too long for me to wait. Something simple done here at the palace.”
Asar scratched his chin. “We shall be wed as soon as Khai returns.”
Furaha threw her arms around his neck and kissed him. “You will not be sorry. I will help you forget her.” She scurried out of the room.
Asar dropped down on his bed. “I doubt that.”
* * * *
“You’re doing what and marrying who?” Zuri asked Furaha the next day when her cousin paid her a visit. The two women sat submerged in a bath in Khai’s suite.
“Asar has asked me to marry him, and I have accepted.”
Zuri gulped. It sounded like a trick. “When is this to take place?”
“As soon as Khai returns. Asar wants him to be there.”
Zuri swam a lap and came back to her cousin. “I had no idea that things had progressed so swiftly between you and him. Are you sure his intentions are honest.” She fo
und it all so hard to believe since Asar had just confessed his love for her.
“He is on his way to Nubia to speak to my parents. He left late last night.”
“I am glad for you. He will make you a good husband.”
“And take the heat off of you.”
Zuri’s head sprang up. “Pardon me?”
“I am not blaming you. I know that Asar is in love with you.”
Zuri did not try to deny it. “Yet you have agreed to marry him. Why?”
“Believe it or not, I love him.”
It was hard to believe that her cousin loved anyone but herself. “What do you love about him?”
“He is smart, and witty, and unscrupulous.”
“Almost admirable qualities. He is also a womanizer.”
“He has not taken another woman to his bed since I returned.”
“How can you be sure of this?”
“Because he told me he hasn’t.”
“And you believe him?”
Furaha chuckled. “I do not give him time to stray. I know what it takes to keep him satisfied.” She lifted her breasts. “He loves these.”
Zuri blushed at her cousin’s blatant honesty.
“He is a breast man?”
Furaha nodded and stared at Zuri. “I certainly see why he admires you. Your breasts are huge. I do not remember them being that way.”
“Leave it to you to notice.”
“Huh?”
Zuri shied away.
“Oh my, you are not…”
“About two months. No one knows except me and now you.”
“Khai’s?”
Zuri frowned at her. “Of course.”
Furaha giggled. “Little Zuri is going to have a baby.”
“Promise me that you will not tell anyone. Not even Asar.”
“You do not have to worry about that. It might depress him to know that he has been wrong about you all this time. I am sorry that I have felt ill toward you because I thought he preferred you to me.”
“How can you think such a thing? The man has been an irritant to me for years.”
“But can you find it in your heart to try to like him? He is going to be my husband.”
Zuri nodded. “I think I can do that.”
“Good. Will you come to visit when he returns?”
Zuri agreed. “Just let me know when.”
Furaha climbed out of the pool, unashamed of her nakedness. “I better get going. I have a wedding to plan.” She donned her robes and hurried out of the bath.
Zuri swam another lap, not believing what she just heard. “Oh well.”
Chapter Thirteen
Khai looked down at his bride as she slept peacefully in her bed. He lifted her gently into his arms and carried her up the flight of stairs that led to his suite. Once there, he put her in his bed and went off to the baths. She looked like a little lamb. He inched into the bed and gently kissed her on her forehead.
Zuri’s eyes opened slowly. “Khai?”
“Hello, beautiful one.”
She sat up. “When did you return?”
“Not long ago.”
Zuri looked around. “I am not in my room.”
“You walk in your sleep.”
“I do not.”
He chuckled. “No, I carried you up here when I returned. I could not bear having you that far away from me.”
Zuri snuggled against him. “You could have taken me with you.”
“True, but you would have been bored.”
“Not really, as long as I was with you.”
Khai moved her out of his arms. “Why the sudden change?”
“I am in a jovial mood.”
“Any reason in particular?”
“There is to be a wedding.”
“Yes, I know Najre and Chitemo.”
“No. Asar and Furaha.”
“No.”
“Yes. They are in love and have been waiting for your return so they can have their ceremony.”
Khai stepped back off the bed. “I do not believe it. Asar is plotting something.”
Zuri watched. “I thought so, too, in the beginning, but they are in love.”
He sat back down. “Has he tried anything?”
“No. We had a long talk. I explained to him that I would have him executed if he did.”
“Ouch. The power has gone to your head.”
Zuri stretched. “I took care of the problem. He is out of love with me and in love with my cousin. It is a win-win situation for everyone.”
Khai did not believe it since he knew Asar better than anyone. “When did the two of you have this conversation?”
“A couple of weeks ago. I was in the throne room, and he walked in. He wanted to talk, so I let him get it off his chest.”
“Did you get it off your chest?”
“Do not mess with the joy I am experiencing upon your return.” She stepped off of the bed and headed toward the window. She looked out. “I am not in love with Asar. I will not lie to you. I was curious. I think it is the dangerous side of him or the rumors, but that is all it was.”
“Are you sure?”
“Did I make you honor your promise to me?”
Khai smiled smugly. “You are never going to let me live that down, are you?”
“No. I think that is when I really knew that you loved me. Only a man in love would make such an offer.”
He watched her breasts rise and fall in the white gown. He rubbed his eyes. Either he had been gone a long time or her body was changing. It seemed fuller, rounder in all the right places. He had to see her. “Come to bed, my queen.”
Zuri walked to the bed, climbed on hesitantly and then laid down on the pillow.
Khai lowered his head and kissed her, gently at first, and then with passion. He ran his hand over her breasts. “I have missed you.”
“I have missed you too.”
Khai peeled the gown down her shoulders, revealing her breasts. They looked swollen. He touched one of the nipples, and she flinched. “Is something wrong?”
“They are just tender.”
“Are you having your womanly cycle?”
“No.”
He continued to move the gown down, revealing more and more succulent brown flesh. The breadth of her hips was wider than he remembered. Egyptian food must agree with her. He removed the gown and tossed it on the floor and then lowered his head to her breasts, gently running his tongue over the nipple.
Zuri moaned. “It is so sensitive.”
Khai removed his lips. “Your breasts are bigger than I remember, and the nipples are darker.”
“It has been a long time since you’ve seen them.”
Khai cupped one of them in his palm. It filled it and flowed over. There was definitely a difference, not that he was complaining. He traced the line of hair that ran from her sternum to her pubic area. The fine hair was noticeably darker.
Zuri crossed and uncrossed her legs.
It was evil of him to tease her so. He bent over and kissed her again. “I am ready to service you.”
He crawled down to the bottom of the bed and spread her legs. Her womanhood peeked at him. The color had changed. It was a darker shade of brown. He licked his lips. He buried his face, inhaling her essence. Clean and perfumed. He put his lips against her, and she moaned. He inserted his tongue. She tasted womanly.
Moments later, he was buried inside of her, riding her. Zuri clung to him, scratching his back with her long nails. She was wet and giving back as much as he gave her. “I cannot get enough of you.”
“I am yours.” Her body trembled as she rolled her hips.
His body shuddered. Not yet.
“Ah, ah, ah.” Zuri bucked beneath him.
The pressure was too much for him. He moved his hips faster. “Ah.” His body stiffened, and then he shot deep inside of her. He hadn’t lasted long. The longing was just too great. He fell against her. “I feel like an immature whelp,” he said once they snuggled in
each other’s arms.
“What do you mean?”
“I did not last long once I was inside of you.”
“I did not notice.”
“Liar.”
Zuri giggled. “It does not matter. It is flattering that you missed me so.”
“That does nothing for my manhood.”
She rolled over on her side. “I tell you what. Get some rest and we can pick this up in the morning.”
“Are you dismissing me, my queen?”
“Yes. Rest. You will need all your strength for the next coming days.”
His head hit the pillow. Asar getting married. This he had to see to believe. There would be no marriage until they had a little talk. He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
* * * *
The two men faced each other the next morning in the grain fields just outside of the compound. Khai felt it was far enough away in case there was any bloodshed.
Asar bowed to him. “Welcome home, pharaoh.”
Khai nodded. “I hear congratulations are in order.”
Asar got down from his horse and tied it to a nearby tree. “So you have heard the good news?” He walked over to face him.
“Yes, Zuri filled me in last night while we were in bed.” He waited for a response.
“Good. Furaha has been anxiously awaiting your return so we can be married.”
Khai studied his face for some sign of trickery but found none. “What has brought this about?”
“What, the marriage or the relationship?”
“Both.
“A conversation. I find we have a lot in common, and then one thing led to another, and she proposed to me.”
Khai raised an eyebrow. “She proposed?”
Asar laughed. “Yes, it took me by surprise, too. Of all the things that could have come out of that sharp little mouth, a proposal was the last thing I expected.”
“But you accepted.”
“I felt it was the best thing to do under current circumstances.”
“Meaning?”
“That Zuri is married to you and out of my reach.”
Khai bristled. “Marrying Furaha will not erase the fact that you are in love with another woman. In fact, it is quite selfish of you to lead her on this way.”
He paced. “I knew you would see it this way. Furaha knows all about my feelings for Zuri. Hell, everyone in the palace knows that I desire her, but I will never act upon it.” He grabbed Khai by the arms. “I have loved you like a brother for years. I would never betray you.” He removed his hands. “Furaha will make me happy, and she will make me forget.”